Buffy was staggering around the kitchen the next day, half asleep and trying to locate a cup for her coffee, when the doorbell rang. Not caring about the fact that she was wearing a pair of men’s boxer shorts and a baggy tank top, she stumbled to the door and pulled it open. A woman wearing a suit stood with her back toward the door. “Yeah?”

Maggie Walsh turned and smiled at her, glancing her up and down. “Hello, Buffy. That’s quite an outfit.”

“Professor Walsh?” It had taken all of Buffy’s self-control not to reach out and strangle her visitor the second she saw her face. Instead of acting annoyed, she acted half asleep and rubbed her eyes groggily. “God, what time is it?”

“It’s after noon and don’t rub your eyes like that, hon. You can damage your corneas.” Maggie motioned toward the door and said, “May I come in?”

Playing it casually, Buffy smiled and moved aside. “If you’re here to complain to my mom about my grade, she just left for work.”

“Quite the contrary. I’m here to commend you for your grade and let you know that I think you have what it takes to succeed in other areas.” Maggie spoke quickly, feeling pride that she was about to make the young girl in front of her a better person. “How would you like to get dressed and go for a ride with me?”

“You’re kidding?” Buffy forced her grin to remain in place and shook her head. Surely no one, even a hateful bitch like Walsh, would be that obvious.

“I’m actually not kidding. You don’t have to wear anything fancy or worry about your clothing. We’ll take care of that.” Maggie put her hand on Buffy’ s arm and said, “Your life is about to change, sweetheart. Riley is going to be there and so will several other people you know.”

“Riley?” Buffy pretended to be really excited by the prospect of seeing him and nodded. “Riley told my mom I had one of the highest grades in class. Is this a party?”

“It is.” Maggie lied easily, happy to see that the girl seemed to be as interested in her son and he was in her. “Now, why don’t you run get dressed and I’ll wait for you down here.”

“Make yourself at home.” Buffy beamed at the woman and started to walk away before she turned and added, “You know, I always heard that UC Sunnydale was good, but a teacher who throws parties and makes house calls just defies logic.”

Buffy left her and jogged up the stairs two at a time, shaking nervously. She had expected that Riley would be the one to bring her into the fold, not Walsh, who made her stomach ache. She snatched her phone up and dialed Giles ’s house while she shoved her legs through a pair of jeans. As soon as he answered, she said, “Giles! Oh my god, you’re there. Listen to me! Professor Walsh is here and she asked me to go somewhere with her. She claims it’s a party or something but I know better.”

“Don’t go anywhere!” Giles shouted, shutting off the stove and pulling his tea kettle to one side. “Do you understand me? Stay there and I’m on my way.”

“I have to do this, Giles. Now pay attention.” She yanked on a pair of boots and walked toward her closet to select a shirt. “I left some instructions on my dresser, just in case they plan on keeping me hostage or something. I found a way in last night-“

“You went out last night? Alone?” Giles shouted, slamming his palm flat down on the stove. “Ahhh, hot burner!”

“Are you listening?” Buffy pulled her shirt over her head and grabbed her brush, yanking it through her hair. “It’s on my dresser but don’t try to go down there, Giles. That’s only for an emergency, like, if I’m not back by tomorrow. I have to go. I’ll call you later.”

She slammed the phone down, silencing his protests and bolted down the stairs. It would be pointless to try to arm herself. If they frisked her, and they probably would, she would draw unneeded suspicion by having a weapon. She found the Professor glancing at various photos of her family and cleared her throat.

Maggie turned and glanced at Buffy, shocked … not for the first time, at how delicately pretty she was. Even now, devoid of make-up and wearing casual clothing, the girl was breathtaking. “Ahh, you look wonderful.”

“Are you ready?” Buffy asked anxiously, aching to get out before Giles showed up.

“I was curious about this photo.” Lifting one of the pictures, Walsh held it up. It showed a young girl with brown hair dressed in a Karate suit. “Is this you?”

“Oh, yeah.” Grinning, Buffy stepped forward and took the photo of her cousin, loving the fact that she was about to lie and tell the woman what she wanted to hear. “I’m a third degree blackbelt in karate and have studied other areas of martial arts my entire life.”

Maggie gasped and raised an eyebrow, marveling at how perfect it all was. “Really? Well, that’s just amazing.”

Buffy put the photo back on the table and led Walsh out the door. As soon as she had strapped herself in the seat, the woman started the car and pulled away from the curb. Daring a glance back at her house, Buffy hoped that she would live to see it again.

Then she faced forward, resolved to do just that.

__

Riley paced back and forth in front of Lowell house, waiting for Maggie to arrive. His mother had insisted that she be the one to escort Buffy and see for herself that the recruit was a regular girl and wasn’t spending her time in a demonic cocoon or something. He had never gotten used to what the night would bring or what seemingly natural occurrences simply were not. There had been times when he was convinced that someone was absolutely normal, then he would glance again and see ridges and fangs where the human face had been. He had actually seen worse than run of the mill vampires and he didn't want Buffy to see that stuff. He wanted her to see movies and concerts and school ... and him.

It took a lot of time to get used to the blood and gore aspect of it, which is what he feared for Buffy. What if she couldn’t handle it and had to have her memory erased? It wasn’t fool proof, his father could attest to that. What was supposed to erase his memory of the demons had wound up costing him his memory of how to be a human and function. Frowning, Riley recalled the final moments before his father had been led toward the lab. He had gripped his shoulders and whispered, “Never forget what you just saw and don’t you let her make you proud of what you do.”

“I hear you, dad.” Riley shook his head as the car came into view. There was no way he was proud of what he was doing and he had never forgotten what he had seen.

Buffy waved at him from the passenger seat and he opened her door, offering his hand to help her out. She stepped up on the curb and into his arms, hugging him lightly. “I’m sorry about falling asleep last night. Did it make you mad?”

“Nah, it’s fine.” He smiled down at her, letting his thumb brush across her cheek. “You look like you feel a lot better.”

“I feel great.” She stepped away when Maggie joined them. “So, what are we doing?”

“You didn’t tell her?” Riley asked, glaring at Walsh. “I thought you were going to tell her. She can’t be expected to just go in.”

“I think that seeing it would be better than hearing about it. She can-“

Buffy held up a hand and cleared her throat. “The she in question is getting a little wigged here, so let’s get on with it.”

Riley took the hand she had held up and started toward the house, leveling his mother with an icy glare, which she ignored. He had assumed that Buffy would be told something, anything at all, to make it easier. Leading the way through the various rooms, he pulled a tag from around his neck and slid it down a clearance strip beside a door in the back of the house. He was very aware of the fact that Buffy was eyeing every move he made, trusting him completely. Sighing, he turned and stared down at her. “You’re about to see something that will-“

“Riley!” Maggie snapped as the door opened. “Come on.”

Buffy couldn’t have hid her anxiety if she had to and stood outside when they both stepped in. Her mind kept telling her feet to move but they seemed to have a will of their own. Knowing she had to say something, she stammered, “Y-You guys are freaking me out. Why is there an elevator in your house?”

Riley stepped out of the elevator and stared at her. “Buffy, I’ll explain it all to you as soon as we get downstairs. I promise you that it’s going to be okay. And,” he pinned his gaze on his mother so she could make no mistake about the next thing he said. “I would die before I would let anything happen to you.”

