"Teacher's Pet"
Based on the Episode Written by David Greenwalt
The following story is copyright © 2021 by Mark Moore.
Buffy was sitting in science class. The lights were off, because Dr. Stephen Gregory was giving a slide show. At the table next to Buffy, Blayne Moll was lightly snoring.
Buffy looked at him. "You're drooling."
There was no response.
"Blayne!" Buffy exclaimed softly.
He woke up and shook his head.
Buffy indicated the corner of her mouth. "You've got a little..."
He picked up on her gesture and quickly wiped the drool off his mouth and chin.
"Their ancestors were here long before we were. Their progeny will be here long after we are gone. The simple and ubiquitous ant." Dr. Gregory turned off the projector, turned the lights on, and began walking up the aisle. "Now. If you read the homework, you should know the two ways that ants communicate." He stopped at Blayne's lab table and leaned on it to face Buffy. "Miss Summers."
Buffy looked at him. "Ways that ants communicate."
He nodded. "Mm."
"With other ants."
"From the homework."
Tara tried to get Buffy's attention.
Dr. Gregory stared at Buffy. "Ants are communicating..."
Buffy saw Tara's signals. "Um, uh, uh..."
Tara hovered her hand over Blayne's back and made a stroking motion.
"Touch..."
Dr. Gregory nodded. "Mm-hm."
"And, um..." Buffy looked at Tara again.
Tara was sniffing Blayne.
Buffy was confused. "B.O.?"
Several students laughed. Tara chuckled in amusement.
"Thank God someone finally found the courage to mention that!" Blayne's friend yelled.
"That would be touch and smell, Miss Summers. Is there anything else Miss Maclay would like to tell you?"
Tara quickly turned away in her seat. The bell rang.
Dr. Gregory started to move back to the front of the class. "All right, chapters six through eight by tomorrow, people." He stopped and looked back at Buffy. "Can I see you for a moment?"
Buffy nodded. As the other students left, Dr. Gregory went over to the projector and idly reviewed his slides. Buffy followed him and leaned against a lab table.
"I gather you had a few problems at your last school?"
"Well, what teenager doesn't?" Buffy asked him.
"Cut school, get in fights, punch a teacher..." He looked at her. "Principal Flutie showed me your permanent record."
He walked to the front of the class, and Buffy followed him.
"Well, my parents were going through a messy divorce."
He briefly looked at her. "I'm sorry to hear that." He went to the closet, got his other glasses from his coat, and cleaned them. "But I suspect you'll be okay." He looked at her, then back at his glasses. "You have a first-rate mind, and you can think on your feet. Imagine what you could accomplish if you actually did the-"
"The homework thing."
"The homework thing. I understand you probably have a good excuse for not doing it." He closed the closet and walked back to his lab table. "Amazingly enough, I don't care. I know you can excel in this class, and so I expect no less. Is that clear?"
"Yeah! Sorry."
"Don't be sorry; be smart." He looked at another slide. "And please don't listen to the principal or anyone else's negative opinion about you. Let's make 'em eat that permanent record. Whadaya say?" He looked up at Buffy and gave her a little smile.
She smiled back. "Okay! Thanks."
He nodded. She grabbed her bag.
"Chapters six through eight!"
Buffy looked back at him with a smile and left the classroom.
That evening, Buffy and Tara went to the Bronze. They got red cups filled with regular Pepsi from the bar and strolled as they sipped their drinks.
"How long have you been practicing?" Buffy asked Tara.
"Always, I mean...since I, um, was little. My - My mom used to. She, um, she had a lot of power."
Blayne approached the girls as his friend watched. "Babes!"
The girls looked back at him. He came up to them with his arms wide open and grabbed them both around the shoulders.
"What the fuck are you doing?" Buffy asked him, offended.
"Work with me here. My boy had the nerve to question my manliness. I'm just gonna give him a visual."
Buffy and Tara pulled away from him.
Buffy stared daggers at him. "Don't ever do that again."
Buffy and Tara walked away.
Tara rolled her eyes. "Goddess, what an asshole."
