/ This story takes place during Season 3, before Faith is introduced (Between EP2 and EP3). The events are completely fictional - some chapters will be long and some short. This is my first time writing a Buffy the Vampire Slayer Fan fiction. Let me know what you think /

"Giles, you're running my morning buzz," Buffy Summers complained from her seat at the table in the library. Her eyes were buried in a book, although not holding interest. "Not that a pre-class study session gives you much of one to begin with. You can't start the day off with fire and brimstone."

"I don't know," Willow chimed in with a geeky manner. "Helping you cram for a test you should've studied for rather than Bronzeing it up last night, gives me a big buzz. I feel like a buzzing bee. A busy, buzzing... it's just me isn't it?"

Xander, rocking on his chair, have his renowned sarcastic look. "Coming in to school an hour early is totally better than catching up on well needed sleep."

"Unfortunately, mornings can't often start with rainbows and sunshine when you're living on a hellmouth," Giles droned on rather seriously. He carefully adjusted his glasses. "It's imperative that you go on patrol more prepared than usual tonight. From what I've learnt, a group of mysterious figures have recently moved into Sunnydale. They could be vampires, or something else entirely. Nobody knows what their intentions are. My sources only dictate that they aren't here for anything good."

"I'll go, slay, and see what dirt I can dig up. If these visitors are up to anything suspicious, I'll throw puns at them until they talk. No big deal."

"No big deal?" Giles exclaimed. "Buffy, you're not grasping the seriousness of the situation! For all you know, the workings of a very dark plan could already be in gear."

"Big, bad, uglies," Buffy muttered, signalling to the other two scoobies that it was time to go to class. "All plotting to bring the world to an end. That's what they do. I'm the slayer, and stopping them is what I do. I've died once and still manage to save everyone's sorry asses on a daily basis."

"As your watcher, it's my duty to -"

"To relax," Buffy finished, heading for the door. She turned with soft eyes. "Everything will be fine."

In the hallway, just before the bell would sound, the teenage slayer piled her reading material into her locker, momentarily and absent-mindedly pausing.

"Now," Xander said optomistically, "Do I catch up on my sleep in English, or hold out until third period and play the sick card?"

"Third period is gym. I think we're climbing ropes today. You should probably rest then, considering what happened last time," Willow said before turning. "Buffy, are you okay?"

"I'm...fine." There was a confusion incarcerated on her face, like she was trying to understand her own freeze. She shut her locker and stared down the corridor. "Willow. Who's that over there?"

He was stood by the fountain alone. A boy, pale of skin, with a neat side parting of thick brown hair, swinging his backpack over one shoulder. Wearing a white shirt and tailored grey pants, he stood out as one of the smartest and most well-groomed guy in sight. The defined jawline and poised, skinny but muscular shoulders, made it unclear whether he was a student or youthful teacher.

"That's August Browning," Willow explained. "Principle Snyder showed me his transcripts the other day. Apparently it's very important that someone nurtures his grades. He's over here on a study program."

"Snappy dresser," Buffy said with a perky tone. "Almost like a young Giles... but handsome and less bespectacled."

"Who wants a guy that looks like he's off to discover Atlantis?" Xander cut into the conversation, jealousy evidently smoothed across his stare.

"Just because you're wearing the same shirt for the third day in a row." Buffy sent him a playful roll of the eyes, as if to comfort the blow to his male ego. "It's nice to see someone who takes care of themselves. The boys here usually smell of sweat and peanut butter."

Willow's eyes lit up. "Yeah. When I met him, he had that old book smell."

"Wow. Musty," Xander said bluntly. He turned his lip up in disgust. "Because we don't smell that in the library every single day. You women will forever confuse me. Wouldn't you prefer a guy to smell like chocolate or, I don't know, soap?"

As the bell rang, English began with the lights dimming. Mrs Miller had stepped to the side of a screen, which had pictures of men with muskets projected from the back of the room. Her voice cut over the fuss and chatter.

"This week, you will find most of your classes will be different than usual. On Friday, Sunnydale High will be having it's first ever cival war fair. Students and teachers will be coming in costume, in order to raise money for new school equipment. Lessons will be used to create banners, weapons , and other iconic things from that era. Over the weekend, you will have homework. I'll need a three page essay on everything you find out ."

