She sighed and walked forward. No use putting the deed off any longer. Xander looked up and noticed her. He waited until she was by his side, and put his arm around her.
"Hey honey."
"Hey." There was very little life in her voice. He looked at her with concern.
"Are you allright?"
She stared into his eyes. Started to say something. Then looked down. "Yeah, sure. I’d just hoped there’d be news today." She couldn’t tell him.
Xander looked at her with genuine affection. She had been so supportive to him. To them all. And she really cared about what may have happened to Buffy. He didn’t know what he would have done without her. "Don’t worry. We’ll find her." How many times had she said those very words to him, when he despaired. And when he finally broke down and confessed his guilty secret, she’d held him while he wept. It was Cordelia who told the others, and made sure they understood his reasons. He owed so much to her.
Cordelia looked up at the others. They were busy poring over the maps, and scanning the computer screen. Except Giles. He was looking at her with an odd expression in his eyes. She turned away. Almost afraid he’d discover the truth.
Suddenly Willow’s exited voice shattered the silence. "We’ve got another sighting." She believed each new sighting would be the one to bring them to Buffy. It was that unflagging enthusiasm which had buoyed up all their spirits.
"Where?" Xander wished he could drum up more enthusiasm. He was getting like Giles. Not believing it could be Buffy, until he saw her, touched her.
"About 200 miles east of the last one."
Oz moved to his list of bus routes. "There are a few that go that way. She could have gotten on one."
Giles had been through this so many times, he knew it by rote. "You all know the drill. Do your research, then come back here." He knew it would be fruitless. He had an idea where Buffy was. Or at least in the general direction. The children didn’t know that with the first few sightings, whilst he had preached caution, he would travel to every town. He soon sorted the genuine sightings from the wildgoose chases. And had discovered Buffy’s pattern. Once, he was sure she was still in the town when he’d arrived. After that, he didn’t leave town as much. He was happy to wait. She knew he was there, waiting for her. Just as he knew she would return soon.
He watched as the others started to file out. "Um, Cordelia. W-would you assist me here, please?" She turned back to the Watcher. It was a relief not having to pretend in front of the others. She was completely shocked by Giles’ gentle "What’s wrong?"
"What?" Cordelia of old could bluff her way out of it. "What do you mean, what’s wrong? Besides living on the Hellmouth, and the Slayer having run away, that is! Nothing."
The old Cordelia may have gotten away with that, but Giles found the new Cordelia transparent. "Why are you upset?"
Cordelia tried to work herself up to another bluster, but suddenly slumped in defeat. "Am I that obvious?"
"Yes. Yes, you are." Cordelia couldn’t help responding to his gentle smile with one of her own. She soon found, however, that the tears were threatening to spill. Again. As they had done since last night.
Giles noticed the imminent loss of control. His first reaction was to run. Instead, he fought that down, and walked towards the young girl. He gently enveloped her in a hug, and let her cry.
It took several minutes before Cordelia was capable of coherent speech. During that time, she’d managed to soak Giles’ jacket. "I’m sorry."
The older man smiled, understanding. "One of the reasons I wear tweed. It absorbs water so well." He was rewarded with another, though hesitant smile. She then sobered.
"They’re sending me away."
"What? Wh-who?"
"Daddy. He told me last night. He decided I need finishing. I’m going to Europe to one of those ‘schools for young ladies’". She couldn’t help dripping the last with sarcasm.
"I-I would have thought that you would like something like that."
"I would. I do. But not now. Not with Buffy gone. And how will Xander cope without me?" Giles’ understanding "Ah" was lost in her next outburst. "Or maybe I’m kidding myself. Maybe Xander won’t care either way. And then, when Buffy comes back, she can have her slayerettes back full time."
"I think you’re being unfair to both Buffy and Xander." She winced at his admonishing tone. "But, most importantly, to yourself. You have been invaluable to us all. Before Buffy disappeared. Now even more so." The glow of happiness on her face was ample reward for his little speech. "I really think you should talk this over with Xander."
"So do I." Cordelia spun around at the sound of her boyfriend’s voice. "I forgot my jacket. I came back to see my girlfriend in your arms." This was directed at Giles. He looked back at Cordelia. "How could you think I wouldn’t miss you?" He braced himself as she ran and threw herself into his arms. Giles couldn’t believe she’d have any more tears left. She proved him wrong.
"Why, um, why don’t the two of you come over and sit down. Then we can talk." They reluctantly disentangled themselves and moved toward the table. When they were settled, Giles started his questioning.
"Did your father say when he’d come to this decision?"
"No. He just said he thought this would be best for me. Broaden my horizons."
"Have you ever talked about such a move before?"
"No. In fact, Daddy always thought that such things were foolish. An American education was good enough for his daughter." Cordelia wondered if she should take offense at his ‘harumph’.
"Then why would he suddenly change his mind?"
"He did say something weird. Something about unsavoury influences, whatever that means."
"It means he wants to get you away from your trashy boyfriend."
