Chapter Seven
Turning the corner of the corridor on his way to another fatuous Math class, Oz ran into someone he didn't expect to see in the halls of a high school. He hadn't recognised her at first, as she was carrying a stack of tambourines that covered her face. The instruments were now scattered all over the floor after the collision.
"Sorry," he apologised and helped gather up the tambourines.
She eyed him for a moment, then her face split into a smile.
"Oz, right? From the Bronze?"
"Yeah. Are you going here?" he asked.
"Nah, I was home schooled. The principal asked me if I'd help out in the music department with the younger students. Teach them school is cool, it'll sound better from someone of their generation or something. It's a bit weird, he just kind of called out of the blue, but it's money, so we're not complaining."
He took half the instruments in his arms and she held the other.
"You won't be late or anything, will you?" she asked.
"Not really. They're just glad I show up most days."
From his office, Snyder watched as one of that group of trouble makers went off with the girl. The principal was under strict instructions to keep her under a strict surveillance. When they left his field of vision, he slipped back into his office and wished he were entrusted with the purpose for his watch.
From a safe distance, Buffy and Willow observed the scene intently, hiding as best they could. If they were to be discovered, the consequences could be dire. Something about the situation just wasn't.right.
"He's got that blushy thing behind his ears," said Willow in dismay, daring to peep out a little further.
"Stay behind the locker!" said Buffy. "Or we'll get caught."
They continued watching Oz talk with that girl, Piper. Buffy figured there must be something different to this, her friend wasn't the jealous type. But she had to admit, he did seem pretty cosy with the singer. Maybe it was just band rapport. That's the theory she had told Willow.
"Look at her being all 'oh, I'm so great, I'm in a band.' And an evil band, no less! It's shameless, that's what it is."
"He loves you," Buffy told her earnestly and Willow seemed to brighten.
Sitting at the large table, Giles frowned at the various bits of translation of he had gathered. Still, something was amiss. Once he had located the correct volume, finding the meaning of the words on the knife had been fairly easy. It was the text in the book that was the trouble. After spending the best part of three hours probing the stacks and editions stashed in his little office for every possible Saian dialect, nothing he managed to gather from the text made sense.
"Only Sundays allow us to canoe for our canary," he read, studying his notes.
Grumbling, he turned the paper around, to see if he had scrawled anything on the back, then turned it back round and upside down to read the rest of the scribble. It was when he looked at some of his writing that something became very apparent to Rupert Giles. He had been going about this the wrong way. Looking at the upside down words, he smiled with clarity, feeling slightly stupid.
"It's not another language at all," he said quietly. "It's backwards."
Grabbing a pencil, he wrote down the puzzling words from the book in reverse order. When the task was completed, he blinked, not believing the answer had been right in front of them all the time.
"Any developments at Slayer Central?" questioned Xander as he and the others strode into the library.
"Actually, yes. I've translated both the words on the knife and in the book."
"Way to go Giles," sang Xander, doing a little dance.
"I'm glad my efforts are appreciated," replied Giles, studying the boy curiously. If he didn't know better, he would swear the teen was quite mad.
"On the knife reads 'for the protection of our Lady.' The text, 'with the blood of men upon its brow, breast and body, the creature rose, the heads of kinsmen in its grasp. The Brethren reached for the sword, the Sonnet Sun. Our only hope, the power possessed within, its might and benevolence great. The abomination fell and sanity returned to those made depraved.'"
"So you found the Saian dialects?" asked Willow. "Can I borrow them? It seems really interesting."
Giles cleared his throat.
"It turned out to be English," he stuttered.
"English?" repeated Buffy.
"Yes, backwards."
He noticed the group give him a look.
"I was in the Saian train of thought," he protested. "None of you noticed it was English."
"But we're the dumb and pretty ones," jested Xander.
"Some of us are," chided Cordelia.
"Aww, you can be halfway to intelligent sometimes," said Xander and Cordelia sneered at him.
"But that doesn't really tell us anything," said Buffy. "There's no mention of a Lady in that book and I'd hardly call that dagger a great protective sword."
"I was kind of dwelling on the whole big evil part," chimed in Willow.
"These writers are known to suffer from hyperbole," answered Giles. "Every battle is a fight to the death, every enemy an insurmountable foe. This could be this sword mentioned."
"If it is or it isn't, I don't think we should let it get back in the hands of our musical friends."
"Hmm, this does get more interesting."
"To a boring person, maybe," sighed Cordelia.
"Cordelia, do shut up," implored Giles. "It appears the book was written by a demon. Which could mean that the 'abomination' in it is the Slayer."
"`With blood upon my breast and brow?'"
"I did say they were prone to exaggerate. This may be an account of a battle with a Slayer. The depraved part could be the insanity when in the heat of combat. It also sounds as though."
"The Slayer was killed," Buffy finished.
"So this Brethren could be after Buffy?" asked Xander.
"If they even still exist. This was written centuries ago."
"That guy attacked me," Buffy said in a low voice. "Then we find this stuff in their van."
