She woke up slowly. Done to much the night before and turned in late, so getting up early is difficult. She took a shower and pulled on her favourite sweater. "Maggie, why don't you come and eat before you're leaving?" Her mother had a fight with the coffee-maker in the kitchen. Maggie sighed. "Mum, you know I don't eat in the mornings. Besides, I'm to nervous to get anything through my throat!" She took over the machine of her mother and switched a button on. It almost immediately began to steam and make coffee. "I have to go now. Don't wanna be late!" Maggie put on her coat and heaved her bag over her shoulder. "Bye, see you this afternoon!" She gave her mother a quick kiss on the cheek and went off to school.

With reluctance, Maggie left her bicycle on the school's 'playground'. She'd rather be shopping with friends. She'd rather be doing anything, as long as it didn't reminded her of the internal assessment. She walked into the school and greeted some of her friends. When the bell rang, they split up to go to their first tests. A bit daydreaming, she walked of to science class. She startled when she saw an unfamiliar corridor. Did she take a wrong turn somewhere? She turned around and walked a few paces, but couldn't remember to have been there before. She looked at the students who passed her. Usually, she would recognise some of them. But not this time. The students disappeared in their classrooms, while Maggie ran through the school in panic. Was this some kind of joke? She ran past some classrooms with windows and halted. Was it Willow? Impossible. Buffy the Vampire Slayer was just a TV-show. But there was Will, as if nothing was wrong. There occurred a thought to Maggie that she better could be leaving, before people starting to ask questions. She walked through the city, which was totally different from the way she used to know it. She saw some places she sworn to have seen before, but just couldn't remember where. Then she saw a little shop, called the 'Magic Box'. This meant she could be in one place only: Sunnydale.

It seemed she had strayed in a different kind of reality. She decided she needed help, so went to the 'Magic Box'. It was the place where Buffy and the Scooby-gang liked to hang out. Hesitating, she puled open the front door. A little bell rang. Maggie stepped inside and closed the door behind her. A familiar voice came from behind the desk. "If you please have a minute, I'll be right there." It was Giles' voice, which was a great relief. Giles stood up and bumped his head. "How can I help you?" he asked and when he saw Maggie: "Don't you ought to be at school?" Maggie blushed and didn't know what to say. "Yes. and no. That's why I came here." Giles looked at her, very confused. He gestured Maggie to sit down. She took place and told him her story. "So, you're from another reality?" repeated Giles. "Guess so. He, everything is possible here on the Hellmouth!" "How do you know about the Hellmouth?" asked Giles, still a bit confused. "I watched th TV-show, remember?" smiled Maggie.

That afternoon Maggie spent with Giles. They got on surprisingly well with each other. At three p.m. the Scooby-gang rushed in. Buffy ignored Maggie completely. "Giles, there's something weird going on downtown. There are people appearing from the middle of nowhere, and people from here are disappearing." Giles' eyes met those of Maggie. "With this girl happened exactly the same thing." They were introduced and Maggie told her story for the second time that day. The Scooby-gang seemed impressed. "Cool!" was the only thing Willow could come up with. The next moment, Spike ran through the door with a coat pulled over his head, heavily smoking. A shiver ran through Maggie's spine. This was a place where vampires, demons, werewolves and other creatures of the night were real.

Spike patted the smoking parts of his body to make it stop. His face looked red and burned. Buffy gave him an annoyed look and got up to show Spike the door. "Why do I always get faces like 'oh-it's-you-again' from you? You make me feel unwanted." Spike said sarcastically. "Maybe because you are? If you'd be so kind to leave, we're in the middle of a crisis now." Buffy tried to nudge him out of the door, but Spike didn't let her do that. "If you'd just hear me out, I'll give you a bigger crisis. Listen, there are strange people appearing downtown and ours are disappearing. There's something going on where I have no knowledge about." Everyone looked at Spike emotionless. "What?" Buffy began to feel inpatient. "We know that already Spike. Now go!" Spike shrugged his shoulders and left the way he came. Buffy went to stand in the middle of the room. "We have to put a stopper on what is going on here."