"Xander!" He could hear the rage in the boy’s voice. "Getting angry won’t help."
"Besides, Daddy likes you. The other day he said that you had helped me to grow, mature."
"So why’s he trying to separate us?"
"I don’t know." The two young people sat holding each other’s hands, staring mournfully into each other’s eyes. Giles fought to hide his smile. Why was love so all-compassing and tragic at their age?
"I-I think that, at this stage, you have no choice. Cordelia should obey her father."
Xander couldn’t believe what he was hearing. "Wait a minute."
"It’s only a year, Xander. That is if Cordelia wants to stay, after she turns eighteen. And think of the opportunities she’ll have there. She won’t get them here."
Xander heard the hidden messages. She’ll be safer away from the Hellmouth. And think of somebody else for a change. He bowed his head. This was so hard. He felt like he was losing everything, everybody. "You’re right." He stilled Cordelia’s protest. "It’s only for a year. And, when you come back, we can show how savoury my influence really is." His attempted smile didn’t fool anyone.
She didn’t know what to do. She was torn. How could she abandon them? How could she disobey her father? She knew, however, there was no choice. "You are right. There’s nothing else I can do."
"That’s wonderful news, Mr. Chase. Yes, your daughter will be safe. Don’t worry about the boy. We’ll take care of him. Yes, we’re almost ready to make the arrest. I’m glad you were able to wrest your little Cordelia from that monster. Oh, and Mr. Chase? I spoke to the mayor earlier. He’s ready to grant that contract. He feels he should promote local employment. I will, sir. I’ll tell the mayor immediately. Goodbye, Mr. Chase."
Ethan Rayne replaced the telephone. He almost felt like rubbing his hands together and shouting for glee. Everything was going according to plan. The ‘musician’ was next. He’d already organized a small tour for the band. Even made sure none of their engagements were during the full moon. It was a stroke of luck running into that hunter. It didn’t take much deduction to know who the Sunnydale werewolf was.
Next, the redhead. Then the other boy. And then there will be none. No-one to protect their precious Watcher. No-one to care whether he lived or died. And then, he would be at his, Ethan’s mercy. The day of reckoning was near. So, so near.
He’d lost them all now. Cordelia and Oz had left within a week of each other. For the next few days he’d had to contend with two extremely depressed and distressed slayerettes. Losing their ‘squeezes’ whilst still frantically searching for Buffy had almost undone them both. Yet, he believed it was the search for the Slayer that saved them. Gave them the strength to carry on. Then had come Willow’s announcement:
"I have something to tell you."
Giles and Xander looked up from the book they were researching. There had been some unusual activity of late, and Giles wanted to ensure it didn’t portain to some dire prophecy.
Once she had their attention, Willow wasn’t sure how to continue. She didn’t even know why she was telling them. It wasn’t as if she was really considering it. She wouldn’t desert them like Cordelia and Oz had.
"I." The two listeners sensed how hard it was for the hacker to continue. Whatever it was, it was important. "I got a phone call. Not about Buffy, or anything. He said he’d seen my work. And it was really cool, cause he’s so busy. But he called me personally. And it’s a real privilege. Not that I’m considering it. Not really. Cause this is really important. Finding Buffy. But it was kind of an honour. And, and I just thought I’d let you know." Willow finally wound down after running out of breath.
The other two stood as though frozen. It took them several seconds to sort through the abundance of information fed to them by the young woman. Xander was the first to break the spell.
"Let me get this straight. You got a phone call?" He waited for her confirming nod. "From a man. But it has nothing to do with Buffy?" Another nod. "This is where it gets kinda confusing. Whoever this guy was, he’s pretty important, right?" A third nod.
Giles decided it was time to take over. "Xander. We will be here forever this way. Willow? Why don’t you start from the beginning? And this time, tell us everything?"
"Oh. Oh, ok. Well, last night I got this phone call."
"Yeah, we already figured that bit out."
"Xander! Don’t interrupt. Carry on Willow."
Willow found herself getting a little upset. They were already annoyed with her. How would they feel when they learnt the whole truth? "Well, he’s the recruiter of this really big computer company. And he said he’d heard about me. And he understood that I didn’t want to leave high school yet. But would I be interested in doing a cadetship."
The two men sat down as they absorbed the implication of this. From the look on their faces, Willow knew they were disappointed in her. "I’m not interested. Not really. And I’ll tell him tonight. Cause we have to find Buffy. And that’s more important. Besides, I kinda decided I’d like to become a teacher."
"Nonsense." Giles tried to rouse himself out of his depression. "This is a unique opportunity. One you mustn’t let slip you by."
"Yeah Will. I mean, how many times do you get offered the chance to be a nerd among a whole company of nerds. I think it’s great. I really do." Xander hadn’t realised how great an actor he was. The third woman in his life was breaking his heart and leaving. Just like the other two. But here he was, acting like he was pleased for her.
"But. I don’t want to go. And leave you. And not find Buffy."
