Distribution: If you had permission to take any of my other stories, you can use this one as well. Just let me know where it's going. Others, just ask and I will most likely give permission.
Feedback: Please!!! Feedback is welcome. I'm not sure how this new series is going to be taken. I really need to know!
Disclaimer: All characters belong to Joss, the WB, Mutant Enemy, Sandollar, (the evil) FOX, and whoever else came up with them. If they belonged to me the show would be drastically different. Please don't sue, I'm only a high-schooler without a job anyways. All transcripts belong to the wonderful people who spend their time on them; I only borrowed them to make a few changes. Many say they're "copylefted" and that they may be used as needed or wanted by other fans. Those that don't I'm hoping the transcribers won't mind. In some cases I've altered the form that it was presented in and have changed things to fit my needs. Much of these stories are exactly the same as the episodes and are probably under direct copywrite by all the people and companies listed above. But I'm not making any money from this so I'm hoping they won't mind.
Rating: Same as the TV show
Spoilers: All fourth season really, just not exactly. You'll see what I mean...
Author's Notes: Okay, this is going to be interesting. I've decided that instead of rewriting season 4 in the same manner as I did season 3, I'm going to do this somewhat differently. I've gotten transcripts of every episode in the fourth season, and I'm going to alter, butcher, add and subtract from them to fit my needs. So the general stories are the same, but conversations have been added, removed, or changed to fit my B&A needs. Also, characters thoughts - especially Buffy's - have been added. Both the characters of Riley and Tara have been altered slightly and will play different roles in the series. And since I know many of you said you refused to watch the season anyway, it won't be like you're reading transcripts of something you've already seen. It'll be all new to you and much better than watching. And for those of you who have seen the episodes, try to figure out how much I've changed them. Some won't be changed much; some will be almost totally rewritten. Well, enjoy!
Oh, and a huge thanks to Nicola for being my beta-reader for this series. I've never had one before so I don't know if it's gonna help me or not, but we shall see. Thanks for taking the time Nicola!
This series was inspired by Ducks' comment, "Season Four? What do you mean, Season Four? There was a Season Four?"
My answer: "Yes, Ducks, there was a Season Four. And it goes like this...."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It's [college] turning out to be a lot like high school. -Buffy

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It's night in the cemetery and Buffy is pacing back and forth. Willow is seated cross-legged reading papers.

"Anything?" Buffy asked with a sigh.

"Ah! 'Introduction to the Modern Novel; a survey study of twentieth century novelists.' Open to freshmen, you might like that." Willow looked up at her hopefully.

"'Introduction to the Modern Novel'? I'm guessing I'd probably have to read the modern novel." Buffy said with a moan.

"Maybe more than one." Willow said.

"I like books. I just don't want to take on too much. Do they have an introduction to the modern blurb?"

"Oh! Short story." Willow looked at the list again.

"Well, that's good."

"Oh, no. It conflicts with Psych."

"Maybe I shouldn't take Psych." Buffy replied.

"You gotta. I-It's fun, and you can use it as your science requirement.

Anyway, Professor Walsh is supposed to be great. She's like, world-renowned." Willow told her friend.

"How do you get to be renowned? I mean, like, do you have to be 'nowned' first? "

"Yes, first there's the painful 'nowning' process. Wait! 'Images of Pop Culture.' This is good. T-They watch movies, T-TV shows, even commercials."

Buffy looked up. "For credit?"

"Heh. Isn't college cool?" Willow grinned at the Slayer.

"How'd I miss that one?" Buffy asked with a sigh, looking more than a little distracted.

Buffy walked over to sit beside Willow.

"Well, you did sort of wait till the last minute with your course selection."

"Sorry, 'Miss I-chose-my-major-in-playgroup'." Buffy groaned.

"That's an exaggeration. I just, you know, think it's good to be prepared. Don't want to be caught unawares."

Behind them a hand thrusts up out of a fresh grave.

"Well I've been busy! It's been a very slay-heavy summer. And I spent most of it angsting over..." Buffy looked at Willow sheepishly. She had been trying so hard to not think about him. "I just haven't had a whole lot of time to think about life at UC Sunnydale."

A vampire's head and shoulders emerge from the grave.

"It's exciting, though, isn't it?" Willow questioned, trying to help her friend keep her mind off of Angel.

"Yeah! It's gonna be an adjustment."

"Yeah, it's like, five miles away. It's uncharted territory."

The vampire struggles to climb up.

"Giles said I have to be secret-identity gal again." Buffy said softly.

"That makes sense."

The vampire makes it out of the grave and starts walking toward them, his face vamped out.

"It's gonna be tough, though...." Buffy replied uncertainly.

"Yeah."

"I'm psyched about college." Buffy replies, obviously feeling not so psyched.

The vampire smiles as he gets closer.

"Definitely." Buffy again tries to convince herself.

He stops as he sees weapons stacked against a gravestone.

"I just need to figure out how it's going to work with my extracurricular activities."

The vamp looks at Buffy, the smile gone.

"I just can't let it take the edge off my slaying." Buffy speaks again.

Shaking his head, the vampire turns and walks away.

"I gotta stay sharp." Buffy says as she looks behind her toward the fresh grave. "Is this guy ever gonna wake up?"

*

A while later, as school is now in session.

Buffy is standing in the middle of a quad with students milling all around her. She's looking around.