Buffy let him lead her through the doorway and watched as a green ray of some kind passed over them. A voice spoke and said, “Retinal scan confirmed on two of three passengers. Clearance requested for non-scanning entity.”

Riley leaned forward and spoke into a silver microphone on the wall. “Riley Finn.”

The computerized voice spoke again. “Special Agent Finn, confirmed. Welcome back.”

The doors shut and Buffy swallowed hard, wondering if she would be able to do it. Spike would see her and give her away. Worse yet, some vampire would see her and call her a Slayer. Giles was right, they hadn’t planned this out. She was forced to fly by the seat of her pants and, having done that once or twice … literally, it wasn’t much fun. –You’re the Slayer! Pull it together.--

Maggie put an arm around Buffy when she heard her heavy breathing and squeezed her reassuringly. “It’s okay, Buffy.”

“It was you, wasn’t it?” Asked Buffy, feeling like she needed to provide a reason for her unbridled panic. No matter how hard she tried not to be … she was terrified. What if she got confused about all the lies she would have to tell? “You people are the ones who shot me with something in the sewers and then tried to poison me.”

Riley stared over her head and nodded at Walsh, who nodded back. Riley took a deep breath and said, “Yes. Our organization was responsible for the ordeal you went through and we apologize for that.”

“Organization? We? Suddenly you’re an institution?” Buffy cried, yanking her hand of out his. “Who are you? What are you?”

Maggie reached out and stopped the elevator, pausing it halfway down into the facilities. “Buffy, you need to calm down.”

“You kidnap me again and you expect me to be calm?” She leaned back against the wall and closed her eyes. Not all of it was an act. It felt like the walls were closing in on her. Part of it was the fact that she would see Spike and he would see her interacting with these people and think that she was against him. Some of it was the fact that they had weapons she had never seen and a small portion of her anxiety was caused by who she was. A Slayer, trained in the most archaic ways known to man, who was physically stronger than a man three times her size … but still just a girl.

“You were with a vampire.” Riley blurted, trying his best to soothe her with the truth.

“Vampires are real.” Maggie nodded in agreement. “So are many other things that you wouldn’t believe and we saw you fight and thought you might want to help out with our mission.”

Buffy pushed her hair back, trying to decide how she should react to that comment. If she pretended that she didn’t know what demons were all about, then she’d be forced to act scared all day and be a girly-girl; which could make her fail the tests. On the other hand, if she didn’t pretend, she would have to offer an explanation as to why she was so strong and wasn’t shocked at the demons on display. Her answer came when Walsh saw the scar on her neck and said, “What happened to your neck?”

“One of those vampires you just mentioned.” Buffy said with a shrug and lifted the front of her shirt, exposing another small scar on her abdomen. “And this one came from a fight with a Der Kindestaad and this one over here happened because I got swallowed by a mother bezoar. So yeah, demons are real.”

“What are –you-, Buffy?” Riley asked quietly, turning her question around on her. Her demeanor had suddenly changed and he half expected to see her morph into something. The hair on the back of his neck began to dance upward and he watched her expectantly, almost frantically.

“You’re her, aren’t you?” Maggie stared at the waif of a girl before her and took a deep breath. “All this time I thought she was a myth but here you are.”

“What is she?” Riley shouted, feeling like his entire world had just deflated and the woman of his dreams had been handed a death sentence.

“I’m a who.” Buffy pointed out. Something about them knowing who she was made her feel more confident. If she didn’t have to worry about her identity then she could concentrate on other things. Namely Spike.

Walsh stared at her in awe and then glanced at Riley. “She’s the Slayer. I had heard rumors but I never dreamed it was real. Vampires have their mythology just like people do and I thought that it was nothing more than a tale passed down. Something sires would talk about to make their childer behave.”

“A Slayer?” Running a hand through his hair, Riley loosened the top button on his shirt to keep it from choking him to death.

Buffy shifted her eyes to his and said, “In every generation there is a Chosen One. She alone will stand against the vampires, the demons and the forces of darkness. She is the Slayer.”

“Who chose you?” He asked, clearly unconvinced and very ill at ease.

Shrugging, Buffy said, “I don’t know. The people who are chosen to choose the chosen one? All I know is that you people shot me when I was about to bag a vampire and then you scared the hell out of me.”

“Do you always make out with vampires before you kill them?” Riley raised an eyebrow, daring her to deny it.

“No.” Buffy snapped. “I was trying to coax some information about a demon out of him.”

“Would you have slept with him?”

“Hell no.” Buffy made a disgusted face and shook her head. “That’s sick.”

Walsh rolled her eyes before Riley could reply and said, “Buffy, are you ready to see what we’re all about?”

“Sure, but I don’t want to see that hospital room thing again. Ever.” She held onto a handrail as Maggie pushed the button and the elevator sprang to life. So far, so good. They didn’t seem to be terribly put off by who she was even though Professor Walsh was acting like she was the Holy Grail and couldn’t take her eyes off of her.

The doors opened and Buffy gasped. The machines towered over her and she glanced upward, seeing the platform she had used to escape. From this vantage point, it was even more intimidating and high tech than it had appeared from the rafters. All around the main area were observation rooms that contained various demons. People rushed back and forth, some carrying containers and others were carrying trays of food ... if glops of bloody messes could be considered food. And oddly enough, there were military jeeps inside the underground facility that made Buffy wonder where the hell they were getting in at.

Riley nudged her and took her hand again. “Are you okay?”

“What? Yeah, I’m fine.” She smiled at him reassuringly and then turned her attention toward the Professor. “So, what exactly is it you want me to do?”

“I have a few tests for you and if you pass, I’d like to offer you a job.”

“A job?”

“Here with us. Helping us put an end to human suffering at the hands of demons.”

Buffy pretended to really think about that and then glanced up at Riley. “You work here?”

“Yes, I do. I’ll see to it that you get to work with me as much as possible. I’m pretty much in charge of who goes where.”

Nodding, Buffy took a deep breath, scanning the area for Spike and gritting her teeth when she didn’t see him. “Where do I sign up?”

Beaming, Maggie motioned for Buffy to follow her into an office. “I was hoping you would say yes and took it upon myself to purchase you some training clothes.” She lifted a bag and put it in the girl’s outstretched arms and smiled. “I hope I got the sizes right.”

“I’m sure you did.”

“I’m not going to lie to you, Buffy.” Maggie stepped closer and grew serious. “What you are about to be subjected to is going to make today go down in history as one of the hardest days of your life.”

Buffy shrugged, not allowing the woman the satisfaction of intimidating her. “You know, I think I can take it.”

“I certainly hope so. You can change in here and we’ll be outside.” Professor Walsh nodded at Riley, who patted Buffy on the back, and they walked out of the room. As soon as the door was closed, Maggie grabbed his arm and said, “Oh, son. I can not believe our luck. A Slayer! Here in the group.”

“Why didn’t you ever tell me that there were Slayers?” Riley asked, nodding at several men who passed. “Chosen ones. Chosen girls. Chosen Buffy!”

