Author's Note: Okay, here it is! The next installment in the epic Harry Potter/Buffy saga. I hope you enjoy!

Buffy nervously bounced on the balls of her feet as the Sixth Year students made their way into what had to be the weirdest classroom ever. It was huge, with two sections that looked like they did not belong together. One side had proper classroom seating and an old fashioned chalkboard while the other half looked like a training center with punching bags, mats, and even weapons displayed on the walls.

She noticed the tension the second everyone had taken their seats and Giles shut the door. (He had to have been keeping a running tally as the students arrived to have known when they were all there.)

And apparently Spike was feeling tension too. "Is there a reason it feels tenser in here than that time Dru˗"

"Believe it or not, I do not want to hear what is surely a very depraved reference," Giles murmured back. "But yes. This class is comprised of Gryffindor and Slytherin students. If you looked through the informational packets you'd remember˗"

"That Gryffindors and Slytherins are like the two warring families in Romeo and Juliet," Buffy interrupted.

"Well I guess that means it'll be easy to convince them to start hitting each other," Spike snorted.

Buffy sighed and finally turned to address the class. "Good morning. My name is Buffy Summers and I will be teaching you Defense along with the help of Rupert Giles and Spike here. During my classes you will not be using magic to fight but your intellect and your fists. You are expected to take this seriously because, as your headmaster explained, a war is coming and it sounds as though your opponent plans on taking away your magic. Your lives may depend on your ability to throw a punch or dodge a spell."

Buffy, Giles, and Spike spent most of the class explaining how they were each qualified to teach. (Buffy's history as a Slayer, Giles's as a Watcher, and Spike's as first a soulless vampire and then an ensouled one.) Then Buffy had each of her students introduce themselves, starting with her sister who looked more than a little embarrassed. And then Giles moved the class along.

"Throughout this school year you'll learn not only hand to hand combat but light weapons training and exercises that will increase your flexibility and reflexes," Giles said as he paced the floor in front of the class. "Now I would like everyone to stand up and when one of us walks by I'd like you to show us how you would throw a punch. You won't actually be hitting anything but your form will be a good indicator of where we have to start your training."

The class did as they were told, some clearly more enthused than others as the professors made the rounds and notes as each student punched the air.

"Next class we'll do a demonstration," Spike announced once all the students had been evaluated and sat back down. "We will have you take notes on what forms of martial arts we use so flip through your textbooks and look at diagrams if you haven't already."

Buffy nodded her agreement. "Class dismissed."

Once the students were gone Buffy, Giles, and Spike met at the front of the classroom with marked up class rosters in hand. The sheets had notes from the evaluation as well as insider knowledge from the headmaster himself.

"Anyone stand out?" Giles asked.

Buffy slid up onto the teacher's desk, frowning at the clipboard in her hand. "Potter has good form. He knows how to protect his fingers but he's too tense along the shoulders. Parkinson looked like she was posing for a photo shoot instead of preparing to really fight and Granger…well I don't think she's going to be at the top in this class."

"Finnegan has potential but I think Longbottom needs a confidence boost along with plenty of training. Poor kid acted scared of his own shadow," Giles chimed in.

"Crabbe and Goyle have brute force but no form," Spike added. "Malfoy has almost perfect form but he's a little git. He sneered at me. He does have awesome hair though."

"So basically we have some potential and lots of attitude," Buffy sighed. "Once again Giles, I have to say, didn't we just do this?"

The next time Hermione saw a member of the California crew was in Potions class the next day where, as usual, the Gryffindors were paired with the Slytherins. That much hadn't changed even though DADA had. Another change? The addition of a little red haired witch who looked way too happy to be in Snape's shadow.

"If you are in my classroom it means you have somehow managed to pass your OWL through skill or the pull of a family name." (Snape, of course, glared at Harry as he said that last bit.) "I would have preferred to only accept those of you with the highest of grades but, alas, the Headmaster overruled me. Just be aware that you will have to work extraordinarily hard to receive passing marks this year."

"I would have been more than okay with not being here," Ron muttered.

Harry poked him with a quill. "Aurors, Ron. We need Potions if we want to be Aurors."

Hermione tuned them out just in time to hear the red haired girl whisper to Snape. "Are you going to introduce me now?" When he didn't answer the girl rolled her eyes and stepped in front of him.

"Hi! I'm Willow Rosenberg," she announced. "I will be assisting Mr…Professor Snape with this class so if you have any questions you can always ask me if he's busy."

"How can you help at a magic school if you're a Muggle?" Malfoy drawled. The snarky question made Hermione roll her eyes. It was so odd to have gotten so close to Malfoy in private yet have him continue to be an arse in public. But he had to keep up his reputation after all.

Willow's eyes narrowed. "I may not have gone to a fancy school like you're all attending but I am a witch. Just a different kind of witch."

Hermione couldn't contain her curiosity. "How so? What sort of powers do you have?"

"I can do glamours to cover acne, and do astral projection. I once re-ensouled a vampire. Lost a lover and nearly destroyed the world. And I brought Buffy back to life after she died that second time."

Even Snape gaped at Willow in shock. "You mean you brought your friend back to life in some Muggle way that just seemed magical," the dark haired professor sneered.

Willow shook her head. "No, I used magic. She'd been dead for a few months when I finally got it to work. Oh, and I also made it so every potential Slayer was activated at once instead of one at a time. Made it much easier to fight a vampire army."

Hermione barely even heard the part that was relevant to her because she was focusing on Harry. She knew he'd be hurt that, apparently, there really were people in the world who could bring the dead back to life.

Only Harry wasn't the only one really affected by Willow's revelation.

Snape's voice was ice cold. "Get out of my classroom," he commanded.

Willow's hesitant smile fell. "What? Why Did I say something wrong?"

Snape just glared. "Liars are not welcome here."

"I didn't lie and if you think I did…" Static electricity crackled in the air around Willow and she tightened her fists. "Can't you just look into my mind and see that I'm telling you the truth?"

Snape stepped towards her and roughly put his hand on her chin, forcing her eyes to meet his. Less than a minute later he pulled away and swept out of the room.

Willow offered the class a shaky smile. "The first potion in your textbook looks interesting. Why don't you start with that one?"

The class did as they were told but even the Slytherins were stunned into silence.