Title: Before the Fall of Rome (5/?)

Author: Brooke

Email: yabbadabbadome13@yahoo.com

Rating: R

Disclaimer: I don't own anything. I wished I owned the two Xanders' from "The Replacement" though. Buffy and friends are owned by Joss, Mutant Enemy, 20th Century Fox, The UPN and whoever else has rights to the show.

Summary: You remember all that crap that started post-puberty…yeah, it's great isn't it. It was when life started

Distribution: I don't know why anybody would want this, but if somebody does…sure.

Feedback: Definitely!! Tell me if it sucked or if you liked it. Whatever. Just write back!

Authors Note: Takes place in an AU season 1 where Buffy and Xander are best friends and Willow is the new girl as Sunnydale High. It is the beginning of their sophomore year and, as 15 and 16 year olds, hormones and feelings are taking center stage

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"So Jesse was completely wigging because Paige was talking to hella guys, and I'm just like, Hello. Paige Durmot is the town bicycle…everybody, especially the football team, has had a ride. If I tried to get her I could. She's such a total slut, which is why I thought he like her…I mean, I knew they were hooking up and Xander told me that they were hooking up, you know, but come on. Paige doesn't do boyfriends…she'll do another girls boyfriend, but she doesn't make a habit of maintaining her own…"

Giles blinked again as Buffy spoke so fast it almost sounded like a high pitched hum. He cracked his neck and looked at the passing street signs Almost there, thank bloody God, we're almost there… his mind said, the hum continuing in the background.

He had no idea who any of these people who his charge was talking about were and had no desire to have this sorted glimpse into their personal lives. He had briefly seen Buffy with the boys Xander and Jesse, and remembered something about her pointing out various girls in the cheerleading team photo, one of whom may have been this Paige…but he still had yet to actually care.

"And then he said that he had sent Willow to do some recon with the situation, you know, use her feminine wiles to try to divert the team…which I personally don't think Willow is ready for, I mean, I've been working with her, wardrobe wise, but she's not ready for all that attention from drooly teenage boys…but none-the-less, she was trying when he called. AND I think it might work, at least with one of them because Amethyst told me that Hope told her that Percy was kinda digging what Willow was offering, which is a total 180 from when she first got here…"

"What's the matter with Willow's dress?" Giles muttered. Willow, he had met. A quiet shy girl…nice. She seemed the most put together of all Buffy's acquaintances. He almost felt Buffy's look of disbelief boring into the side of his face and he turned to see her quickly.

"Are you kidding me?" Buffy raised her eyebrows at the older man, "Who owns a brown corduroy dress? Who owns THREE of them? All together now, can we say 'The Softer Side of Sears'?"

Giles just focused on the road, "Don't you think that is a tad bit harsh? She is your friend…"

"And what kind of friend would I be if I couldn't offer constructive criticism?" Buffy asked genuinely as the car lurched to a stop in front of a rather large and dark house. "And thank you for pretending to be halfway interested in the conversation this time." She added. "I know my life gives you a headache."

Giles reached in the back seat for his weapons bag before opening the door of his small car, "It is a tad monotonous, yes," he muttered under his breath as he stepped out into the street, "And you're quiet welcome."

Buffy sneered at him as she stepped out of the passenger side onto the sidewalk. She had run home after she had left Xander's and snuck back into her room. Her door was still locked so she gathered that her assumptions that everybody thought that she was still to emotional to deal with family were correct. Buffy made it a point to stomp downstairs, while still in her sweatpants, and get a glass of juice to show that she was still upset…and still home for that matter. If she wasn't going to spend the night at home, an appearance to her parents at 11:15 would buy her the necessary time. She had stomped back up to her room and locked her door again before changing into a pair of black leather pants and a black tank top, as Giles had told her to dress accordingly, and climbed back out of her window.

At that point she was 20 minutes late, but the Bronze was closing…so she had run over there to wait for her friends to leave and then followed them to their respective homes. They lived fairly close to each other so it didn't take to much extra time, and plus she was already late so it didn't really matter anyway.