Buffy was distracted. "I don't believe it."
Tara was confused. "You were there."
Buffy saw Angel and walked over to him. Tara followed.
"Who's that?" Tara asked Buffy.
"Angel."
"That weird guy that warned you about all the vampires?"
"Yeah." Buffy looked at him. "Well! Look who's here!"
"Hi."
"I'd say it's nice to see you, but then we both know that's a big fib."
"I won't be long."
"No, you'll just give me a cryptic warning about some exciting new catastrophe and then disappear into the night. Right?"
"You're cold."
"You can take it."
Angel took off his jacket. "I mean...you look cold." He put his jacket around her shoulders.
"A little big on me." Buffy noticed a series of cuts on Angel's arm. "What happened?"
"I didn't pay attention."
"To somebody with a big fork?"
"He's coming."
"The Fork Guy?"
"Don't let him corner you. Don't give him a moment's mercy. He'll rip your throat out."
"Okay, I'll give you improved marks for that one. Ripping a throat out, it's a strong visual; it's not cryptic!"
"I have to go." Angel turned and left.
Buffy stared after him. "Sweet dreams to you, too."
The next morning, at Sunnydale High, Buffy and Giles were walking along in front of the school. Giles was eating an apple.
"That's all he said? Fork Guy?" Giles asked her.
"That's all Cryptic Guy said: Fork Guy."
"I think there are too many guys in your life." Giles laughed.
They met Tara sitting on a bench.
"I'll see what I can find out." Giles looked up at the sky. "God, every day here is the same."
"Bright, sunny, beautiful; how ever can we escape this torment?" Buffy asked.
Tara gave her a smile. Buffy put down her bag, sat down next to her, and kissed her on the lips.
"Really." Giles looked at Tara. "Good morning, Tara."
Tara smiled at him. "Good morning."
Giles turned and left.
Tara looked at Buffy. "Oh, while walking past the office, I heard Dr. Gregory isn't coming in today."
"What happened? Is he sick?" Buffy asked her.
Tara felt uneasy. "They didn't say anything about sick, something about missing."
"He's missing?"
"Seems that way."
"Could you help me?"
Buffy and Tara looked toward the sound of the voice. A beautiful young woman with neck-length black hair stood before them.
"I'm looking for Science. 109."
Before either girl could answer, Blayne appeared behind the woman. "Hi! Blayne Moll. I'm going there right now. It's not far from the varsity field where I took All-City last year." Blayne smiled smugly.
"Oh! Thank you, Blayne!"
The woman and Blayne left.
"Substitute science teacher?" Buffy asked Tara.
"Guess so."
Buffy and Tara walked into science class. The woman was writing her name (Natalie French) on the board. Buffy spotted Dr. Gregory's glasses on the floor and picked them up.
"What's wrong?" Tara asked Buffy.
"Dr. Gregory dropped his glasses. Why wouldn't he pick them up?" Buffy set the glasses on the lab table and gave Natalie a glance as she walked to her stool.
Natalie faced the class. "My name is Natalie French, and I will be substituting for Dr. Gregory."
"Do you know when he's coming back?" Buffy asked her.
"No, I don't, um..." She checked her roster. "Buffy. They just call and tell me where they want me."
"I'll tell you where I want you."
Buffy looked at Blayne in disgust.
"Excuse me, Blayne?" Natalie asked.
"Uh, I was just wondering if you were gonna pick up where Dr. Gregory left off."
Natalie smiled. "Yes. His notes tell me you were right in the middle of insect life." She picked up a mantis mounted in a clear plastic box. "The praying mantis is a fascinating creature. Forced to live alone. Who can tell me why? Buffy?" She put the mantis back down.
"Well, the words 'bug-ugly' kinda spring to mind."
That aroused lots of muffled laughter.
"There is nothing ugly about these unique creatures. The reason they live alone is because they're cannibals!"
"Eww!" Buffy shuddered.
"Oh, well, it's hardly their fault! It's the way nature designed them: noble, solitary, and prolific. Over 1,800 species worldwide, and in nearly all of them the female is larger and more aggressive than the male."
