Chapter One
The Freshman
The year that Buffy Summers came to Sunnydale was the year that I moved. With the little time I spent with the blonde, I knew that she and my cousin Willow would be the best of friends. In those short few months, I learned a lot. One of those things being that things like vampires and witches and all that was real. And that our friend was given the power to kill them, the vampires I mean. Buffy Summers was the Slayer.
It had only been three years since I left, give or take a few months. But now I was back in town for college. Not that my cousin or friends knew that. Hopefully, I could keep that a secret until after I had my dorm room all set up, it was the only thing I had left to do.
Though we didn't have much, Mom, Dad and I pooled our money together and got me a single dorm for the year. Not that I would have minded sharing, it just would mean that I would have had to hide the holy water, stakes and spell books. But thankfully it didn't come to that.
The second my all black bedding was on my bed and my large Grimoire was concealed on my small bookshelf, I grabbed my keys, wallet and leather jacket before leaving my room.
I hadn't seen my friends in years, but we still talked. We talked on the phone and exchanged emails. That was the only reason why I knew that Willow and Buffy were patrolling the graveyard tonight.
It didn't take me long to find them, I could see the top of Willow's fiery hair through the gravestones and Buffy pacing in front of her with a stake in her hand.
"Anything?" I heard the blonde Slayer ask.
"Uh!" Willow gasped. "Introduction to the modern novel, a survey study of 20th-century novelists. Open to freshman, you might like that" my cousin suggested.
"Introduction to the modern novel?" Buffy asked, disbelief clear in her voice. "I'm guessing I would have to read the modern novel..." she winced.
"Maybe more than once" I giggled, finally approaching them.
"Lucie!" both girls shrieked happily. Willow tried to stand but I just nudged her shoulder back down and took a seat next to her on the blanket.
"Did I forget to tell you I was coming today?" I joked.
"Yes!" Willow smiled, hugging me tightly.
"So Introduction to the Modern Novel?" I asked, looking at Buffy who wrinkled her nose.
"I-I just don't want to take on too much" Buffy bit her lip as she paced. "Do they have Introduction to the Modern Blurb?" she asked.
"Ooh, short story!" I said, pointing at the book
"Well, that's good"
"Oooh, no" Willow winced. "It conflicts with psych."
"Maybe I shouldn't take psych?" Buffy suggested, and Willow looked almost offended.
"You gotta!" she said. "It's fun a-and you can use it as your science requirement. Anyway, Professor Walsh is supposed to be great, she's like world-renowned."
"She does seem pretty cool. And it would be cool to have at least one class together" I smiled at Buffy.
"How do you get to be renowned?" Buffy asked as she tossed her stake in the air repeatedly. "I mean, like do you have to be nowned first?"
"Wait!" Willow exclaimed. "Images of pop culture!"
"Promising" I nodded.
"Th-They watch movies and tv shows. Even commercials."
"For credit?" Buffy asked in disbelief.
"Isn't college great" I giggled.
"How did I miss that one?" Buffy asked, coming over to sit with us on the blanket.
"Well, ya did sort of wait till the last minute with your course selection," Willow told her.
"Sorry Miss 'I chose my major in playgroup'" the slayer joked.
"I think I might remember that" I hummed, glancing at my cousin.
"That's an exaggeration" Willow defended. "I just... you know... think it's good to be prepared." She smiled, looking back at the course selection book in her lap. Behind us, there was a shuffling noise, but we ignored it for now.
"I've been busy" Buffy all but pouted. "It's been a very slay-heavy summer. Just haven't had a lot of time to think about life at UC Sunnydale."
"It's exciting though, isn't it?" Willow smiled.
"Yea" Buffy nodded. "It's been a big adjustment.
"Plus, it's like five miles away" I added. "Uncharted territory" I joked.
"Giles said I have to be secret identity girl again" Buffy informed.
"That makes sense" Willow and I nodded.
"Gonna be tough though with a roommate."
I couldn't help the wince. Poor Buffy had to share her dorm room with a total stranger. Forcing her to hide who she was for most of her day.
Suddenly my witchy senses started to tingle, but I stopped myself from turning around. A vampire was rising behind us. And here we were sitting, seemingly defenseless college girls.
"You can swing by my dorm any time you need to get away" I offered. Ignoring the dead-guy behind us.
"Thanks, Lucie" the blonde smiled. "I am psyched about college though. Definitely." She paused for a moment. "I just need to figure out how it's gonna work with my extracurricular activities. I just.. can't let it take the edge off my slaying. I gotta stay sharp" she nodded before glancing over her shoulder. "Is this guy ever gonna wake up?"
"Hey Buff..." I got the Slayers attention.
"Yea?"
"He went that way," I told her, pointing to where the newly risen vampire had gone.
"Son of a..."
Was college life always this hectic? I asked myself as I wandered through the crowd of people looking for my friends. If I was smart, then I would have used a small locator spell before I left my dorm. But instead, I had woken up late and rushed to get dressed. I almost forgot my bag three times.
"Lucie!" I heard Willow call out as I wandered around the quad, collecting random flyers and trying to find my way around.