"FRESHMEN! WE'RE DOING THIS BY FOLDER COLOR! IF YOU'RE NOT HOLDING ON TO A YELLOW FOLDER, YOU'RE IN THE WRONG GROUP. YOU BELONG UP BY WIESMAN HALL." A volunteer is saying. She points.

Buffy looks at the folders in her arms but doesn't see a yellow one. She starts to walk in the indicated direction.

A girl is standing in front of banner that reads "THIS MUST STOP" and egging on a large crowd.

A student walks up and hands her a flier. "Rally, tomorrow night. We have to let the administration know how we feel." The student tells her.

"Yeah, right." Buffy responds as she tries to move on.

Another student hands her another flier.

"Have you accepted Jesus Christ as your personal savior?" The girl asks.

"Uh, you know I meant to and then I just got really busy." Buffy says unsteadily.

A third student hands her yet another flier.

"Party, Thursday at Alpha Delta, you gotta be there. Free Jello shots for freshman women."

"Hey, you guys know where Wiesman hall is?" Buffy tries to ask the frat boy who gave her the flyer, but he is already talking to someone else.

Buffy continues walking and Willow meets up with her.

"Buffy, Hey!"

"Oh, boy am I glad to see you. " Buffy smiles at Willow and links arms with her.

They continue walking.

"Isn't this cool? There's so much going on." Willow asks her friend.

"Yeah. Almost, one might say, too much."

"I got all my courses... except for 'Modern Poetry', I had to switch to 'Ethno-musicology.' But that's cool, West African drumming, I think it's going to change everything. Have you been up to our dorm yet? " "No." Buffy said, still grateful that she and Willow would be rooming together. At least she'd have Willow to help her through things.

"Me neither. I hope we got a cool room."

Buffy indicates the fliers in Willow's hands. "I see you got ticketed too."

"Yes! I've heard about five different issues and I'm angry about each and every one of them. What'd you get?" Willow asks with real interest.

"'Jello shots.' "

"I didn't get 'Jello shots'!" She picks a flier out and tries to hand it to Buffy. "I-I'll trade you for a-a 'Take Back the Night.' "Buffy hands over all her fliers with a smile.

"Are we heading anywhere near Wiesman Hall? I still need to get my I.D. card."

"Oh, I got mine this morning. The lines are really long now, you should have gone early." Willow says with a slight frown.

"Well, I hope that I learn from this experience, and that I grow." Buffy replies sarcastically.

"I'm being annoying, aren't I?"

"No, it's nice that you're excited."

"It's just in High School, knowledge was pretty much frowned upon. You really had to work to learn anything." Willow said with brimming enthusiasm. "But here, the energy, the collective intelligence, it's like this force, this penetrating force, and I can just feel my mind opening up--you know? --and letting this place thrust into and spurt knowledge into... That sentence ended up in a different place than it started out in."

"I'm with you, though, I'm all for spurty knowledge. It's just, a little overwhelming. Don't you feel it?" Buffy asked with a slight smile at her friend's antics.

"Well, I'm..." Willow began, then gasped. "Ooh, boyfriend! My on-campus boyfriend."

Oz comes up and he and Willow kiss.

"Oh no, I forgot to pick mine up. Line's probably really long there, too. "

Buffy was ignored.

"How are you?" Willow's attention was on Oz.

"Good. It's pretty much a madhouse, a madhouse."

"I know, I was just saying that to Willow. I mean it's just so overwhelming. Don't you feel completely disoriented?" Buffy tried again.

"Oz!" A boy calls out.

"Hey, Paul." Oz turns as the boy approaches them.

"Finally matriculating with us, very cool! Tell me you're playing this week!" Paul says.

"Thursday night, Alpha Delta." Oz says.

"Ooh!" Willow holds up a flier. "I have that one!"

"I'm bringing the wrecking crew. Jello shots? Hmm? Do you know where they're distributing the work study applications?" Paul said as they began to walk.

"Back of Richmond Hall, next to the auditorium."

"Thanks. See ya bro." He walks off.

"Go get'em." Oz then remembers what Buffy was talking about. "My band's played here a lot. It's still all new. I don't know what the hell's going on.

Hey, Doug!"

Buffy just rolls her eyes and feels left out.

*

Later, Buffy and Willow are indoors, walking along a hallway.

"Library... ooh! Library. C'mon." They start climbing a flight of stairs.

"It's too bad Giles can't be librarian here. Be convenient." Buffy said sadly.

They reach a landing and turn left to continue up another flight.

"Well, he says that he's enjoying being a gentleman of leisure."

"Gentleman of leisure? Isn't that just British for unemployed?"

"Uh-huh, he's a slacker now." Willow grinned.

"Speaking of slack, have you heard anything from Xander?" Buffy inquired.

"Not for a while, he's still on his cross-country-see-America thing. He said he wasn't coming back until he had driven to all fifty states." Willow had an odd look on her face.

"Did you explain about Hawaii?" Buffy's face held the same confused look.

"Oh, he seemed so determined."

"I hope he gets back soon. It'd be fun to have the whole gang back together--you know?--hanging out in the... library. Wow!" Buffy looked around in amazement.

They enter the library, a huge room with a vaulting cupola ceiling.

"Oh my gosh! Isn't this amazing?"

" It's... cozy."

" You know I never wanted to hurt Giles' feelings, but occult books aside, our old library just didn't have the greatest selection. But this!" Willow looked right at home.