“Like I told her, I didn’t believe it. Your father claimed to have met one once. He apparently saw her fighting in Iowa before we moved out here. She saved his life and he heard the vampires calling her a Slayer. And then there were several instances here, I would encounter a vampire who would ask me if I was working for the Slayer.” She shook her head, trying to digest the possibilities. “Riley, you saw her fight. She was like a machine. That thing in the tunnels-“

“Absolutely not. Buffy is not to go near that thing.” Riley growled, turning to glare down at her. “I mean it. I don’t care if she is a fucking real life pink ranger, she is not going to do that.”

Maggie’s eyes widened. “Don’t you dare use that word in my presence!”

The door opened suddenly and Buffy stepped out. The athletic clothing that the Professor had chosen fit perfectly. A jog bra under a tight black tank top that showed a portion of her stomach and black spandex bicycle shorts. There was also a pair of what appeared to be mountain climbing shoes that had taken Buffy forever to lace and tie.

Riley’s eyes almost bulged out of his head when he saw her. The disagreement with his mother was forgotten as he let his gaze wash over her firm stomach and slim hips, then back up toward the cleavage at the top of the tank top. “I’d say it fit.”

Buffy nodded and stepped out into the main floor again, feeling embarrassed. “I’d say so. Does everyone have to wear this stuff?”

“No, thank God.” Riley chuckled. “I don’t think I have the chest for it.”

Maggie had not really thought about how sexy the outfit would be when she purchased it. That certainly would pose a problem with the boys there that day. Odds are nothing would get done. It couldn’t be helped though. “We’ll start on a bike. It’s stationary and it simulates going uphill. It will gradually become steeper and you have to pedal it without leaving the seat one time.”

Glancing around at the men who paused to stare at her, Buffy could only nod. Maybe it was part of the training to make her stick out like a sore thumb. Maybe they had to leave her pretty exposed in order to add pressure and see how she handled it. She was still analyzing the reasoning behind it when she climbed onto a bike with a horribly hard seat and let Maggie attach several sticky things to her chest and back, then snap cables in place. “What’s this for?”

“It’s an EKG. We’re going to monitor your heart rate while you exercise.” Maggie flipped the switch on the machine and brought it closer to her. “Just keep pedaling and don’t stop. By the time the test is finished, the bike will be in a wheelie position and will let itself back down. You can start now.”

Taking a deep breath, Buffy began to pedal. It was smooth and proved to be no problem. She glanced in the corner at Riley, who was sitting behind a computer screen, watching her progress and said, “So, how long does this test last?”

“Until your heart rate speeds up enough for the next test. You have to be really pumped and tired.” He grinned at her. “Because if you’re not miserable when you climb the rocks then we have no fun.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.” Riding bikes and rock climbing? Buffy had to force herself not to laugh. How could this possibly train anyone for fighting demons? The bike moved upward a little and she sighed. It would probably be ages before they would decide she was ‘tired’ enough for her next test.

__

Almost an hour later, the bike was tilted to the maximum incline and Buffy was still pedaling away. Walsh stared from the screen, to the recruit and then back at the screen again. “Increase the weight on the pedals.”

“It is.” Riley said, turning the knob again just to make sure. “It’s been all the way for fifteen minutes.

“This is uncanny. She’s not even sweating.”

Buffy cleared her throat and glanced their way. “I don’t sweat. If you’re waiting for me to let go or faint from lack of oxygen, it’s not going to happen.”

“Does the heat in the room not bother you?” Maggie asked. At the thirty minute mark, she had turned the heat up, trying to make Buffy as uncomfortable as possible.

“Not really.” Shifting slightly, she readjusted her hands and pedaled a little faster. The muscles in her legs were stretched tight and her back and arms were starting to ache from keeping herself upright, but she was fine.

“Should we just move on to the rocks?” Riley shook his head and pointed at the screen. “She’s been holding steady the whole time. She beat Forest’s record ten minutes ago.”

“I’ll beat it by an hour if it’ll help.” Buffy smiled at the two, enjoying the fact that she was apparently doing well.

“Shut it down.” Maggie nodded and watched as Riley moved the lever to lower the bike. As soon as it was grounded, she walked out and unstrapped the cords from the EKG. “Good job. We’re going to have you climb now, because if your legs are weak then now is when it will show.”

“That’s fine.” Buffy stepped off the bike, not letting herself groan as her ass shifted back into place and tried to push the bicycle seat indentations out.

“Have you ever climbed before?”

“Rocks? A couple of times. Not massive-fall-and-die climbing. But I have climbed to save my ass a time or two.”

Nodding, Maggie walked through a set of doors on one side of the room and pointed at a huge wall. There were several different colored pegs sticking out at various angles and one side protruded more than the other side. “You’ ll start out on the beginner’s side here and if you make it up quickly and without incident, you’ll move to the middle. You’ll find the middle to be quite difficult but if you make that one, you’ll move to the expert area. I have to tell you that of all the boys here, Riley is the only one who has scaled the expert wall and never fallen.”

“Ohhh, fun.” Buffy smiled as Riley secured a harness around her waist and tied one end of a rope into a knot. The other side connected to a harness around his own waist and he tugged that, making sure it was secure. “Are you going to keep me from getting killed?”

“I won’t let you fall.” He glanced up and pointed at the top of the wall. “When you begin to climb, a clock will start counting and when you get to the top, you have to hit that red button to stop it.”

“Gotcha.” Buffy wriggled a little, trying to get the harness comfortable and then paused when several boys walked into the room and sat down. “An audience?”

“Don’t worry about them.” Riley watched his mother walk toward them, telling them that they were to remain quiet. “Most of them are just curious about why a girl is here.”

“I guess I should show them then, huh?”

“You ready?”

Buffy’s reply was a nod and she moved toward the wall. Lacing her fingers together, she cracked her knuckles and dared a peek behind her. Several of the boys were laughing and whispering to one another. Facing forward, she grabbed one of the pegs and began to climb. She had expected Riley to talk to her as she climbed, but he was silent and she didn’t want to glance down to see what he was doing.

Her feet and hands moved fast, finding foot and handholds and she was at the top before she knew it and hit the buzzer. The clock stopped and she glanced at it. One minute and twelve seconds.

Riley held the rope tight and said, “You can let go.”

Buffy complied and let herself drop, suspended by Riley’s rope. She landed a few feet in front of him and said, “Now what?”

Riley untied the knot and nodded toward the second rope, the one in the middle of the wall. “This one’s a little harder. Right at the top you’ll really have to stretch because of how small you are. It’s best if you just keep going, no matter how intimidating it looks.”

Riley instructed her to use the shower in Professor Walsh's office and pointed at her clothing, which was still stacked neatly in a chair. She turned to thank him, but he was already gone and she sighed angrily, tired of his attitude. Glancing at the desk and the paperwork there, she contemplated rifling through it as she gathered her clothing in her hands. Something ticked in one corner of the room and she saw a video camera mounted high on the wall and quickly moved to the door that said 'Restroom' instead.

Once inside, she peeled her wet clothing off and started the water, getting it as hot as she could stand. Every muscle in her body ached and she leaned her head against the wall, wondering if she had done the right thing. Giles would kill her when he found out that she had revealed herself and she couldn't blame him. Actually, considering the pain in her back, she would probably encourage him to put her out of her misery.

