Despite Faith's comment, there was no breaking in required. The library was unlocked – as was the door to Giles' office. "Well fuck; this ain't no fun," Faith complained as she hefted the case of crystals onto the checkout desk next to the computer.
"It's not supposed to be fun," Willow snapped. She typed rapidly on the keyboard and glared over her shoulder at Faith. "According to you, Buffy's in trouble." Taking her hands off the keys, Willow turned on the stool and gazed at the case. "Is that what you saw Giles use?"
Faith nodded and flicked open the latches. "Yeah." The sparkle of the crystals caught her attention, and she lost awareness of the room. There was a dark spot in the big blue stone. Leaning in, she tried to find it – and swayed a bit.
She jerked back when a hand waved in front of her face.
"Hey, watch it, Red. You might poke my eye out or something with those skinny fingers." Blinking dazedly, Faith shoved the case closer to Willow. "Here. All ya' had to do was ask if you wanted a closer look."
Willow looked worriedly at Faith and barely glanced at the contents of the case, though. "Are you alright? You faded out and didn't hear me when I was talking."
The crystals…Faith quickly took a step away from them. "It's them," she said, pointing at the gems nestled in their velvet-lined spots. "That's what happened to B when she looked at them, too." Stuffing her hands in her pockets, Faith hunched her shoulders. "What the fuck are they?"
Reaching out, Willow pulled one out and held it up. It sparkled in the sunlight pouring through the skylight.
Faith physically turned away when she caught herself staring raptly at it. "Red? Stop playing with the damned thing and get to work. Jeeves ain't gonna stay gone all day. He lives here, remember?" Her head pounded and she pulled a hand out of her pocket to rub her temple.
"Right. Sorry." Faith could hear the embarrassment in Willow's squeak. "I put it back. You can turn around now."
As much as she didn't want to admit she was having a problem, Faith didn't turn around. She could almost feel that blue crystal waiting to grab her again if she did, and there was no way she was letting that happen again. ""Nah, I'll just hang by the door. Play lookout in case Jeeves comes back."
"Faith." Faith risked a glance over her shoulder at Willow's terse summons. "I don't know what I'm looking for. You've at least seen this stuff. I need you to help me."
They shared a sober look at the request.
"My bad, Red. You're right. We gotta help B." No matter how much Faith's skin crawled at the thought of those gems, she had to help Buffy. She reached out and slammed the lid of the case closed. If Willow was researching, it didn't need to be open. "Where do we start?" she asked, stuffing her hands into her pockets again.
Willow frowned at the keyboard. "I'm not sure. I've already cross-referenced the crystals with the Council. I didn't get anything." Her fingers moved restlessly over the keys. "I could probably hack into their records…" She trailed off and began typing again.
"Ain't they got some kind of protection against that?" Faith asked curiously. Leaning closer, she peered over Willow's shoulder. The letters and numbers moved too fast for even her enhanced vision to follow.
"They should." Faith caught Willow's slight smirk. "They don't, though. You know how bad Giles is with computers. I get the feeling he's very progressive for a Watcher." The characters on the screen froze and then blinked. "Huh."
Waiting as patiently as she could, Faith stretched and rolled her neck.
"I'm in. I think," Willow mumbled. Sticking her face right against the screen, she stared at something. "Either they have a way more complicated algorithm than I thought or I just broke their system."
Faith rolled her neck again as all the muscles she'd loosened a minute ago knotted up again. "Red, I don't give a fuck about the computer or them algor-whatevers. Can you get the info on whatever's up with B?" The words were a husky growl.
Machine-gun typing answered her.
Boxes, strings of letters and numbers, pictures…they sprang up on the computer screen and then disappeared seconds later.
Finally, as Faith reached out to physically make Willow explain what was going on, Willow sat back on her stool. "I found it." She pointed to the information filling the screen. "It's old, and the reference is vague. I think what you saw was something called the Cruciamentum."