"Y-you aren’t leaving us. Not for long. I assume this cadetship is short-term only?" Giles decided to get a few more facts before pushing her in the right direction.
"Yeah. Just over the rest of the summer holidays, and the first couple of months of the first term. But you get credits, and they go toward the end of year results."
"And, of course, you have access to the company computers." This was more of a statement than question, as he started to think of the possibilities and ramifications.
"Well, yeah, I guess."
"Well there you go. With all their techno-type stuff, you’ll still be able to help us look for Buffy. And, you know, there’s this new-fangled machine. It’s called a telephone. You can talk into it, and people at the other end can hear you." Xander was happy to see the smile slowly light up his best friend’s face. This was best for her. "Besides, you’ve tried teaching, now you try this computer thing. Then you can choose what you want to be when you grow up."
"Are you both sure? I mean, I feel like I’m deserting you, just like....." None of them sure which name she was going to use. They had all felt so much pain over the absences of the rest of the gang, like silent ghosts walking beside them.
"No. Nobody is deserting us, or our fight. A-and it isn’t forever. We will all soon be together again." Inside, Giles was feeling both sadness and joy. He was losing her, but she’ll be free. To experience life outside of the Hellmouth. For her sake, he hoped it was permanent.
Giles wasn’t sure when he became suspicious. Certainly before Willow’s announcement. But after Cordelia left. He hadn’t mentioned his concerns to the others. At first, in case they were unfounded. Then, he wanted them gone. Where they would be safe from this new danger. Until he found it’s cause. So, he allowed his unknown and unseen enemy to continue to plot. And manipulate. He had been interested in how he would dispose of Xander:
"Hey Giles." The young man stood near the library counter. He attempted to look calm, but the librarian knew something was wrong. He wasn’t making any wise cracks. Besides, they were overdue for the next phase of the plot against them.
"Xander. Is something wrong?"
"No. Not really." How to continue. "The thing is, my folks sprung a surprise on me last night. Some distant relative died, and left me some money. Only a couple of thousand."
"Oh. Well, I’m sorry about the relative, but it was kind of them to leave you the money."
"Yeah. Only, it’s not exactly money. It’s a ticket. On a plane. To Europe."
"Oh." He was disappointed. This was too obvious. "Why such an unusual legacy?"
"According to my folks, this guy always wanted to travel. To see the world. Only he got stuck running the family business. Never went anywhere. So, in his will, he divided his money among all the young male relatives, but stipulated that it had to go towards holidays."
"Quite an, um, unusual relative."
"Yeah, Dad said he was weird. His whole house was covered with travel posters."
Perhaps not as obvious as he thought. Or a coincidence? "I’m still not sure where the problem is."
"I have to be back before school starts. My folks won’t let me miss any classes. They expect at least a couple of ‘C’s this year."
"Then you’ll have to leave immediately. A-and you’ll be able to see Cordelia while you’re there."
"What about you? What about Buffy?"
Giles couldn’t help the smile coming to his face. "Xander, what you all seem to forget is that I’m a grown man. I can take care of myself. Have done for several years in fact. As for Buffy. I have faith in her. She will return. When she’s ready. In the meantime, Willow is still researching. A-and Oz is searching while his band is touring. There is nothing more any of us can do."
"You sure?"
"Yes. Yes, I’m sure. In fact, I insist on it." How else was he to find out what his enemy was up to?
Everything was in place. The boy was leaving in two days’ time. Then his enemy would be alone. Completely vulnerable. And completely unsuspecting.
He’d researched long into the boy’s life. Looking for the angle. The right approach. He had been the hardest to dispose of. It was only through a genealogy search that he had found the eccentric relative. And his will. Oh, that wonderful will. A quick visit to discuss the latest travel options, a few drops in his drink, and the old fellow was making the greatest journey of all.
"Ah, Ripper. You would have been proud of me, once. Now, all you feel for me is disdain. But soon, that will change. It will be terror. And awe. At my brilliance. This will end our argument completely. I am the better man. And the most superior brain. Too bad I have to destroy you to prove it." Ethan felt a pang of, well, not conscience. Regret, perhaps? Then shrugged it off. And began to hum.
And now he was all alone. Xander had said goodbye yesterday. His plane would be leaving later today. Strange, how quiet the library seemed. How empty. As if it’s life force had left with the young people who’s boisterous antics and chatter had at first seemed so alien to it’s hallowed environment. Or perhaps it was just him. And his loneliness. Oh, how he missed them all already. How he missed Buffy.
The sound of teenage laughter made him look toward the doors. They remained shut. Then he remembered. Snyder had informed him of some sort of sporting activity today. That would be why there was so much activity at the school during the holiday period. Ah well. He had a great deal of work to get through. And he would see these next few weeks as the ideal opportunity to do so. Goddess knew there never seemed enough time when Buffy and the others were around.
"Hey Giles." He looked up at the familiar greeting.
"Xander? Wh-what are you doing here? You should be leaving for your holiday."