Then she had stopped by a 7-Eleven and gotten a frozen cappuccino…and then headed to Giles. And boy was he pissed. A fact which had prompted her excessive chatter, because, the way Buffy saw it, the more time she spent talking, the less time he would spend yelling at her, and hopefully after a few minutes he would forget that he was angry all together and focus on how to get her to shut up…and it seemed to have worked. Yes, Buffy was learning how to play Giles like a fiddle at the country fair, and soon, she knew, he would be helpless against her.

Her thoughts were interrupted as Giles thrust a short sword into her hands with an expectant gaze, "I trust you'll actually be fighting the forces of darkness tonight, or are we just here to stare?"

Of course she still had some work to do…breaking down men takes time. Buffy rolled her eyes at him and then glanced back to the house. "Are you sure I have to do this…maybe you could call and verify that I'm actually this Slayer…"

"Buffy…" Giles exasperated, only to be met with a rather sorry pout, if he were to judge.

"I'm just saying," she started again, "Don't you think that I should have gotten some sort of notice in the mail…a call from the Head Watcher…a plaque of some sort?"

Giles simply looked at her sternly, "I shall be timing you. There are about 16 vampires…"

"SIXTEEN?!" Buffy shouted and her Watcher winced at the loud noise and looked around the area to see if they had been heard. "You want me to kill sixteen vampires alone?!"

"If you will control your volume, please." Giles insisted in a harsh whisper. "And I have the utmost confidence that you can do this Buffy." He said and Buffy raised her eye brows at him, the hand that was not holding the sword coming to rest on her hip.

"That's not what you wrote in that little diary about me you keep," she accused, "You said I was reckless and rash, and you wouldn't be surprised if I kicked early in the game."

Giles just looked at her, "That was not for you to read," he said not even attempting to deny what she had said.

"Well I read…and you don't think I can do this job, and you know what, neither do I. So let's just call it a night, huh." She hoped her reverse psychology would work and tried to maintain a hurt tone even though she could care less if he didn't approve of her slaying techniques.

"I think you have the ability to prove me wrong," Giles told her genuinely, "Whilst you lack the total discipline that I feel you need to be successful, you do have the strength and cunning and skill to be one of the best Slayers in history. And I intend to help you be such…I intend to make you prove yourself wrong."

Dammit! Buffy cursed mentally. Why'd he have to go and get all encouraging and Mr. Rogers on her. There was no way that she could walk out on him now.

Got her at her own game Rupes. Giles congratulated himself as Buffy stared at him for a moment and then turning with a sigh and trudging up the walkway of the house. "I'll start the timer once you shut the door." He called out after her and Buffy waved her sword back at him dismissively and kept walking.

The house was huge, located in a very rich part of town…not that Sunnydale had a slum part of town, but, Buffy guessed, down by the docks left a lot to be desired. Giles had told her earlier that this particular home was owned by the leader of this gang of vampires…they had turned him to get a hangout of sorts. And once Buffy had killed three of their members they gathered that there was a Slayer in town and stepped up their recruiting methods, taking 5 new members the previous week. Giles had gotten a tip that this was where they were holding up shop and now it was time for the Slayer to step in.

Buffy steeled herself and gripped the door knob. This was supposed to be her final test before she was able to go out on her own patrols. The only problem she saw with that was that this was one hell of a test, and if she failed, it'd be the last test she'd ever take. That fact did little to comfort her since she'd always planned on dying in her sleep at the age of 87, or at least doing something remotely cool. If she died slaying, nobody would ever know that she died to save the world, they would just think she was murdered…if they found her body at all…Stop thinking about this! she chastised herself, Just slay and then you can get beck to Xander. You're going to make it through tonight because you've got to get your answer from Xander…

She took another deep breath and nodded to herself, thinking of how nice it would be to fall asleep with him again tonight, trying to focus on anything but about what she was going to have to do…and before she knew it she had opened the door and was standing in the back of a large foyer area. There were two stairwells climbing the walls on either side of her, each next to a living room on one side and a dining room on the other. Buffy noted that the place was pretty well lit and clean to be a den of the damned and crawling with undead monsters.