The word sounded bad. Faith shivered. "That some kind of Slayer cold or something?" she asked, hating the quiver in her voice. If it was in the Council computer then Giles hadn't hurt Buffy accidentally. He'd done it on purpose.
"It's a test, from what I can see." Wide green eyes looked at Faith. "Apparently, it's something every Slayer goes through right before their eighteenth birthday."
"B's hitting the big one-eight tomorrow, ain't she?" Faith already knew that. She'd heard the Scoobies talking about throwing Buffy a party for weeks. "Guess this is the Council's special present, huh?" She tapped her fingers on the case. "What about this stuff? And the fact B ain't acting like herself?" Even now, Faith couldn't bring herself to voice her fears that Buffy was no longer a Slayer.
Shaking her head, Willow started typing. "No. That's all there is. I've checked every database and file in the Council records." She sighed and banged her fist on the desk. "Stupid computer-hating men!" Willow snarled. "Not all of the records are stored electronically yet. So much of the Council information is still sitting on a shelf getting dusty."
Echoing Willow's frustration, Faith started pacing. "We ain't got time to lose it, Red. We still got to find the rest of the information. If it ain't on the computer, what about them books you said Jeeves had? Would it be there?"
Willow nodded slowly. "It might. I know Giles writes everything down, but…" She looked up at Faith. "If this is a test, Faith, shouldn't we let Buffy try to pass it on her own? I mean, what you described sounded terrible. I just…It's a test!"
She had a point. Staring at the floor, Faith replayed the scene from the previous night. "Red, I know you're big on the books and school. And if I thought for one minute that this was just some test to see if B can remember the names of all the other Slayers, I'd be cool with that."
Slowly dragging her eyes up, Faith met Willow's gaze steadily. "It's way more than that. Them funky rocks, the drug." Rocking on her heels, Faith sucked in a deep breath and forced herself to go on. To say out loud what scared her the most. "I can't feel her no more, Red. It's like B ain't a Slayer no more."
The comment hit home. Willow went pale and then bright red. "You…you think whatever Giles did took away her Calling?" Her voice rose. "You're crazy. I know you're crazy because Giles would never do that, no matter what. He's her Watcher and…and like her father…and he wouldn't…"
Faith sprang forward. "You think I don't know that? You think I'm havin' a laugh and just fucking with your head? You think I want to tell B that Giles did this to her? I was there last night, Red." Her voice cracked as she continued intently, "You looked in the fucking case. The drugs and the crystals were there. Stop trying to convince yourself this is all my fault and find out what the hell is goin' on! What is that shit in there?" Faith pointed wildly at the case. "'Cause I swear that B don't feel like a Slayer anymore. She's not on my radar, and I know she can't feel me."
"OK." Willow slid off the stool and opened the case. "I'm sorry," she said softly. "I wasn't there, and I haven't seen any signs that Buffy's different."
Faith's knuckles ached from the way she clenched her hands. "Red…" she growled.
The vial came out of the case, and Willow stuffed it in a pocket. "I'll go back to the lab and run some tests during my free period."
"What about the books?" Faith couldn't relax yet. She didn't trust Willow not to go on another tirade.
The question earned her an intense look. "I have to get a look at them," Willow said solemnly.
"Then let's get the books and go. We been in here too fucking long. Jeeves'll be back and I ain't gonna explain to him why you got all his diaries or whatever spread out on the research table." Faith grabbed the case and carried it back to Giles' office. She left it leaning against his desk where she'd found it. "What do you need?"
Biting her lip, Willow scanned the shelves. "Slayer Diaries." She pointed to a row of leather-bound journals on the top shelf of a bookcase against the far wall. "Like these, only…Buffy's isn't here. Giles always keeps it here."
Faith sensed a panic attack on the way. "Don't get all lathered up, Red. Jeeves likes to hide things. Make sure the book ain't stashed on another shelf and I'll check for secret drawers and shit." She dropped to her knees and started with the paper-laden desk.
There wasn't another false back or any hiding spots, though.
Sweating and close to an unaccustomed emotional outburst (though, not panic), Faith slammed a hand onto the floor. "Fuck it! Where's that book?"