"I’ve got a couple of hours to kill before I have to leave. There’s something I have to talk to you about." He’d been thinking about it all night. About two o’clock in the morning it had hit him. "Don’t you think it’s kinda weird. All of us having to leave Sunnydale? Leave you? I don’t mean Buffy. That was kind of normal. But the rest of us?"
"W-well this is the Hellmouth..."
"Where there is no such thing as coincidence. Come on Giles. If I can figure it out, why haven’t you?"
"Allright. Perhaps it is a little strange, but..."
"What are you hiding? You know something......"
"Rupert Giles?" They had been so involved in their discussion they hadn’t noticed the intruders. Xander recognized the Police Chief from his interview over Kendra’s death.
"Yes?" Giles didn’t like the look of this. Whenever the police visited him, it meant a death.
The Chief walked towards the librarian. He was really going to enjoy this. Grabbing Giles’ arm harder than necessary, he swung it around and up, while taking out his handcuffs. "You’re under arrest."
"What?" Xander couldn’t believe it. By the look on his face, neither could Giles.
"What is the charge?" The handcuffs were locked in place, but the officer still held his arm in a vice-like grip. The discomfort was growing harder to hide.
"How about Contributing to the Delinquency of a Minor for a start. And while we’re downtown, let’s discuss the disappearance of one Buffy Summers. Not to mention a couple of unsolved murders. The bodies of the victims were both found in buildings associated with you."
"Wait. This is stupid." Xander stopped at the look from the cop.
"Just be thankful son, that you escaped with your life. We’ve been watching this pervert for weeks now. As for you." He swung Giles round to face him. "Open up." He forced an official looking paper into his prisoner’s mouth. Oh this was fun. "That’s a warrant. To search your apartment. I understand you like to keep diaries."
He was so busy congratulating himself on his humour and cleverness, he didn’t see the look exchanged by the prisoner and the boy. The Journals, both his and previous Watchers’, weren’t at the apartment. They were here, in the cage.
Xander called after Giles as he was dragged from the library. "I’ll call the others.."
"No!" Giles did not want them involved in this. "It’s all a misunderstanding. No need to spoil their holidays unnecessarily."
"But.."
"I mean it Xander! Do. Not. Call. Them." He could see Xander wanted to argue, but he was pulled through the library doors before that could happen. He only hoped he would obey him.
And so it was that Rupert Giles, school librarian, was ignominiously carted off by the Chief of Police in front of half of the student body.
"Stupid bloody incompetent fools!" He’d told them to wait. At least until they’d known the boy had left the country. But no. They had to have their moment of glory. They could have undone his entire plan with their ridiculous grandstanding!
But no. He was overreacting. Everything was in place. Nothing could stop him now. Certainly not a stupid teenage boy.
"Oh honey, I’m so glad. Yeah. I’ve missed you too." Xander paced the library as he talked to his girlfriend. "I don’t know. I’ve tried everything I can think of. But I just can’t find an answer. I can explain more when you’re here. Do you need me to pick you up? Okay. Okay, I’ll see you then. Bye baby." Xander let out a sigh of relief when he hung up the phone. At least he wouldn’t be so alone any more. He’d never been so scared. Before, there had been somebody else to fall back on. To lean on. This time, there was just himself. And if he screwed up, nobody else could fix it.
He looked up at the sound of the doors opening. His feet started moving automatically. Now he knew he wasn’t alone.
Willow felt herself being folded in her best friend’s arms. She hadn’t realised how much she’d missed this until she got it back. She pulled away from Xander. "How is he?"
"I don’t know. They won’t let me see him." He looked across at the other occupant. "Hey Oz. Thanks for bringing her back."
"Hey, I was in the area anyway."
"Yeah, by about 200 miles." Willow smiled at her boyfriend. His answering grin warmed her chilled heart. As long as she had him and Xander, she’ll cope. Then she remembered why she was upset at the other Slayerette this time. "Why didn’t you call me?"
"Giles wouldn’t let me. He said he didn’t want any of you to know. How did you guys find out?"
Oz volunteered the explanation "I read it in a newspaper. Seems the arrest of a High School Librarian is national news."
"Yeah. Cordy just rang. She heard about it in Europe, of all places. She’s coming back, by the way."
"I’m so glad." Willow found she meant it. Who would have thought that she and Cordelia would become friends? "So. What now?"
They moved towards the research table. It was obvious Xander had already been hard at work. "I don’t know. I’ve tried everything I can think of. They were hinting at charging him with Miss Calendar’s and Kendra’s murders too."
Willow knew how much that would have hurt their Watcher. "Oh no. Poor Giles."
Oz found he was curious about one thing. "Do we know who brought the charges up against him?"
"They’re not saying. But I have an idea, yeah. The problem is, it all comes down to one thing."
Willow looked down at Xander’s notes. "What’s that?"
"We have to find Buffy."
"Try looking behind you."
