*Sunnydale, Late August*
Buffy's stomach was all up in knots. She had left her father alone with her mother in the house, after he'd decided he would spend a week in Sunnydale. Sometime during that week, her dad was supposed to meet Giles and then together they were going to explain things to her mom. Buffy was still wondering about the results.
Doing her best to push her anxieties to the side, she set out on an extended patrol. Unlike the patrols she usually did the previous year, this time she admitted to herself that she wasn't doing just her duty; she was also enjoying herself. She had gone over the map of the city with her dad, planning patrol routes for the entire week. She was going to hit the supernatural hot spots at different hours each night, in order to make sure demons wouldn't catch on to any pattern.
That night being her first after her return, she had planned doing a sweep of all of Sunnydale's cemeteries, as well as the Bronze, the docks and the warehouse district. In the following days, she would concentrate more on each of them, but first she wanted to get a feel for the current level of activity in the town. So far, she was halfway through her checklist and nothing had turned up. If things didn't change, she'd have to hit Willy's in the hopes of finding someone to work out her pent up energy on. And, of course, Spike's nowhere to be found. Stupid vamp!
Finally, as if someone was answering her silent prayers, she felt an ever so subtle tingle, something she was beginning to associate with the presence of vampires. Cheering inwardly that she was surpassing Giles' estimates on when she'd be tuned in to that particular Slayer ability, she hurried towards the direction she thought her prey was in. Just as she was about to start her usual taunt and flaunt, maybe even go for a round of fisticuffs, just to keep in top form, she noticed the vamp's oblivious targets.
Xander and Willow should have known better.
Sighing to herself, Buffy decided not to play kick-the-vamp, and spun right into action. Running jump, with a high kick to the back, pirouette with elbow to the jaw, skip with knee to the groin and a stake to the heart finale meant the fledge disintegrated before it had a chance to realize what was happening. Okay, so she didn't really need the elbow and knee points to dust a lowly fledge, but she had to get in hits wherever she could. By the looks of things, the Slayer was going to have to do babysitting duty for her absentminded friends instead of her planned patrol. The same friends who looked like they had been caught doing something coupley and were now staring at her wide-eyed. Great!
Xander jumped off the railing he'd been sharing with Willow and focused all his attention on the new arrival. “Buffster, welcome back!” The eagerness in his voice and the way his eyes roamed over her body made her feel... wrong. Her eyes drifted to Willow, who was obviously hurt by the fact that Xander was just ignoring her. Buffy groaned to herself. Not this again!
“Hi, guys.” Tilting her head towards the pile of dust on the ground, she twirled her stake for emphasis. “Either of you bring any stakes?”
Xander gave her a goofy grin, something he must have thought would make her forget the stupidity, maybe. It didn't work. “It was a real slow summer.” He pointed to the spot Buffy had indicated, his face becoming a bit redder as his excitement levels grew. “That was the first vampire we saw since you left.”
“Great, it's like they knew I was in town or something.” Actually, that is great. No killage without me, no fanginess unchecked and now I'm better prepared. I wonder why Spike and his minions didn't show their faces around. Stupid, stupid vampire! “Come on, I'll walk you home, make sure all the beasties stay away from my friends.” She emphasized the last word, secretly feeling satisfaction when Xander's face fell a bit. Maybe if she was clear enough, she could finally nip his stupid teenage boy crush in the bud. Leaving room for bleachy goodness. Snapping out of her lusty thoughts, she turned towards Willow's house and signaled for the other two to follow.
They both caught up to her in a few steps and, after a few silent moments, the ice was finally broken by Willow. “So, LA...”
Blushing a bit when she remembered some of the things that had gone on in LA, Buffy decided to skip over Spike's presence. No use telling the story a million times. Giles had first dibs on that little tidbit of info, after all. “Well, first there was lots of shopping.” She grinned when Xander's eyes glazed over, the typical defense tactic whenever shopping was mentioned. “I got some awesome discounts, the outfits are out of this world and Queen C will get a run for her money this year.” Her grin widened. “What, she thinks only she can get brand names?” Huffing once for good measure, Buffy enjoyed Willow's answering giggles. It felt good to be back. “I even got dad to go Slayer-shopping. Oh, yeah, he knows now and he'll help me break the news to mom.”
