Few weeks later.
Lana tried out for cheerleading, training with Buffy, studying, fighting vampires, and go to the bronze.
High school.
The halls.
"I'm glad to call you my friend." Lana said
"As long as you keep the supernatural stuff to yourself." Cordelia said
"I will. If you can let me ditch cheerleading practice sometime so that I can hunt the forces of evil." Lana said
"Deal." Cordelia said
"Any idea what you're going to do for the science fair?" Lana asked Cordelia
"I don't know. (Cordelia thinks and has an idea.) Oh. I've got it." Cordelia said
They went to a booth. Cordelia signs up.
"Cor, seriously?" Lana asked Cordelia
Willow walked towards them.
"What?" Cordelia asked in confusion
"The Tomato: Fruit or Vegetable'?" Willow reads
"I wanted to do something I could finish in a weekend, alright?" Cordelia said
"If you say so." Lana said
"Help me?" Cordelia asked Lana
"Sure." Lana said
Eric flashes a picture of Cordelia.
"Stop it! What are you doing? (Eric takes another picture.) We are under florescent light, for God's sake." Cordelia said
"The camera loves you!" Eric said
"I didn't think yearbook nerds came out of hibernation till spring." Cordelia said
"Prefer term is ask permission next time." Lana said
Eric takes Lana's picture.
"Stop." Lana said
"Eric! Will you quit it?" Chris asked Eric
"Comin' through. Sorry to interrupt, Willow, Lana, it's the Bat Signal." Buffy said
"Duty calls." Lana said
"See you later, Chris." Willow said
"Thanks, Chris." Lana thanking Chris
Library.
Buffy, Lana, Willow, and Xander sat down.
"This shouldn't take long. I'm probably the only girl in school who has the coroner's office bookmarked as a favorite place. (Cordelia coming in.) I found it! Meredith Todd died in a car accident last week." Willow said
"Learned how to deal with my pain." Cordelia said
"How was her neck?" Buffy asked Willow
"Fine, except for being broken." Willow said
Giles comes out of his office.
"Hello! Can we deal with my pain, please?" Cordelia asked them
"You guys figure out the missing person situation. I'm gonna study with Cordelia." Lana said
At the gym.
Cordelia and Lana sitting at the bleachers studying.
"Let's try this again. What is a tomato?" Lana asked Cordelia
"Tomatoes are a significant source of umami flavor. The tomato is consumed in diverse ways, raw or cooked, in many dishes, sauces, salads, and drinks. While tomatoes are fruits—botanically classified as berries—they are commonly used as a vegetable ingredient or side dish." Cordelia said
"You got it." Lana said
"Great." Cordelia said
"Can I ask you a question?" Lana asked Cordelia
"Sure." Cordelia said
"How come you didn't ask Chris or Willow?" Lana asked Cordelia
"Cause you're my friend. (Lana gives her a look. Cordelia sighs.) Willow is sort of my friend and Chris? I would ask him but it's complicated. Please just drop it." Cordelia said
"Ok." Lana said
Still in the gym.
"Go, Sunnydale!" Cheerleaders said
Lana did a layout step out.
"Go, Razorback!" Lana said
"Show off." Harmony said
"That's not all I can do." Lana said
"What else can you do?" Harmony asked Lana
Cordelia looked at her strangely.
"A running wall flip." Lana said
"That's weird." Harmony said
"I maybe weird. But watch. (Lana demonstrate. She runs towards a wall and did a backflip. Cheerleaders clapped their hands.) That's how it's done." Lana said
Nighttime.
Outside of school.
The other girls get in their cars.
"No more weirdness." Cordelia said
"I'm just me." Lana said
Lana hears something by the fence.
"What was that?" Cordelia asked in confusion
"I don't know. (Lana moves to the fence. She stops to look around. There was nothing. She sees something in the shadows.) RUN! (Lana takes Cordelia and started running. A person was following them. Cordelia hide in the dumpster and Lana used herself as bait. A man came out of the shadows and it was Angel.) Dammit, Angel!" Lana said
"Sorry, Lana." Angel said
"It's ok, Cordelia. It's just Angel." Lana said
The lid opens, and Cordelia pushes the lid up all the way and hop out of it.
