Note: I do not own Buffy or anything from it...I'm only borrowing it from Joss Whedon and company...Hope you like it and there will be a sequel of sorts after this is all posted...Enjoy...


I found myself in the hallway of Sunnydale High School, students loitering in front of their lockers or making their way to their classes. I approached one group of students to see if they could direct me.

"Excuse me. Could any of you tell me where I could find Mr. Rupert Giles?" I asked.

"Who?" one girl sneered, flinging her blond hair over her shoulder.

"Rupert Giles."

"I don't think there's any teacher here by that name."

A short redhead stopped beside me and interrupted the conversation. Her purple hat matched the purple skirt she was wearing with her shirt being a lighter lilac color. It seemed more middle school than high school but her smile seemed to put me at ease.

"I know where Giles is. I can take you there right now. I'm Willow."

"Deedra and thank you."

I followed her through the hallways, past a lounge area where a bunch of students were milling around, flipping through their textbooks. I patted my bag, convincing myself of what was in there. To say that I was nervous would be an understatement. I was completely and utterly freaked and I've faced bad shit before.

"What do you need Giles for?"

"Closure. He knew my mother and in her will, she asked me to bring him a few letters she wrote to him over the years."

"I'm sorry to hear that."

"It's life."

She pushed open the doors to the library and I took in the numerous books. What caught my eye first was the cage to the side, immediately knowing what would be hidden on the shelves and in the cupboards. Sitting around the long table was a boy around my age with dark brown hair and a petite blond girl.

"Hey, Will. Who is this?" the boy asked grinning.

"Down, Xander. This is Deedra and she's looking for Giles."

"He had to grab something from the staff room. He'll be back in a minute. I'm Buffy."

"It's nice to meet you, all of you."

While Buffy looks petite and weak, I know differently. I know of her destiny, her path as the Slayer. Before she died, my mother told me whatever she could and trained me so I would be prepared. Even with a Slayer fighting evil, she couldn't be in two places at once so the number one rule while growing up was to be on guard and be prepared. Her training went well with the self defense I had been taught at school.

"I like your boots," Buffy replied.

"I bought them in London. They're quite comfortable."

Said boots were black knee high platform boots with buckles. I had paired them up with a loose black mini, a tight sleeveless turtleneck in blood red and black arm warmers. A small coffin shaped bag completed my outfit. Mum had gotten a laugh out of it when I purchased it.

"Ah, Buffy, are you ready for your training lesson?" an older English man asked, entering the library while still reading from the book in his hands.

"Hello to you too, Giles. I will be but first you have a guest."

His eyes shot up and looked me over. While I knew my outfit was different, it's part of who I am and I wasn't going to dress like Buffy or Willow even if it meant life or death. My previous professors tried and for a brief second my mother tried but none could convince me to change.

"You are Rupert Giles?" I asked.

"Yes. And you are?" he asked, closing the book but using his finger as a marker.

"Deedra Winston. My mother was Kathleen Winston. After her death, I was instructed to deliver these letters to you."

"When did she pass?"

"About 6 weeks ago. I would have arrived earlier but I had to finalize her estate."

I opened my bag and removed the envelopes. I handed them over and closed up my bag.

"I do not know exactly what she may have written but I have a copy of her will and another letter which explains it in more detail."

The three students watched as he opened the first letter and read the words within. The book dropped from his hands as he reread the letter before tearing into the next one. His skin paled as his mind comprehended what he was being told. He looked at me before taking out a handkerchief from a pocket to clean his glasses.

"Hey, B. Are we training or what?" a familiar voice called as the doors banged open.

In a blur, I reached down into the shaft of my boot, grabbed my knife, and threw it at the girl near the doors. With the others watching, she caught the knife before it struck her and she twirled it in her hand.

"Dee? What the hell? I thought you were a goner."

"I would have been if not for that knife. I drove it into his thigh and twisted just after he bit down. He let go of me and I jerked around dragging that across his throat. Did you know a half decapitation would work at dusting a vamp? When I came to at the hospital, you were already in the wind."

