Okay, so...does anyone remember when the show was on and they were publishing novelisations, usually consisting of three episodes centred around a specific character? Well, I decided many moons ago to have a try at novelising three of the ones they didn't do. And it occurred to me that people might be interested in the results. I realise this is bending the definition of "original story" to breaking point and then possibly actually breaking it, but as the saying goes "You have nothing to lose but your flames."

EPISODE ONE:Witch

PROLOGUE

"This is madness." Rupert Giles eyed Buffy in disbelief. "What can you have been thinking? You are the Slayer. Lives depend upon you.I make allowances for your youth but I expect a certain amount of responsibility. And instead of this, you enslave yourself to this…cult."

Buffy Summers glanced down at her cheerleading outfit. "You don't like the colour?"

Giles sighed. Sunnydale had seemed a prestigious assignment when he'd been given it. Watcher to the Slayer, the Chosen One. A chance to shape and guide the girl on whom they all depended. He had no idea the girl in question would be so frivolous. "Do you ignore everything I say as a rule?"he demanded.

"No, I believe that's your trick,"Buffy bit back,"I told you, I'm trying out for the cheerleading squad."

Giles tried again. Buffy had come to the library to see him, that was a plus point. "You have a sacred birthright, Buffy. You were chosen to destroy vampires, not to wave pom poms at people. And as your Watcher, I forbid it."

If he had expected the pronouncement to impress Buffy, he was sorely mistaken. Instead she just gave him a sceptical look. "And you'll be stopping me how?"

She had a point. She was superhumanly strong and he was a school librarian. "By appealing to your common sense, if such a creature exists."

Buffy gave him a coy smile. It should have made him angry...but in truth, it reminded him of how fond he was of her. "I will still have time to fight the forces of evil, okay?"she told him placatingly,"I just want to have a life, I want to do something normal. Something safe."

If Buffy had been somewhere else at the time, she might have chosen her words better. For at that moment, in a darkened room, a cloaked figure was stirring a cauldron full of a foul-looking mixture, making sure everything was just right.

She took one of a set of dolls, a doll dressed in the yellow and red outfit of the Sunnydale High cheerleading squad. Chanting the incantation, she dropped the doll into the cauldron, watching as it sank under the surface of the mixture.

"Giles didn't approve, huh?"asked Willow Rosenberg. She and Buffy's other friend, Xander Harris, had met up with her on the way to the gym.

"He totally lost his water,"Buffy replied,"We haven't seen a vampire in over a week. I'd say he should get himself a girlfriend if he wasn't so old."

"Well, we're behind you,"Willow reassured her.

"People scoff at things like school spirit,"Xander agreed,"But look at these girls giving their all like this!" He broke off at the sight of one of the wannabee cheerleaders posed with her legs resting on beams, pointing in opposite directions. "Ooh, stretchy." He turned his attention back to the two girls. "Where was I?"

"You were pretending that seeing scantily clad girls in revealing positions was a spiritual experience," Willow told him.

"Who said I was pretending?"he fired back. He fished into his pocket and handed something to Buffy. "Oh, hey, here's a good luck thing for the tryouts."

"What's this?"Buffy asked.

"What's that?"Willow asked quickly. She was well aware of Xander's feelings for Buffy, even though Buffy herself seemed oblivious. As oblivious as Xander was of Willow's feelings for him.

Buffy smiled at the bracelet. "Oh, that's really sweet." She paused as she read the inscription on it. "Yours Always?"

"It came that way,"Xander insisted hastily,"They all said it."

Cordelia Chase sidled over to them. Normally she wouldn't lower herself to talking to Buffy and her friends but none of her regular cronies seemed to be present and she was looking for someone to sound off to. "Just look at that Amber." She nodded towards another candidate who seemed to be doing some complicated and very flexible warm-ups. "Who does she think she is, a Laker girl?"

"I heard she turned them down,"replied Willow. For a moment Cordelia actually seemed lost for words.

"All right!"called Joy, the head of the cheerleader squad,"First up, Amber Groves. If you're not auditioning, get off the floor."

Willow's attention was drawn to a newcomer to the group. "Amy! Hi!"

Buffy had only been at Sunnydale High a few weeks so she was still trying to get a handle on who was who. But she recognised Amy Madison from some of their classes, a blonde haired girl somewhat taller than Buffy herself.

"Hi,"Amy responded, seeming relieved to see a familiar face.

"I didn't know you wanted to be a cheerleader,"Willow commented,"You've lost a lot of weight."

Amy just shrugged ."Had to."

"Do you know Buffy?"Willow asked.

Buffy nodded to Amy, exchanging "Hi"s but then everyone's attention was drawn to the floor. "Oh, how I hate this,"Amy murmured,"Let me count the ways."

Amber was performing…and she was good. High kicks that a Slayer would be proud of, cart wheels, twisting her body into shapes Buffy didn't think were humanly possible…Buffy's mouth dropped open, as did those of everyone else in the room. Even Cordelia was impressed enough to give a haughty snort and look in the other direction, as though it was all beneath her.

"She trains with Benson,"Amy whispered,"He's the best that money can buy."

Buffy felt more out of her depth than ever. "They have cheerleading coaches?"

Amy nodded. "Don't you have? I train with my mum. Three hours each morning and three hours after school."

Buffy winced. "That much quality time with my mum would probably lead to some quality matricide."

"I know what you mean,"Amy agreed,"But she's really good."

Buffy looked back at Amber. The girl was smoking. Genuinely smoking. Wafts of white smoke seemed to be drifting off her body. "What the..?"Buffy murmured.

"That girl's on fire!"Willow cried.

Cordelia, still not looking, shot Willow a withering look. "Enough of the hyperbole."

Amber seemed oblivious to what was going on…until flames suddenly burst from her hands. There were gasps and screams of horror from the crowd, even Cordelia shocked by what was going on. Buffy pushed her way through the spectators, grabbing a banner off the wall, then dived at Amber, wrestling her to the ground before using the banner to extinguish the flames.

She cradled the wimpering and terrified girl in her arms. "It's okay, it's okay,"she said quietly,"You're gonna be okay."