"Did Buffy page you?" Angel asked Lana
"She lied to you." Lana said
"She's at the graveyard." Cordelia said
"Uh, hold on, my skirt is caught. (Cordelia tries to get her skirt unstuck. She reaches behind her and gets her skirt loose.) There." Cordelia said
Cordelia picks up what was holding her skirt and sees it's a hand. She drops it and screams.
The library.
Buffy, Xander, Willow, and Giles come in through the doors.
"Is it an army if you just have three?" Willow asked them
Angel gets up from the table and faces them. Cordelia and Lana gets up, too.
"Zombie drill team then." Buffy said
"You're back." Angel said
"Angel!" Buffy said
"Xander." Angel said
"Angel." Xander said
"Oh, boy." Lana said
"I thought you were takin' the night off." Angel said
"I, I was, um, but something came up." Buffy said
"Cordelia told me the truth." Angel said
Xander laughs.
"That's gotta be a first." Xander said
"I assume you told him is all." Lana said
"Um, as long as you're here, perhaps you could be of some help." Giles said
"We were investigating. Somebody's been digging up the bodies of dead girls." Buffy said
"We found some of them." Angel said
"You mean, like, two of the three?" Buffy asked Angel
"I mean, like, some of them. Like parts." Angel said
"It was horrible. God, there were so many parts, they were everywhere." Cordelia said
"So much for our zombie theory." Willow said
"So much for all our theories." Giles said
"Always Frankinstein." Lana said
"I don't get it. Why go to all the trouble to dig up three girls only to chop them up and throw them away? It doesn't make any sense. Especially from a time management standpoint." Buffy said
"Well, what I saw didn't add up to three whole girls. I think they kept some parts." Angel said
"Could this get yuckier?" Buffy asked them
"Probably kept the other parts to eat." Lana said
"Question answered." Buffy said
"Why dispose of the remains five miles from the cemetery at a school, of all places?" Giles asked confusion
"Maybe because whoever did it had some business in the neighborhood. Like, say, classes?" Buffy said
"Oh. Ah." Giles said
"This was no hatchet job." Angel said
"Whoever made those incisions really knew what they were doing." Lana said
"What student here is gonna be that well versed in physiology?" Giles asked in confusion
"Well, I can think of five or six guys in the science club. And me." Willow said
"So, Will, come clean. Promise to never do it again, and we'll call it a night. (They looked at him with no response) He joked!" Xander said
Xander smiles.
"Willow, why don't you get these guys' locker numbers so we can do some checking?" Buffy asked Willow
"No. I have to go home now. I have to take a bath and burn my clothes." Cordelia said
Xander in mock disappointment.
"You have to go? Aw, too bad. Keep in touch. Buh-bye." Xander said
"I don't wanna go alone. I'm still fragile. (Cordelia looked at Angel.) Can you take me?" Cordelia asked Angel
Angel is in open-mouthed shock, and looks at Buffy. She gives him a stare of disapproval.
"I'll be back you guys." Lana said
Back outside.
"Thanks for walking me again." Cordelia said
"No problem. (They walked to Cordelia's car.) Look...uh... There's always going to be a guy out there for you. It's always got to be a competition with some guy." Lana said
"What's more then life?" Cordelia asked Lana
"The way I see it. He's into Buffy and she's into him." Lana said
"But I can still try." Cordelia said
"I don't want to see you get hurt." Lana said
Cordelia walked to her car.
Back in the Library.
"I need you guys explain to me about something. Why Cordelia wouldn't ask Chris?" Lana asked them
"It's about Chris's brother, Daryl. His older brother. He was a big football star. All-State two years ago. Big time stud." Willow said
"All the girls flirted with him. He dated her?" Lana asked Willow
"Let's just say. Yeah he did." Xander said
"Cordelia lost the boyfriend." Willow said
"And Chris lost his brother." Xander said
"Oh my god." Lana said
"Chris has been real quiet. In his own world. I heard their mother doesn't even leave the house anymore. Cordelia doesn't want to think about it." Willow said
"That's why she doesn't want to talk to me about it." Lana said
To the hallways.