Blayne looked at Buffy. "Nothing wrong with an aggressive female."
Buffy angled her head and gave him a dirty look.
Natalie picked up her notebook and started to walk around the room. "The California Mantis lays her eggs...and then finds a mate..."
She looked at Blayne. He stared back.
"...to fertilize them. Once he's played his part, she covers the eggs in a protective sack and attaches it to a leaf or twig out of danger. Now, if she's done her job correctly, in a few months she'll have several hundred offspring." She made her way back to the front of the class and put down her notebook. "You know, we should make some model egg sacks for the science fair. Who would like to help me do that after school?"
All of the boys raised their hands.
Natalie smiled. "Good!"
During lunch, Buffy and Tara went to the cafeteria and got in line.
Buffy looked at the sign. "Hot dog surprise. Be still, my heart."
Tara smiled. "Call me old-fashioned, but I don't want anymore surprises in my hot dogs."
Blayne came up next to Tara, getting lots of food. "Gotta carb up for my one-on-one with Miss French today. I came in first. Guess that's what they call natural selection." He left.
The girls rolled their eyes. Buffy went over to get some utensils. As she walked back, Cordelia came in through the exit and bumped into her.
Cordelia frowned at Buffy. "Excuse you!" She went behind the counter, showing a piece of paper to the cafeteria workers. "Medically prescribed lunch. My doctor ships it daily. I'll only be here as long as I can hold my breath."
She opened a refrigerator and screamed. Inside was a headless body. Buffy and Tara ran to see what was wrong.
Cordelia backed away from the fridge. "His head! His head! Oh, my God, where's his head?!"
Buffy arrived to see what was inside. She stared in disbelief.
Tara was close behind and had to look away when she saw. She vomited onto the floor.
The name on the body's lab coat was "Dr. Gregory".
Later, in the library, Giles poured a glass of water. He brought it over to Buffy, who was sitting on the steps with Tara and Cordelia. All three girls were deeply sad. Buffy had been crying.
Giles handed the glass to Buffy. "Here. Drink this."
Buffy took the glass. "No, thank you." She took a sip.
Cordelia stared at the floor "I've never seen..."
Giles looked at her.
"I mean...I've never seen anything like..." Cordelia paused and swallowed her disgust. "That was new."
"Who would wanna hurt Dr. Gregory?" Tara asked.
Giles thought about it. "Uh, he didn't have any enemies on the staff that I'm aware of. He was a civilized man. I liked him."
Buffy stared straight ahead sadly. "So did I."
Tara looked up at Giles. "Well, we're gonna find out who did this. We'll find them, and we'll stop them."
Buffy continued staring straight ahead. "Count on it."
"What do we know?" Giles asked.
"Oh, not a lot, um..." Buffy sniffed and wiped a tear from her nose. "He was killed here on campus. I'm guessing the last day we saw him."
"How do you work that out?" Giles asked her.
"He didn't change his clothing."
"This is a question that no one particularly wants to hear, but...where did they put his head?" Cordelia asked.
Tara thought about that. "Good point. I didn't wanna hear that."
"Angel!" Buffy stood up. "He warned me that something was coming." She took another sip of water as she walked over to the table.
"Yes. Yes, he did, didn't he?" Giles asked. "I wish I knew what he meant. I've been trying to gather more information about the Master, our, uh, local vampire king. There was one oblique reference to a - a - a vampire who displeased the Master and cut his hand off in penance."
"Cut off his hand and replaced it with a fork?" Buffy asked him.
"I don't know what he replaced it with."
"So...why would he come after a teacher?" Cordelia asked.
"I'm not certain he did. There was an incident two nights ago..." Giles walked over to the counter, picked up a newspaper, and returned with it. "...uh, involving a homeless person in Weatherly Park. He was practically shredded - but, uh, nothing like Dr. Gregory."
Buffy looked at the paper. "Fork Guy doesn't do heads."
"Not historically."
"And Dr. Gregory's blood wasn't drained."