The last sentence she said almost as an afterthought, but suddenly she found herself walking alone. She stopped and looked back only to see both Scoobies looking at her like she'd grown an extra head or something. “What's up, guys?”
Willow seemed too flustered to manage to form words, so she elbowed Xander to say what they were both thinking. “Buff, lemme get this straight. You told your dad about the things that go bump in the night?” At her smirk and nod, Buffy could have sworn she heard the sound of jaws hitting the pavement. Xander's voice gained an octave when he spoke next. “And he's fine with it?”
Giving Xander her best Valley Girl whatever-look, Buffy flipped her hair over her shoulder. “Well, not at first, but he's become like a mini Giles this past month. I'll tell you all about it tomorrow in the library.” Looking into the darkness around them, she mimicked tapping her nonexistent watch. “Can we get a move on, now? I'd like to finish my patrol before sunrise.” She spent the rest of the trip dodging the Scoobies' incessant questions by repeating over and over they would all talk about it tomorrow. She could swear she almost growled a few times.
After dropping off her friends, she continued her patrol without finding anyone in need of slaying. Shrugging her shoulders, she headed back home and got in her room via the tree. If everything went well, she might even start using the front door sometime. She fell asleep with a smile at that particular thought.
A few miles away, inside the old factory, Spike received a detailed report complete with video footage. An evil smirk graced his vampire features as he contemplated the approaching meeting. “Soon, Slayer. Very soon.” He then sent word to the diggers to double their efforts.
~~~***~~~
*Sunnydale High Library, first day of school*
Buffy breathed deeply before opening the door of the library. It was time to face the music and she knew both her friends were also inside, eager to get an explanation. She had maneuvered skillfully around answering any pertinent questions all day, taking advantage of every chance to get into a quipping match with Cordelia or to shoot down whatever jock was trying to get frisky. Dressed to kill as she was, in leather pants and low-cut halter top, coupled with the innocent schoolgirl makeup she had on, it was no wonder all the boys seemed to lose higher brain function, while all the girls went into super-bitch mode around her.
She had called her father to the library at about that time and she looked along the corridor in hopes of spotting him. Finally, he emerged from the mass of students milling about. He opened his mouth, probably to comment on her clothes, but a quirked eyebrow made him clamp his mouth shut. The man knew enough about teenage girls to recognize a losing battle when he saw one. Giving each other encouraging smiles, father and daughter stepped into the Watcher's domain.
“Hi Giles. Missed me?” She graced the librarian-Watcher-father figure with a brilliant smile. Her mood only got better when she saw him squirm in an attempt to figure out an appropriate and Watcher-y answer when faced with an unknown man.
“Ms. Summers. Yes, quite.” There went the glasses, off for a round of vigorous polishing. Looking at Hank, he frowned as he looked the interloper up and down. “And you are?”
Extending his hand in greeting, the Slayer's dad went into what Buffy liked to call 'Dad the lawyer mode'. “Hank Summers, Buffy's father. I understand you are her Watcher. Am I correct?” The two men shook hands after Giles replaced his glasses and, by the looks of it, both put a little more pressure into the gesture than protocol would have required. Buffy shook her head. Men are still boys. Xander and Willow gestured for Buffy to join them at the research table, all the while looking between the men that were engaged in a power struggle of sorts.
“And what, exactly, has your daughter told you about my duties as her Watcher?” Giles finally let go of Hank's hand, neither man the victor. He closed the ledger he had before him and got out from behind the counter, joining the Scoobies and the Slayer at the research table. Hank followed the implied invitation and took a seat between his daughter and her Watcher.