Xander is working a locker combination from a list. Giles comes down the other hall.
"You understand, in my capacity as school official, this search is completely unauthorized, and I, I cannot condone it." Giles said
"Fine, your butt's covered. Wanna grab a locker?" Buffy asked Giles
Buffy hands Giles a sheet.
"Uh, yes, yes, of course." Giles said
Giles takes the sheet.
"Nothing. Got the spice girls." Lana said
Buffy approaches a locker.
"Okay, Eric. Let's see what's on your annoying little mind." Buffy said
Willow at another locker.
"Nothing in here but back issues of Scientific American. Ooo, I haven't read this one!" Willow said
"Nothing remarkable here." Giles said
Xander opens one.
"Guys! (They all go over to see.) Your friend Chris Epps' locker." Xander said
Willow reads off book titles.
'Grey's Anatomy', 'Mortician's Desk Reference" Willow said
Lana reads the next book titles.
'Robicheaux's Guide to Muscles and Tendons'." Lana said
Giles reaches in and pulls out a newspaper folded open to a picture of the three cheerleaders. The title above the picture reads 'Tragic Accident Kills Three'.
"I think it's fair to say Chris is involved." Giles said
"He's into corpses alright." Xander said
"But why?" Lana asked in confusion
Buffy opens Eric's locker door and shows them a collage of a woman made from parts of various pictures.
Angels apartment.
"You disappeared." Lana said
"I didn't want to get in the way." Angel said
"She's into you." Lana said
"I don't know about that." Angel said
"Give her time, Angel." Lana said
"You only know her a few weeks." Angel said
"Cordelia took a liking out of you. You and Buffy are something. You two found love in each other." Lana said
Next day.
The balcony.
Buffy comes up to Lana, Willow, and Xander sitting on the railing.
"Any sign of our suspects?" Xander asked Buffy
"Not yet. I don't get it. Why would anybody wanna make a girl?" Buffy asked in confusion
"You mean when there's so many pre-made ones just laying around? The things we do for love." Xander said
"Love has nothing to do with this." Buffy said
"Maybe not, but I'll tell you this: people don't fall in love with what's right in front of them. (Willow gives Buffy a sad, knowing look.) People want the dream. What they can't have. (Willow looks over at Xander longingly. Buffy understands only too well. Lana looked at them.) The more unattainable, the more attractive." Xander said
Willow hops down from her perch.
"Eric could be the unattainable one who would include everyone." Willow said
"That's alive." Lana said
Willow walks around Xander to head down the stairs. Buffy and Lana joins her.
"Uh, Eric's sick enough to do something like this, but what about Chris?" Buffy asked Willow
"He seems like a human person." Lana said
Xander follows them.
"I dunno. That thing with his brother was really hard on him. And he talked about death a lot. Maybe he just wanted to get one-up on it." Willow said
"But it's not doable. I mean, making someone from scraps, actually making them live." Buffy said
"Stolen parts. Who would be the next victim?" Lana asked in confusion
"If it is, my science project's definitely coming in second this year." Willow said
Xander spots Giles.
"And speaking of love..." Xander said
"This just got to exciting." Lana said
"We were talking about the re-animation of dead tissue." Willow said
"Hey." Buffy said
Giles is distracted by looking at Jenny.
"Oh! Yes. Hello." Giles said
"Still no sign of our mad doctors?" Buffy asked Giles
"What? Oh! Uh, corpses, yes. Evil. Huh. Very good. (They see Jenny stop and talk to a student.) Very, very good." Giles said
"Okay, Giles, just remember, 'I feel a thing, you feel a thing...' But personalize it." Buffy said
"Personalize it?" Giles asked Buffy
"She's a technopagan, right? Ask her to bless your laptop. (Buffy starts to leave.) Have fun." Buffy said
Lana smiles.
"Smile and never slouch." Lana said
Lana leaves too. Willow and Xander smile. Willow pats him on the shoulder and goes as well.
"What? Oh! Don't..." Giles said as Xander cuts him off
"Best of luck." Xander said
Xander follows the girls.
"...leave?" Giles said
Science classroom. Willow is looking through a book.