"So there's something else out there? Besides Silverwareman?" Cordelia asked. "Oh, this is fun; we're on Monster Island."
"We're on a Hellmouth. It's a center of mystical convergence." Buffy paused in thought. "Guess it's the same thing." She walked toward Cordelia.
"Well, unpleasant things do gravitate here, it's true, but, uh, we don't know there's anything besides this chap. He's still our likely suspect."
Buffy looked at Giles. "Where was that guy killed? Weatherly Park?"
"Buffy." Giles walked toward her. "I know you're upset, but, uh, this is no time to go hunting, not until we know more. Please promise me you won't do anything rash?"
"Cross my heart."
That night, Buffy climbed a fence and walked through the park, carefully looking around.
A bum came up to her. "Shouldn't be out here at night, little lady. Dangerous." He left.
Buffy noticed another bum on the ground in front of a bench, and she checked him out. He was okay, just asleep. Buffy continued stalking. Dogs barked in the distance. Buffy found some shrubbery covering a sewer access hole. She moved it aside, and Fork Guy jumped out at her.
She rushed backward. He swung with his claw but missed. She slammed her straight arm into his gut, then again into his back. He swung again, but Buffy dodged him. She backhand-punched him in the face, did a roundhouse kick to his jaw, and backhand-punched his face again. He took another swing at Buffy, but she evaded it. She front-kicked him. He lunged at her, and she grabbed his arm and flipped him over onto his back.
Buffy tried to stake him, but he rolled away and back onto his feet. She kicked him again, and he staggered backward and fell. Buffy heard voices and turned to see people with flashlights coming over the hill.
"Hold it!"
"Police!"
"Did you see that?"
"I got nothing here!"
Buffy looked back and forth between Fork Guy and the police. The vampire ran off.
"I heard it."
"Spread out."
"Let's go over here."
"This way, this way."
"All right."
Buffy made tracks after the vampire and followed him to the fence at the edge of the park. Natalie was walking home on the other side with grocery bags in her arms. The vampire stalked her and climbed over the fence. Buffy came running up. The vampire landed behind Natalie. Buffy reached the fence and watched. Natalie stopped and turned to face the vampire. The vampire hissed and ran away in fear. Natalie watched him go. Buffy couldn't believe what she was seeing.
The vampire crossed the street, lifted a manhole cover, and climbed down. Natalie continued her walk home. The vampire pulled the manhole cover back into place. Buffy stared after Natalie.
The next morning, at Sunnydale High, Buffy went to the library. Giles was behind the counter, looking through some files.
"Hey, Giles."
Giles looked at her. "Buffy."
"Sooo...I went hunting last night."
Giles stared at her in disapproval. "You went hunting last night."
"Yes."
He walked into his office. She followed behind him.
"When you assured me you wouldn't." Giles took a sip from his mug.
"Yes, I lied; I'm a bad person; let's move on."
Giles opened his file cabinet. "Did you see someone with a fork?"
"More like a jumbo claw."
Giles turned to face her. "Oh. Well, uh, at least you're not hurt."
"And I saw something else. Something much more interesting than your average, run-of-the-mill killer vampire."
"Oh?"
"Do you know Miss French, the teacher that's subbing for Dr. Gregory?"
Giles smiled. "Yes. Yes, she's lovely. In a - a common, extremely well-proportioned way." He put some files away.
"Well, I'm chasing Claw Guy last night, and Miss Well Proportioned is heading home. The Claw Guy takes one look at her and runs screaming for cover."
Giles was confused. "He what? Ran away?"
"He was petrified."
"Of Miss French?"
"Uh-huh! So I'm an undead monster that can shave with my hand. How many things am I afraid of?"
"Not many. And not substitute teachers, as a rule."
"So what's her deal?" Buffy asked.
"I think perhaps it would be a good idea if we kept an eye on her."
"Then I better get to class." She left the office, left the library, and rushed down the stairs in the halls.
Principal Flutie stopped her. "You were there. You saw Dr. Gregory, didn't you?"