"Hey Will!" I smiled, hugging my cousin. "Have you seen Buffy?" I asked, looking around, trying to spot to blonde Slayer. Willow did the same.
"Oooh! Buffy!" Willow all but shrieked, grabbing my hand and leading me to where she had seen our friend.
"Oh boy am I glad to see you guys," Buffy said. Poor Slayer looked like she was having as hard a time navigating this place as I was. Willow, on the other hand, looked right at home.
"Isn't this cool?" Willow asked with a grin. "There's so much going on."
"Yea..." Buffy nodded. "Almost, one would say, too much."
"I got all my courses," my chipper cousin told us. "Well, except for modern poetry. I had to switch ethnomusicology."
"Ooh, West African drumming. Very meditation friendly" I nodded, hugging my sketchpad to my chest. "Have you met your new roommate yet?" I asked Buffy.
"No" Buffy shook her head.
"Me neither" Willow informed. I forgot that Willow was also sharing a room. "I hope she's cool."
"I see the both of you got ticketed too," Buffy said, nodding to the neon papers my cousin and I had accumulated.
"Yes!" Willow exclaimed. "I've heard about five different issues and I'm angry about each and every one of them. What did you get?" she asked.
"Jello shots" Buffy answered.
"Oooh, I got that one too" I smiled, turning my sketching to show the flyer I had been given by a cute frat boy.
"I didn't get 'jello shots'!" Willow pouted, as she shuffled through the flyers that she did have, "I'll trade for a-a 'take back the night'" she offered, trying to hand the flyer to Buffy.
Smiling, I handed my flyer over to Willow. "I have two," I told her. "The guy was cute."
"Are we heading anywhere near Wiesman Hall?" Buffy asked.
"You need to get your i.d too?" I asked, and she just nodded.
"I got mine this morning," Willow told us. "The lines are really long now, you guys should have gone early."
"Well, I hope that we can learn from this experience and that we can grow as human beings" Buffy responded.
"I'm being annoying aren't I?" Willow asked.
"No" Buffy and I answered at the same time. "It's nice that you're excited" the blonde added.
"I haven't seen you like this since we were kids, it's good. Your aura's all glowy" I told her with a wide smile.
"It's just... in high school, knowledge was pretty much frowned upon." For some reason, Willow felt the need to defend her excitedness. "You really had to work to learn anything. But here, the energy, the collective intelligence...It's like this force, this penetrating force and I can just feel my mind opening up-you know?- and letting this place thrust into and spurt knowledge into..." she trailed off for a second, realizing what she was saying. "That sentence ended up in a different place than it started out in."
"I'm with you though, I'm all for spurty knowledge" Buffy agreed. "It's just, a little overwhelming. Do you guys feel it?" she asked, and I nodded in agreement.
"I definitely feel it," I told her. "But I'm sure once we get the swing of things, college will be mundanely whelming."
"Well, I'm..." but my cousin was cut when she saw a red-haired guy come over to us. "Ooooh, boyfriend! My on-campus boyfriend!" she grinned widely was the guy came over and gave her a kiss.
"Damn, I forgot to pick mine up. Line's probably really long for that one too" I pouted before breaking out into a smile. "Lucie," I introduced. "You must be Oz, Willow's told me a lot about you. In detail..."
"How are you?" Willow asked her boyfriend, sending me a playful glare as she did.
"Good" Oz nodded. "It's pretty much a madhouse."
"I know I was just saying that to Willow," Buffy said, "I mean it's just so overwhelming. Don't you feel completely disoriented?" she asked.
"Oz!" another guy called out as he came over to us.
"Hey, Paul" Oz greeted.
"Finally matriculating with us, very cool!" the guy, Paul, said causing Buffy and I exchanged looks of equal confused-ness. "Tell me you're playing this week!"
"Thursday night, Alpha Delta." Oz nodded.
"Oooh!" Willow held up a flyer. "I have that one!"
I didn't listen to the rest of the conversation, honestly, Paul kinda wigged me out. He gave off a really weird vibe, but obviously, my friends didn't notice.
"My band's played here a lot," Oz told us casually. "It's still all new, I don't know what the hell's going on...Hey, Doug!" he called out to someone he knew.
Oz was probably the most well-adjusted person on the planet. I'll have to remember to give him a protection amulet later.
A little while later, Oz left us girls to ourselves and the three of us navigated through the throngs of people in the halls. There was so much to do and see, but our first order of business was trying to find the library.
"Library, library..." Willow muttered as we walked. "Oooh! Library, come on."
"It's too bad Giles couldn't be librarian here" Buffy commented as we climbed the steps leading to the library. "Be convenient."
"Well," Willow told her. "He says that he's enjoying be a gentleman of leisure."
"Isn't that British for 'unemployed'?" I asked with a small snort of laughter.
"Uh-huh," Willow grinned. "He's a slacker now."
"Speaking of slack, have you heard anything from Xander?" Buffy asked us.
"Not since the beginning of summer," I told her with a shake of my head.
"Same" Willow added. "I think he's still on his cross-country-see-America thing," she said as we climbed flight of stairs number three. I officially hate stairs. "He said he wasn't coming back until he had driven to all fifty states."