"Yeah, this is great, you know, if we ever need a place for the Nuremberg rallies."

"This is a real library." Willow turns around guiltily as someone shushes them. "See we even have to whisper. It's like a whole new world."

*

The bookstore.

Students are milling about carrying books in shopping baskets. Buffy carries an arm full of books and Willow comes up with a basket. "Here."

"Thanks." Buffy says as she puts the books in the basket. "Can't wait till mom gets the bill for these books, I hope it's a funny aneurysm."

"'Introduction to Psychology.' Oh, up there." Buffy indicates three of four books stacked on the edge of the top of a bookshelf.

"I'll get'em." She looks up again. "You know, this store discriminates against short people."

"Oh, I think there's a protest next week." Willow thinks back to all the flyers.

Buffy reaches up and accidentally knocks the books off of the shelf. They crash towards the floor but fall on the head of a young man crouched underneath. He staggers back but recovers.

"Woah, oh. Oh, ahh. Oh god, I'm so sorry." Buffy babbles in embarrassment.

He stands up. "I'm okay. It's okay. Well, that was bracing." He stutters nervously.

"I'm so... the books were just too high, and then everything was bad." Buffy says as she bends down to pick up the books.

"Let me give you a hand." He bends down and picks up some books. "Let's put a few of these down here." He puts them on a lower shelf. "So, uh, are you girls taking Intro Psych, or do you just want me dead?"

Buffy looks as his cheesy grin and for a moment has trouble deciding between his two choices. "Uh-huh. I mean the first one." She says finally.

"Well, you'll have a lot of fun. Professor Walsh--she's quite a character."

"You've taken it?" Willow asked with interest, not noticing that Buffy looked like she wanted to get as far away from this guy as possible.

"I'm a TA, I'll be helping the Professor out. I'm sorry, I've forgotten my manners in all the concussion... I'm Riley." He extends his hand.

"Willow, and this is my friend Buffy." Willow says as she shook his hand.

"It's nice to meet you both."

"I'm nice to meet." Buffy says halfheartedly.

"Hey, do you know if we're going to be studying 'Operant Conditioning' in the first semester? 'Cause I hear that's kinda Professor Walsh's specialty."

"Absolutely. Do you know her treatise on Dietrichs work?"

"I've heard of it but never read it." Willow smiles at him.

"It's not in the syllabus, but it's a fascinating read... if you're in to that sort of thing. They have it here." Riley seems very excited.

"Oh, where?"

"I'll show you. I don't meet that many freshmen that know that much about psychology."

"Well, it's fascinating." Willow says honestly.

"Yeah, you know, 'cause everyone's got a brain." Buffy says.

Riley half-smiles and starts leading the way.

"Or, almost everyone."

Riley doesn't hear Buffy's last comment or if he does doesn't realize that it's aimed at him. He walks away with Willow trailing, leaving Buffy to ponder his little half-smile and how it in no way compares to the little smirks Angel always used to give her.

*

Dorm corridor.

Buffy and Willow work their way through milling students, both male and female. They slowly watch the dorm numbers and enter a dorm room with two beds and two desks.

They look slowly around before moving to put their things on their beds.

"So, it's... it's a pretty nice room." Buffy says finally.

"Yeah, 'cause you hear horror stories about freshmen housing." Willow grins as she walks around the room. "But this isn't bad."

"You want right or left?" Buffy grins.

"Doesn't matter."

"Okay." Buffy says as she puts her stuff down on the left bed. Willow starts to unpack her stuff on the right side of the room.

*

The next day Buffy is in a lecture hall while Professor Reegert gives his introductory lecture. "The point of this course is not to critique popular American culture. It is not to pick at it, or look down upon it. And it is not to watch videos for credit. The point is to examine..."

Buffy whispers to a student beside her, "Do you know if this class is full yet?"

"And there are two people talking at once, and I know that one of them is me. And the other is... a blonde girl. You, blonde girl. Stand up. I'm very excited to hear what you have to say that's worth interrupting my lecture for." The professor continues without a pause.

Buffy stands. "I was just asking if the class was still open, if I could still sign up."

Professor Reegert picks up a clipboard. "If your name isn't on this sheet then you are wasting everyone's time. Are you on the sheet?"

"They told me that if I just..." Buffy trails off.

"Do you understand? You are sucking energy from everyone in this room. They came here to learn. Get out!" The Professor yelled.

"I didn't mean to... suck." Despite herself, Buffy grins inwardly a little at his choice of words.

"Leave!" Buffy starts to leave and hears the professor say "Thank you." As she closes the door in her wake.

*

Buffy looks around in confusion a little while later and Riley comes up to her.

"If, uh, you're looking for Psych, it's through here." Riley points to his left.

"Oh, thanks." Buffy wants to dismiss him, but politeness makes her add,

"How's your head?"

"Sorry?" Riley asks in confusion, which it seems to Buffy is a state he's in a lot.

"Yesterday. In the bookstore. You don't remember." She's caught somewhere between disappointment that a guy failed to remember her and happiness that this dork wasn't interested in her at all.

"Oh no, sure, I remember you. You're Willow's friend."

"Yeah."

"My head is fine, it just stung for a bit and I lost most of my basic motor functions. It's no biggie." He tries to make a joke just as they're arriving at a room. "We're here. I'm sorry, I'm trying to remember you."

"Buffy." She smiles a little.