Three days of school dedicated to the cival war - was it a nightmare, or a relief from every day learning? Buffy wasn't sure, and it seemed she wasn't the only one. Except for Willow, who upon meeting up with her friends at lunchtime, looked like she would burst out of her skin.

"This is so exciting!" she said, with a smile that stretched as wide as it had been when she had been given extra homework earlier that week. "Isn't this exciting? It's like, we get to step back in time, but without the danger of being shot. Well, after career day, someone is bound bite the bullet, but hey, that's all part of the mystical fun here in Sunnydale."

Sat beside his girlfriend, hair dark and brooding, Oz, having not said much at all, lifted an eyebrow.

"But there'll probably be safety checks to make sure," she quickly and reassuringly finished, looking down to her apple to in judgement of her morbid words.

"I suppose it will be a nice change," Buffy said.

"You could always use this as an opportunity to train with a cutlass," Oz muttered. "Nobody will bat any eye if they see you sword fighting."

"After my showdown with Angel, I can happily say I'm more than equipped using a sword. I averted the end of the world musketeer style."

With an apple clenched in his hand, the new student, still as smart as ever, came walking over. Ignoring the eyes that latched onto his stride, he spoke with a powerfully british accent, and each word came out pronounced.

"Hello, Willow," he said.

"August," she smiled. "I see you have an apple. I too eat the fruit of knowledge... How's your first day going?

"I keep finding myself lost. There's so many corridors and classrooms." Whilst speaking, the boy quickly began to look nervous. It was as if there was a magnet to his left, luring his attention towards Buffy. Something which, no matter how hard he tried to ignore, he couldn't stop his steely eyes from doing. The subtle glance away from his red-headed friend. "I'm not used to navigating a school. Back in England, I was home-schooled, so the learning came to me. I was actually wondering if you could help me out. I could really use a map of the school printed out, but I'm not really a computer person. I can just about turn one on. I know it'll barely a challenge for you, but it'd be cool if you could find me a copy."

"I can do that," Willow said. For a moment, there was a silence. "Oh, you mean now?"

"Are you ready?" a blonde Harmony Kendall cooed, appearing out of nowhere to latch herself on to his arm. Her face soured at the circle of scoobies, especially towards her former friend, Cordelia, who was using the light by the window to fix her hair.

"Yes," August answered in all his charm, more noticeably fixed on the slayer. It wasn't a look of fascination or attraction, but one of confusion and curiousity. He managed to look back to Willow. "Whenever you've got the time to spare would be great."

"He's hanging out with Harmony," Xander commented, putting an emphasis on her name, sharing a 'what the hell' expression with the group. "Could you choose anyone with less brain cells to befriend? It won't be long until he's talking about you, rather than to you."

"No," Willow said confidently. "He's sweet."

"Should I be doing my manly duty and warning him to stay away from my girl?" Oz said. It was impossible to tell if he was joking or being serious.

"Leave the poor girl alone," Buffy laughed. "It's good that she's made a friend. I know what it's like to the new kid, not knowing anyone. Sooner or later, he'll see Harmony how everyone else does."

### ###

By the end of the day, activity in the library had dwindled. The original gang and their favourite clucking librarian were the only ones left there, after the string of students had hurried out with historical books. They had been coming in and out all day, in rather large groups. It was a good thing that nothing supernatural had happened, because there would have been no way to discuss demons and vampires in the prescence of the fresh-faced students. For the first time since he had worked there, it had actually felt like a pubic library.

"Looks like that was the last of them," Giles sighed with relief, steadily turning his gaze to the three youths. "I think we've had half the students checking out books today. Make sure you place any faulty weapons into one of those boxes, we wouldn't want them to fall apart when they're most needed."

At this point, August came through the double doors.

"Did you come for that map?" Willow questioned, pulling a folded piece of paper from her cardigan jacket. As she did so, Buffy knocked a stake she had been sharpening onto the floor. He'd reached for it at the same time she had, momentarily touching hands and then flinched like somebody had stabbed him in the back.

"Are you okay?" Buffy questioned, looking concerned. The boys face had grown even paler than usual.

"I-Its nothing," he stammered. "I've got to go."