"You... you told him about Hawaii...right?" I asked. I questioned if Xander had a brain sometimes. He would be the one to actually try to drive to Hawaii.
"Oh, he seemed so determined," Willow said.
"I hope he gets back soon" Buffy stated. "It'd be fun to have the whole gang back together now that Lucie's back, you know? Hanging out in the...library..." she trailed off.
This wasn't the library at Sunnydale High. The room was huge-normous, I could easily fit my house back in Massachusetts inside.
"Whoa" I gaped as I stared at the vaulted ceiling.
"Oh my gosh!" Willow grinned as she walked further into the room. "Isn't this amazing."
"It's...cozy." Buffy was clearly intimidated by the large room.
"You know I never wanted to hurt Giles' feelings," Willow started as she walked back over to us. " But occult books aside, our old library just didn't have the greatest selection. But this!" she said, glancing around at the millions of books on the shelves.
"Yeah, this is great, you know, if we ever need a place for the Nuremberg rallies" poor Buffy. Biting my lip, I closed my eyes and concentrated on the slayer. Without saying anything, I sent a small wave of calming energy at her. Hopefully, that will help.
"This is a real library" Willow's excitement helped. But it also caused someone to 'shush' her loudly. "See we even have to whisper."
"It's like a whole new world" I smirked.
After touring the rest of the campus, Buffy, Willow and I went back to my dorm room to catch up and talk about everything that has gone on over the past three years. My cousin automatically went through my small collection of Wicca books. On instinct, she steered clear of my disguised Grimoire. I'll have to remember to let her know about it the next time she comes over here.
In my room, I told Buffy and Willow just about everything that had happened in this past year alone. Most of it they had already known, but there was some stuff I didn't tell them about. Like about the fact that my mom was in a sort of rehab.
I just didn't tell them that she was addicted to magic. As some who practiced magic, it was hard to admit.
There was still more that we had to do before we were completely ready for our first day of classes. So after a small lunch, Buffy, Willow and I went to the on-campus bookstore. I couldn't help but wonder if they had anything other than school books. I could use some trashy romance novels.
They didn't, of course. Just as I thought, it was nothing but school books. I would have to venture into Sunnydale within the next few days and pick up some light reading.
As Willow wandered off to find a shopping basket for our books, Buffy and I wandered around the bookstore looking for books for our classes.
"Here" I heard Willow say, turning around, I saw that she had two shopping baskets.
"Thanks" I sighed, taking one of the baskets and putting my pile of books inside.
"Can't wait till mom gets the bill for these books" Buffy commented, putting her own books in the other basket. "I hope it's a funny aneurysm."
"'Introduction to Psychology.'" Willow muttered as she perused the books on the shelf. "Oh up there," she said, pointing to three or four books on the top shelf.
If there weren't so many people around, I could have used my witchy-ness to get the books down. Would have made life so much easier.
"I'll get 'em" Buffy offered as she reached for the books, "You know, this store discriminates against short people. "
"Oh, I think there's a protest next week" Willow joked as Buffy stretched for the books. Only for them to be knocked off the shelf. We didn't notice the guy crouched on the other side of the shelf until the books came crashing down on his head.
"Oh, god I am so sorry" Buffy apologized. Instantly I sent a wave of healing energy towards him, only it was blocked. Reaching further, I noticed that the guy didn't have any pain at all. Hmmm.
"I'm okay. It's okay" he said as he stood up. "Well, that was bracing.
"I'm so..."Buffy started with wide eyes. "The books were just too high, and then everything was bad" she added, bending over to pick up the books.
"Let me give you a hand" the guy offered, crouching down to help. "Let's put a few of these down here" he added, putting the rest of the books on one of the lower shelves. "So, uh, are you three taking Intro to Psych, or do you just want me dead?" he asked.
"Uh-huh," Buffy nodded.
"She means the first one" I offered, though it was obvious what she meant.
"Well, you'll have a lot of fun," he told us. "Professor Walsh, she's quite a character."
"You've taken it?" Willow asked.
"I'm a TA" he answered, causing Willow and I to shoot a knowing look to our friend. Who was obviously noticing the attractiveness of the guy she nearly knocked out. "I'll be helping the Professor out. I'm sorry, I've forgotten my manners in all the concussion... I'm Riley."
"Lucie" I waved.
"Willow," My cousin responded, "and this is our friend Buffy."
"It's nice to meet you three" Riley smiled.
"I'm nice to meet" Buffy jumbled her words.
"Hey, do you know if we're going to be studying 'Operant Conditioning' in the first semester?" Willow asked. "Cuz I hear that's kinda Professor Walsh's specialty.
"Absolutely" Riley nodded. "Do you know of her treatise on Dietrich's work?" he added, looking between the two of us.
"No" I answered honestly. I was only taking this class because Willow wanted me to. And because truly understanding how the human mind works could potentially help with my magic.
"I know of it," Willow told him.
"It's not in the syllabus, but it's a fascinating read... if you're into that sort of thing. They have it here."
"Oh, where?" Willow asked, obviously excited.