"Buffy, right. Have fun tonight, ok?"

"Thanks." Buffy starts toward the tiers and turns back. "You know, I was just wondering. Professor Walsh isn't planning on yelling at me and kicking me out of the class, is she?"

Riley looks at her a little oddly. "It's not in her lesson plan."

"Great." She turns back to the tiers and spots Willow and Oz. Willow waves to her and Buffy climbs up to sit beside her.

"How was pop culture?" Willow asks innocently.

"I decided not to take it. It seemed dull." Buffy whispers as Professor Walsh comes into the lecture hall and Riley hands her a sheet of paper. "Ok. This is Psych 105, 'Introduction to Psychology', I'm Professor Walsh. Those of you who fall under my good graces will come to know me as Maggie. Those of you who don't will come to know me by the name my TAs use and think I don't know about, 'The Evil Bitch Monster of Death.'" She grins slightly at Riley to show that she's only kidding. "Make no mistake, I run a hard class, I assign a lot of work, I talk fast and I expect you to keep up. If you're looking to coast I recommend 'Geology 101,' that's where the football players are."

Buffy looks slightly intimidated.

*

That night, classes finally done with, Buffy is walking around. She looks behind her and collides with another student.

"Ooh!"

"Wow, sorry." The boy says.

"No, I-I wasn't looking." Buffy apologizes.

"Did you, uh, lose your way?" He gives her a once-over.

"Me? Oh, no, no, I'm just going to Fischer Hall. Which I know is on the Earth planet. Recently voted 'Most Pathetic.' Uh-huh." Buffy smiles at him. Not nearly as cute as Angel, but he's not too bad.

"Hmm, well, I'm lost and I have a map." He holds it up. "So... "

"Ooh, I come in second. I'm Buffy, by the way."

"Eddie."

"Ok, so..." Buffy says as they both study the map. "That's Fischer Hall, right?"

"Ok, and this is Dunwirth Building, that's my dorm... it's just... it's us I can't find." Eddie says in confusion,

"Are we the blue part?"

"No... yes!"

"Ok, right, so I-I came from there, then we just wanna go that way," Buffy points, "to the bike path."

"You sound very certain, I'm in." As they start to walk Eddie sees the books

Buffy is carrying. "You're taking 'Psych 105' with Professor Walsh. So am I."

"Yeah, I mean, I'm gonna try. She's not afraid of the long words, huh?"

"Yeah, she's pretty intense. A lot of the courses are really tough." Eddie smiles.

"I'm a little upset. I had it on good authority that this was a party school." Buffy says in a serious tone.

"I think it's supposed to get easier."

"I still feel like carrying around a security blanket."

"'Of Human Bondage.' Have you ever read it?" Eddie asks her.

"Oh, I'm not really into porn... I mean I'm just... I'm trying to cut way back." Although Angel and me having a little bondage fun.....no. Buffy quickly cut off her thoughts. Angel wanted her to have a normal life and here she was talking to a nice normal boy. She knew she could never really love anybody else, but she could at least try to give Angel what he thought she wanted.

"No, there's no actual bondage, it's just a novel." Eddie was saying as he laughed. "I've read it, like, ten times. I always keep it by my bed ... security blanket."

" I don't really have a security blanket...unless you count Mr. Pointy." "Mr. Pointy?"

Buffy immediately realizes her mistake. "Oh, bike path. So it's nice to know that I'm not the only entirely confused person on this campus."

"I suspect there's a lot of us." He didn't press her about Mr. Pointy.

"Well, I'll look for you in Psych." Buffy says, relieved.

"Yeah, maybe we can help each other figure out what the hell they're talking about." Eddie grins.

Buffy laughs. "Ok."

"Maybe even make it through the year." He laughs with her as she motions that she has to head in the opposite direction. "Goodnight."

"Night." Buffy walks away.

Eddie smiles pleasantly at her retreating form and then turns to walk in the opposite direction. He gets a few feet when he's grabbed from behind, a hand over his mouth. He looks up at his assailant and sees that his face is vamped out. He also sees two other vampires, a young looking man and woman. They part to reveal a young, attractive blonde woman who looks human and who takes a few steps toward him.

"I'm sorry... did you lose your way?" She asks.

A few hours later a single dorm room door opens and the same vampires enter and start gathering everything up. One sits at the desk and writes something on notebook paper, then tears it out of the book and places it on the bare mattress.

*

Psych class is over the next day and students are gathering their things and leaving. Buffy is looking around for Eddie.

"You looking for someone?" Oz asks as he gets his books and takes Willow's as well. She smiles at him and puts an arm around his waist.

"Yeah." Buffy says, distracted.

"You made a friend? Good for you." Willow says with interest.

"Thanks, mom." Buffy quips.

*

Minutes later in the same single dorm room the vamps were in the night before, Eddie's RA is showing Buffy the empty room.

"Yeah, Eddie just took off, packed his stuff, left a note. Happens sometimes. People just can't handle it. There's always a few kids who lose it early in the first semester and just bail." The man was saying.

Buffy crosses to the bed and picks up the note. She sits on the bed while reading it.

'This is too much to handle. I can't take it anymore. No time to say goodbye! Eddie'

"Weak ones, I guess." The RA says as he leaves.

Buffy lays the note on the bedside table and notices the drawer is partly open. She opens it to reveal a paperback book. It's Eddie's copy of M. Somerset Maugham's 'Of Human Bondage.' She takes it out of the drawer and looks at it intently. "He wouldn't leave this..." She says to the empty room.

