Teaser
We see the image of a screen within a television screen, and hear an inspiring voice over.
"The story of Sunnydale is one of tragedy, miracles, and the triumph of the human spirit!" says a authoritative male voice. "On the 20th of May, 2003, an unprecedented natural catastrophe occurred when the entire eastern section of Sunnydale, California collapsed into a giant sink hole."
On the screen, we see an aerial view of Sunnydale collapsing into a great pit, a written caption saying "California National Guard footage".
"Incredibly, from a city of more than 35,000, less than 20 people were lost, most of them girls from a relief agency trying to convince the few people who had stayed behind to leave the city. Not one of the thousands of Sunnydale refugees were able to explain how they knew that a disaster was approaching. But there was widespread agreement from around the country and indeed the world that the near total evacuation of the city before what should have been an unanticipated disaster was a true miracle!"
On the screen, we see a religious service going on in an immense tent (presumably attended by many Sunnydale refugees).
"Less than two weeks later, the western side of the ruined city collapsed into the expanding sink hole, and the Pacific Ocean rushed in, forming a new bay where once there stood a proud city."
On the screen, we see more aerial footage as a section of the crater falls in, followed by a cascading waterfall of ocean water.
"So, most would have thought that this would have been the end of Sunnydale, California, the proud little community sitting on the Pacific. But Sunnydale, founded by the first Richard Wilkins, whose sons and grandsons and great grandsons would continue to build upon his legacy, had unsinkable community spirit. Many of the Sunnydale refugees demanded to go home, to see their community rebuilt."
On the screen, we see a bunch of people, apparently Sunnydale refugees, milling around and shaking each other's hands. Suddenly, we see this image freeze.
"What?!" we hear Xander's voice exclaim "Who wanted to rebuild Sunnydale? Everyone I've talked to found someplace else to live, and has no interest in going back."
"Hush, sweetie," we hear Dawn's voice reply. "We haven't even gotten to the good part yet. Wait until you see who the hero of this story is."
On the screen, the images start to move, then the scene switches and we see a Los Angeles skyscraper, with a huge concrete sign saying Sunset Development in front of it. In front of the sign is a water fountain.
"On July 18, 2003, Sunset Development Corporation, in partnership with visionary contractor and Sunnydale native Alexander Lavelle Harris…"
The image freezes again, on an image that appears to be Xander's senior picture.
"Hey!!" we hear Xander's voice exclaim, this time in outrage. "They make it sound like this rebuilding was my idea! I swear it wasn't my idea!"
"I know, sweetie, I know," Dawn's voice says reassuringly.
"Where did you get this crap?" Xander asks demandingly.
"From the gift shop where you wanted to stop to use the restroom," Dawn replies. "Now are you calming down some? Can I restart it?"
Xander grunts unintelligibly.
The chamber of commerce narrator's voice over continues as Xander's high school yearbook photo remains on the screen.
"…began to work to rebuild a city on the very shores of its watery grave. Already, thirty new homes, using the most energy efficient designs, have been built, and ground has been broken on a new city hall, a new high school, and a new mall. Plans are also underway…"
"A new mall!" Xander's voice breaks in so that we can't hear what the narrator is saying. "Gotta keep our priorities."
"Shhhhhhhh!" Dawn hisses.
"…and the California Board of Regents has given the go ahead to rebuild the University of California, Sunnydale."
Xander snorts.
"Shhhhhhh!" Dawn hisses again.
"So, because of the proud, never say die spirit of its citizens, like Alexander Lavelle Harris, the future of Sunnydale, California looks very bright indeed. The miracle of Sunnydale preserved that community's most precious resource, its people. And…"
The image on the screen goes off, replaced by blue. Then the screen goes black. Our view switches and we see that Dawn and Xander are seated in the back seat of a car. Dawn closes the portable DVD player sitting on her lap.
From the front seat of the car, a voice speaks. Regular viewers of Angel would recognize this voice.