"I'll show you. I don't meet that many freshmen that know that much about psychology" Riley said, reaching down to pick up his own books.
"Well, it's fascinating" Willow grinned.
"Yea you know, 'cause everyone's got a brain" Buffy tried to offer he input. Riley just smiled politely before leading us further into the bookstore. "Or, almost everyone" the Slayer muttered. I just smiled sympathetically before we followed after Willow and Riley.
I had offered to go with Buffy back to her dorm. Moral support when she met her new roommate. But she had just shook her head and said that she would be fine. My poor friend was so overwhelmed, I don't think she even realized how much.
There was still so much had to do before classes started tomorrow. Sure some things could wait, but if I didn't get it done right now, then it wouldn't get done at all.
Mostly I just needed clothes and books. So, off to the depths of Sunnydale I went.
The only reason why I enrolled at UC Sunnydale was to come back to my hometown. I honestly wasn't all that interested in college. I wasn't interested in uppity professors yelling at me and my friends and calling us imbeciles. But it made my family happy and it got me back home.
The halls were busy and bustling with students of all ages. Even so, I was somehow able to spot Buffy's head over all of the other people.
"Buffy!" I called out, causing the Slayer to stop and look around. "Hey" I smiled, as I came over to her. "How was your first class?" I asked, causing Buffy to wince slightly. "That bad, huh?"
"Worse" she groaned.
Suddenly Riley came over to us.
"If, uh, you're looking for Psych, it's through here" he pointed.
"Oh thanks" Buffy smiled "How's your head?" she asked.
"Sorry?"
"Yesterday. In the bookstore...you don't remember."
"Oh, now sure, I remember you" Riley nodded. "You're Willow's friend. And you're her cousin, right."
"Yea" we nodded.
"My heads fine, it just stung for a bit and I lost most of my basic motor functions. It's no biggie" he joked as we reached the lecture hall. "We're here. I'm sorry I'm trying to remember you."
"Buffy"
"Buffy, right" Riley nodded. "Have fun tonight, ok?"
"Thanks" Buffy nodded as we started to move towards the tiers, only for Buffy to turn back. "You know, I was just wondering... Professor Walsh isn't planning on yelling at me and kicking me out of the class, is she?"
"It's not in her lesson plan" Riley grinned.
Turning back to the tiers, I saw Willow and Oz waving us over. My cousin and her boyfriend had saved us seats.
"How was pop culture?" Willow asked once Buffy took the seat beside her.
"I decided not to take it. It seemed dull."
The second the professor entered the room, she was talking.
"This is Psych 105, Introduction to Psychology, I'm professor Walsh. Those of you who fall under my good graces will come to know me as Maggie. Those of you who don't will come to know me by the name my TAs use and think I don't know about, 'The Evil Bitch Monster of Death.'" I barely held back a snicker by clamping down on my lip. I'm surprised I didn't draw blood.
"Make no mistake" Professor Walsh continued. " I run a hard class, I assign a lot of work, I talk fast and I expect you to keep up. If you're looking to coast I recommend Geology 101, that's where the football players are."
As I caught the gaze of the professor, an image flashed before my eyes. Black leather and a fluorescent lighting. The smell of sterile lab equipment.
It was fleeting and I couldn't make heads or tails of what it meant. I just knew that there was something off about Maggie Walsh.
I could tell that something had happened last night. I didn't know what, exactly, I just knew it wasn't good. My suspicions were confirmed when Psych let out that morning and Buffy was looking around for someone.
"Looking for someone?" I asked, Buffy just nodded.
"Yea" she sighed.
"You made a friend? Good for you." Willow smiled.
"Thanks, mom" Buffy rolled her eyes, smiling as well.
As we walked through the crowded halls, I could tell that it was still bothering Buffy.
"I'll go with you if you wanna see if your friends ok" I offered.
"Thanks, Lucie" Buffy sighed, "Honestly, he's probably just sick or something. I might just be over-reacting."
After Buffy told me her new friends name, we went over to the Dunwirth Building to see if he was in his dorm. It took us a few hours to find it, and then find the RAm but soon enough we were looking at Eddie's now empty dorm room.
It was as if Eddie never even existed.
"Yea, Eddie just took off. Packed his stuff, left a note" the RA told us. "Happens sometimes. People just can't handle it. There's always a few kids who lose it early in the first semester and just bail."
Quietly Buffy walked over to the bare mattress and picked up the piece of paper that was left behind. Curious, I walked over and sat next to my friend, reading the note as well.
This is too much to handle
I can't take it anymore
No time to say goodbye
- Eddie
"Weak ones, I guess" the RA added before he turned and left the room.
Silently buffy put the note on the bedside table before she paused. The drawer was still partly open.
"What's that?" I asked when Buffy pulled out a book. Looking at the cover I saw that it was a worn copy of M. Somerset Maugham's 'Of Human Bondage.'
"A security blanket."
We left the dorm after that, Buffy taking the book with her. Buffy said that she would be alright if I went back to my room, that she was just going to check in with Giles. But I didn't need to be The Slayer that something hinky was going on. So, of course, I went with her.
Plus I had a car, Buffy didn't.