"That girl!" broke in Willow. "She was in the school!"
Oz gave her a small 'how did you know?' look.
"I saw her around. What if there is something going on and she's been sent to keep an evil eye on Buffy?"
"I don't think we should be jumping to conclusions, Willow," aid Giles.
"Oh, coming from Mr 'The Abomination is the Slayer.'"
"I simply said it was a possibility," he said calmly. "It won't do anyone any harm to be on their guard."
Before Willow could retort, the doors to the library creaked open. Piper peeped her head around.
"Am I interrupting something?" she asked, hovering in the doorway.
"On, no, of course not," replied Giles. "This is a study club I run," he added, sounding halfway to convincing. "What can I help you with?"
"I was sent down to get a book of Chopin sheet music but I don't know where everything is."
Giles got up and left in quest of the book. Piper stood in the middle of the library, obviously uncomfortable. Willow subtly ignoring her, the rest stared like they had seen a ghost. Even Oz looked uneasy. Piper smiled, trying to look friendly. It was Xander that finally broke the silence.
"Sorry, we're not used to outsiders coming in here. The students here aren't really into all that book learning."
"It's ok, I come in peace," she answered with a laugh.
The comment promoted a weird look from the blonde girl. Buffy, Oz had said her name was. Everything she said or did seemed to put them on edge. Giles reappeared with the book and handed it to her.
"Thanks," she said and turned and left, wanting to get away from the awkwardness.
"Don't tell me that was coincidence," said Willow as soon as Piper had left.
"She is helping in the music department," Oz said, trying not to sound like he was starting an argument with his girlfriend. "I ran into her earlier, she told me that Snyder asked her to help out," he explained.
"Maybe that's all it is," added Xander.
Seeing Bryn leaning against the wall outside the library gave Piper a shock. She had hardly seen him all day.
"Bryn! Didn't anyone ever teach you not to lurk?"
"Sorry. I was looking for you, someone told me they'd seen you around here."
She waved the book at him as means of explanation. In a way, she was glad he had been off doing his own thing. The constant need Rhett felt for her to be looked after was suffocating. But at least he had entrusted Bryn with her today and not insisted on coming himself. She knew he would have, if it weren't for the fact it was the Slayer's school. Still her refused to reveal her identity to Piper. Giving Bryn a wave, she headed back to the music block.
He waved back and peered back inside the library. The Slayer and her people were hard at work, it seemed. Many interesting things had flowed into his waiting ears. Piper's presence had not been well received. It would not be that way, in time. Without a trace of him ever being there, Bryn sloped away.
Turning the corner of the corridor on his way to another fatuous Math class, Oz ran into someone he didn't expect to see in the halls of a high school. He hadn't recognised her at first, as she was carrying a stack of tambourines that covered her face. The instruments were now scattered all over the floor after the collision.
"Sorry," he apologised and helped gather up the tambourines.
She eyed him for a moment, then her face split into a smile.
"Oz, right? From the Bronze?"
"Yeah. Are you going here?" he asked.
"Nah, I was home schooled. The principal asked me if I'd help out in the music department with the younger students. Teach them school is cool, it'll sound better from someone of their generation or something. It's a bit weird, he just kind of called out of the blue, but it's money, so we're not complaining."
He took half the instruments in his arms and she held the other.
"You won't be late or anything, will you?" she asked.
"Not really. They're just glad I show up most days."
From his office, Snyder watched as one of that group of trouble makers went off with the girl. The principal was under strict instructions to keep her under a strict surveillance. When they left his field of vision, he slipped back into his office and wished he were entrusted with the purpose for his watch.
From a safe distance, Buffy and Willow observed the scene intently, hiding as best they could. If they were to be discovered, the consequences could be dire. Something about the situation just wasn't.right.
"He's got that blushy thing behind his ears," said Willow in dismay, daring to peep out a little further.
"Stay behind the locker!" said Buffy. "Or we'll get caught."
They continued watching Oz talk with that girl, Piper. Buffy figured there must be something different to this, her friend wasn't the jealous type. But she had to admit, he did seem pretty cosy with the singer. Maybe it was just band rapport. That's the theory she had told Willow.
"Look at her being all 'oh, I'm so great, I'm in a band.' And an evil band, no less! It's shameless, that's what it is."
"He loves you," Buffy told her earnestly and Willow seemed to brighten.
Sitting at the large table, Giles frowned at the various bits of translation of he had gathered. Still, something was amiss. Once he had located the correct volume, finding the meaning of the words on the knife had been fairly easy. It was the text in the book that was the trouble. After spending the best part of three hours probing the stacks and editions stashed in his little office for every possible Saian dialect, nothing he managed to gather from the text made sense.
"Only Sundays allow us to canoe for our canary," he read, studying his notes.
Grumbling, he turned the paper around, to see if he had scrawled anything on the back, then turned it back round and upside down to read the rest of the scribble. It was when he looked at some of his writing that something became very apparent to Rupert Giles. He had been going about this the wrong way. Looking at the upside down words, he smiled with clarity, feeling slightly stupid.