"Would someone like to fill the rest of us in on what is happening?" Xander butted in.

"My mother was Faith's Watcher in Boston. A nasty vampire, named Kakistos, attacked our home during a training session. He tortured, mutilated, and killed my mother before attacking Faith. I had been taken into another room to be dinner for a vamp but as you just heard, I took him out but received a not so nice parting gift," I spoke, pulling down the side of my turtleneck to show off the scars. "Once I was able to leave Boston, I headed here to give Mr. Giles those letters as per my mother's will."

"What do they say, Giles?" Buffy asked.

"You're 17. I would wager your birthday is in May," he said, refolding the letters.

"May 21. I didn't know either until I was shown the will, which included my own letter explaining the why. No one else has to know unless you disclose it. She never told anyone at the Council as not to get either of you in trouble. You don't have to do anything if you wish not to."

"You English sure know how to drag out an explanation. What is going on, Giles?" Buffy asked again.

"It seems Deedra is my daughter. I had become acquainted with her mother during meetings of the Watcher's Council and since it is discouraged, we hid our relationship. About a month later, Kathleen was reassigned and we lost contact.

"And what do you mean if I wish not to? I just found out you're my daughter. Of course I want to," he said, facing me.

"Rather than the Watcher's Council gaining guardianship over me, Mum had a clause written into her will that I would be emancipated if I was over the age of 14. If I had been younger, then I would have been brought to you. As an emancipated minor, I don't need a father but I would like to have a father, if only for the guidance you can give."

"We'll leave you two to talk. Faith and I will patrol tonight. We can do the training later."

"Kakistos is toast so you don't have to worry."

Faith handed me my knife and she left with the other three. I was shown into an office and offered tea. I accepted only to have something occupying my hands, rather than fidget.

"What should I call you?" I blurted.

"You may call me whatever you are comfortable with."

With that, Rupert and I started a lengthy conversation into our lives. I listened as he explained his work with Buffy over the last couple of years and the demons they have encountered. He listened as I described my life with Mum, my informal (ie. demonology) education, and my training. I didn't talk much of school since it would raise too many questions. We were unaware of the time spent talking until a short balding man entered the library.

"Mr. Giles, entertaining a student within one's office is prohibited," he sneered.

"Principal Snyder, please meet Deedra Winston. She is in essence my ward and I will be enrolling her here as a student come Monday. Deedra, this is Principal Snyder."

"Pleased to meet you."

I could tell that he wasn't pleased. He was wound tighter than a rope and clearly thought that any student was below him. With that look on his face, I vowed to make this year one he wouldn't forget.

"May I ask why you are here this late?" Rupert asked.

"I came to inform you that you will be chaperoning the Homecoming dance next week. The committee is meeting tomorrow morning before first period. You are to be there to offer help."

"Is this how it's done in America? Ordering people to do things rather than asking? This country is a democracy is it not? With that display, you would think it was a dictatorship," I said.

"Young lady, this is my school and if you wish to be a student here, you should control your attitude better."

"Isn't a student meant to ask questions? And while I didn't mean to infuse my questions with attitude as you call it, I apologize. I must have misread the sign out front when I entered. I thought I entered Sunnydale High and not Snyder High."

"Deedra, enough," Rupert hushed.

"No, Mr. Giles. Obviously the girl has something to say. Continue."

"It is my understanding that a principal is here to be in charge of the day to day activities within the school and to be a leader, one who can guide both staff and students. Normally a principal is one who people can look up to and go to with problems, not someone who orders people around and threatens the enrollment of a potential student.

"Within the few minutes that you have been here, I can tell you dislike and distrust students so it would lead me to question your choice in becoming principal. My thoughts lead me back to your own words: this is my school. You want to rule this school with an iron fist and control everything that goes on within it. Which isn't plausible."

I reached down and picked up my bag. I dug out a slip of paper and handed it to Rupert.

"Goodbye, Rupert. I will visit tomorrow. Farewell, mein früher. I look forward to our next encounter."

I left the library and headed out in the direction of my hotel. I can just tell living in Sunnydale was going to be fun.