Giles lay on the hard iron cot. He’d been in the cell for almost two days now. He wasn’t sure, but he believed it was illegal to keep a prisoner that long without legal representation. He hadn’t mentioned it to his captors. He doubted if they would care.
They’d been questioning him consistently during that time. Always the same. Who had killed Jenny? Kendra? Was it the same person? Didn’t he want to confess? Where was Buffy? What had he done to her? He kept repeating the same answers over and over. To no avail. They didn’t believe him. Either that, or they wanted him to be guilty. Finally, he’d lot his temper. Told them how much he wanted to find Buffy too. That had been a mistake.
Now he was waiting. For what, he wasn’t sure. They hadn’t been near him for a few hours. Gave him a chance to clear his head. To think. And wonder. Why hadn’t Xander been to visit? Had he abandoned him too?
A noise behind him caused him to turn his head.
"Hallo Ripper."
"Ethan." He shouldn’t have been surprised, but he was. He hadn’t known Ethan had sunk so low.
"So. How does it feel? To be alone? Friendless? Reviled and despised? Without aid in sight?"
"Is this what it’s about, Ethan? To see how far you can push me? To make me taste, what, some of your pain and loneliness?"
"Not push, dear boy. Punish. You abandoned me! Hid behind your little Watcher role. Left me on my own."
"There is a difference between us Ethan. You were on your own through choice. I begged you to walk away. I would have been there for you."
"Would you?" Giles turned his head, a faint blush climbing his cheeks. He knew what Ethan was asking. The one area they had truly differed in. Their perceptions of their relationship. "I thought not."
"So, you decided to destroy my life. Has it helped?"
"Oh, yes. Because I have proven I can do it. I have finally shown you I am the better man."
Giles looked him in the eye. "Have you?" This time it was Ethan’s turn to look away. "Enjoy your moment of glory, Ethan. It won’t last."
"Oh? You think your little friends will help you this time? Your Slayer? Where is she? Where are they? They’ve abandoned you Rupert." He paused, as though in thought. "You know? I might let you go to gaol. You might learn how to treat a friend properly in there." He laughed as he left the holding area.
Giles lay back down. Now he knew. He wasn’t worried. Seeing Ethan had restored his faith in Xander. He was also sure the others would know the truth and return to Sunnydale. His concern now was for Buffy. He hoped she stayed away a little longer.
"Buffy!" After all this time searching and she just walks through those doors by herself.
Buffy looked at her friend. "Hey, Willow." She turned towards the others. "Xander. Oz."
Xander nodded his head. "Buffy." He wished he could drum up more excitement. He hadn’t realised until this moment how angry he was at her.
Oz inclined his head toward the Slayer. He had no real beef against her, but he knew how upset Willow had been over her friend’s disappearance. And that made him pretty pissed.
Willow sensed the tension between the three. She’d hoped for a happier reunion but so much had happened, she felt awkward. At first she was going to go over to greet Buffy, but now she found she couldn’t move.
Buffy looked at her friends. No happy homecoming here. But then, what had she expected. A Welcome Back Buffy party? More like a Why Did You Come Back, Go Away Again party. Well, she couldn’t. Her Watcher was in trouble. He needed her.
She sighed and moved forward. "How’s Giles?"
"What do you care!?" Xander hadn’t meant to say that. It just came out.
"Xander!" Willow couldn’t believe her friend.
"You just disappeared. Without a word to any of us. We’ve all been scared something happened to you. You didn’t care about the pain you caused us. How much Giles suffered not knowing where you are..."
"He knew."
"What?" He couldn’t believe he was hearing this.
"Giles knew where I was. Well, at least where I was heading."
"No. He didn’t. He would have told us. He was as worried as the rest of us."
Willow thought back over the past few weeks. Something made sense now. "He wasn’t so worried a few weeks ago. I mean, he let us keep looking. But he said he had faith in you."
Xander turned to the hacker in disbelief. "You can’t think he’d do it deliberately. Let us suffer all this time." He turned back toward the Slayer. "You’re lying. So that you can feel better."
"I saw him."
"Now I know you’re lying. He never left Sunnydale."
"I was on a bus leaving the town I was in. I sensed something, looked out the window and there he was. He looked up. He sensed it too, I know he did."
Oz had been watching this in silence. He thought he knew Giles’ motives. "Xander, when Buffy first disappeared, you all went to pieces. Looking for her gave you a purpose. Then, when first Cordelia, then I left, you had something to occupy your time."
Willow added her opinion. "That was why he wasn’t so upset when we made new plans too?"
Buffy looked at them all. "You left town? You left Giles on his own? And you dare to condemn me?"
Willow felt her own guilt rising. That caused her anger come to the surface. "He encouraged us to go. At least he knew where we were!" At the stricken look on the Slayer’s face, her anger fell away. "Oh, Buffy. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it." She stepped forward and enveloped her friend in a hug. "We’ve all missed you so much."