*

Buffy heads over to Giles' apartment and opens the door while knocking. She enters, closes the door, and walks to the middle of the room.

"Giles?"

"Rupert, is this Bleu cheese or is it just cheese that's gone blue?" A black woman Buffy has never seen before reaches the front room and sees Buffy. She appears to be wearing a shirt and nothing else. "You're not Giles."

" Um... you know the door was open, so I just... uh, Giles does still live here, right?"

"He does. He appears." Olivia says with a shaky expression as Giles comes out of the hallway. He's wearing a bathrobe. "Rupert, you have a guest."

"Buffy! Hello."

"Is this a bad time?" Buffy takes in their apparel.

"No! Oh, uh, forgive me. This, uh... this is, uh, Olivia. She's, uh, an old friend, she's staying here for a few days." Giles stutters.

"Couldn't pass through sunny Cal without looking up ol' Ripper." Olivia says gaily, then seems to notice that calling him Ripper probably wasn't a good idea and clams up.

"Uh huh."

"Buffy's a, uh, was a student of mine. How's, uh, how is university?" Giles is still stuttering cutely.

"Pretty much the same as high school, in the sense that I need help." She stresses that last word.

"Ah... help... yes." He gets it.

"But, this just looks like a bad time." Buffy sends a mild hint Olivia's way.

"No, you guys talk. I'll just go slip into something a little less comfortable." She and Giles share a look and she leaves the room.

"So, uh, trouble with, uh, studies?"

"This is a bad time." Buffy repeats in a little I'm-scarred-for-life voice.

"You keep saying that."

"Well it looks pretty bad! I think someone had just a little too much free time on their hands."

"I'm not supposed to have a private life?" Giles asks her in mild shock.

"No!" Buffy says in whiny voice. "'Cause you're very, very old, and it's gross."

"Well, before I succumb to the ravages of age, why don't you tell me what brings you here." Giles says dryly.

"There's this student missing."

"Yes?"

"Eddie. He's supposed to have left school but... I just don't think he did. I met him outside last night, and then I went back where we met, and it looked there had been a struggle." Buffy says in a rush.

"And?"

Buffy gives him a condescending look. "And we need to stop this! And Eddie's RA said kids disappear a lot. There could be a gang of vampires working the campus. We need research, an-an-and charts and stuff."

"I-I still don't see where I fit in. You haven't described anything that you can't do yourself." Giles says tiredly.

"Ok, remember before you became Hugh Hefner when you used to be a Watcher?"

"Officially you no longer have a Watcher. Buffy, you know I'll always be here when you need me. Y-your safety is more important to me than anything but you're going to have to take care of yourself. You're out of school and I can't always be there to guide you." Giles sounds nothing like his old self.

"I'm sorry to bug you." Buffy says in a tone somewhere between hurt and angry.

"Buffy, I..."

"Oh! No! I mean yeah, you're... you're right. I can handle it. It's just that... I'm on it."

"I-I'm here if you need me." She just gives him a 'yeah, right' look and leaves.

Olivia walks back into the room. "She's gone?"

"Yes."

"So, did you help her?"

"I'm not sure." Giles looks slightly disturbed with what has happened.

*

Buffy is walking around campus later that night and there are students everywhere.

"How am I supposed to hunt in this mob? Don't you people have homes?" She mumbles as she walks, hoping her spider sense will go off.

She sees a young man walking away, he looks over at her and she sees that it's Eddie. "Eddie?" She runs after him. "Eddie! Eddie, hey, wait up!" She catches up with him in a secluded spot next to a bulletin board. "God I was worried that something had happened to you...

He turns around all vamped out.

" ...and of course it has, 'cause you're a vampire. I'm sorry."

"I'm not." Eddie says as he attacks. She uses his own momentum to keep him off balance and stakes him when he charges again. He disappears into dust.

Behind Buffy, the female leader of the vampires watches from a concrete dais.

"Slayer!" She calls.

Buffy turns and sees her.

"Wow, um, I heard you might be coming here." The other vamps come out of hiding and surround Buffy. "This is, I mean, what a challenge! The slayer!"

"And you are?"

" I'm... I'm Sunday, I'll be killing you here in a minute or so." The leader says.

"You know that threat gets more frightening every time I hear it." Buffy looks bored.

" Uh... are we gonna fight? Or is there just gonna be a monster sarcasm rally?" A vamp behind her groans.

"I'm in for a piece." A fat vampire next to the first one speaks up.

"Everybody gets to play." Buffy says as she glances around.

"Guys, this is totally mine." Sunday moves closer to Buffy.

"Ok, but you gotta share the eatin'. 'Cause I'm thinkin' slayer's blood's gotta be--Whoa!--like Thai Stick." The first vamp speaks up.

"I thought people were supposed to get smarter in college?"

"Yeah, I think you had a lot of misconceptions about college. Like that anyone would be caught dead wearing that." Sunday growls.

Buffy looks down at her clothes. When she looks up, Sunday punches her. They fight for a while and eventually Sunday grabs Buffy by the front of the shirt.

"Don't take this the wrong way, but..." She punches her in the face, "You fight like a girl."

She throws Buffy off the dais and somersaults off.