She saw a couple of vampires moving about in the kitchen through the dining room and then looked to the side opposite, seeing about five sitting and watching TV in the living room…none of them even paying any attention to her.

"HEY JIM!!!!" a voice called from above her and the Slayer turned her head up abruptly to face it. A young man, probably in his early twenties, in full demonic vestige appeared on the overlooking sitting area on the second floor and looked down at her. They starred at each other for a moment and she shifted under his confused gaze before he started speaking again, "JIM!!!!"

"WHAT?!" another vampire with his game face on called back from the living room.

"WHERE'S MY STAIND CD?!"

"IN THE CAR!" Jim called back.

She watched the vampire on the second floor shake his head, turn and walk into one of the nearby bedrooms, generally confused about the whole situation. She remained where she was as the two vampires from the kitchen walked pass her carrying a tray of popcorn and, what she assumed was blood, in three cups. This is unbelievable, she sighed mentally as she followed behind them into the living room, Slayer here, guys!

Just as the second vampire moved to sit down Buffy slid a stake out of her back pocket and thrust it into his heart from behind, the howl he had as he turned to dust drawing the attention of the other occupants of the room. "Anybody order Chinese?" she asked with a perky smile as the all snarled at her.

"That's her," on of the burlier member of the group said, "That's the Slayer."

At the mention of 'The Slayer' Buffy heard footsteps on the stairs. "What gave me away?" she quipped, backing discretely out of the room to avoid getting boxed in. Unfortunately she backed right into the arms of another vampire, who must have been in the kitchen, and he held her arms tight at her sides as all the occupants of the living room approached her leering and laughing.

"Some Slayer," one who was probably around her age when he died laughed, "Gonna die so quickly. And she's so tiny that there might not be enough for everyone."

They were all laughing, but Buffy executed a back head butt into the face of the one who was holding her. She was immediately let go and she heard him yell in a muffled tone, "SHE FROKE FY FOSE!!!"

Buffy turned quickly and swung the sword in her left hand hard and fast, slicing through his neck falling into a fighting stance before he could even evaporate into dust and she saw four more brethren rush to join the fight form upstairs.

"GET HER!!" Buffy heard a female voice yell from the second floor.

 She grinned cockily at her attackers. "Yeah guys," she offered them a taunting grin, executing a jumping front snap kick into the chin of a vampire closest to her and then ramming her stake into his heart while his head was inverted in a lightening fast move, "Get me."

She heard about eight different growls that melted into one that gave her a quivery feeling in the pit of her stomach, but she ignored it as they all rushed her.

*~*~*

Xander cradled his cordless phone in the crook of his neck as he threw a tennis ball against his wall with one hand and caught it with the other. He was thankful that Jesse had called fifteen minutes ago because it helped to get his focus on something besides Buffy.

She'd been gone for about two hours.

In the time since she had left Xander had cleaned his room, changed his sheets, gotten something to eat, read his history homework, and gotten dressed and prepared to climb out of his window and go after Buffy about nineteen times.

But now with Jesse yammering in his ear about Paige he had something else to think about. He wondered if Jesse knew about his faux girlfriend half the things that he did. Buffy had told him all about the questionable moral standing of Jesse's broom closet hook-up, and he thought briefly, that since Jesse seemed to honestly have some sort of feelings for the girl, if he should say something and possibly spare him some heart ache.

Nah, he shook his head, This is much more fun when he's fielding it on his own.

"And then I sent Wills over to feel out the situation, you know," Jesse was talking excitedly as he always did, "And she focused on her task for, like, 4.5 seconds before she wandered of with Percy, of all the ass holes."