Giles and Willow stayed behind in the shop to do the think- and bookwork, while the Scooby-gang and Maggie went to take a look at the scene. It was chaos. People were running and yelling and screaming. Others tried to comfort them and arrange shelter. Buffy's mother was one of them. "Buffy, have you seen Dawn?" she asked her daughter as soon as she spotted her. Riley entered the scene. "She left a few minutes ago with someone she knew. I told her to stay close, but I lost sight of her." Buffy put a comforting hand on her mother's shoulder. "I'll be at the lookout for her. Don't worry mum, she'll be fine." Joyce wanted to get back to work, but Riley stopped her. "Has there been any change in the situation?" Joyce sighed. "Not yet. But we have to keep high spirits. But if I hear something - anything - you two will be the first I tell."

Half an hour later the group joined again. No one had come up with some useful information. They went back to Giles and Willow, in the hope they had found some answers. In the shop they found Dawn. "There you are! Mum is worried sick about you. What do you think you're doing, stalking off like that while people are disappearing?" Buffy snapped at her younger sister. Dawn blushed and turned away. "Giles? Anything?" Maggie asked hopefully. Giles looked troubled. "Well, we think this has to do something with the high demonic activities lately. Anya (who has entered the shop while Scooby- gang and co. were out investigating) here thinks that we have to deal with a vengeance demon. One capable of creating a choas like downtown's is D'Hoffryn, the demon who had cursed Anya." Then, there was a long silence. Buffy was the first one to speak. "Any idea where he could be? I'd like to kick some ass!" Giles sighed. "I'm afraid you have to ask Spike." Buffy's already bad mood was now completely ruined. "But." "He's the only one we can ask where to find a demon." Buffy, Riley and Maggie left the shop and the rest of the gang continued reading.

It was late in the evening when the three of them arrived at Spike's tomb. "No one is here. Spike must be out, haunting." Buffy turned to walk away, but Riley stopped her. "I don't think he's out haunting on an early hour like this. Let's take a look and find out who's right." Maggie gave a knock at the door. Buffy didn't wait for an answer. She pushed Maggie aside and entered the tomb. Spike put down the book he was reading. "Slayer, I'm surprised. You knocked for a change! But if you're here for my help, you're wasting your time. I'm not giving it to you." Riley began to lose his temper. "You're gonna give us the information we need, no matter what we have to do to make you talk." Spike got really annoyed. "Or what. You'll stake me? Oh please, that won't help you. Now go, you two are bothering me." Spike got his book, but Maggie snatched it away before he could continue reading. "You heard him." she threw the romantic novel aside with a disgusted expression. "And who is she?" Spike asked, pointing at Maggie. "That's Maggie Green, one of the 'victims'. She's here to help us." explained Buffy. "Okay Spike," began Riley. "We don't like you and you don't like us. So let's get it over with." Spike shrugged his shoulders and sat down on a tomb-stone, which was functioning as a table. "Alright, what do you need to know." "Any idea what demon could create such a chaos to order?" began Buffy. "The Borg-queen?" Maggie chuckled. "Who?" asked Buffy and Riley at the same time. "Never mind." answered Spike with a inspecting look on Maggie. Buffy wanted to end this as soon as possible. "Does the name D'Hoffryn ring a bell?" Riley gave her a look that told her to be patient. "D'Hoffryn? Yeah, he could have some involvement." said Spike, studying his fingernails. "Where is he?" Buffy looked as if she had to go for a leak. "I could tell you, but what is in it for me?" Buffy went into black temper. "Where are you going at Spike? You want money? How low can you be?!" Buffy had put a stake through Spike's heart, if Riley hadn't stopped her. "Name your price Spike." revolted Riley. "Well, what do you have?" asked Spike curious. "Spike, maybe I have something for you of value." Maggie got her necklace and held it up in the candlelight. "When I bought it, they told me it's a piece of a Philosopher's Stone." "A what?" asked Buffy and Riley at the same time again, but the eyes of Spike grew larger. Then, he shook his head. "How do I know you're not lying?" Maggie smiled. "If you hand me a glass of water, I'll show you." Spike complied and Maggie held the little red stone for about ten seconds in the water. Then she gave the glass back to Spike. "Now drink it." she said with a nod at the glass. Spike went suspicious. "How do I know you're not poisoning me?" Maggie gave a comforting smile. "There you have to trust me."

*** What will Spike do? Will he drink from the glass Maggie handed to him? ***

TO BE CONTINUED

I'm sorry that you all had to wait for my new entries, but I simply didn't have the time to translate and type my story. If school didn't exist, I would be a fulltime writer. But as long as it does, you guys have to be patient. [sighs] Wish I had the time to read and write more often.

I LIKE SKOOL: SPECIALY WAN ITS KLOSED