"Did you know, Xander, that there are plans to build a pigeon toilet in your honor next to one of the first Mayor Wilkins?"
"There was only one Mayor Wilkins," Xander says. "It was the same guy impersonating his descendents."
Our viewpoint moves towards the front of the car. We see the mesh metal screen that separates the back seat from the front seat, and we realize that Dawn and Xander are sitting in the back seat of a police cruiser. Sitting in the front passenger seat, turned half around to look in the back seat, is former L.A. Police Detective Kate Lockley. She is wearing a police uniform and a large badge. We briefly see a close up of the badge and see the legend "Sunnydale Chief of Police". The driver of the cruiser is a young woman (not much older than Dawn) in an identical uniform (except her badge is smaller) with dark hair.
"So I've heard," Kate says. She turns to Dawn.
"So, am I still number two behind Dr. McGrath?" Kate asks.
"Nope," says Dawn. "There's a 38 year old mother of five in New Dehli."
Xander looks at Kate Lockley.
"Wait a minute!" Xander says. "Is she a…yeah…they both are!"
"Slayers?" Kate asks. "Yeah, I thought you knew. Giles and Dawn recruited me and Carnacki to apply for the new Sunnydale police department. It turns out we were the only two applicants, so they made me chief."
"And I'm the grunt," Carnacki says.
"And she's the grunt," Kate agrees. "Always gotta have a grunt."
Xander looks at Dawn.
"So, you and Giles were suspicious of the rebuilding of Sunnydale," he says.
"Of course we were, sweetie," Dawn replies. She turns to look at Kate.
"Anything unusual since you've arrived?" Dawn asks.
"No," Kate says. "No vampires, no demons, at least none other than your guy."
"He's enough, believe me," Xander says.
"Well, so far as I can tell he's been real quiet since he's been here. The only problems we've had are the usual; some drunk and disorderlies among some of the construction workers, and they actually seem to be delighted to go with the hot chick officers to the cooler, so they don't cause much trouble."
Carnacki turns the wheel and the scenery we see through the windows starts to move by slower.
"Holy…!" Xander exclaims. "Dawn, look at this!"
"Here we are," Kate says. Our view changes so that we are looking down from on high at the cruiser as it pulls in front of a large construction site. Off to the left of the site are eight portables, two quite large. In the parking lot in front of the construction site and just off the portables, there is a line of two yellow school buses.
Our viewpoint returns to the inside of the car.
"This is the site of the new Sunnydale High School," Kate says. "School will be out in about 5 minutes."
"It looks exactly like the last one, the one I managed the construction on," Xander says. "It was my first project under my own company."
"The high school is holding classes in the portables over to the left," Kate says. "They have six faculty and about 40 to 45 students, and they add about 1 or 2 more a week."
Dawn nods.
"OK, everyone stay here," she says.
"Are you sure?" Kate asks. "If this guy is as big and bad as you say he is..."
"He doesn't look big or bad," Carnacki says.
"Believe me," Xander says. "In his case, looks are deceiving."
"I'll be OK," Dawn says. "I think he'll be more likely to talk to me if I'm alone. In a very sick kind of way, he likes me. And I can handle him."
"Are you sure?" Kate asks.
"Yeah," Xander says. "She's sure. I'm not sure, but she is."
Dawn starts to get out of the car.
"If you aren't back in 10 minutes, we're coming after you," Xander says.
Dawn turns and looks at Xander without expression. Then she winks, closes the door, and walks towards the portables.
Somewhere in Rome
We are in a dark room. A pair of demons, nattily dressed in tuxedos, escort a pair of familiar figures into the room. One, clad in a black suit, is Rupert Giles. The other, dressed very flatteringly in a slinky black dress, is Lyssa McGrath.
Giles and Lyssa are waved to a table, then the two demons leave. Our viewpoint pans over to the other side of the table, where a demon of the same sort as the other two sits, but with a smaller, almost shriveled body and a truly huge head (more than twice the size of the head of the humans or the other two demons).