"Um, you mean yesterday in the cafeteria when we found him-"
"Don't say dead! Or decapitated. Or decomposing. I'd stay away from D-words altogether. But you witnessed the event, so this way, please." He started down the hall.
Buffy stopped him short. "Well, no, I'm gonna be late for biology-"
"Extremely late!" He started down the hall again. "You have to see a counselor. Everyone who saw the body has to see a crisis counselor."
"But I really don't need-"
"We all need help with our feelings. Otherwise, we bottle them up, and, before you know it, powerful laxatives are involved. I really believe, if we all reach out to one another, we can beat this thing. I'm always here, if you need a hug." He jumped back. "But not a real hug! Because there's no touching; this school is sensitive to wrong touching."
"But I really, really don't-"
"No, you have to talk to a counselor and start the healing. You have to heal."
"But, Mr. Flutie, I-"
"Heal!" He sat her down in a chair outside the counselor's office and walked off.
Buffy leaned back in the chair, bummed. Then she heard Cordelia inside the office.
"I don't know what to say. It was really...I mean...one minute, you're in your normal life, and then who's in the fridge? It really gets to you, a thing like that. It was...let's just say I haven't been able to eat a thing since yesterday. I think I lost, like, seven and a half ounces? Way swifter than that so-called diet that quack put me on. Oh, I'm not saying that we should kill a teacher every day just so I can lose weight; I'm just saying, when tragedy strikes, we have to look on the bright side. You know? Like, how even used Mercedes still have leather seats!"
This was too weird for Buffy. She stood up, ran to science class, and looked in through the door window. Students were concentrating on papers on their desks.
"Oh, great, a pop quiz."
Natalie suddenly straightened up. Buffy looked in. She saw Natalie turn her head around 180 degrees. Buffy stared at her in amazement. She quickly rolled away from the window.
Later, Buffy found Tara and filled her in on what she saw as they made their way to the library. They went in.
"No, I'm not saying she craned her neck. We are talking full-on Exorcist twist."
"Ouch!" Tara said, uncomfortable.
"Which reminds me: how come Blayne, who worked with her one-on-one yesterday, isn't here today?"
Tara shrugged, sat down in front of the PC, and began a search.
Buffy looked at Giles. "Any luck?"
"Um, I've not found any creature as yet that strikes terror in a vampire's heart."
"Try looking under things that can turn their heads all the way around."
"Nothing human can do that."
"No, nothing human. There are some insects that can. Whatever she is, I'm gonna be ready for her." Buffy turned and hopped up the stairs to the stacks.
Giles took off his glasses. "What are you going to do?"
Buffy turned back to look at him. "My homework."
She continued up into the stacks. Tara looked up at her and smiled, then continued her search.
Buffy came running back. "Where are the books on bugs?"
Eventually, Buffy found what she was looking for. She came out of the stacks with a book. "Dig this: 'The praying mantis can rotate its head 180 degrees while waiting for its next meal to walk by.'" She slammed the book shut. "Ha!"
Giles and Tara stared at her in confusion.
"Well, c'mon, guys. Ha!" Buffy exclaimed.
Tara shrugged. "Well, Miss French is sort of big. For a bug?"
Giles nodded. "And she is, by and large, woman-shaped."
Buffy made her way down to them. "Okay. Factoid 1: Only the praying mantis can rotate its head like that. Factoid 2: A pretty whacked-out vampire is scared to death of her. Factoid 3: Her fashion sense screams predator. Factoid 4: Praying mantises give off a chemical attractant called pheromones."
"If you're right, then she'd have to be a shapeshifter or a perception distorter. On a helpful note, I had a chum at Oxford, Carlyle. Advanced degrees in entomology and mythology."
"Entomawho?" Buffy asked.
"Bugs and fairy tales."
"I knew that."
"If I recall correctly, poor old Carlyle, just before he went mad, claimed there was some beast-"
The PC beeped.
Tara looked at the screen. "Buffy, Blayne's mom called the school. He never came home last night."
"The boy who worked with Miss French yesterday?" Giles asked.
"Yeah!" Tara confirmed. "If Miss French is responsible for..." She trailed off and shuddered.