In much less time than it would have taken her if she had walked, Buffy and I made it to Giles' apartment. It was unlocked. Quietly we entered and walked into the middle of the room. As we did, I could hear David Bowie playing in the background.
I didn't peg the Watcher for a Bowie fan.
"Giles?" Buffy called out.
Suddenly, we see an attractive black woman in the kitchen through the opening over the counter.
"Rupert, is this bleu cheese or is it cheese that's gone blue?" she asked. That's when i noticed that the woman was wearing an over-large shirt... and nothing else. "You're not Giles" was all she said.
"Nu-uh" I shook my head, a slight blush tinting my pale cheeks.
"Uhmm... you know the door was open, so we just..." Buffy stammered. "G-Giles does still live here right?"
"He does" the woman nodded. As she did, the music cut off and we heard someone cough. "He appears!" she joked as Giles came out of the hallway wearing a bathrobe. "Rupert, you have guests."
"Buffy, Lucie, hello." Giles greeted. "Lucie, I had no idea you were back in Sunnydale."
"Is this a bad time?" I asked, biting my lip.
"No!" Giles told us. "Oh, uh, forgive me. This, uh... this is Olivia. She's uh, an old friend, she's staying here for a few days."
"Couldn't pass through sunny Cal without looking up ol' Ripper" Olivia smiled.
"Uh-Uh," Buffy nodded.
"Buffy and Lucie were, uh, were students of mine" Giles explained to his companion. "How's, uh, how is university?" he asked us.
"Pretty much the same as high school, in the sense that I need help."
"Ahh...help... yes" Giles nodded.
"But, this just looks like a bad time" Buffy added.
"No!" Olivia denied. "You guys talk. I'll just go slip into something a little less comfortable" she said, sharing a look with Giles before leaving the room.
"So, uh, trouble with, uh, studies?" the Watcher asked
"This is a bad time" Buffy tried as she shifted uncomfortably.
"You keep saying that" Giles sighed. I almost forgot how very british he was.
"Well, it looks pretty bad!" Buffy exclaimed. "I think someone had just a little too much free time on their hands."
"I'm not supposed to have a private life?" he asked.
"No!" Buffy answered in an instant, her voice taking on a very whiny tone. "'Cause you're very, very old and it's gross."
"Well, before I succumb to the ravages of age, why don't you tell me what brings the two of you here" Giles suggested.
"There's a student missing," I told him.
"Yes?"
"Eddie" Buffy nodded. "He's supposed to have left school but... I just don't think he did. I met him outside last night, and then I went back where we met and it looked like there had been a struggle" she explained.
"And?"
"And we need to stop this!" the Slayer exclaimed.
"Plus Eddie's RA said kids disappear alot" I added, even though I had pretty much let my blonde friend take the lead on this.
"There could be a gang of vampires working the campus. We need research, an-an-and charts and stuff."
"I still don't see where I fit in," Giles told us. "You haven't described anything that you can't do yourself" he added, moving to grab his glass of whiskey off of the counter.
"Ok, remember before you became Hugh Hefner when you used to be a Watcher?" Buffy asked.
The air suddenly turned awkward. Maybe I should have stayed at my dorm, tried to scry for Eddie or something.
"Officially you no longer have a Watcher," Giles told the Slayer with a sigh, "Buffy, you know I'll always be here when you need me. Y-Your safety is more important to me than anything but, you're going to have to take care of yourself. You're out of school and I can't always be there to guide you."
"I'm sorry to bug you," Buffy said dejectedly.
"Buffy, I..."
"Oh! No! I mean yeah, you're... you're right" Buffy said. "I can handle it. It's just that... I'm on it"
"I-I'm here if you need me..." Giles offered.
"See you later Giles" I sighed as we turned and left the apartment.
After leaving Giles' apartment, Buffy and I went back to my dorm. Of course, we had only stayed for a minute before we went back to the area Buffy had last seen her friend. Once again, Buffy had offered to do this by herself. But I just shook my head. Stopping vampires from killing co-eds was better than the absolute nothing I had originally planned to do.
If it was even possible, there were even more people in the quad than during the day. Buffy and I both had a few hidden stakes and we had to be even more careful with all of these civilians around.
"How am I supposed to hunt in this mob?" Buffy muttered next to me.
"Seriously, don't these people have homes?"
We walked a little farther, looking for even the slightest hint towards Buffy's freinds whereabouts. It was a long shot, but at least it was a shot.
"Eddie?" I heard Buffy say from beside me. Following her gaze, I saw a dark haired guy walking in the opposite direction of us.
"Come on," I told her, prompting my Slayer friend to run after Eddie. When we finally caught up to him, we were in a secluded spot near a bulletin board.
"God, I was worried that something had happened to you..." Buffy sighed. I barely held back the gasp when Eddie turned around, fangs and yellow eyes. Vampire. "And of course it has, 'cause you're a vampire. I'm sorry" my blonde friend apologized.
"I'm not" Eddie all but smirked before he attacked, lunging for me first. On instinct, I lifted my hand and used my magic to shove him backwards.