Giles nods in greeting.
"Lyssa, this is the Capo de Famiglia," he says. "Capo, this is Lyssa McGrath. She's my bodyguard."
The Capo de Famiglia slowly, with great apparent effort, nods his massive head. His two shrunken hands cradle his head on each side as if he is holding it onto his body.
"Enchanted to meet you, Dr. McGrath," the Capo says.
"I don't recall Giles telling you that I was a doctor," Lyssa says.
"It's all right, Lyssa," Giles says. "The Capo de Famiglia would be very diligent in researching us. It is not surprising that he knows about you and your profession."
Again, this time with a little greater apparent care and hesitation, the Capo nods his massive head.
"You are correct, Mr. Giles," the Capo whispers. "But then, you were careful in researching me as well. The last time you visited me, you were accompanied by Buffy Summers and Alexander Harris, and Mr. Harris had two eyes whereas before he had one. I assume there is something special about Mr. Harris' new eye."
"Your assumption is correct," Giles says. "It was how we were convinced that your offer was genuine. And I have been instructed by Buffy Summers to convey to you her thanks on your willingness to help us."
The Capo chuckles.
"I have never heard of a watcher following the instructions of his slayer before," the Capo whispers. "And our offer to help you arises from self interest. A world in which the interests of good and evil are balanced is a world that has just the right proportion of safety and opportunity. Wolfram and Hart, much less the Circle of the Black Thorn, are not interested in a world in balance."
Lyssa leans into Giles and whispers.
"Are you sure we can trust him?" Lyssa whispers to Giles.
"Yes, and no need to whisper, the Capo can still hear you," Giles says. "Xander's eye was quite insistent that the Capo's offer to help us is genuine."
"But the eye has kept things from him before," Lyssa says to Giles.
"It has indeed," Giles says. "But it has never lied to Xander. Dawn theorizes that the eye's first owner made some deals that the eye itself still honors. Apparently, the eye's previous owner was something of a wheeler dealer."
The Capo chuckles, then stops with an alarmed expression on his face and grabs his head with both tiny, withered hands as if he really is afraid that it will fall off.
"You must be referring to that old rascal, Odin," the Capo whispers after he seems to be satisfied that his head will remain in place. "He was always coming here to Earth and making deals like an Arab trader. He and I had a lot in common."
The expression on the Capo's immense face becomes wistful.
"I miss that old bastard. Stupid Loki and his Ragnorok."
Suddenly, the Capo turns and looks at Giles.
"I don't suppose your young Mr. Harris would consider a trade…?"
Lyssa's eyes widen in horror. Giles clears his throat.
"I have the item here," Giles says as he reaches under his coat pocket and hastily pulls out something wrapped in a black cloth. Giles then stands up and approaches the Capo. The Capo opens his immense mouth wide, and Giles drops the wrapped object into the old demon's open mouth.
"And here is the message Buffy wishes to convey with the package," Giles says. Then he lowers his head and whispers into the Capo's immense ear.
The Capo nods, but this time he does not bring his tiny hands up to his great head. The Capo nods more and more vigorously as Giles steps away and walks back to the other side of the table towards Lyssa.
"We're done here," Giles gently whispers to Lyssa, laying his right hand on her bare left arm.
Giles and Lyssa leave the room while the Capo continues his vigorous nodding. Suddenly, there is a tearing noise, and the great head falls onto the table and rolls across it, coming to a rest just before it reaches the opposite edge of the table and falls onto the floor. The eyes on the head of the Capo are still looking around, and then the head smiles in evident triumph. Our screen goes black.
Outside the Library portable at Sunnydale High
As Dawn approaches one of the large portables, with a hand written sign saying "Library" above the door, a bell goes off. The doors to the library portable and to all of the other portables slam open as Sunnydale High students run out the doors and to the parking lot. Some of them scramble onto the buses.
"Dawn!" a voice cries out. "Dawn!!"