Buffy felt the tears rise to her eyes. She’d wanted somebody to hug her for so long. To tell her it was going to be allright. Trouble is, it wasn’t. Not unless she did something. She pulled away from Willow. "This isn’t helping Giles." She turned toward Xander. "What do we know?"
"We know that somebody wanted to get rid of us. Leave Giles on his own."
Willow looked at him. "We do?"
"Yeah. It was too much of a coincidence. Besides, Giles had guessed it too. Why he went along, I don’t know yet."
"We’ll ask him when he’s free. What are the charges?" She knew of his arrest, but not why.
"Contributing to the Delinquency of a Minor. You."
"But I’m not a minor."
"You were when you first met Giles. When you came to Sunnydale, and became Public Nuisance Number 1."
"Who brought the charges up?" She had an idea of the answer, but she had to hear him say it.
"Your mother."
Xander paced around the interview room. They’d finally promised to let him see Giles. After two hours of grilling and ‘subtle’ hinting, he gave them what they wanted. It was the only way they would let him see the Watcher.
He turned toward the door as it opened. Giles was led in by two police officers, his hands cuffed in front of him. The look of genuine relief on the Englishman’s face made the past couple of hours worthwhile. "Xander!"
"Hey Giles." He looked at the policemen. "Do you mind?"
"We’ll just be outside the door. Call if you need anything."
"Yeah, right. Thanks." He waited until they were alone, before sitting at the table.
Giles sat in the seat opposite. "How’re you holding up?"
"I-I admit I’ve had better days? I-is, um, everything allright?"
Xander knew Giles was asking about the diaries. "Yeah. Everything’s cool. Listen, um, Giles. They only let me talk to you because I told them I could get you to tell them the truth."
Giles couldn’t believe what he was hearing. "W-what?"
"They just want to know where Buffy is. Her mom’s really worried. That’s why you’re here. So just tell them what you know. Then you can go home." He hoped the other man understood what he was saying.
Giles stood up and moved away from the table. He needed to think. What was Xander trying to say? "I’ve told them all I know. About Buffy. And the - the murders." Buffy. Her mother. "I understand Mrs. Summers is concerned. We-e all are. I don’t blame her for anything. She isn’t to blame"
Then who was? "So what we need is for Buffy to turn up about now." At the sudden speed that Giles turned around, he knew his message had been received.
"No!" He turned toward the door. Nobody entered. "No. It would only cause more questions. Now would not be a good time for Buffy to reappear. Wherever she is, I’m sure she’s safe. Perhaps once this has died down. When the person responsible for this mistake has seen the error of his ways."
Great. Buffy was on her way to save him, and he didn’t want to be saved? Now what? "You need help." He was running out of time. "The things you think you’ve seen. The things you talked to us about. They can’t be real. Talk to somebody. We ALL want to help you." Was it enough? Did he understand?
"Perhaps it’s because of something that happened in my past?" Giles said it as if in joking. He hoped his young friend realised the truth. The others were there. Ready to help. And Buffy was home. He felt easier than he had in a long time. Now to take care of Ethan. "I doubt if they would believe me, Xander. In fact, I’m quite sure of it. I’m sorry. Sorry that you’ve turned against me. You and the others. Abandoned me. You have disappointed me." {Forgive me. I don’t mean it. Please understand.}
The door opened. The two police officers reentered the room. It was obvious they’d been listening. "Time’s up. Sorry son."
"Giles. We’ll be thinking about you. And praying." {I understand. Hang in there} He watched as they dragged their prisoner out. Now all he had to do was remember everything Giles had told him. Hopefully, the others will understand what he meant.
Joyce Summers moved towards the stairs. She was expecting a phone call. It was making her nervous, so she’d decided to clean the house. Again. When Buffy came home, she wouldn’t recognize the place. If she came home. No she wouldn’t think that way. He promised.
The downstairs was spotless. She might just give Buffy’s room another quick dusting. As she climbed the first step, the doorbell rang. He said he’d ring. Perhaps the news was too important for the phone. She opened the door. To find the last person she expected on the other side.
"Hello Mother."
"Buffy!" She folded her daughter in her arms. She didn’t notice at first that her hug wasn’t returned. "I-I’ve been so worried about you. Where have you been? Let me look at you." She stepped back, unable to stop the tears that seemed at such contrast with her smile. Then she saw the expression on Buffy’s face.
"What is it? What’s wrong?"
"Aren’t you going to invite me in?"
"Invite? Buffy, this is your home." She moved aside, allowing her daughter to brush past her. The door closed behind them.
"Which you threw me out of." Buffy turned to face her mother again. She should have felt guilty for what she’d put her through. Instead, she felt rage. How dare she put Giles in jail.
"I was upset. You were saying foolish things. I didn’t mean it." She was begging her daughter’s understanding. This wasn’t right. "But its allright now. You’re back. We can clear up any misunderstanding. And you’re safe."
"From what? The demons? Monsters? Or perhaps you mean from Giles."
Didn’t she understand? "Buffy, he’s an evil man. He filled your mind with nonsense. He - he may have been responsible for two murders."