Xander knew why Jesse hated Percy. Not only was the guy the varsity football quarter back, but as such, it was not uncommon for him to get some 'special attention' form the cheerleading squad…it was like bees to honey with him and them, or so Buffy had told him, while constantly reassuring him that everybody but her on the squad saw sucking up to the football team as a necessary course of action. But none the less, while Xander didn't worry about the guy seducing his Buffy, he had quite succeeded with the object of Jesse's affection at a post game party last year…and he had seen the video to prove it.

"Way to go Wills," Xander smirked, "Buff said that she had heard stuff about Percy digging her…"

"So not the point," Jesse exasperated. "The point is that she's fraternizing with the enemy."

"She's taking him out of the picture," Xander stated optimistically, "He's your biggest threat…well," he corrected, "one of your biggest threats."

"And you're banging your dream girl every hour on the hour," Jesse shot back bitterly, using Xander's momentary silence to refocus the conversation. "Plus, Wills is too innocent for him, she's just going to get hurt messing around with his type."

Xander swallowed knowing Jesse was thankful that he was not there. After that banging his dream girl comment he had to know that he was in for the ass kicking of a life time. "So now this is about Willow?" he asked making sure his friend could hear his smirk through the receiver, "I didn't know you cared, ya big sweetheart."

"I don't care," Jesse said back quickly, "This is about me."

"Somebody's jonesing on the new girl," Xander sang.

"Shut up Harris," Jesse bit out, "At least I'm getting some. When was the last time you stepped out of your Buffy fantasy world to even attempt to get some poon?"

Xander ignored him, "That depends, when was the last time you had you fill of fire crotch?"

"At least I've had my fill of some crotch," Jesse fired back, "A girls!" he added defensively.

"I don't think you should count Paige's, everybody's had that." Xander continued to laugh.

"And I'm sure Scott has had plenty of Buffy's." he said, going for the check mate, "Come on Xan, they went out for a year…you know he got some touch off of her…"

"I'm gonna break you're fucking face," Xander said back, only half serious. He knew Jesse was trying to get to him, and that he knew just what to say to accomplish that. Jesse was the only one who knew how the idea of Buffy and her ex-boyfriend made him feel and he used it to his full advantage all the time.

*~*~*

"Hey this is Buffy. I'm not here right now so leave one and I'll get back to you…unless this is Xander, in which case stop calling me."

* BEEP *

Willow hung up before the machine started recording and fell back onto her bed. Both Buffy and Xander had skipped out on the Bronze and apparently spent the whole time together. And, to top that off, Jesse had reported that after his third call to Xander's, Buffy had answered the phone and said that he was sleeping.

She didn't know what bothered her more: the fact that they had ditched the group for some alone time; or that they had apparently engaged in activities that would require Xander to have to sleep for a while afterwards.

She and Jesse both had wild imaginations and even after his half hearted confessions that both of his friends were quiet prudish and virgins they both were growing a tad bit skeptical at what was going on with them.

Luckily for Willow, Jesse's crisis with Paige had offered her a little down time from scrutinizing Buffy and Xander's plausible relationship. And the introduction of Percy Jackson had given her somewhat of a distraction.

She figured that if she had a boyfriend, preferably a hot one, that Xander would be pushed to the back of her mind. But, unfortunately she doubted that…Buffy had been dating Scott Hope, and to say that he was bad on the eyes would be to say that you can shove food up your ass and crap out your mouth…i.e.: you couldn't…and he wasn't. And yet, Buffy seemed inexorably drawn to her dark haired friend.

A part of Willow almost wanted to throw the fact that she could get Percy back in her cheerleading friend's face. Percy didn't want Buffy like Xander did, and therefore he was just hers. She held the distinct belief that even if Buffy did want Percy he would turn her down for her…maybe Buffy just wasn't his type.

That was part of the reason that Willow had been trying to call her friend since she had gotten home. She couldn't wait to tell her that Percy Jackson, the junior and varsity football quarterback, wanted to date her…Willow Rosenberg.

And she wanted Buffy's help in figuring out why exactly.