Buffy gets to her feet and tries but misses several kicks aimed at Sunday while the vampire lands some hard hits on her. Buffy finally tries a punch but Sunday grabs her wrist, jumps and brings her knee up into the arm. There is a cracking sound.

She throws Buffy, who bounces onto the ground. Buffy stands up holding her left arm close to her chest. She looks at the other vamps that are smiling and takes off. She falls once onto the grass but gets up and runs away. "Freshmen!" Sunday calls condescendingly after her. Buffy doesn't even look back.

*

The next day, Buffy walks slowly away from campus, still bruised and holding her arm to her side. She sees Willow and Oz talking to some other students and moves to go over. She then stops herself when she realizes that Willow hasn't even noticed her and is totally into whatever they're talking about. She sighs and walks away, dejected.

*

Buffy opens the door to her house on Revello Drive slowly. "Mom?" She calls out several times as she heads towards the kitchen. She then notices her mom's purse is missing from the desk, indicating that she's not home. She sighs again and is just about to leave when the phone rings. Buffy walks over and picks up the phone. "Hello?" There's no voice there, but she can feel that someone is listening. "Hello?" She is greeted with silence, then a dial tone.

Buffy hangs up slowly, a far-off look in her eyes. Could it be? She slowly picks up the phone again, hits *69, and holds her breath.

The operator comes on and tells her that she will be connected to the last person to call. The phone begins to ring. Once, twice, then a third time. Buffy loses her nerve and moves to hang up when she hears a click, followed by the most beautiful voice in the world. "Hello?"

There is silence for a moment, then she finally says, "You called." It wasn't a question.

"Buffy!" Angel is shocked. "Um...."

"Did you want something?" Her tone is harsh. He was the one who left, who wanted her to have her own life. She had actually been doing that, for a few minutes at least, now she would be right back where she started after talking to him.

"I, uh, I just wanted to see if you were okay." He said softly. Buffy's anger melted away at the protective tone in his voice, even though they both knew he no longer had a right to sound that way.

"I'm fine. School's great." She lied.

"I'm.... I'm glad." He sounded it.

"You?" Buffy asked, trying to keep her heartbeat normal.

"Fine. Things here are good." He said shortly. "Sorry about, um..."

"Hanging up on me? That's okay. I almost did the same thing when I called back." Buffy said in a rush.

"Oh. So, you're good." He said. "Things are good. That's all I wanted to know."

"Yeah, well, I'm glad things are good for you too."

"I'm just gonna let you go then." Angel says softly. This was too painful.

"Okay." She answers him, then hangs up.

Neither of them said goodbye. They couldn't.

But each stands staring at the phone for a moment after they hung up. And each whispers four little words into the silence of their respective rooms.

"I still love you."

*

Buffy, even more heartbroken than before as memories of Angel wash over her, returns to her and Willow's dorm room to find that all of her things are missing. She walks to the bare bed, picks up a note that's lying there and reads it.

This is all just too much for me. I have decided to take off. Sorry I didn't have time to say goodbye but I need to be by myself. Good luck this year. Buffy' She sits on her bed holding the note as a tear runs down her face.

She decides to head to the Bronze. Buffy enters and looks around not seeing anyone she knows.

She walks over to a couch and spots a man across the room that looks like Angel. He turns enough so that she can see his face and it isn't him. Her face falls further.

"The whole world in front of her, and she comes back to this dive." Says a familiar voice behind her.

Buffy turns around and sees him. "Xander!" She gives him a one-armed hug.

"Hey, Buff."

"Oh, when did you get back?"

"Couple days ago." Xander grins at her in his own personal way.

"You freak of nature. Why didn't you call me?" Buffy scolds lightly.

"Well I knew you guys were starting the whole college adventure and I didn't want to, um, you know... help you move."

"I missed you. How was your trip? Is America nice? I hear it's nice." Buffy says quickly.

"There's some purple mountains majesty, I'm gonna have to say."

"What'd you do? What'd you see?"

"Well..." Xander looks like he doesn't want to say.

"Tell me!"

"'Grand Canyon!'"

"You saw the Grand Canyon!" Buffy was impressed.

"Well, I saw the movie 'Grand Canyon,' on cable. Really lame."

"Huh?"

"Basically, I got as far as Oxnard and the engine fell out of my car, and that was literally. So, I ended up washing dishes at 'The Fabulous Ladies Night Club' for about a month and a half while I tried to pay for the repairs. No one really bothered me or even spoke to me until one night when one of the male strippers called in sick and no power on this earth will make me tell you the rest of that story." Xander trails off suddenly and looks embarrassed, then continues as if he'd never said that part. "Suffice to say I traded my car in for one that wasn't entirely made of rust, came trundling back home to the arms of my loving parents, where everything was exactly as it was except I sleep in the basement and I have to pay rent. How's college?"

"Male strippers?" Buffy's still stuck on that first part of his story.

"No power on this earth!" Xander repeats.

"Ok." Buffy knew of several ways to make him tell but didn't press the issue.

"College is good."

"Ok, uh, once more with even less feeling." He says in a gloomy tone that matches hers.

"No, really! I-I mean, Willow's in heaven and Oz has this really cool house off campus with the band." Buffy says quickly as they both sit down on a couch.

"And you're sitting here alone at the Bronze looking like you just got diagnosed with cancer of the puppy."

"It's just... there was this vampire, and she took me down, and I just... I don't know how to stop her."

"Then where's the gang? Avengers assemble! Let's get it going!" He obviously had way too much time on his hands.