Buffy put her hands on Tara's shoulders. "Okay, don't panic. I need you to hack into the coroner's office for me."
"Well, what are we looking for?" Tara asked her.
"Autopsy on Dr. Gregory. I've been trying to figure out these marks that I saw on his corpse. I'm thinking they were teeth. And, uh, these cuddlies?" Buffy pointed to a picture of a mantis. "Should definitely be brushing after every meal."
Tara started typing.
Buffy looked at Giles. "And you were saying something about a beast?"
Giles got up to go to his office. "Oh, uh, yeah, I just need to make one transatlantic telephone call." He stopped and turned back. "Um, this computer invasion that Tara's performing on the coroner's office. One - One assumes it is entirely legal?"
Tara and Buffy grinned. "Entirely!"
"Of course!" Buffy added.
"Right. Wasn't here, didn't see it, couldn't have stopped you."
Buffy nodded. "Good idea."
A bit later, Giles was on the phone in his office. "Frankly, madam, I haven't the faintest idea what time it is, nor do I care. Now, unlock his cell, unstrap him, and bring him to the telephone immediately. This is a matter of life and death!"
"Got it!" Tara exclaimed. "Coroner's report, complete with - yuck! - color pictures."
Buffy looked at the screen. "There are teeth marks, which match perfectly the one insect that nips off its prey's head."
Tara stared at the screen, feeling queasy. "Okay, I - I don't like this."
"Huh!" Buffy exclaimed. "It's the way they feed, head first. It's also the way they mate. The female bites off the male's head while they're fucking."
"Ew, enough!" Tara told her. "I love you, sweetie, but you're grossing me out."
Buffy smiled in embarrassment. "Sorry, hon." She kissed Tara on the lips.
"I - I understand, Carlyle. Yes, I-I'll take every precaution. Uh, absolutely, i-i-it sounds exactly like the creature you described. Y-You were right all along about everything. Well, n-no, you weren't right about your mother coming back as a Pekinese, but...uh." Giles paused. "Try to rest, old man. Yes. Ta! Bye now!" Giles hung up and came out of his office. "Dr. Ferris Carlyle spent years transcribing a lost pre-Germanic language. What he discovered, he kept to himself until several teenage boys were murdered in the Cotswolds. Then he went hunting for it."
"It being...?" Buffy asked him.
"Uh, he calls her a She-Mantis. This type of creature, the Kleptes-Virgo, or - or virgin-thief, appears in - in many cultures. The Greek sirens, the Celtic sea maidens, who - who tore the living flesh from the bones of, um..."
"Giles, while we're young!" Buffy yelled, impatient.
"Uh, well, basically, the, uh, the She-Mantis assumes the form of a beautiful woman and then lures innocent virgins back to her nest."
"Virgins?" Buffy asked. "Well, Blayne's not a, uh...I mean...he's probably-"
Tara looked at Buffy. "-gonna fucking die!" She stood up and went to the phone.
"Okay, okay." Buffy walked around Giles. "So this thing is breeding, and we need to find it and snuff it." She faced Giles. "Any tips on the snuffing part?"
"Uh, Carlyle recommends cleaving all body parts with a sharp blade."
"Slice and dice."
"Well, whatever you do, it had better be certain and swift. This beast is extremely dangerous."
"Well, your buddy Carlyle faced it, and he's still around."
"Yes, in a straitjacket, howling his innards out day and night."
"Okay, Admiral, way to inspire the troops!"
"Sorry..."
Tara walked back over to them. "Blayne told his mom he was going to his teacher's house to work on a science project. He didn't tell her where."
Buffy looked at Tara. "See if you can get her address off the substitute rolls." She looked at Giles. "And you need to record bat sonar - and fast!"
"Bat sonar, right." Giles stopped and looked at Buffy in confusion. "What?"
"Bats eat them." Buffy led Giles to the stairs. "The mantis hears sonar, its entire nervous system goes kaplooey."