“Training, research and liaison to the Council, as well as backup on certain occasions.” Looking at the two teenagers opposite himself, Hank gave them the once over. “And you must be Willow and Xander, friends and allies of my daughter.” Puffing his chest in pride, Hank crossed his arms on the table. “Buffy brought me up to speed about all the Slayer business, and I'm here to discuss her progress and future.” Before the other people at the table got a chance to say anything, Hank finished off his statement of intent. “Also, we need to discuss how to tell Joyce about all of this. I won't have the mother of my child going around without a clue to the dangers around her.”
“Yes, well, the need for secrecy where the Slayer is concerned has been paramount throughout the ages-” Giles began, sounding every bit as British and starchy as possible.
Hank cut him off without any hesitation, throwing in a glare for good measure. “I invited a vampire into my home without knowing. The only thing that saved me was Buffy standing right next to me. If Joyce ever makes that mistake and there isn't someone there to help her, I'll personally come and hold you responsible, Mr. Giles. Do I make myself clear?” Leaning in closer to the flustered Englishman, Hank all but growled his next words. “From what I hear, a certain Darla managed to gain access to Joyce's house and even threatened to kill her. The only reason I'm letting that one slide is because Buffy begged me to.”
Giles' mind was reeling at the words Buffy's father felt so free to use. He was quite confident in his own abilities with various weapons, but a certain something in the other man's eyes told him that not even a Council's wet-works team, or any protective charms, would keep Hank from carrying out his threats. This gave him an odd sense of respect for the man, slightly altering his initial estimate of him as a deadbeat father unable to cope with raising a Slayer. The man glaring daggers his way was willing to protect his loved ones tooth and nail, something that Rupert himself could relate to very easily.
Giving a curt nod, Giles started polishing his glasses again. “I believe we can work something out.”
Buffy felt like she had just stepped into an episode of The Twilight Zone.
~~~***~~~
* Restfield Cemetery, later that day*
Buffy got closer to the spot where Giles had told her the Master was buried. As soon as she approached, however, she discovered—to her horror—that the earth had been recently disturbed. Going on high alert, she scanned the area for threats but was unable to locate any. As she got closer to the grave-site, something else caught her eye. There was a tube-like shiny thingy imbedded in the bark of the tree overshadowing that spot. Prying the cylinder out of the tree, she discovered it held a note rolled up inside. She wondered for a moment at the penmanship of the letter. It looked like it had been written in the same style as the titles of old Jane Austen books, with large arches and clear, spaced letters. Focusing on the words, though, she felt her blood run cold while her anger increased.
My dearest Slayer,
As you may have noticed, Great-Gramps here is missing. The reason for this little walkabout that Old Bat Face's bones decided to take, is that there were some pesky idiots—like that Annoying Guy I just staked—that wanted to put some meat on them. Namely, your mates' meat. Normally, I wouldn't object to a little mayhem, blood, and gore, but seeing as how I really enjoy calling the shots in this God forsaken town, I decided to do a little early-fall cleaning. The bones will be smashed and sprinkled over a river nearby, just to make sure nobody tries anything. Sorry if I spoiled some sort of emotional bond you may have had with the bastard that bit and drowned you, but what can I say? I'm evil like that.
Looking forward to our next encounter,
William the Bloody, Slayer of Slayers
PS: By my count, this makes it four times that I've saved your life, Slayer. How about that?
Spike.
Buffy read the letter over and over, not sure she could believe what was written there. She felt frustrated that the ground had obviously been disturbed at some point during the previous night, while she had been going all around the town without anything except a stupid fledgling to show for it. Right here, at such an important spot, somebody had managed to dig up the bones of her greatest enemy to date. And not just somebody, but Spike, the annoyingly smug sonofabitch that kept popping out all over the place, except where she could lay her hands on him and... something.
Throwing her hands in the air in a fruitless gesture of despair, she double-timed it back to the school library, where her dad and Giles were busy making schedules and comparing notes.
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Author's Chapter Notes:
Believe it or not, I'm still alive! It has been a few years ince I've updated any Spuffy, but RL has been at me like you wouldn;t believe. I have more chapters on this ready to go and I hope I will actually finish it soon. So here's hoping anyone out there is still interested in this one.