"You don’t know him! He couldn’t do anything evil! As for the murders, one of them was the woman he loved! It almost destroyed him! I know who was responsible for those murders mother! And it wasn’t Giles."
"Not more of this vampire rubbish."
"Think mother. Remember. You saw me destroy one of them. Why are you still denying it?"
Joyce felt confused. So much had happened in the past few months. "There was this man."
"What man?"
"He works for the mayor. He came to see me. To talk about you. He explained about Mr. Giles. Said the police had been watching him for a while. That he took impressionable teenagers like you, and filled their minds with talk of demons and vampires."
"And you believed him? Over me?"
"Buffy I was confused. Scared for you. He said he could help me find you. He seemed so - normal. So nice."
"Who is he?"
"It’s funny. He’s English. Like Mr. Giles."
Buffy started. Now she knew.
"That’s all he said?" The slayerettes were seated at the library table. Xander had just finished reciting his conversation with Giles.
"Yeah. I know he was trying to tell me something. I just can’t figure what."
"That’s cause you’d have to use a brain."
"Cordelia!" Xander rushed over to his girlfriend. "You know, I even missed your insults?"
Cordelia welcomed his crushing hug. "Yeah. That’s cause you know they’re true." She looked towards the others. "Hey Willow."
"Welcome back Cordelia." And she meant it too. Wow.
"I would have been here sooner, but Daddy and I had a ‘conversation’." She grabbed Xander’s hand and led him back to the table. "Seems that somebody warned him about Giles. He was the ‘unsavoury influence’ Xander, not you. The whole school thing was to protect me."
Oz was getting more confused. "But who warned him?"
"Some assistant to the mayor."
Willow felt the gears in her brain begin to click. "Somebody who knows about us. And our relationship with Giles." She felt the excitement build. "Somebody from Giles’ past."
"Ethan Rayne."
"Buffy?" Cordelia looked at her boyfriend. "Was there something you forgot to tell me?"
"Hey Cordy. I’ve just had a heart-to-heart with my mother." She couldn’t let go of the bitterness. "Ethan’s behind this."
Xander hit his hand against his forehead. "Of course. This stinks of him."
"Excuse my ignorance. But who’s Ethan?" Oz felt that he had missed out on the moment, somehow.
"Ethan Rayne. He and Giles used to be friends." Buffy forgot Oz wasn’t part of the gang during Halloween.
"Now, they’re not?"
"No. There’s a lot of history there."
"Oh. Okay. Now what?"
"Now, I go to the police and say it’s all a big mistake."
"No!" She looked at Xander. "Giles said he didn’t want you to do that. He wants you to lay low for a while."
"Why?"
"Because the police won’t believe you." Now Willow understood what Giles meant. "Ethan works for the mayor. He obviously has them believing his lies. They won’t believe you any more than they would Giles. Not yet."
"Well we can’t just leave him there. We’ve got to get him out. And destroy Ethan."
"I could drop the charges." They all turned to stare at the newcomer. They couldn’t believe she was there, or what she’d just said.
"Why?"
"Because, for once, I’m going to trust you. And have faith in you. If you say Mr. Giles is innocent, then he is. And I’ve been part of a gross miscarriage of justice."
"You know, it must be an adult thing. For a moment there, she sounded just like Giles."
Willow admonished. "Quiet Xander."
Buffy looked at her mother. It couldn’t be so easy. It was never this easy. Not for her. She took a tentative step forwards. As her mother’s arms lifted and opened, she ran into them. "I’m sorry, Mommy."
"Shh, sweetheart. It isn’t your fault. I’m sorry. I should have believed in you from the beginning."
Oz smiled at the reunion. "Now, that is a moment."
The sound of the door opening pulled Giles out of his thoughts. They hadn’t allowed him a book to read, so he’d dusted out the old favourites he’d memorized. He had a fancy for Forster, so he revisited ‘A Room With A View’. It reminded him of Jenny, and squirming.
"Hello Ethan. Feeling bored?" He didn’t need to turn around to know who it was.
"Very good. Do you also pull rabbits out of a hat?" No response. Damn. He thought Ripper would have broken by now. Begged him for his help. His friendship. "I heard you had a visitor today. How does it feel? To know the boy’s turned against you?"
"Is there something in particular you wanted?" It would be so easy to throw back a rejoinder. To let Ethan know that his plan hadn’t worked. Not yet. Not yet.
"I’ve just had an interesting conversation with Mrs. Summers. Sorry, Joyce. That’s what she asked me to call her, you know? Anyway, she’s invited me over for dinner. To say thank you for all I’ve done." He paused, as if musing. "It might be interesting to strike up a romance there. She’s so ripe for it. I could marry her. And then, when the Slayer comes home, I can be her new daddy. Guide her properly along the path of life."
"I doubt if she’d let you live that long. Once she finds out the truth, I’d hate to be in your shoes."