"Where am I gonna find the-"
"In the vid library?" Buffy suggested. "There're no books, but it's dark and musty; you'll feel right at home; go!"
Giles walked off.
Buffy sighed. "I guess I'll handle the armory."
While Buffy went home, Tara managed to find Miss French's record. She printed it.
Buffy returned.
Tara looked at her. "Getting the address."
"Great!" Buffy exclaimed. "Giles?"
Giles held up a tape recorder. "Recording bat sonar is something soothingly akin to having one's teeth drilled."
Buffy took the tape recorder. "Let's roll!"
They all headed for the door.
Tara looked at the record. "According to Miss French's personnel record, she was born in 1907. She's, like, 90 years old!"
"And extremely well preserved!" Giles put in.
Giles drove the girls up to Miss French's house. They got out of the car and ran up to the door.
"What now, exactly?" Giles asked Buffy. "We can't just kick the door down."
Buffy thought about that. "Yeah, that would be wrong."
She got ready to kick, but the door opened. An old lady was standing there.
"Hello, dear! I thought I heard..." The lady paused and stared at Buffy. "Are you selling something? Because I'd like to help you out, but, you see, I'm on a fixed income."
"I'm looking for Miss French."
"I'm Miss French."
"Natalie French, the substitute biology teacher?" Buffy asked her.
She laughed. "Goodness, that's me! I taught for over thirty years. I retired in 1972."
Buffy looked at Giles. "I can't believe this! She used Miss French's records to get into the school. She could be anywhere!"
"No, dear! I'm right here!" Miss French told her.
Buffy looked at her. "I'm sorry. It seems we've got the wrong person."
"That's quite all right, dear. Have a good day."
"Yeah, you, too."
Miss French closed the door.
Giles, Tara, and Buffy walked back to the car.
"What do we do now?" Tara asked.
Giles shrugged. "Abject prayer and supplication would spring to mind."
"I saw her walking past this park with her grocery bags. She lives in this neighborhood."
"I'm gonna start banging on doors." Tara headed for the next house.
Buffy stopped Tara. "Wait, no, we do not have time for that!"
Tara shrugged. "We have to do something."
"We will."
Buffy led them to the manhole cover where she saw Claw Guy go in.
Buffy lifted it off and started to climb in. "I won't be long." She went down.
"W... Buffy?" Giles asked.
"Come on, Buffy!" Tara yelled into the hole.
Soon, Buffy pushed Claw Guy out of some bushes. His arms were tied behind his back.
"You!" he yelled.
"Me!" Buffy shoved him down the street, pushing Claw Guy down the sidewalk in front of her.
Giles and Tara followed.
"Come on! Come on, where is she? Which house is it?" Buffy asked Claw Guy. "I know you're afraid of her; I saw you! Come on!"
Claw Guy began to react.
"Come on. What? What is it? This is her, isn't it? This is her house?" Buffy asked him. "This is it! Better than radar!"
She let go of him. Claw Guy cut the ropes with his blades.
"Buffy!" Tara warned.
He swung at Buffy, but she leaned back in time, only to trip and fall backward over the miniature picket fence running along the walk to the house. Claw Guy jumped to follow. Buffy crawled backward on her ass until she hit the fence on the other side of the lawn. She ripped a picket from the fence and thrust it into Claw Guy as he took another swing at her. He fell over dead. Giles breathed a sigh of relief.
Amid Blayne's cries, Buffy smashed the basement window and slid in.
"Uh, hey, o-over here, hello!" Blayne called. "In the cage!"
Buffy pulled her bag through the window and looked at Natalie. "Let him go!"
She ran down the stairs and set the bag down. Tara climbed in the window, too. Buffy pulled two cans of insect spray from the bag and sprayed Natalie in the face. Giles climbed in as Tara ran behind Buffy to open the cage. The spray disoriented Natalie. Giles came down the stairs.
"Help me! Help me!" Blayne cried.
"Get him outta here!" Buffy told Tara and Giles. She pulled the tape recorder and a machete from her bag.
"Hey, help me! Help me!" Blayne called.
Natalie retreated to the back of her nest.