"No, I don't want to bug them. I mean they're just starting school, and they don't need this."

"Ok Buff, what's the 'what' here?" Xander reads her like a book.

"It's just, what if I can't cut it?" She said in a small voice.

"Can't cut what? Slaying?"

"Slaying, everything."

"Buffy, this is all about fear. It's understandable, but you can't let it control you. 'Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to anger.'" He pauses and looks confused. "No wait, hold on. 'Fear leads to hate. Hate leads to the dark side.' Hold on, no, umm, 'First you get the women, then you get the money, then you...' okay, can we forget that?"

"Thanks for the Dadaist pep talk, I feel much more abstract now."

"The point is, you're Buffy."

Buffy just looks at him sadly. "Yeah, maybe in high school I was Buffy."

"And now in college you're Betty Louise?"

"Yeah, I'm Betty Louise Plotnick of East Cupcake, Illinois. Or I might as well be."

Xander gets up and crouches down in front of her. "Buffy, I've gone through some fairly dark times in my life, faced some scary things, among them the kitchen at 'The Fabulous Ladies Night Club.' Let me tell you something, when it's dark and I'm all alone and I'm scared or freaked out or whatever, I always think, 'What would Buffy do?' You're my hero. Ok, sometimes when it's dark and I'm all alone I think, 'What is Buffy wearing?'"

"Can that be one of those things you never, ever, tell me about?" Buffy had been smiling slightly up until his last comment.

"It's a deal." Xander says as he stands up. "Let's put this bitch in the ground! What do you say?"

Buffy holds out her hand and he helps her up. "I think I say thank you."

"And nothing says thank you like dollars in the waistband. Ok, what do we do first?"

*

Buffy and Xander break into an office of some kind and start going through old files. Buffy's working the computer and Xander is examining newspapers at a desk.

"Kids disappearing every year. Not too many, just enough so that everyone thinks they up and left." Buffy is filling him in on what she's looking for.

"I can't believe the vampires took your stuff. Murder I expect, but petty larceny seems so... petty. " Xander says in disbelief.

"They have to be keeping it somewhere, on campus or at least near by."

"Hey, how far back do the disappearances go?"

Typing slowly with only her right hand, Buffy checks the computer screen and says, "Uh ... they weren't too common before '82."

"Match number! Check this out." Xander carries two newspapers over to the counter and Buffy picks one up and reads it aloud.

'Psi Theta loses it's charter. Building to be closed for renovation.'

"1982. Look at this." He reads from the other paper. "'Former Psi Theta fraternity house lies dormant while zoning issues drag on before the city council.' We have a winner."

Buffy agrees with a nod. "Looks pretty cherry."

"You up for a little reconnaissance?"

"You mean where we all sculpt and paint and stuff?" Buffy asked in confusion.

"No, that was the renaissance." Xander once again is knowledge-guy.

"Oh. I've had a really long week." Buffy sighs. "Let's go look at the house."

*

Buffy and Xander arrive to find signs posted reading 'This Property Closed to the Public' and 'Keep Out.'

Up on the roof, Buffy clears some debris from the skylight and sees the vampires inside going through her things. Xander works his way to the skylight.

"Score!" Buffy whispers to him.

Sunday is holding a skirt up to herself and mockingly shaking her hips. "Look how tough I am."

"Oh! That's my skirt! You're never going to fit in it with those hips! We have to kill them!" Buffy's regained some of her usual fire.

"We need weapons."

"I don't see my weapons trunk down there. It was right by my bed. Mr. Gordo?" She sees the vamps with him and flashes back to the night in her room where she found Angel holding him. The little pig always kinda smelled like Angel after that. Now.... her voice turns even harder. "Go to my room. I'll keep an eye ... my diary?!?"

"I'll hurry!" Xander works his way back from the skylight.

"Laugh all you want, this time we play it my way. And the rules are just going to be a little bit..." As Buffy is talking to herself the skylight gives way and Buffy falls into the room.

The vamps all stopped what they were doing and looked at her.

Buffy looked up at the vamps. "Oh boy."

"Say, don't I know you from...beating the crap out of you?" Sunday stalks towards her.

Buffy stands up. "I just thought I'd drop in. Get it? Drop in?" The vamps just stare at her. "Boy, tough room."

"I must say, you've really got me now. I mean, it's a diabolical plan, throw yourself at my feet with a broken arm and no weapons of any kind. How'd I going to get out of this one?"

"You got a nice setup here, but you made one mistake." Buffy starts to taunt.

"Yeah? What was that?" Sunday is closer to her than ever.

"Well, I'm not actually positive, but statistically speaking people usually make at least..." Buffy trails off as Sunday's fist makes contact with the Slayer's face.

*

Oz and Willow are in Buffy and Willow's dorm room.

"Something's not right." Oz comments softly. Oz hands the note back to Willow.

"Buffy wouldn't just take off, th-that's just not in her nature. Except for that one time she disappeared for several months and changed her name, but there were circumstances then. There's no circumstances." Willow rambled.

"I don't think this is her handwriting." Oz noted softly.

"I bet there were circumstances! We've probably been so wrapped up in our own petty lives that... that we totally missed the circumstances. We're bad friends!" Willow continued to ramble, not even hearing her boyfriend.

"Let's think this through."

"How can you be so calm?"

"Long, arduous hours of practice. Now either Buffy took off, or she was robbed, or..." Oz starts to tick off the options.