"But you won’t be around to find out, will you?" He had one more card to trick. To rile his old friend. "You know. I’m surprised you didn’t make a move in that direction. Much more suited to your disguise. The house-frau. Better than that witch....."
Giles jumped up in rage. "Don’t you dare mention her. Ever. Do you understand me?"
Ethan opened his mouth to add to the torment. Something, perhaps self-preservation prevented him. "As always, it was fun talking to you. I’ll give your regards to dear old Joycy." He walked out of the holding area without looking back. If he had, he would have seen the grin emerge on Giles’ face. Oh, how he wished he could be there tonight. He had a funny feeling that Ethan was about to be served up as the main course.
The doorbell sounded at exactly 6pm. Ethan was nothing, if not punctual. Joyce checked around the room, made sure everything was ready. Then she put on her best hostess smile and opened the door.
"Mr. Rayne." At his admonishing look. "Sorry, Ethan. Right on time. Won’t you come in?"
"Thank you. Oh. These are for you." He handed her a bunch of wild flowers. Not too pushy, but enough to head in a more personal direction.
"They’re beautiful. Thank you." She took the flowers off him and indicated he should precede her into the living room. "Oh, by the way. Did I tell you I had a surprise visitor this afternoon?"
Ethan turned. Why would she tell him? "No. Anybody interesting?"
"That would depend on your point of view. Hello Ethan." Buffy loved that particular sickly green colour. She might paint her bedroom with it one day.
"B-Buffy?" Oh, God. He was a dead man. He swallowed hard. "This IS good news. When did you get back in town?"
"Oh. About two days after you had my Watcher arrested." He tried a feint left. She blocked, and pushed him against the wall. Funny. Now he was turning blue. But that might have something to do with the elbow at his throat. "Tell me. Why shouldn’t I kill you now?"
Joyce felt she should intervene. "Honey. He can’t answer you while you’re choking him."
"Pity." She waited a few seconds longer, then eased her elbow off.
Ethan looked towards the older woman. "Mrs. Summers. Joyce."
"Yes?"
"Help?"
"No."
Now he was really dead. "Killing me won’t get Rip.." He felt the pressure on his larynx increase. "Rupert out of prison."
Buffy pretended to think about it. "Yeah. You’re right. I know. You write a confession. Admitting your lies and manipulation. We’ll help."
"What do I get out of it?"
"I’ll only beat you to a pulp. But, on the up side. You’ll still be alive."
Ethan cast one more appeal at Joyce. Her response wasn’t encouraging. "Sounds like a good deal to me."
Giles awoke with a start. The sound of his cell being opened cleared any remaining sleep from his mind. "W-what is it? What’s happening?"
The police officer looked down at him. "You’re free to go."
"Wh. I beg your pardon?"
"All charges have been dropped. And, it seems, you’ve been a victim of a conspiracy. Some bureaucrat got his funnies at making us run around chasing up trumped up charges."
Ethan. "How? I-I er, how did you find out?"
"He confessed." The officer moved back. "Well. You wanna leave or not? We have better things to do with our time."
"Yes. Yes, er, of course." It was all over? As simple as that? He stepped through the cell, almost afraid it was a trap. Following the policeman out of the holding area, and through the station, he expected them to grab him. To try and force a confession out of him. His trepidation wasn’t assisted by the fact that every police officer stopped and watched his exit.
The officer hurried Giles along. He’d been told to get the librarian out of the station before he asked any embarrassing questions. They’d be lucky to get away with not being sued. This guy was so timid, they could intimidate him into not saying anything. He opened the front doors. "There you go. Go on. Get out of here."
Giles considered taking offense. It wasn’t worth the effort. He just wanted to go home. And see Buffy. One question he wanted answered though. "The, um, the person who did this? You called him a beaurocrat?" At the officer’s nod, he proceeded. "Wh-what happened to him?"
"Don’t know. He just disappeared. Don’t worry. We’ll get him. Nobody is allowed to get away with that kind of activity."
"Yes. Yes."
They were all there. Willow leaning into Oz. Xander and Cordelia with their arms around each other. They were all leaning against Oz’s van, and wore beaming smiles. In front of the van was Mrs. Summers’ four-wheel drive. She was leaning against the passenger door. And next to her, his Slayer. Come home.
He moved forward. She met him halfway. They stared. Took in the changes the last few weeks had made. Her whispered "I’m sorry" barely reached his ears.
He could only shake his head. "You’re home. That’s all that matters."
"We need to talk. About everything."
"Yes. But not now. Now I just..." He paused, not able to go on. She moved forward. Their arms came round each other. It was the first time they had hugged. But it felt right. As if they were both, finally, home. He looked at the others. Willow and Cordelia were both crying. Xander was trying to be manly. Oz just smiled. His gaze turned toward Buffy’s mother. She acknowledged his mouthed "Thank you."
Buffy moved back. "I bet I know what you want."
"What?"
"A strong drink. Of tea."
"Yes, well. That is one option." She took his hand and led him toward the waiting Gang. It was time to get back to work.