Buffy started to close in on her. "Remember Dr. Gregory? You scarfed his head? Yeah, well, he taught me: you do your homework, you learn stuff. Like what happens to your nervous system when you hear this!" She played the tape.
"-extremely important to file not simply alphabetically..." It was Giles' voice.
Buffy stared at the recorder in disbelief and then looked at Giles. "Giles!"
Giles pointed at Natalie. "I-It's the wrong side!"
Natalie knocked the tape recorder and machete from Buffy's hands. Giles watched the recorder fly past him, hit the ground, and slide under a refrigerator. He scrambled to get it. Buffy turned her attention back to Natalie. Natalie tried to trip Buffy, but she jumped over her claw.
Tara came up next to her with a can of bug spray and sprayed it into Natalie's face. Buffy pushed her away from danger, and Natalie took the opportunity to knock her down. Buffy raised herself onto her hands and one leg and with the other did two crouching side kicks to Natalie's legs to keep her at bay. Giles searched under the refrigerator. Buffy kicked again. She saw the machete on the floor and grabbed it. Giles got the recorder, jumped around on the floor with the recorder in front of him, and played the tape. The sounds of bat sonar severely hurt and disoriented Natalie. She flailed her claws around.
"Bat sonar. Makes your whole nervous system go to Hell. You can go there with it!" Buffy slashed at Natalie fiercely and repeatedly with the machete, hacking her to pieces. She was winded afterward.
Giles got up. Tara let Blayne out of his cage. The four of them looked at the carnage.
Giles found his voice first. "Well, I...I'd say it's deceased."
"And dissected." Tara looked at Buffy. "You okay?"
"Yeah."
Tara kissed Buffy on the lips.
Blayne looked at the others. "Thanks, you guys."
Giles nodded. "Pleasure..."
Tara thought for a moment. "It's kinda weird how she only went after virgins."
Blayne laughed and looked back and forth between the girls. "What?"
Tara shrugged. "That's what I heard."
"Flag down on that play, babe. I am not-"
"Well, you see, that's the She-Mantis' modus operandi. Uh, she only preys on the pure." Giles barely resisted the urge to smile.
"My dad's a lawyer. Anyone repeats this to anybody, they're gonna find themselves facing a lawsuit."
"Blayne! Shut up!" Buffy commanded.
Later that evening, at the Bronze. Buffy and Tara were at the bar, sipping from a tall glass of regular Pepsi with two straws while reading their science books. Buffy was wearing Angel's jacket. Angel came up behind her. Buffy sensed him and looked up at him.
Angel smiled. "I heard a rumor there was, uh, one less vampire walking around, making a nuisance of himself."
"There is. Guess I should thank you for the tip."
"Pleasure's mine."
"Course, it would make things easier if I knew how to get in touch with you."
"I'll be around."
"Or who you were?"
Angel just smiled and moved around to the other side of her.
"Well, anyway, you can have your jacket back."
"It looks better on you."
He turned and left. Buffy stared after him. Angel gave another look back and disappeared into the crowd.
Buffy resumed sipping and reading.
Tara looked Buffy up and down. "Cool jacket."
The next day, in science class, there was a new science teacher.
"All midterm papers will be exactly six pages long. No more, no less. One third of your grade will be dependent on those papers. No more, no less."
Buffy wasn't paying attention. She was daydreaming, thinking of the person that wasn't here.
The bell rang. Buffy snapped out of her thoughts. Everyone got up. Most of the students left.
On her way out, Buffy saw Dr. Gregory's glasses still on the lab bench where she had left them. She picked them up and remembered him. Tara stood behind Buffy and watched, guessing what Buffy must have felt. Dr. Gregory was the one teacher at this school that had shown any faith in Buffy and had refused to prejudge her, and now he was gone.
Buffy saw Dr. Gregory's jacket still hanging on the hook on the closet door. She walked over and put the glasses in a pocket. It was all that she could do at the moment.
She turned and saw Tara standing there, waiting for her. Wordlessly, she walked over to her, they joined hands, and they walked out of the classroom together.