"I don't know." Willow sullenly dropped down to sit next to Faith. "Maybe Giles has it with him. We can use the other diaries, though. This is a traditional test. That means other Slayers have gone through the test. Right?" She peered at Faith and tossed her hair over her shoulder. "Did your Watcher ever mention it?"
All the air in the room disappeared. "No," Faith choked out. "She didn't." Standing up in a single, powerful surge, she tried to pace the tiny office. "If we can't find the book you want, let's motor, Red." The more she talked, the less she thought – and the better she felt. "Grab them other diaries and I can read 'em while you test the drug. Maybe you'll find something before B heads for home." Babbling was addictive. Faith pressed her lips together to make sure she didn't lose any more control.
Willow didn't look pleased with the decision. However, after staring around the office one last time, she climbed to her feet and started unloading the shelf she'd indicated earlier. By the time she had finished, her backpack bulged.
Smirking, Faith watched the other girl stagger under the load.
"You could help," Willow panted as she resettled the strap over her shoulder and leaned into the weight.
She had a point. Faith snatched the backpack from Willow and effortlessly looped the strap over her shoulder. "You need anything else?"
"No," Willow said as she scanned the room. "If I find something in the diaries or when I test the vial, we may have to come back, though." She took a step toward the door and stopped. "What if Giles comes back and sees all the books missing?"
The muscles in the back of Faith's neck screamed as they tightened further. "I don't know, Red," Faith admitted. "Does it really matter? We either leave 'em here and let B handle this on her own or we take 'em and deal with Jeeves when he finds us. Your call." She waited stiffly for Willow to make a decision.
"Let's hurry." Willow set a blistering pace for the door. "It's almost time for the bell to ring, and I don't want Buffy to see us together." She stuck her head out of the library.
Glad Willow couldn't see her eye roll, Faith crossed her arms and rocked on her heels as she waited for Willow.
After a few seconds, Willow's head reappeared. "There are only a few people out there now. We can probably make it to the lab if we hurry."
Faith wisely didn't point out how much time they'd wasted while Willow played lookout. "Ready when you are," she said instead. Sticking to Willow's back, she followed her out of the library.
They retraced their earlier path. This time, though, Faith wondered if there was a neon sigh over their heads. Every one of the kids they passed stared.
It was a relief to turn the corner by the lockers and duck out of sight.
That's when the bell rang and hundreds of people flooded the hallway. Faith grabbed Willow and pulled her into a classroom doorway. "Stay put," she hissed in Willow's ear. "I don't want to run into B." She would have continued if a shout hadn't interrupted.
"Hey," a male voice shouted over the din in the hall. "You don't do that to me!"
Faith tried to peer over the crowd. This didn't sound good. If a fight broke out, Snyder might show up. She didn't want to risk getting rounded up right now.
Unfortunately, the glimpses she got showed the fight was already underway. Some tall, bulky kid had a hand wrapped around Cordelia's arm. "You made me look like a dork in front of my posse."
"Get over yourself," Cordelia snapped back. She played to the crowd, throwing her free hand up in the arm dramatically. "You and your 'posse' are pathetic. I don't even know why I thought you were worth my time."
Faith shoved Willow out of the doorway. "This is gonna get ugly. We need to get out of her before the action kicks off." She dragged Willow around a group of kids trying to get closer to the action.
She came to an abrupt stop when a new voice tickled her enhanced hearing. "You even think about hitting her, I'm going to make you into a pretzel."
Buffy. "God damn it!" Faith spun around and started the other direction. This time, she didn't try to avoid the students. She simply shoved them out of the way. With Willow still stumbling behind, she got them to within a few rows of the front – just in time to see Buffy attempt to yank the boy away from Cordelia.
It was worse than the fight with the vampire the previous night. Buffy not only didn't move the kid, she actually lost her balance from the failed takedown. Windmilling wildly, she stumbled backward into a bench along the wall.
"Still think I'm lying, Red?" Faith whispered numbly.