The hot water warmed her and she was reminded of the night Spike was taken and how cold she had been when Giles put her in the tub. A sob caught in the back of her throat; a sob born of relief that she was inside the Initiative, the ache in her bones and the fact that she had only scaled one small obstacle of who knew how many. She was here, possibly only a few feet from Spike, but she was still helpless to do anything for him. She rinsed the soap from her hair and allowed herself to break down, something that she had wanted to do all day.

When she had bathed and pulled herself together, she stepped out and wiped steam off the mirror to check her reflection. Swollen, red eyes stared back at her from a face that looked like a stranger's and she dried off quickly, dressing in the clothing she had worn that morning. Realizing that she had left her shoes in the other room, she opened the door and sat in a chair to pull them on.

Riley knocked lightly and poked his head in. He had been instructed to retrieve her and bring her to the conference room for the 'talk'. As soon as he saw her, his greeting died on his lips and he shut the door behind him. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." She zipped her boot and leaned to get the other one, hissing when her leg muscle tightened.

Riley kneeled beside her and handed her the shoe, watching her closely. "You 're crying."

Buffy didn't look at him as she shoved her foot into her boot. She refused to admit to him that her body felt like it had been run over and there was no way she could tell him that she was worried about Spike and really wanted to see him. "I said I'm fine."

"But you're not." He reached up and brushed a tear off her face, holding it up so she could see it the small wet spot on his thumb.

Her mind raced, looking for a tangible lie, and she finally spoke in a small voice. "I didn't know that I wasn't supposed to kill that thing. I just wanted to do a good job and now you're mad at me."

"I'm not mad."

"You yelled at me and you-"

"Buffy," Riley took a deep breath and pulled her hands into his, still kneeling in front of her. "I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings. I don't want you to think that I'm not proud of how well you did today. I am proud and I am happy that you'll be working with us, but I'm worried about you."

"I can take care of myself." She glanced at their hands, noticing the way hers were completely hidden in his and realized how powerful his need to protect her was. Her eyes met his and held, and she licked her lower lip, wondering what to say.

"I know you can." Riley's gaze was drawn to her mouth and he mimicked her, licking his own lips. "But that doesn't mean that I can just shut off the part of me that wants to pull you in my arms and not let go."

Willing herself to play along, Buffy pulled one of her hands free and ran it down his face. "Riley, I'm still just a girl and I have a part of me that wants to fall in your arms and not let go too."

Riley swallowed hard and moved closer, letting his arms go around her tiny waist. Her hair was damp and smelled like vanilla and he leaned his face against it, closing his eyes. "I really am sorry."

"I am too." Buffy replied, her arms winding around his neck. His shoulders were broad and she pressed her face against his neck, inhaling deeply. Whatever cologne he was wearing smelled fresh, spicy and really, really good. She squeezed a little tighter and felt him shudder slightly. "You're shaking."

"You make me nervous." He replied and pulled back slightly. "The Buffy puzzle has turned out to be quite challenging."

She smiled, leaving her arms around his neck as she met his eyes. "Well, at least now you've put it all together. You know my secret."

Riley nodded slightly and then paused, "No, I don't have it all together. I' ve wondered something since I saw you for the first time."

"What's that?"

"If a kiss from you would steal my breath."

Before Buffy could reply, he lowered his lips to hers and pressed lightly. Her heart pounded against her chest and her fingertips moved to the back of his hair, instinctively combing through it. When he felt her reciprocate, he relaxed against her and pulled her closer, his tongue slipping past her lips and seeking her own. Her mouth tingled and she could feel her face flushing as she let her body react the way it wanted to, deepening the kiss and taking comfort in the strong arms around her.

"It did." Riley mumbled, as he broke the kiss. A knock at the door caused him to pull back and stand.

Walsh stuck her head around the corner and said, "Buffy, we have some paperwork for you to go over if you're ready."

Nodding, Buffy stood and grabbed her coat. Riley caught her before she walked past him and whispered, "Buffy, it stole my heart too."

Buffy blushed and grinned up at him before she joined Walsh at the door. Maggie looked at her closely and narrowed her eyes. "Are you-?"

"I've never been better." Buffy interrupted, glancing back at Riley. "I'm great."

__

Giles paced back and forth in the Summers' kitchen, glaring at his watch every few minutes. He had arrived thirty minutes after Buffy had called and informed him of her visitor and he had not left since then. Almost eight hours had passed and he was tempted to yank the instructions Buffy had left from his pocket and march underground to find her.

Willow, who was taking a break from the laptop, massaged her neck and watched him change direction. "Giles, you are making me incredibly nervous."

"Why aren't you on the computer?" He snapped angrily. "Is this the way you help? Sitting here watching me?"

Willow gasped and started to stand, but Giles strode toward her and put a hand on her shoulder. "I apologize, Willow. I didn't sleep well and haven't had my tea today. You have done a remarkable job with the Initiative's programs."

"It's okay and thank you." She sat back at the table and used her foot to push the chair across from her out for him. "Why don't you sit down?"

Nodding absently, Giles sat down and sighed, leaning his head against the cool wood. "I just don't understand why she would be so capricious. She knows better than this."

"It had to happen sooner or later, Giles." Willow said softly. "She can take care of herself."

He sat up slowly and exhaled loudly. "I hardly think that we can pretend to know how well she can take care of herself surrounded by guns and an army, Willow. We have only seen the Slayer in her own element, not theirs."

"She got away once. She can do it again if she has to." Willow rubbed her head, frowning at the headache she was developing and moved toward the stove. "Do you know where Mrs. Summers keeps the tea? I'm going to set up an IV drip for you."

It took Giles a couple of seconds to make sense of what she said and he chuckled, shaking his head apologetically. Before he could answer, the front door opened and closed, then Buffy appeared in the kitchen doorway. Giles jumped to his feet and pulled her into a rough hug. "Buffy, are you trying to kill me? I've been worried sick."

Buffy groaned as he pressed against her aching muscles and pulled away. "I'm sorry. I would have called, but the opportunity didn't arrive until I was free to go and I just left."

Willow watched as Buffy slumped into a chair and quickly grabbed a soda for her from the refrigerator. As she sat the can down in front of her, she said, "You look like hell."

"I've been there. All day." Buffy drank deeply and wiped her mouth before she told them about the Initiative's recruitment process. The story of climbing walls, riding bikes and then swimming with a thing called 'Helix' left them staring at her with wide eyes.

"Good Lord! They have a Helathon demon in captivity? That's positively unheard of." Giles pulled his glasses off and then shoved them back on without cleaning them. "Are you certain it was a Helathon?"

"I said that they called it Helix. I don't know what a Heffalump demon is." Buffy finished off her coke and stood to grab another.

"Helathon." Giles corrected. "If it looks like you said then that's what it has to be. How did they react to your killing it?"

"I'm a Slayer. They knew that when they threw me in there with it." Buffy shrugged and then her eyes widened when she realized what she had said. It had been her plan to keep it a secret that they knew about her Slayerhood.

"You told them?" Giles shouted, pinning her with his best icy glare. "You let an entire militia know that the Slayer exists and you are she?"

"I didn't know what else to do, Giles. I didn't want to have to pretend to be terrified all day. I think that being a Slayer actually got me in because Walsh seemed pretty damn impressed." Buffy moved toward a cabinet and took out three Excedrin PM pills. "I'm going to take these and go to bed."

