News of the corpse in Aura's locker spread throughout the school quickly. Principal Flutie made several incompetent attempts to dispel gossip, but this was all the more difficult when he himself was just as confused and frightened as some of the students. Over the course of his career, strange tragedy had struck the school several times, but never before had a corpse been left on school grounds, stuffed into a locker no less. Principal Flutie recognized the boy as a graduate from several years ago. Flutie had never liked the boy, he'd always been a troublemaker. Still, nobody deserved this. A thousand questions raced through Flutie's mind. He wondered why the boy was on school property in the first place. He wondered who the killer could have been and whether it was another student. Most of all he wondered if it would happen again.
The Police had been called, and anybody who had seen the body or known the boy was sent straight to the school councilor. While he waited for the police to arrive, Flutie ensured that the girl's locker room was confined, nobody was allowed into the room. Of course not being allowed to do something didn't stop Mr. Giles from sneaking in anyway. The door had been locked, so he'd snuck around the building and checked the window. He let out a sigh when he discovered that the window had also been locked. He casually glanced around and picked up a nearby stone. Damaging property and creeping into a girl's locker room. Giles thought to himself. And here I was thinking I left Ripper behind years ago. He slammed the stone into the window, silently praying that nobody had noticed the sound of breaking glass. When he was satisfied that there were no passer-bys He clutched the windowsill, found a foothold and quickly launched himself into the room.
Giles quickly spotted the corpse of the young man lying between rows of lockers. He walked over and examined the body. The boy's neck had two deep puncture wounds, instantly confirming what Giles had feared. This boy had been killed by a vampire. Surrounding the twin holes in the boy's neck was the faintest trace of blood. Any similar injury to the boy's neck would have resulted in vast quantities of gushing blood, making the cleanup an extremely messy job. But boy's blood had been all but drained, a fact confirmed by the corpse's deathly pallor. Through his Watcher training, Giles deduced that it was highly unlikely that the corpse would rise as another vampire. For starters, the sire would have found a more careful place to store the body as the demon planted within the body gestated. Clearly whatever vampire attacked the boy did not mind in the least that if its victim's corpse were to be discovered. Furthermore, for a siring to take place, the vampire must first drain the victim of blood, then force the victim to in turn, feed from their own cold, dead veins, infecting them with the demonic disease.
The boy had been drained completely. If he'd been turned, his body lacked anything indicating that this was so. The boy's mouth lacked any trace of blood as did his pale, withered flesh. He'd been sucked dry and offered nothing in return. Just to be sure, Giles pulled a small silver cross from his pocket and pressed it gently to the boy's forehead for a few moments. As he pulled away, the cross had left no mark. The boy was definitely not going to rise as a vampire. With that knowledge confirmed, Giles walked over to the window where he once again checked for people, then leapt out and quickly made his way back to the library.
"Willow!" Xander called out as he rushed to his friend. "Gym and Info Tech are cancelled. Did you hear about the extreme dead guy in Aura's locker?"
"Yeah," Willow replied. "Who would do something like that? It's horrible."
Jesse quickly rushed up to Xander and Willow. The three students were standing outside the school gymnasium when they'd heard the news.
"I take it gym's canceled?" Jesse asked his friends.
"Yeah." Willow responded. "You heard about the body in the girl's locker room?"
"Yeah," Jesse answered. "Everyone's talking about it. I'm glad it wasn't in your locker Willow,"
"That makes two of us," Willow shuddered.
"You okay, man?" Xander asked Jesse. "You look pretty shaken."
"It's fine. It's just that I can't believe we were talking to Aura and Cordy just a few minutes before a dead body dropped out at them. You think we should have been more polite or something?"
"The were trying to kick us out of our seats!" Xander exclaimed. "I'm sorry Cordy and Aura had to see a corpse, but polite really isn't a part of their vocabulary."
"Jesse, there was no way we could have known." Willow said.
"Yeah, I know," said Jesse. "But still. You think Cordy's okay?"
"Last I heard she was talking the school councilor," said Willow. "I suppose she'll be sent home after that. Mr. Flutie wouldn't expect her to stay at school after what she just saw."
"Look man, I'm sure she'll be fine," Xander agreed. "Couple of days time she'll be right as rain, picking on Willow, calling you Captain Gangly and getting her pet ape Larry to kick my ass. Everything will be just the way it was, I promise."
"She calls me Captain Gangly?" Jesse asked Xander with horror.
"Only when you make cow eyes at her," Xander teased.
"Hey, at least I'm out in the open about it," said Jesse. "Like you wouldn't go out with her if given the chance?"
"Not in this, nor any other reality." Xander insisted.
"Really, Jesse," Willow joked "Xander and I should revoke your membership from the club."
"The "We hate Cordelia club"? No, I'm still an adamant disliker of the girl," said Jesse. "But seriously, what a body. I could do without the personality, and the Cordettes that follow her around, but I defy you to find a better looking girl."
"True buddy." Xander agreed, oblivious of the look of disgust on Willow's face. "I can't wait for her to start cheerleader tryouts."