Being a vampire, Eddie regained his balance fairly quickly. Instead of going for me again, however, Eddie went to attack Buffy instead. But he was no match for the Slayer, of course. Eddie was dust a second later.
"Slayer!" an almost excited, feminine voice called out from behind us. Turning, I saw, a trashy looking blonde vampire standing on the stone dais. "Wow, uhm, I heard you might be coming here" she added, tilting her head as she looked at us. The second she did, a small number of vamps came out of the trees and surrounded us. "Wasn't expecting the tagalong, though, but whatever. This is, I mean, what a challenge! The Slayer!"
"And you are?" Buffy all but drawled.
"I'm... I'm Sunday. I'll be killing you here in a minute or so" Trash Vamp introduced. What a stupid name, Sunday. Bitch probably chose it cuz 'Wednesday' was already taken.
"You that gets more frightening everytime I hear it," Buffy said, more to me than our fangy new friends.
"Uh... are we gunna fight?" asked the stoner looking vampire. "Or is it gonna be a monster sarcasm rally?"
"I'm in for a piece" put in the fat vampire.
"Everybody gets to play" Buffy shrugged, looking at me. It had been a while since we had hung out, so Buffy didn't know that I had been training more than just my magic.
"Guys, this is totally...mine," said the bitch with the stupid name.
"Okay, but" started the stoner-vamp. "You gotta share the eatin', 'cause I'm thinking slayers blood's got to be, whoa, like tie-stick."
"I thought people wre supposed to get smarter in college?" I asked, tilting my head to the side as I looked at the vampire, my senses following the subtle movements of the two vampires standing behind me and Buffy.
"Yea, I think the two of you had a lot of misconceptions about college," said Stupid-Name-Slut-Vamp. "Like that anyone would be caught dead wearing...that" she added, looking at our outfits. And then the bitch socked Buffy in the mouth using her full vamp strength and sending the Slayer to the ground.
With a scowl, I lifted my hands "Adhuc manere" I said, and the vampires who had started to advance were stopped in their tracks. While Buffy and the head vampslut fought, I could feel the magic tingling in my fingertips, itching to reach out and dust the three vampires. But suddenly, at the sound of bone cracking, I turned and looked towards Buffy, whose arm had just been snapped. The action causing my magical hold on the vampires to loosen. "Damn damn damn" I cursed under my breath when the larger female vampire advanced on me. I may have magic, but I didn't quite have Buffy's strength, so with a shared look with my blonde friend; the two of us took off into the night.
We had parted way once we were sure that the vampires. But I could tell that more than just the arm was bothering Buffy. It was obvious to me that my friend was off her game last night. The Buffy I knew would have easily wiped the floor with that Sunday skank.
The moment I made it back to my dorm room, I made my way over to my desk and checked my messeges. Nothing. I knew that mom had a 'no-contact' thing going on at the magic-rehab. But it wasn't like my dad to not check in. Weird for sure, but not something to freak out over, I would just call him before I met up with Willow and Oz for breakfast. We had ethnomusicology first thing. Hopefully, everything was okay with my dad.
I wonder if my uncle Ira had heard antyhing? I'd have to ask Willow.
When morning finally came, I met with Willow and Oz at the small restaraunt that was available to students on campus. I didn't tell my cousin or her boyfriend about what had happened with Buffy last night, I'm sure our friend would tell them when she met up with us for lunch or something. At least I hope she did, I don't really know, she was giving off a really wiggish vibe.
Buffy was MIA for the rest of the day, she didn't even show up for psych. I didn't hear from my dad at all, but Willow had said that she would talk to me uncle and see if he could get in contact. Her parents didn't know about the situation with my family, not really, all they knew was that Mom was in rehab. Willows parents just didn't know what she was in rehab for being a magic addict.
So far, college could be described on one word, overwhelming. I could see why so many people gave up in the first few weeks. And it barely had anything to do with Sunday and her crew. I could see why the vamp-skank went after the people she did, they had all shown a chink in their armor.
I may have had an instant hatred for the bitch, but it was a pretty solid game plan.
Once classes were over for the day, I tried getting ahold of my dad once again but with no luck. I was a total daddys girl and not hearing from my father for this long was starting to worry me. I stayed in my dorm room for a little while longer, but really all I was doing was worrying. So, snapping my book shut, I got off of my bed and started getting dressed up. Going to the Bronze was something I have been absolutely dying to do from the moment I heard that I was accepted into UC Sunnydale.
The Bronze looked the same as it had when I left. But I felt like I could enjoy it more now as a freshman in college comared to when I was a freshman in highschool. Sure I still couldn't drink legally, but that wasn't really the point.
It was a little awkward standing in the middle of a slow dancing crowd, though, so instantly I walked over to the bar and ordered a vanilla coke and a blooming onion. So good, the thing was like a giant onion ring. Once my order was filled, I took my food and drink to a table in a dark corner and just people watched. I just wasn't expecting a dejected Slayer to walked through the doors. The second I saw the tell tale look of heartbreak flicker over my friends face, I grabbed my spoils and made my way over to her. Only I wasn't alone.
"The whole world infront of her, and she comes back to this dive" it was Xander, the worlds greatest best friend. He was not that bright, sometimes, but he made up for it when it counted. Like right now for instance.