"Shouldn't we discuss everything? What did they tell you?" Willow asked, watching as Buffy swallowed the pills and took another swig of soda. "I mean, we need to be kept up to date."

Rolling her eyes a little, Buffy sat down across from Giles and said, "There 's nothing else to tell. After I made it in and got a shower, they took me to this little room and made me read these pamphlets and watch some really poorly shot videos. Think Blair Witch Project meets Technicolor. Then I had to get my eyes scanned and a voice sample for their security system and I gave fingerprints and got a pass and code. I can't use it for seven days, I guess they have to feel me out, but that's it."

"And are you allowed to tell anyone?"

"Nope." Buffy shrugged a little and tossed her can across the room and straight into the trash. "It's just like being a Slayer. It's a big secret. But with the Initiative, if they catch you blabbing about it, you actually get punished and stuff."

"Well, perhaps I never had you completely convinced of how mad it would make me if you told." Giles said, making sure his tone packed the bite he was aiming for. "If I were still your watcher, you would be punished severely for this."

"How?" Buffy grinned a little as she asked.

"Severely." He replied, crossing his arms over his chest.

Willow giggled a little and then composed herself. "Well, at least you're in and it didn't hurt you too much."

"That can't be it though. It's too easy. Surely you've only completed one aspect of the recruitment." Giles gazed at Buffy closely. "Did they test your motor skills, reading skills or anything psychological?"

"I can read. I can write, walk, and talk so my motor skills are fine. And Professor Walsh tests us daily on all things psychological."

Giles shook his head. "No, that doesn't make sense. It's obvious to me that these people chose you for a reason."

"Riley has a crush on me. Walsh wants to make him happy." Buffy replied with an indifferent shrug. "What do I care as long as I'm in?"

"And what about Riley?" Willow questioned, wondering why she seemed so distant and cavalier.

"What about him? He was there the whole time. I don't think he wanted me in at first, but I'm sure he does now." Buffy smiled a little and cocked an eyebrow playfully. "Very sure."

"Oh." Willow looked confused for a second and then gasped. "OH!"

"You've slept with a commando?" Giles blurted, then reddened. "Of all the irresponsible and careless things you could have done . that's absolutely appalling, Buffy. You can't use that for leverage!"

"You went all the way?" Willow squeaked, her mouth hanging open at the thought. "Wow."

"No!" Buffy looked scandalized and shook her head. "But I plan on making him think I would. I get the impression he's not thrilled with the way his mommy handles things and I figure that if he thinks he has a chance with me, he'll go against her and help me out."

"That's your plan!?" Giles leaned forward and wagged a finger at her when she nodded. "You're planning to play a very dangerous game then, Buffy. Family ties are a lot stronger than you seem to understand and a boy will do just about anything for his mother."

"Maybe in England. This is America, Giles. A boy will do anything for a piece of ass."

"Now, that's just crude!" Giles pulled off his glasses and wiped them clean, hoping the girls didn't notice the renewed redness he felt in his face.

"But it doesn't lack truth." Buffy stood up and stretched. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go soak in the tub and then sleep for a year."

Giles stood and caught her arm before she could leave the room. "I want you to be careful, Buffy. I'm not going to pretend to be behind you on this because I don't think it's worth it. You've compromised your safety by exposing who you are and I feel that you're overestimating your effect on this boy."

"Trust me, I know my own effecting value."

"I have the impression that you believe yourself to be infallible and that's not the case." Giles tightened his grip and shook her lightly for emphasis. "Just because someone likes you doesn't mean they won't disappoint you when it comes down to it."

"You don't have to worry about me." Buffy put her hand on his and squeezed affectionately. "I know what I have to do and I'll do it, Giles. As soon as I get Spike out, I'll quit."

"I don't think it will be that easy."

"Easy?" Buffy scoffed. "Since when have I ever let that word into my vocabulary?"

"Easy has many definitions. See that you don't let easy become you." Giles let her go and turned back toward the table to lift his coat off the chair.

"What is that supposed to mean?" She asked, watching his movements intently.

"When someone compromises themselves for a cause, any cause, the outcome is never the intended one. Keep that in mind." With that, he walked past her and out the front door.

Buffy shook her head angrily and looked at Willow, who was staring at the flower arrangement in the middle of the table. "What did that mean?"

"I think it was his way of saying that your plan to entice Riley onto your side is wrong."

"Why is it wrong?"

"You'll find out soon enough, I suppose." Willow got to her feet and paused beside Buffy. "I hope you know what you're doing and I believe in you, but I don't like this."

"I keep hearing that."

"Keep it in mind."

"If I keep all this stuff in mind, my head will explode."

"I think it already has."

__

///

///

__

Spike growled low in his throat when someone shook him, forcing him to open his eyes. "I need sleep! Sleep!! It's a simple concept really and one that you pricks should try."

"You'll get plenty of sleep, eternal sleep, in a few days." Michael replied, gripping the hostile by the front of the shirt and tugging him to his feet. "Now get up. You're the last freak I have to deal with before I get to leave."

"Bloody hell!" Spike slipped a little on the smooth tile and the man caught him, shoving him upright. "What exactly is it that you people get out of this?"

"We get the satisfaction of seeing you squirm."

"I'm not squirming."

"Not yet."

Spike glanced around the area, scanning the various holding pens and tests that were underway. In one corner, a vampire he recognized from Angelus's crusade began to scream and Spike cringed when he recognized Holy Water induced smoke boiling off the man. "What did he do wrong?"

"He asked too many questions." Michael fired back, shoving the hostile roughly through another doorway. "Now shut up. You would think that by now, they would have invented something to keep the mutants mute. You can de-bark a dog, why can't you de-talk a vampire?"

"Where are we going?" Spike had to ask, although he dreaded the answer.

"Are you just hoping to piss me off?"

"How could I piss you off? I'm nothing, right?" Spike glared at him, aching to hit him right in the balls.

"You have a whole day of fun ahead, freak. That starts later though." Michael opened another door and pushed the hostile into a room full of people in white coats. "For now, you get to be sanitized so we can take samples."

"Samples of what?"

"Samples of you."

The beeping broke through the cloudy haze in her head and Buffy groaned, sitting up to find the culprit. She smacked her alarm clock, knocking it to the floor and then yanked the plug when it kept blaring. It took her several seconds to realize that the offensive sound was coming from the pager that the Initiative had given her. Tossing back her cover, she turned the lamp on and found it, squinting to make out the number.

As luck would have it, the number was a four digit code and she had no idea what it meant. She dug through the pamphlets she had brought home and flipped through the signals, finally locating the one on her pager. It was the code number for quick assembly and she jumped up, tossing on the clothes closest to her. Realizing how far away she was, she snatched her mom's keys from the kitchen on her way out and prayed that Joyce would sleep late the next day.

It was only after two in the morning and Buffy made it to Lowell house within thirty minutes of the initial page. She parked in the driveway and jumped out, noticing for the first time how nervous she felt. Riley met her halfway and she followed him inside, taking in all the action around her. Boys, in various states of dress, rambled left and right. Some were stepping into their shoes and heading toward the elevator and others were trying to locate other 'agents'.

