Giles was already in the library waiting when the group showed up after the Bronze. Giles pulled out a newspaper and passed it to Buffy, "Read the headline," he ushered.
Buffy stared down at the paper before looking up at Oz, "Did you escape your lockup last night?"
"Lockup? For what?" Brooklyn asked confused.
Oz scrunched his forehead in perplexion, "I don't think so. Xander did you see me the whole time?"
Xander nodded, "I mean I dozed off a few times but everything's locked so you had no way to escape," he defended himself as he looked around the caged area and noticed the window was wide open.
"So, how long did you doze off?" Willow asked, after they knew about the window.
Xander shied away, "I know he was here when I..."
"When you woke up!" Giles yelled, the first time Brooklyn had seen him angry, "A student was mauled to death and either we have another werewolf in town or Oz escaped," he finished pulling off his glasses and pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration.
Brooklyn gasped, "Werewolf?"
Buffy simply nodded, "Well last night was the last night so we have no way to find out now. I guess we'll have to wait a month to see who mauled the kid."
Giles shook his head, "No, I want you to go out and check the woods. See if you can any trace of a creature that could've done this. If it wasn't a werewolf, the threat is still out there," he ordered.
Buffy nodded as she left the library to begin patrol.
"Oz, drive Willow and Xander home to be on the safe side and I'll take Brooklyn since she lives near me. I already sent Faith to the other edge of the woods to meet Buffy in the middle," Giles instructed as the library cleared out.
"Do you think it was OZ? And if so, what do you do to him? He's not always a monster," Brooklyn thought outloud as Giles drove the back to the townhomes.
Giles shook his head, "I'm not even sure at this moment. I can only hope it was some other kind of beast we haven't yet faced," he answered as he parked the car.
Brooklyn shook her own head, "Well, I hope so too. I like Oz and it would devestate Willow. See you Monday," she said as she climbed out of the car.
Giles came around to her side and stood within inches of her, "I want you to promise me that you will stay indoors unless your going to school. I am very aware that you have proven yourself but we don't even know what we're facing. Promise me," he said in a firm tone.
Brooklyn swallowed, nervous at his closeness, "I'm not worried. But I'll do my best to not go anywhere. Have a good night," she said quickly pushing past him and heading to her door.
Brooklyn walked through her front door and leaned back against it once it was closed, "I really need to shake this off. He's at least double my age," she said to herself, recovering from the way his closeness felt.
The next day, Brooklyn spent the day getting ahead on her studies and staying indoors. By night, she was restless. "A quick run won't kill me," she said to herself as she threw on sweats and a t-shirt.
She made her way out quickly on the off chance she'd get caught. Just as she passed the fountain, she heard a door open, "Brooklyn? What are you doing?" she heard Giles' voice ask from behind her.
She briefly considered sprinting away instead of fessing up but decided to turn back, "I was just gonna do a quick run around the block. It just turned dark and I was gonna be super fast."
Giles marched up to her, furious, "What did I ask of you? It was a simple request," he fumed.
Brooklyn backed away, "Sorry, I couldn't stay inside. I ran out of things to do and I thought I could get past without you seeing me," she defended herself.
Giles shook his head, "I'll go with you if you need to get fresh air so desperately," he offered but she knew there was no way she'd be able to say no.
A/N: What will happen while they're running in the dark?