"I still don't get how Chris could do it. I mean, arresting the cell deterioration is one thing, but..." Willow said as Xander cuts her off
"Hello! (Xander holds up a visible head.) I wanna get ahead." Xander said
Willow exhales.
"Electrical current combined with..." Willow said as Lana cuts her off
"An adrenaline boost." Lana said
"How can you be smart and being a cheerleader at the same time?" Xander asked Lana
"Why couldn't anybody?" Lana asked Xander
"You don't care what people think of you? A nerd or a cheerleader? Both?" Xander asked Lana
"No." Lana said
Buffy comes into the room.
"Well, it's official. Chris and Eric didn't come to school today." Buffy said
"That's no coincidence." Xander said
"Maybe they finished their project." Willow said
"God! What if it worked? What, what if that poor girl is walking around?" Buffy asked in confusion
"Poor girls, technically." Xander said
"What could she be thinking?" Lana asked in confusion
"And what are they gonna do with her?" Willow asked in confusion
Giles comes in also.
"I don't think we need to worry about that just yet. I spoke to a press person this morning about the remains. The police have finished sorting through them, and apparently they found three heads in the dumpster." Giles said
"Three girls." Lana said
"Precisely." Giles said
"So, they don't have the whole, uh, package?" Willow asked them
"Heads must be no good. Huh. I found 'em attractive enough. (Xander gets looks from the girls.) Well, obviously I'm not as sick as Chris and Eric." Xander said
"Based on what the police have put together, I would say they're one step short of completing their masterpiece." Giles said
"One step." Willow said
To the library.
"I checked the obits. Nothing that would make for a likely candidate." Willow said
"They seem kinda picky for guys who had three heads to begin with." Xander said
"Formaldehyde." Lana said
"Formaldehyde. Yes, yes, yes, yes, of course, it accelerates neural decay in the brain cells." Giles said
"After a couple days they're useless." Willow said
"They need something fresh." Lana said
"How fresh?" Buffy asked them
"As fresh as possible." Lana said
"A living being." Willow said
"Anybody who cuts dead girls into little pieces does not get the benefit of the doubt. I wanna end this thing now." Buffy said
"I second that." Giles said
"Dammit!" Lana said
"What is it?" Giles said
"My first Assembly. I can't do that to the girls." Lana said
"You stay with them and Cordelia. Page us if you look for anything suspicious." Buffy said
"I know. Dhampir remember?" Lana said
"I know." Buffy said
To the girls locker room.
Cordelia is putting on her lip-gloss and Lana puts on makeup. Joy, the cheerleading squad leader, walks by with Lisa.
"Cordelia. Lana. Are you two coming?" Joy asked both Lana and Cordelia
"We'll be right out. (Lana and Cordelia finishes putting on lip-gloss and make-up.) You ready?" Lana asked Cordelia
"Yeah." Cordelia said
At the game.
Cordelia and Lana is doing a cheer with the squad.
"Go, Razorbacks, go! Go, team, go! Go, Razorbacks, go! Go, team, go!" Squad said
On the field the ball is snapped, thrown, caught and run in for a touchdown. The crowd goes wild.
"Yes." Lana said
"I'm thirsty." Cordelia said
"I'll come with you." Lana said
Both Lana and Cordelia walked over to the coolers next to the bleachers for a drink. Daryl comes up behind Lana and stabbed her in the back with a pipe and it goes through her. She falls down and he kidnapped Cordelia.
"No..." Lana said
Few moments later.
Angel and the others found Lana. He pull the pipe out of Lana and she groan in pain.
"Ahh. (Angel puts the pressure on Lana.) He's got her. Her zombie ex." Lana said
"Go!" Angel said
They ran.
Angels apartment.
Angel wrapped a bandage around Lana.
"I'm fine." Lana said
"You're not a slayer." Angel said
"I know. But I'm part vampire. I have healing powers like any other vampire." Lana said
"You're also part human. All humans don't have a healing ability." Angel said
"Yeah. You're the only vampire who has a soul that I know. I was confused and lost in this world. Then you happened 2 years ago. You saved my life." Lana said
"Any other human. You don't have to drink blood." Angel said
Lana laughs.