"It's not another language at all," he said quietly. "It's backwards."
Grabbing a pencil, he wrote down the puzzling words from the book in reverse order. When the task was completed, he blinked, not believing the answer had been right in front of them all the time.
"Any developments at Slayer Central?" questioned Xander as he and the others strode into the library.
"Actually, yes. I've translated both the words on the knife and in the book."
"Way to go Giles," sang Xander, doing a little dance.
"I'm glad my efforts are appreciated," replied Giles, studying the boy curiously. If he didn't know better, he would swear the teen was quite mad.
"On the knife reads 'for the protection of our Lady.' The text, 'with the blood of men upon its brow, breast and body, the creature rose, the heads of kinsmen in its grasp. The Brethren reached for the sword, the Sonnet Sun. Our only hope, the power possessed within, its might and benevolence great. The abomination fell and sanity returned to those made depraved.'"
"So you found the Saian dialects?" asked Willow. "Can I borrow them? It seems really interesting."
Giles cleared his throat.
"It turned out to be English," he stuttered.
"English?" repeated Buffy.
"Yes, backwards."
He noticed the group give him a look.
"I was in the Saian train of thought," he protested. "None of you noticed it was English."
"But we're the dumb and pretty ones," jested Xander.
"Some of us are," chided Cordelia.
"Aww, you can be halfway to intelligent sometimes," said Xander and Cordelia sneered at him.
"But that doesn't really tell us anything," said Buffy. "There's no mention of a Lady in that book and I'd hardly call that dagger a great protective sword."
"I was kind of dwelling on the whole big evil part," chimed in Willow.
"These writers are known to suffer from hyperbole," answered Giles. "Every battle is a fight to the death, every enemy an insurmountable foe. This could be this sword mentioned."
"If it is or it isn't, I don't think we should let it get back in the hands of our musical friends."
"Hmm, this does get more interesting."
"To a boring person, maybe," sighed Cordelia.
"Cordelia, do shut up," implored Giles. "It appears the book was written by a demon. Which could mean that the 'abomination' in it is the Slayer."
"`With blood upon my breast and brow?'"
"I did say they were prone to exaggerate. This may be an account of a battle with a Slayer. The depraved part could be the insanity when in the heat of combat. It also sounds as though."
"The Slayer was killed," Buffy finished.
"So this Brethren could be after Buffy?" asked Xander.
"If they even still exist. This was written centuries ago."
"That guy attacked me," Buffy said in a low voice. "Then we find this stuff in their van."
"That girl!" broke in Willow. "She was in the school!"
Oz gave her a small 'how did you know?' look.
"I saw her around. What if there is something going on and she's been sent to keep an evil eye on Buffy?"
"I don't think we should be jumping to conclusions, Willow," aid Giles.
"Oh, coming from Mr 'The Abomination is the Slayer.'"
"I simply said it was a possibility," he said calmly. "It won't do anyone any harm to be on their guard."
Before Willow could retort, the doors to the library creaked open. Piper peeped her head around.
"Am I interrupting something?" she asked, hovering in the doorway.
"On, no, of course not," replied Giles. "This is a study club I run," he added, sounding halfway to convincing. "What can I help you with?"
"I was sent down to get a book of Chopin sheet music but I don't know where everything is."
Giles got up and left in quest of the book. Piper stood in the middle of the library, obviously uncomfortable. Willow subtly ignoring her, the rest stared like they had seen a ghost. Even Oz looked uneasy. Piper smiled, trying to look friendly. It was Xander that finally broke the silence.
"Sorry, we're not used to outsiders coming in here. The students here aren't really into all that book learning."
"It's ok, I come in peace," she answered with a laugh.
The comment promoted a weird look from the blonde girl. Buffy, Oz had said her name was. Everything she said or did seemed to put them on edge. Giles reappeared with the book and handed it to her.
"Thanks," she said and turned and left, wanting to get away from the awkwardness.
"Don't tell me that was coincidence," said Willow as soon as Piper had left.
"She is helping in the music department," Oz said, trying not to sound like he was starting an argument with his girlfriend. "I ran into her earlier, she told me that Snyder asked her to help out," he explained.
"Maybe that's all it is," added Xander.
Seeing Bryn leaning against the wall outside the library gave Piper a shock. She had hardly seen him all day.
"Bryn! Didn't anyone ever teach you not to lurk?"
"Sorry. I was looking for you, someone told me they'd seen you around here."
She waved the book at him as means of explanation. In a way, she was glad he had been off doing his own thing. The constant need Rhett felt for her to be looked after was suffocating. But at least he had entrusted Bryn with her today and not insisted on coming himself. She knew he would have, if it weren't for the fact it was the Slayer's school. Still her refused to reveal her identity to Piper. Giving Bryn a wave, she headed back to the music block.
He waved back and peered back inside the library. The Slayer and her people were hard at work, it seemed. Many interesting things had flowed into his waiting ears. Piper's presence had not been well received. It would not be that way, in time. Without a trace of him ever being there, Bryn sloped away.