Riley and Buffy waited together in front of the elevator and he filled her in on what was happening. "I'm sorry to wake you up, but Walsh insisted that you be in on this so the page went to everyone. Seems that there is some kind of demon cult on the outskirts of town. They took one of the agents last night and he managed to escape and put us on red alert. These things are bad, Buffy. They have humans there that they plan on sacrificing and bringing some sort of stronger demon up from hell."

Buffy nodded, still half asleep and stepped into the elevator beside him. "Any idea how many?"

"He said there were over thirty that he could see and even more than that from what the others were saying." Riley leaned forward and spoke into the microphone and then focused on her again. "I'm guessing that this will be a watch and learn mission for you. I don't want you at the forefront."

"I'm not here to watch, Riley." Buffy replied, leaning against the back wall. The sleeping pills she had taken were not wearing off as fast as she would have liked and her head felt like it was stuffed with cotton.

The doors opened before he could reply and they stepped out as one. Riley motioned for her to follow him and he led the way down into a large area with chairs and weapons lining the walls. Several of the boys turned to stare at Buffy and nudge the people beside them and it took all of her composure to keep from telling them to piss off. Machines made loud noises, demons growled and banged against walls and Buffy watched in stunned silence as more and more men joined the group.

"I didn't know that there were this many soldiers." She whispered to Riley.

"We prefer the term 'agents'." He replied with a small grin. "Last time I checked we were almost one hundred and fifty strong. That's just in the field. If you count the doctors, lad techs and researchers then we have almost two hundred."

"That's impressive."

"How many people work for a Slayer?" Riley asked, giving her his full attention and scanning her from head to toe. She looked gorgeous. He hair was a little messy, probably from sleep, and she had on an old sweatshirt and jeans, but she looked beautiful to him.

"Just me. I mean, some people know, but it's better for me that not too many people get wind of it. It's like this," she motioned at everyone with her hand. "you can't just expect people to understand so you have to keep it a secret. I can't believe I told you guys who I am."

"If it's any consolation, Walsh isn't telling everyone. The only people who know are the people who were there to see what happened with Helix and they aren't allowed to say a thing."

Buffy really smiled, relieved that it wasn't as bad as she thought. "That's great."

Riley was going to say more, but Maggie stepped up to a small podium with a microphone and began to speak. "We have problems, people. Human lives are at risk and it is up to us to see to it that every single person out there tonight is sent home safely. Agent Ruiz was taken last night and held hostage near the old drive-in theater by a league of demons. Origin unknown. He used his tazer to escape but was unable to do a search and rescue. He estimates that the numbers are in excess of fifty and they fight hand to hand and with swords. Ruiz reports that the hostiles were immobilized with the tazer, but he did not discover a way to slay the demons. You know the drill. I want at least five brought back here, unharmed, and the rest of them killed. I don't care how you do it, kill the remaining hostiles. We don 't need this trouble."

She paused, allowing all the information to digest and then motioned for Buffy. "Agent Summers, please come here."

Buffy bit her lower lips and stepped up onto the podium beside Walsh. Maggie draped an arm over her shoulder and stared around at the faces of the men. "This is Agent Buffy Summers. She was recruited just yesterday and it's an honor to have her here. If all of you will keep an eye on her this morning, I'm sure you will see why. She knows demons and she knows how to kill them. I suggest you all take notes and if I hear that one of you gave her a hard time, all of you will regret it. Am I clear?"

"Yes, ma'am." The audience chorused.

"Buffy, I have your clothes laid out in my office. You get dressed and Special Agent Finn will show you how to assemble your gear." Walsh nodded at Riley and he extended his hand, helping Buffy off the stand. "As soon as you are suited up, both of you, see me."

"Yes, ma'am." Buffy nodded and followed Riley.

Ten minutes later, she was zipping her vest in place and watching Riley put a gun together. Part of it had been plugged into one of several hundred outlets on the wall and he was explaining how important it was to always put it back when you weren't using it. The voltage depended on it. He pointed at the gun in front of her and told her to assemble it as fast as she could. Her movements were jerky at first, but she quickly had all the pieces in place and shoved it over her shoulder like he had done.

They moved to another case and he pointed at the thigh packs on the wall, telling her that the first aid essentials would be found inside. He strapped his on and then watched Buffy try to fasten hers. It was way too big and she wound up having to loop it twice around her upper thigh, causing him to chuckle a little.

Buffy arched an eyebrow. "Do you find it funny that I can't wear this stuff?" She pointed at her baggy pants, which were cinched tight with a belt and the vest that hung low on her hips. She took several steps and grabbed the crotch of the pants, which hung to her knees. "I'll be lucky to be able to walk at all."

"Well, you look cute." He winked at her and turned his attention back toward the rows of lockers. "Your locker is beside mine. Come one and I'll get your combination."

The combination was inside the locker on a new lock and he handed it to her, watching as she read the numbers. She looped the brass lock through the handle and fastened it before she turned back toward him to say thank you. The words died on her lips when she heard someone on the other side of the row say her name. "And Buffy Summers? What kind of name is that?"

"Look at her. You can tell that she's an airhead." Another voice replied. "Did you see the way Walsh was fawning all over her? I'll lay odds she makes rank within days."

"It's all because Riley likes her." Came a third voice. "I mean, what are they hoping to be? The odd couple? He's twice her size and she has the body of a ten year old boy."

"I doubt she has the ass to hold up her pants."

"She has nice tits."

Buffy repositioned her weapon and walked around the row of lockers. Riley tried to stop her, but she brushed his hand away and cleared her throat. The boys who had been talking stood up straighter and stared down at her. She took a deep breath and said, "My name is short for Elizabeth and a name hardly makes someone an airhead. If I make rank it will be because I earned it and not because someone likes me. Size doesn't matter, unless of course your penises are as small as your brains. If you don't like my body, don't look. As for my ass, I'm sure you'll have no trouble kissing it." She turned to walk away, then paused and turned back. "And my tits thank you, but neither of them are flattered by your interest."

Riley's jaw joined the rest of the jaws on the ground as she walked past him and went to look for Professor Walsh. He covered his mouth for several seconds and then turned, ignoring the men who were now offering apologies. He caught up with her and laid a hand on her shoulder. "Do you want me to report them?" "God, no." Buffy craned her neck and spotted Maggie on the other side of the room. "I don't plan on tattling every time someone yanks my chain. This is a new adjustment for them so I'm willing to cut some slack."

"Okay, if that was cutting slack then what does going off on someone look like?"

"Bloody." She wrinkled her nose a little and joined Professor Walsh. "You wanted to see me?"

Maggie nodded and then frowned when she glanced up from her clipboard. "Oh, Buffy, we'll have to get you some clothes that fit. Those were the smallest that we had in stock. I'll go tomorrow and special order some."

"That would be nice."

"I want you to remain as close to Riley and Forest this evening as possible. We usually travel in threes and this will be no exception. Riley has rank in the group and will be the one to give the orders and you are to follow them with no argument. Are we clear?"

"We're clear."

"Very good. This is going to be a bad night, Buffy. I've seen you fight and I know you're capable though. Stay focused and get it done." Walsh patted her on the arm and then turned toward Riley. "Remember to bag and tag five. The rest must be exterminated because we don't have the space for them. Get in and get out. Bring all the civilians here for quarantine."