"Xander!" Buffy said excitedly, hugging the man-child with her one good arm.
Xander smiled and hugged her back. "Hey, Buff. Hi Lu-Lu" he said giving me a tight hug as well. It was a little arkward, considering I had my hands full.
"When did you get back?" I asked with a mouth full of fried onion.
"I could ask you the same thing. Couple days ago" he added with a shrug.
"Same."
"Freak of nature" Buffy joked, giving Xand a playful shove. "Why didn't you call us?" she asked.
Xander just shrugged. "Well, I didn't know that Lucie was coming back, but I also figured, you know, that you guys were all starting this crazy college adventure, and I didn't want to, um, you know...help you move."
I couldn't help but laugh at him. Same old Xander.
"I missed you," I said automatically, hugging him once again. It was a little easier now that I had polished off my blooming onion.
"Me too" Buffy smiled, "How was your trip? Is America nice? I hear it's nice."
"There are some purple mountains majesty I'm gonna have to say" nodded Xander.
"Well spill, dude, where'd you go? What'd you see?" I asked.
He paused for a moment before answering. "Well," he started.
"C'mon" Beffy's eyes were wide with excitedness. "Tell us."
Then the words "Grand Canyon" tumbled from his lips.
I'm still trying to figure out how and why my cousin had a massive crush on this guy. I just didn't get it.
"You saw the Grand Canyon?"
"Well... I saw the movie Grand Canyon on cable. Really lame" he told us.
"Huh?" the two of us said at the same time, sharing looks of confusion.
"Basically, I got as far as Oxnard and the engine fell out of my car. And that was literally. So I ended up washing dishes at The Fabulous Ladies' Night Club for about a month and a half while I tried to pay for the repairs." He paused for a moment, taking in the disbelief on our faces before continuing. "No one really bothered me or even spoke to me until one night, when one of the male strippers called in sick, and no power on this earth will make me twll the two of you the rest of that story."
I was willing to take that bet. But I kept my lips sealed.
"Suffice to say" Xander continued. "I traded my car in for one that wasn't entirely made of rust, came trundling back home to the arms of my loving parents, where everything was exactly as it was, except I sleep in the basement and I have to pay rent. How's college?"
"Male strippers?"
"No power on this earth." I just gave him a smirk in response when Xander gave me a playful little glare.
"Okay," Buffy smiled. "College is good."
Not even Xander believed the lie. "Okay, once more with even less feeling."
"No, really" Buffy started. "I mean, Willows in heaven, and Oz has this really cool house off-campus with the band, Lucie's..." she trailed, glancing over to me as we all sat down on the white couch.
"I have a mom in rehab and I'm home for the first time in forever" I shrugged.
"And Buffy's sitting here alone at the Bronze looking like she just got diagnosed with cancer of the puppy."
"Nah it's just..., there was this vampire and she took me down and I just... I don'tknow how to stop her."
"Evil vamp slut" I mumbled under my breath, causing Buffy to nudge me lightly.
"Then where's the gang?" Xander asked in excitement. "Avengers assemble. Let's get going."
Buffy just shook her head "No I don't wanna bug them. Lucie's the only one who actually knows" she said. "And I mean, they're just starting school. They don't need this."
"Okay, Buff, what's the what here?"
Buffy was silent for a few minutes and I could tell that she was feeling really...unsure of herself. "It's just... what if I can't cut it?" she asked.
As Xander tried his best to cheer up Buffy, i reached into my purse and pulled out a small bangle made out of pure Hematite. The stone itself was meant to hold powers of confidence, but it really meant nothing without a magical kick from a witch. "Slayer vires et dat fiduciam" I whispered, turning the bracelet over in my hand and letting my magic seep into it. I kept it hidden in my palms, so that the other people in the Bronze wouldn't see the bright white glow that was temporarily surrounding the bracelet.
"Here," I said to Buffy quietly. "It'll help."
"Thanks, Lucie" she smiled, slipping the bracelet onto her slim wrist. "Ohh, tingly"
"Okay, now let's put this bitch in the ground," Xander said, standing up in all of his Xander-esque confidence. No magic there, just pure Xander Harris. "What do you say?"
"I think" Buffy smiled, fiddling with her hematite bracelet before letting Xander pull her up. "I say thank you."
"And nothing says thank you like dollars in the waistband, right, Xand?" I joked, sending him a playful wink. He just rolled his eyes and gave me a gentle shove.
"Okay, what do we do first?"
First, we stopped by my dorm room so that I could change out of the clingy dress I had been wearing. Then, we broke into the archives office at the school.
"Kids disappearing every year," Buffy said as she searched the computer while Xander and I looked at the old newspapers. "Not too many, just enough so that everyone thinks they up and left.."
"I can't believe that Sunday skank stole your stuff," I said, not looking up from the newspaper I had pulled out.
"Yea," Xander nodded. "Murder I expect, but petty larceny seems so...petty."
"Well, they have to be keeping it somewhere, on campus or at elast nearby."
"Hey, Buff, I think I got something. How far back do the disappearances go?" I asked, my brow furrowed.