"Or all her stuff was taken by vampires who want to kill her and not have anybody know that she's dead." A new voice was heard.

"Xander!" Willow's head snapped towards the door.

"That was gonna be my next option." Oz said without pausing.

Xander walks into the room with arms spread wide. "How are my guys?" He hugs Willow.

"Do we hug?" He turns to Oz.

"I think we're too manly."

Both guys nodded as Willow's voice broke through the silence. "Did you say vampires?"

"Yeah, they kinda live on campus and like to kill students. We've gotta get weapons.... They took the chest. We need supplies." Xander takes charge.

"I've got stuff in my chest." Willow says, ignoring the odd look she gets from Xander. She digs into her chest filled with witchy stuff to reveal vamp-fighting implements. "Is Buffy in danger?" She asks as they leave.

"She's in a holding pattern, we've got some time." Xander replies as the Scoobies charge to the rescue yet again.

*

Back in the old frat building, a hard hit knocks Buffy to the floor, where she sees her trunk is lying a few feet away. She starts to crawl toward it. Sunday steps in front of her holding Buffy's 'Class Protector' award.

"Oh, and this. This is my favorite item."

"You don't want to touch that." Buffy says in a dangerous tone.

Sunday drops it on the floor and stomps down on the handle, breaking it. She moves over to Buffy and grabs her left arm. "You know this arm's not looking so good. It might have to come off."

"You want to know the truth?" Buffy asks flippantly. "I only need one." She punches Sunday and sends her spinning. She rolls to her feet and kicks Sunday in the face then catches some broken wood from the coffee table with her foot and kicks Sunday in the face with it. Sunday falls into a pile of clutter.

"This is startin' to suck." One of the other vampires says as it backs away. Sunday gets up with her game face on. Another vamp runs in to help but Buffy grabs a tennis racket, roundhouse kicks Sunday and swings with the racket into the other vamps face, sending it flying over the couch and braking the frame of the racket to a perfect stake.

Another vamp, frightened by the sight of the Slayer with a stake, decides it's time to leave and moves toward the door. It abruptly opens with Xander in the lead and Oz behind him brandishing a cross in the vamp's face. They force the vamp back.

A different vampire sees Willow struggling with a crossbow and rushes her. Willow gets the crossbow up just in time and shoots the bolt through the vamp's heart.

Sunday is lying on the floor with Buffy standing above her. "When you look back at this, in the three seconds it'll take you to turn to dust, I think you'll find the mistake was touching my stuff."

Sunday gets to her feet and rushes Buffy, who swings one-armed at her which Sunday blocks and catches the arm in a hold.

"What about breaking your arm?" She grabs at Buffy's left arm. "How'd that feel?"

"Let me answer that with a head butt." She does and sends Sunday staggering.

Xander faces off with a vamp. Oz, behind the vamp, hits him on the head with a cross, then ducks down. When the vamp turns, Xander pushes him over Oz who straightens up and flips the vamp onto his back. Xander moves in for the kill and stakes him. He turns to dust.

"And for the record," Buffy makes a fist with her left hand, "The arm is hurt, not broken." She uppercuts Sunday and sends her flying. Besides Sunday, there are no more vamps left in the house as they have either been dusted or run off. The gang comes up behind Buffy.

"Hey, Buff. Need a hand?" Oz asks.

Buffy twirls a stake around in her hand. "No thanks," She twists around and throws the stake into Sunday's heart. "I'm good."

Sunday shakes her head and puts her hands on her hips as she turns to dust.

Buffy goes over and retrieves her 'Class Protector' award.

The gang leaves the house carrying Buffy's stuff in boxes, Xander carrying her trunk.

"So, all that other stuff in there? That's just gonna sit in there, right? Uh, I mean, no one owns it in the strictest sense." Xander is asking.

"It seems wrong, somehow." Oz agrees.

"Dibs on the rowing machine." Xander calls out. Buffy is about to retort when she hears Giles calling her name. He runs up carrying a crossbow in one hand and in his other he has a cross and a battle-ax.

"Hi, Giles."

"What's with the arsenal?"

"I've been awake all night. I know I'm supposed to teach you self-reliance, but I can't leave you out there to fight alone. To hell with what's right, I'm ready to back you up. Let's find the evil a-and fight it together." Giles says quickly.

"Great! Thanks! We'll get right on that." Buffy says as she rolls her eyes.

The Scoobies step around him and continue on their way.

"The evil is this way?" Giles asks as he follows them.

"My room is." Buffy doesn't really explain.

"Hey Giles, could you get this box on top?" Willow asks and he takes the top of the two boxes she's carrying. Her, Oz, and Giles are walking a little ways behind Xander and Buffy.

"So, college not so scary after all, huh?" Xander asks her with a smile.

"It's turning out to be a lot like high school, which I can handle." Buffy says with a small grin. "At least I know what to expect." I just wish Angel were here....

*

Elsewhere on campus.

One of the vamps that escaped from the old frat house and Buffy's wrath is sneaking from tree to tree. He starts across a clear spot when he hears something and turns. Two darts hit him right above the eye sockets. The vamp convulses and goes down but is still conscious. From the bushes off the side of the bikepath, three figures in camouflage clothing and masked faces step forward. One has a coil of rope, another has a pistol and the third has a rifle. They advance on the vamp slowly as he watches in terror, unable to move.

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