Title: Interview with a Scourge

Author: Haley Teague – haleyteague@hotmail.com

Part: 1/12-15 (in theory)

Disclaimers: I own them not. Once you get over your shock at this fact, feel free to read the story.

Spoilers/Setting: After "All the Way" – the season 6 Halloween episode. To recap: Tara hasn't left Willow yet and Willow's still big in the magic. Dawn's there, feeling ignored and underappreciated. Anya and Xander have just announced their engagement. Giles is still in Sunnydale. Spike and Buffy are just friendly; they haven't made with the smoochies (or anything else) yet. Buffy's bordering on learning to function with the depression - and everyone but Spike still thinks she was in Heaven. Oh, and the nerds are still periphery – no dead ex-girlfriends yet and Buffy doesn't even know that they've combined to be pains in her ass.

Feedback: Always appreciated. I'm trying my darndest to be true to the continuity of the world and the characters and relationships in this time and place. Please, oh please, e-mail me if you spot any glaring errors. (And feel free to check out my other story, "Doesn't Anyone Stay Dead Around Here?" Hint, hint. Nudge, nudge.)



CHAPTER 1

"Fear is a very powerful motivator, perhaps even the most powerful known to man. People succumb the easiest to mob mentality because of fear. All those movies with scared villagers toting torches and pitchforks are easy to believe because deep down we know that in a similar situation, we'd rather be armed and in the crowd, than alone and vulnerable. Fear is also arguably the greatest source of mythologies, especially about things that live in the dark and might one day jump out yelling 'Boo!'"

Willow sat, taking notes in class as the professor continued.

"I know Sunnydale has a reputation for being a bit strange. In fact, when I moved here this summer, one of the first things people told me was to be careful. A few even warned me about being out after dark. I asked what they meant, but no one would be more specific."

The dark haired man paused as he noticed some students nodding. Others, however, studiously avoided his gaze. The young professor shrugged, attributing their avoidance to standard don't-call-on-me behavior, rather than discomfort with the subject matter. He noticed a young woman with vibrant red hair in the second row watching him thoughtfully, almost as if debating whether or not to speak.

"These warnings could simply be people being friendly neighbors. But what other, cultural causes might we attribute it to?"

"Urban legends?" a woman in the back called out.

"Good. What else?" the professor prompted.

"Things that go bump in the night!" the boy next to Willow volunteered, the hint of laughter in his voice revealing his disbelief in said things.

"Yes," the instructor responded. "The abundance of myths and stories about dangerous creatures that come out after the sun sets certainly gives us a historical and cultural basis to fear the night. After all, in the dark, we're at a disadvantage. All the easier for monsters to sneak up on us." He turned and addressed the boy who has spoken. "But you're laughing. Do you think there are things that go bump in the night?"

"Yeah," the student wasn't even trying to hide his laughter at this point, "me!"

Others in class laughed good-naturedly, but Willow just rolled her eyes and sighed. This was exactly the kind of idiot she had risked her life fighting the good fight for during the last six years. It hardly seemed worth the effort to save such a buffoon. *Just because he's stupid doesn't mean he deserves to be some vampire's midnight snack!* she reminded herself sternly.

The professor noticed Willow's reaction to the other student's joke. "Do you disagree, Ms., ah, Rosenberg?" He glanced down at his roster to reaffirm her last name.

"I, um, just think," Willow started, her mind simultaneously berating herself for letting her reaction show so much and racing to find a suitable answer, "that we shouldn't dismiss such stories out of hand. I mean, they may seem fantastical, but fear is a very real emotion. And while we often fear things without need, or, or cause, that doesn't mean that there's nothing to fear."

She clamped her mouth shut as soon as she realized she was rambling.

"Good," he favored her with a smile. "So there might be a basis for some of these myths." He glanced at the clock before continuing. "That's all for today. On your way out, don't forget to grab a packet with the reading for next class. I thought about having you read "Dracula" or "Frankenstein," but decided to go with a less well known myth. It's shorter, too. Come prepared to discuss the story in the context of cultural fears that may have inspired it, and what other reactions it may have influenced in turn."

As the students collected their things and shuffled out of the room, Willow hung back. She really liked this instructor. He was challenging and interesting without being boring. He may not believe that the forces of darkness roamed the streets of Sunnydale at night, but then again, not many native Sunnydale residents were willing to admit that possibility.

As the classroom cleared, she picked up her copy of the assigned reading and glanced back at him.

"They're right, you know," Willow said. Seeing his confusion, she continued. "Your neighbors. You shouldn't be too quick to dismiss their warnings. Sunnydale's not the safest town after dark. We, we have a pretty high death rate. Be careful."

Willow walked out the door before he could respond, congratulating herself on having done her good deed for the day. *Hopefully he'll listen to me,* she thought.

* * * * *

Warren left the pet store carefully carrying a cardboard box with a mesh lid. He got in the passenger seat of the Trio's black van and nodded at Jonathan, who drove away as soon as Warren's door closed.

"So," Andrew asked excitedly as he leaned forward to peer at the box over Warren's shoulder. "What's this great surprise?"

"Spiders," Warren responded smugly.

"What?" Andrew's voice rose an octave as he quickly jerked backwards. "What kind? Are they dangerous?"

"Oh course they are, you girl!" Warren said derisively. "What good are harmless spiders? And we're going to make them even more dangerous."

Jonathan concentrated on suppressing his shivers of disgust as he struggled to pay attention to the road. What he really wanted to do was stare at the box in Warren's lap to make sure none escaped. No, check that, what he really wanted to do was drop the whole box in a vat of insecticide, or a pot of boiling water, or flush them down the toilet, or anything that would get rid of them.

"What kind are they?" he asked cautiously.

"Brown recluse."

"WHAT?" The van swerved sharply as Jonathan turned to stare at Warren. He quickly righted their course and then asked, "Are you crazy? Those things are really poisonous!"

"Like I said, what good are harmless spiders?" Warren asked exasperatedly. Why did he have to put up with these spineless morons? He sighed before continuing, "They're a present for the Slayer."

* * * * *

When Willow got home, Tara and Dawn were sitting at the dining room table doing homework. In truth, Tara had finished hers earlier, and was now helping Dawn with math.

"Hey sweetie," Tara looked up and smiled as the red-head walked through the door. "We were just about to break for supper. Are you hungry?"

"Sure," Willow replied. "Just let me put away my stuff and I'll be right down." She turned and went up the stairs to the room she shared with the other witch.

Willow unpacked her class materials and set them on the desk. As she walked out, Willow paused. She was curious what the reading for next week was about, considering that "Dracula" and "Frankenstein" were the second choices, but decided it wasn't going anywhere. She left the room and went to join Dawn and Tara. The reading packet sat on the desk face up with the title displayed to the empty room.

"The Scourge of Europe."

tbc

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A/N: I hope this has sufficiently whet your appetite. I plan to post every two days at the least, providing I don't hit any huge writing blocks. As a reader, I hate being left hanging for extended periods of time, though, so I'll do my best not to do that to you. I'm not totally in love with the title, so if you have any ideas, please let me know. ht