"Uh..." she paused, tapping the keyboard keys a few times before continuing. "They weren't too common before '82."
"Magic number" I smirked, meeting Xanders eye before bringing the papers over to where Buffy sat.
"'Psy-Theta looses it's charter. Building to be Closed for Renovation'?" Buffy read the headline.
"1982" Xander nodded. "Look at this" he added, showing her another paper. "'The former Psy-Theta Fraternity House lies dormant while zoning issues drag on before the city council'."
"Jinkies. We have a winner" I smirked.
"Looks pretty cherry" Buffy nodded.
"You up for alittle reconnaissance?" Xander asked.
Buffy just paused and looked confused for a moment before responding. "You mean where we all scuplt and paint and stuff?"
I opened my mouth to speak, but suprisingly Xander beat me too it. "No, Buff, that was the Renaissance."
"Oh," Buffy winced. "I've had a really long week. Let's go look at the house."
As expected, everything was boarded up. We could have easily broken down the door, but that would take away from the reconnaissance mission. So, Buffy and Xander went up to the roof while I kept my feet planted firmy on the ground. I didn't do heights, thats why I drove here from the east coast.
The silence of the night was welcoming though. There was something almost... calming about staking out a vampire nest. Who knew. Xander and Buffy were only up on the roof for a few about fifteen minutes before Xand came stumbling back down.
"Hey, whats the sitch?" I asked hikm
"Weapons" he huffed. "We need the weapons. Buffy said to check out her room first, then maybe check Willows."
I just shook my head. "No need. We'll just head back to my dorm, take out that pesky guess work."
"But what about Mr. Pointy?"
"Hmm. Good point, Buffy's first, if the trunks not there, we'll go to my dorm, call Will, then go from there" I nodded with finality. And then Xander and I ran as fast as we could towards Buffy's dorm.
"Long, arduous hours of practice" I heard Xanderes voice as we got closer to the opened door of Buffy's dorm room. "Now, either Buffy took off, or she was robbed or..."
"It's a prank!" Xander jumped in, stepping through the door with me following behind him. I was thankful for Xanders quick thinking, considering there was an unknown girl standing next to Oz.
"Xander!" Willow said in suprise. While I scanned the room for Buffy's weapons trunk while Xander said his hello's and hugged everyone in the room. Including the girl I assumed was Buffy's roommate. It was very awkward.
"What's the prank?" asked my cousin with worry in her dark eyes.
"Prank?"
"Xand, the prank with the room, remember?" I said. "Yea, some of Buffy's friends played a funny joke, and they took her stuff and now she wants us to help with getting it back from her friend her friends who have the funny diets and sleep all day and have no tans." I really hope Oz and Willow picked up the hints I was dropping.
Thankfully, Willow did. "Oh, those friends," she said a moment later, glancing at Oz quickly.
"Funny guys."
"Xander" I got his attention. "They took the chest."
"Well, let's go" he smiled awkwardly, trying not to give anything away to the outsider. "Let's go to our friend. It was nice meeting you, Kathy."
Since Sunday and her vamps took the trunk, that left the rest of us with very little weaponry. So, since my dorm was on the way back to the abandoned frat house, we made a quick pit stop. Naturally, I had everything one would need to fend off and eventually kill a vampire. Everything from holy water to stakes.
It took some reall talent to hide the large crossbow I had insisted Willow take with her. I had put a pretty heavy duty, but still temporary cloaking spell on it.
Of course, the vampires weren't expecting the Slayer to have backup. So it as pretty easy to magically kick in the door. Xander and Oz held crosses to the two male vampires, holding them in place while I staked one and Willow shot the other with the crossbow.
"Hey Buff" I smiled when the four of us walked over to the blonde.
"Need a hand?" Oz asked. Buffy
Buffy simply smirked and flipped what I assumed was a broken chair leg around in her hand. "No thanks," she shrugged, whipping the stake into the heart of Sunday the Vamp-Skank. "I'm good."
After that, we picked through all of the stuff that at been taken by the vampires trying to find everything that belonged to Buffy. Xander being the 'manly-man' that he was, offered to carry the weapons trunk. While Willow and I had loaded ourselves down with at least two boxes that rose up over our vantage points and blocked our vision. It was going to be a sucky walk home.
"Buffy!" a voice called out.
"Hi, Giles!" Willow and I said at the same time, trying to peak over our boxes.
"What's with the arsenal?" I heard Xander ask.
"I've been awake all night. I know I'm supposed to teach you self-reliance, but I can't leave you out there to fight alone. Uh, to hell with what's right. I-I'm ready to back you up" he stammered. "Let's find the evil and-and-and fight it together.
"Great" came Buffy's preky voice. "Thanks. We'll get right on that." And then we were walking again.
"The evil is this way?"
"My room is."
Thankfully, Giles took the top box from Willow and she could finally see where she was going. We may have both been carrying two boxes, but Willow's were taller, so she was having more difficulties than me.
"So, college isn't so scary after all, huh Buff" I smiled from next to Oz as we walked.
"Turns out it's just like highschool. Which is good, at least I'll know what to expect."