"Whoa." Buffy held up a hand. "You bring the victims in here?"

"It's a routine surveillance, Buffy. We use our facilities to check them out and make sure they aren't contaminated in any way and then we let them go. They simply think they've gone to a hospital." Walsh checked her watch and motioned at several of the groups. She raised her voice and said, "If you have already been briefed then I want to see asses and elbows people. Move."

Riley pulled Buffy along beside him and then signaled for Forest, who waited at the door. "Forest, you know Agent Summers."

Forest nodded and smiled at her. He had already been told that if he made one comment about the Helix incident, he would be scrubbing all the johns with a toothbrush. "Glad to have you on board."

Riley pulled a map from his pocket and led them into the sewers, staring out at the sea of faces that waited for him at the bottom. Stepping into the role of leader, he spoke quickly. "Force is the only way to go, guys. We'll shoot down as many as we can and render them incapable of fighting. As soon as we get the upper hand, we'll bull ring these things and work them into a tight circle. Then we'll blast them."

"Blast them?" Buffy asked Forest, leaning closer to him.

"Yeah, Buff. We'll use small explosives, like grenades, that were designed especially for the Initiative. Not many demons can survive that." He pointed at the sack that hung from her belt. "You will find what you need in there. Riley will give the command and you'll pull the pins and toss."

"Won't people come running to see what the noise was?"

"Nope." Forest grinned and ran his hand over her gun. "See, all the weapons here are unique. You've heard of silencers, right? Well, our grenades don't go above five decibels because we have the best of the best building stuff for us."

"Are they still powerful?"

"Oh, hell yeah."

Riley glanced at them disapprovingly and then gave the command to fall out. The group moved together down the narrow tunnel, quickly making their way out of town. Buffy could feel her adrenaline began to pump, something that rarely happened with average slays anymore, and she smiled a little. "This is exciting."

"You scared?" Forest asked, checking her out in the dim light when she shook her head no. "'Cause I was scared shitless my first outing."

"Forest, is that kind of talk really imperative to the conversation?" Riley adjusted his backpack and tried to readjust his leg strap while he walked.

"Oh, please. Like you don't say worse." Waving a hand, Forest dismissed him and concentrated on Buffy again. "You know, I was one of the ones you fought here."

Buffy glanced him up and down. "Really? You looked bigger."

"Riley was the big one. Graham was the one with the now broken arm and I was the one who kept ducking and running."

Riley's eyes widened and he stopped walking completely, ignoring the strap on his leg. "Buffy, I was going to tell you it was me."

Buffy turned to face him and slumped a little. It wasn't a shock, because the minute she had seen his bruised face, a part of her had known. However, she had to react to it and decided to look upset. "A tree limb, huh?"

"I'm sorry." He glared over her head at Forest and added, "Thank you so much, Forest. This is exactly the way I wanted her to find out."

"I'm just going to go catch up with the others." Forest held his hands up and moved around Buffy. "Are we cool, Buff?"

"Don't worry about it." She shrugged and started walking as well.

"Hey." Riley fell in step beside her and held out a hand to slow her down. "I'm also the one who let you go. They all thought you were a demon."

"That was you?"

"You told me it was almost Christmas and you were only eighteen and didn't want to die. I knew right then that I couldn't keep you there. Your arm was bleeding and you were crying and it killed me. I told you that you were under the Bronze and how to get away."

"It was you. In that case," Buffy stood on her tiptoes to press a small peck on his lips. "thank you."

"Agent Finn!" A man's voice shouted from up ahead, echoing through the tunnel.

"Damn." Riley shook his head apologetically and grabbed her arm, pulling her alongside him quickly.

The other agents had halted and were staring down at something Buffy couldn' t see. From her vantage point, all she had a view of were shoulder blades and broad biceps. Forest grabbed her elbow and pulled her to the front of the group. "Let her through, assholes."

"She's so little she can see through our legs."

Buffy glanced at the boy who said it and nodded, "Especially since you probably have nothing dangling in my way."

A low chuckle rumbled through the men and the boy who had spoken turned red and moved back into the crowd. Riley stared at her a second, then dropped to his knee beside the corpse in the sewer. It was a little girl, probably no more than eight or nine. There was a pile of small flowers beside her and she was mangled, covered in blood.

Buffy gasped a little, realizing that she had seen this in her dream, and squatted on the other side of Riley. Pushing back the blond curls, she checked the girl's neck for bite marks.

Riley grabbed her hand and said, "What are you doing?"

"Trying to find out if a vampire killed her."

"No, it wasn't vampires." Riley shook his head and glanced up at Forest. "It 's killing people now. It's gone from cats and dogs to human beings. We have to find it."

"What is it?" Buffy mumbled, still staring at the body and wishing she didn' t feel responsible. It was her to job to protect people, and when this type of thing happened, she took it as a reflection on her abilities.

"Something worse than a vampire, I can tell you that." Riley replied and stood, motioning for the soldiers to keep going.

Buffy lifted a newspaper that was still rolled up in a plastic bag from the edge of the sewer and pulled the paper free. She opened it and laid it over the body before she stood. "It lives down here, in the sewers?"

"It does."

"Shouldn't be too hard to find."

Forest snorted a little and then pointed left and right. "You think we haven 't already covered this place? This thing knows how to hide."

"My favorite game. Hide and seek." Buffy glanced back down at the body again and readjusted her gun.

"This thing is off limits to you, Buffy." Riley said, nodding at Forest to start walking. "You are not signed on for any of the sewer drills to sweep for it and I don't want to find out that you're down here alone."

Buffy watched Forest round the corner and then looked up at Riley. "I'm still the Slayer."

"Not on my watch." He replied firmly and pointed up the tunnel. "Now, we have things to do and this is a waste of time. We have to stay focused on the goal."

"Fine."

They walked in silence for ten minutes and then they joined the rest of the group, who had stopped beside a ladder. Riley pulled out his map again and nodded. One by one, the men climbed out and Forest, who was ahead of Buffy, turned and pulled her out of the manhole. He sat her on her feet and she glanced around, collecting her bearings.

Riley stepped out of the hole last and shined a small light on the map. "We' re just off the interstate, about a quarter mile from the drive-in. Agent Ruiz was taken right around here so keep your guard up. Shoot anything that moves."

Buffy could hear traffic whizzing somewhere off to her right and she scanned the treetops, seeing the headlights of the cars. The sewer opening was set in the middle of the woods from what she could tell and that was incredibly odd. Turning around, she could make out the remains of a large movie screen in the distance and the thin patch of trees that stood between it and them. Her Slayer senses went haywire and she closed her eyes, pinpointing exactly where the unease was originating: the clump of trees that stood between them and the theater.

"We'll go straight through the woods to the drive-in." Riley told the group.

"And into the trap." Buffy replied. "They know that someone got away. You think they aren't expecting this?"

"They're demons. They don't think or expect anything." Said the boy who had made the comment about her height.

"You think demons don't think?" Buffy exclaimed. "How much dealing have you had with demons? They think all the time and if there are as many of these things as Walsh said, then they know how to survive."

"Do you have another suggestion, Agent?" The man asked.

"Well, we can't see in the woods. We can't run or fight in the woods. There has to be an access road to the drive-in and if these things are aggressive, they'll come to us and save us the trouble." Buffy shrugged.