"Cordy is really pretty," Willow interjected, "but there are more important things than looks, when will you guys learn that?" Xander was slightly taken aback, noticing that Willow's outburst was directed at him more so that Jesse.
"C'mon Will," said Xander. "We're just kidding around."
Willow sighed. "I know. But it sucks how everyone always gushes all over her, and I've never even had a boyfriend." Xander coughed. "Apart from you Xander," Willow added, "…when we were six. But Cordy is always making everyone's lives so miserable, especially mine. I mean, shouldn't being the most popular person alive be enough, without having to rub everyone's face in it?"
"Willow, you're pretty too." Jesse said with complete honesty. "And as far as personality goes, you blow Cordy and any other girl out of the water. Right Xander?"
"Right." Xander agreed. "And someday you'll find someone who appreciates that."
Willow blushed. "Thanks guys. I didn't mean to get all snappy like that. I know you two aren't shallow like all those other guys. Well, not completely. It's just that Cordy always makes me feel like dirt. This morning she said…" Willow looked down.
"Said what?" Xander asked.
"I don't remember." Willow lied, not wanting to go into the specific details. " Just that… um, do you guys think my clothes are ugly?" Willow struggled to fight back a small tear that was forming in here eye.
"Of course not, Will." Jesse said. Xander gave her a friendly hug.
"Willow," Xander began, "Seriously, don't listen to anything Cordy says. One day I'm sure she'll get what's coming to her."
"Yeah, maybe." Willow said. "I still feel sorry about what happened today though, with her and the other's finding that guy's body. I mean she might be Cordy, but nobody deserves to have to see that."
Meanwhile at the library, Giles was fuming. He picked up a thick, leather bound book entitled Vampyr. Giles violently tossed to book aside. The Master must surely be awake by now, he thought. He was supposed to present the book to the slayer. His slayer. She was supposed to already be in Sunnydale. She was supposed to show up, enroll at Sunnydale High, stop The Harvest and kill the Master. That was the slayer's job, to fight the forces of darkness. Her Watcher's job, Giles's job was to watch over her, train her and report frequently back to the Council. Giles picked up the telephone and dialed the number of the Watcher's Council in England.
"Hello," he said into the receiver when the phone in England had been picked up. "This is Rupert Giles, I'd like to speak to Mr. Travers; it's a matter of extreme urgency."
"Hold the line please," Said the receptionist in England.
After a brief pause, Giles was greeted by an all too familiar voice. "Mister Giles," Quinten Travers began on the other end of the line. "To what do I owe the pleasure at five o'clock in the morning?"
"Mister Travers," Giles greeted his superior. "I feel that I should inform you that the slayer has not arrived."
"She was due to arrive a few days ago, Mr. Giles." Travers said curtly. "Being a few days late is hardly cause for alarm."
"Normally I'd agree," Giles said into the telephone. "However, as I'm sure you are aware, The Master's Harvest ritual is due to take place very soon, and if I may be perfectly blunt, the slayer is in Cleveland."
"WHAT?" Mr. Travers bellowed into the telephone, making Giles jump slightly.
"Yes. I hadn't seen her about the school so I went to the principal to make a few enquiries. Apparently she was taken off the enrolment list at the last minute."
"I see." Mr. Travers said. "This is most problematic."
"Yes," Giles agreed. "Furthermore there has been a vampire attack right here on campus. I suspect it's to commemorate the upcoming Harvest."
"Most problematic indeed…" Mr. Travers continued on the other end of the line.
"Apparently the slayer's mother, Joyce Summers was offered a job at the Cleveland Museum of Art."
"Thank you Mr. Giles, this will be taken care of immediately."
"What should I do sir?" Giles asked tentatively.
"The best course of action, Mr. Giles would be to remain where you are. The town clearly needs defending and in the absence of the slayer, I feel that I can at least take solace that a watcher as capable as yourself is stationed there."
Giles gritted his teeth with anger. "And the slayer?" he asked into the telephone.
"That is no longer your concern, Mr. Giles."
"Very well," Giles sneered at his superior. "Good day Mr. Travers," he said. He slammed the telephone down without waiting for a response. "Bloody hell!" Giles screamed at the top of his lungs. His entire life he had been training for a chance that had just passed him by; the chance to serve as watcher to the slayer.
On the other side of the world, Quinton Travers sat in bed contemplating the situation. He was quite shocked at the way Giles had hung up on him. Nonetheless, he could understand the man's frustration. With this recent turn of events, it was now highly unlikely that Giles would ever serve as watcher to the active slayer. It seemed like a lifetime ago when Travers had been a mentor to his own slayer. It was sad indeed that Giles would be deprived of that opportunity, yet he was also fortunate to be spared the heartache and pain that goes alongside it. The life of a slayer was violent and short-lived. Being active watcher was an experience that Travers would be ever grateful for, but it was one that he would be reluctant to repeat.
Once again, Travers picked up the telephone, and dialed several numbers. "Yes, this is Travers. Tell me, do we have a watcher stationed in Cleveland? Ah, good. Tell him he's been promoted."