Dawn turns towards the voice, her eyes widening in surprise as a girl runs towards her.
"Janice!" Dawn cries out. "What are you doing here?"
"Didn't you hear?" Janice says. "They're rebuilding the University, and my dad will be getting his chemistry professorship back. He's actually helping to design his new lab.
"What are you doing here? Are you going to finish out school here? I mean, next year we'll be seniors!"
Dawn shakes her head.
"Actually, I've already graduated," Dawn says. "I took an accelerated course overseas."
Janice's eyes widen slightly.
"Well, you always were kind of a brain," she says.
Dawn and Janice stand and look at each other. As the sound of departing students fades, the silence becomes awkward. Eventually, Dawn softly clears her throat.
"So, uhm, where do you live?" Dawn asks.
"We got a FEMA trailer, but they've started on our house," Janice says. "Have you seen Sunnydale Bay yet, where the old city was? It's a trip! Everything we knew here is under water."
"I bet," Dawn says.
"So, where do you live now?" Janice asks.
"Italy, specifically Rome," Dawn replies. "But we will probably be moving before long."
"Really?" Janice says. "Weird. I mean, not weird but…I'm sorry, I gotta go. My mom still has a thing about me being out late in Sunnydale, y'know?"
"I know," Dawn says.
"Hey, you gonna be in town long?" Janice asks.
"No," Dawn says. "This is just a short visit."
"Looks like you're going to the library," Janice says. "You gonna talk to the librarian?"
"I am," says Dawn.
"He is always helpful and nice to us, but there's something about him," Janice says. "Like maybe he sits at home in front of the 'puter trying to get kids to e-mail him naked pictures.
"Mind you, he doesn't say or do anything creepy, it's just a feeling I have. It's probably nothing."
"It's not nothing," Dawn says. "He used to live in the old Sunnydale. I knew him there, and really wish I didn't.
"You're right to be cautious about him."
"Is your sister around?" Janice asks. "Or maybe Mr. Giles? They seem to be able to handle themselves. I mean, if he's dangerous, maybe you shouldn't go in there by yourself. I can go with you."
Dawn smiles slightly as she looks at Janice.
"Janice," Dawn says. "It is good to see you and to know that you are OK. I'll be fine."
Dawn jerks her head back towards the way she came. Janice turns and our view follows where she is looking until we see the parked police cruiser sitting in the now almost deserted parking lot.
"I have backup."
Janice nods and turns and looks at Dawn. Dawn's expression is now unreadable. Janice seems to sense a new and intimidating distance in her old friend and steps back.
"OK, then, I better go," Janice says. "I'll e-mail you OK?"
"OK."
"'bye."
"Goodbye, Janice."
Janice turns and hastily walks away. The High School is now quiet. Dawn takes in a deep breath and lets it out slowly.
"Just like old times," she says quietly to herself.
Dawn then walks the last three steps to the library portable and lays her hand on the door.
"Except it's not."
Dawn opens the door and steps in. As the door closes behind her, Dawn mutters a single word.
"Lock."
We hear a heavy lock, one that probably wasn't originally included in the door, slide into place. Our view then slowly pans into the library portable. It is surprisingly large, far larger than it looked from the outside. There are shelves of books, and off to the left, a set of shelves with piles of textbooks. The floor is covered in a grey-green carpet. Behind those shelves, we hear someone stacking books. The sound of stacking stops.
"Excuse me, is someone there?" a voice says. The voice sounds familiar to anyone who has seen Season 5 of Buffy. "I'm sorry, the library is closing. You might want to come back tomorrow."
Dawn doesn't answer, except to cross her arms, a resolute expression on her face.
The owner of the voice walks out from behind the shelves: A short, grey haired professorial looking man, dressed in slacks, white shirt, a tie, and a vest. He is wearing round glasses that give him an owlish look.
"Well, this is a surprise!" he says.
"What's up, Doc?" Dawn says.