"You mean, just walk out in the open?" Riley stared at her like she had suddenly grown horns.

"As opposed to walking straight into their lair?" Buffy shot back. "Look, I 'm not itching to get killed tonight and if you send us through there then it's a real possibility."

"Fine, let's find the road." Riley said, heading toward the left.

Several of the men protested, claiming he was a 'pussy' and a 'wimp' to let a woman tell him where to go. He ignored them and pushed through several thorny bushes, exposing a gravel road. He turned right, pulling his gun into his arms as they headed toward the drive-in.

Buffy pulled her own gun into her arms and pushed the safety feature off as she scanned the thick overgrown landscape on either side of the road. She walked between Riley and Forest, out in front of the other men and she was very aware of the whispering going on behind her. Halfway down the slope, she paused, noting the lack of crickets and frog sounds that she had heard since she stepped out of the sewer. Turning slowly, she scanned the woods and froze.

Riley held a hand up, stopping everyone in their tracks. "What's wrong?"

"They're all around us."

"Are you sure?"

Buffy took aim and fired a few feet from Riley's back and a demon fell through the brush, landing in a slump at his feet. She quickly tugged a long knife from her boot and sliced through the neck, severing it's head from the body. It flailed, then dried up and withered into nothing. "Beheading."

At that moment, the woods erupted, spewing demons all over the place. Some carried swords, which they began to swing and the commando's rays lit up the night, striking and leaving the enemies helpless. Heads rolled, milky blue blood spewed and Buffy fought alongside the men, alternating between shooting and chopping.

Soon, Buffy was covered in the vile smelling liquid that shot from the demon 's necks and she backed away a few feet to wipe her face clean. One of the demons caught her in a firm grip and she slung her head back, catching him right in the face. It howled and dropped her, causing her to land off balance and roll down a small incline, losing her gun. As soon as she slammed against the trunk of a tree and came to a stop, she was back on her feet, unarmed and in a fighter's stance.

Scanning the area, she saw that the thing hadn't followed and glanced upward, dreading the climb out. That was when she heard the sobs and noticed a wooden bridge that ran across a small creek. Ducking under several branches, she came to a clearing and gasped when she saw nets suspended from the wood under the bridge and several people inside.

The nets swung back and forth, about fifteen feet off the ground and she tried to see if there was anything for her to stand on. A small groan escaped her lips when it dawned on her that she would have to climb the bridge and make her way across. She opened her thigh pack, looking for something to cut the ropes with and wondered how much it would hurt the people inside to drop through. She swore quietly when all she found was a red Swiss Army knife and threw her hands in the air. Rolling her eyes, she began climbing up the side of the bridge, the knife clutched in her teeth.

Riley shouted her name when she was halfway up the side and she braced herself, pulling the knife from her mouth. "Down here. I found the people." She glanced down when she heard footsteps and saw about ten of the men standing below her. "I'm going to climb across here and cut out the side of these nets. You guys try to break the falls."

"Buffy, be careful." Riley stared out at the jagged rocks and shallow water and back up at her. "That's a helluva fall."

"I don't plan on falling." She answered, putting her knife back in her mouth.

The first net contained three people and she swung out onto it, gripping the thick ropes that held it together. She lowered herself low onto the side and sawed through the material, telling the people inside that they were going to be fine. When the opening was big enough, she motioned for a woman to come through and gripped her forearm. "Just hang onto me and I'll lower you. They'll catch you."

The woman, who was a sobbing mess, complied and let Buffy pull her through the hole and then drop her. Riley caught her and motioned for the others to help her. A man moved through the hole, praying softly under his breath and gripped Buffy tightly. She smiled at him and tightened her hold on the ropes as he dangled from her arm, then slipped down to the others. The third man wouldn't allow her to help him and let himself dangle from the bottom of the net and drop on his own.

Buffy nodded at Riley and motioned at the next net, further out over the water. She climbed carefully, testing the weight on the wood and then dropped onto that net, as she had done the one before. Two little girls gazed up at her with dirty faces and Buffy reached through, gently wiping away a path of tears. "You're going to be fine."

"Are you an angel?" A tiny voice asked.

"No."

"You are to me." The little girl smiled and watched as Buffy cut through the ropes.

Within minutes, the girls were lowered and Buffy was making her way toward the final net. It was larger and had several people in it. As she moved further out, almost to the middle of the bridge, she cast a glance down and cringed. Here, there was nothing but rock and debris. If she fell, it could kill her. The drop was easily forty feet from the top. She would have to count on her momentum to leap at least ten feet and land down on top of the net, since there were no handholds left to support her and bring her any closer.

Taking a deep breath, she swung back and let go of the wood. The people in the net moved away when they saw her coming, causing the net to swing back and she missed the top and slid down the side. Buffy found a grip just as she was about to slide completely off and held on, suspended by one hand, almost at the bottom of the net. Her shoulder popped painfully and she yelped a little, nearly dropping her knife.

Several hands moved out of the net, finding hers and pulling her back upward. Her vest was gripped, her belt was tugged and she found herself where she needed to be and quickly cut through, making an opening. Buffy closed the knife and shoved it in her pocket before she shouted, "Are you ready down there."

"Yeah." Forest shouted, shivering in the waist deep water below her and glancing at the men who stood waiting with him.

A woman stepped through and screamed loudly when Buffy released her. Buffy watched her, making sure the others had her and she was safe before she motioned for another. Six people were freed from that net and when the last one dropped, she moved down to the bottom and held on, waiting for the go ahead. When she got it, she let go and fell easily into the outstretched arms of the commando's.

Riley carried her out of the water, not willing to let her get soaked and sat her on her feet. Several of the men clapped her on the back and she groaned. "I think my shoulder's out of place."

Riley unzipped her vest and ran his hand upward, making a face when he felt the odd angle of her bone. "You're right."

Forest moved behind her and gripped her firmly around the waist and the man who had made comments to her all night put his palm flat against her back. Riley gripped her arm and said, "On three."

Buffy nodded and he counted off and yanked, pulling it back into place with a loud snap. She winced and rotated it, then motioned at the people. "What about them?"

"We've called for transport. Teams four and five will wait here with them and the rest of us will go back the way we came." Riley still had a hand on her arm and added, "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." She replied, then jumped when she heard several bangs in the distance. "Grenades?"

"They had to destroy the bodies." Forest nodded and pulled a walkie-talkie from the pocket of vest. "Come in, team two, over."

"Team two, responding, over" Crackled a voice through the speaker.

"Were you able to obtain five hostiles, over?"

"Affirmative, five hostiles tagged and on their way to the lab with team three, over."

"Any further signs of activity up there, over?"

"Bodies are destroyed and teams six and seven are sweeping the perimeter, sir, over."

"Team one is leaving scene to file reports, check back in when the area is secured, over." Forest waited for the confirmation and pocketed the device again. "Now comes the hard part. Paperwork."

"I'm terrified." Buffy laughed, following closely as they led her back toward the tunnels. She hated to admit it and she definitely wouldn't bother mentioning it to her friends, but working with a group that she didn't have to worry about or keep tabs on was a nice change. These people were strong, capable and on top of the game.

They were just like her.

And it was nice not to feel alone.