He was surrounded by pretty girls and could get anyone of them. Buffy had told her that he had already had Jesse's kind-of girlfriend, and plenty other members on the squad are more than willing to help him 'work out his post game tension'…so why'd he pick her?

But Buffy wasn't home.

She had spoken to Xander briefly before she let him go to help sort out Jesse's train wreck of a life, and he said that Buffy had left. And that was hours ago. Buffy was usually quiet full of energy, and Willow knew that she couldn't possible be in bed at 12:55 on a Friday night. But she wasn't answering her phone and she wasn't with Xander…and Willow, dispite all her desires to best the other girl, was starting to have a major wiggins.

Maybe I should call her parents line she pondered briefly before deciding against it. If Buffy wasn't home, she might be doing something…private. But why wouldn't Xander know? Maybe…Willow sighed and gave up that line of thought. She had other things to focus on now besides Buffy's life. Percy for one…

*~*~*

Giles watched as a female vampire broke through a top story window in a shower of broken glass, but evaporated to dust before she hit the ground. He could see shadows moving inside and could make out the faint sounds of a struggle.

He hoped Buffy was doing alright; she had already made it upstairs and seemed to be clearing out the house with a precise accuracy as Giles noted how the fight was moving from room to room. And to top that off, she was making excellent time, as she had only been inside for just under half an hour.

Giles sighed and glanced up and down the street from his position leaning against his car. This really was a peaceful town, he had realized quiet some time ago, despite what crawled around in the night. He could see how so many went so long without a clue as to what actually went on here. What he would never understand was how they could not question the unusually high death and disappearance rate in this small town…it rivaled some much larger cities.

Americans, he scoffed, Ever naive… His thoughts trialed off as he glanced back towards the house and saw the curtains in the bed room go up in flame, lighting the room a bright orange glow. Giles stood up, his eyes wide with concern…

*~*~*

This was the last room in the house Buffy had to clear, and thank God for that. Her muscles burned as she ducked a roundhouse punch from a teenaged vampire. He was a fledgling and she easily caught his arm, turned him around and plunged her stake through his back.

Through the cloud of his dust she could see a very large vampire standing and watching her through a door across the hall. He had been staring at her since she had vaulted the banister to get to the second floor…never attempting to enter the fight, but more studying her…and guarding that room he was in, she gathered. There was something in there that he didn't want her to get to, and she doubted it was more vampires since her mental head count had just put her kill rate at 14.

Buffy's leg snapped out in a sliding back kick into the stomach of the demon she was facing now, doubling him over as she caught him squarely in the stomach. But, he was quick to recover, at least somewhat, as he tackled her before she could react, driving them both to the floor.

She landed hard, the vampires extra weight on top of her driving all the air out of her lungs. Buffy fought to take a breath while she struggled to force the vampires head away from her neck, biting her bottom lip as she had to focus on the two necessary tasks at once. Luckily for her she managed to get her right foot up to his hip and she kicked out as hard as she could.

That move caught him off guard and he flew off of the Slayer and into an inn table by the window, landing hard on the several candles that were arranged there. His body broke through the wood of the table and he crashed to the floor sending the flames into the curtains, which started to flame as intently as his shirt.

But his life was over just as quickly because the Slayer had recovered from her minor set back while he had been trying to swat out his arm and when he looked up the last thing he saw was he delightfully smug grin before he turned to dust.

Fifteen.

Buffy turned slowly to face the one she knew was still behind her. "So," she started casually, "It's just you and me, all alone in this big ole house. Whatever will we do with ourselves?"

"You're good Slayer," he commented in a deep booming voice before he laughed right in her face. "You're new, but good. But you want to know something? I'm better. Tell me," he asked looking her up and down, "How'd you come by this job? You're younger than the last one and a lot smaller…"

He thought she was good, Buffy thought a little giddily. He'd obviously seen her predecessors and thought she could compete to them. "I'd really like to play twenty questions with you here, but, the house is on fire," Buffy nodded back over her shoulder. "I really should kill you and be on my way…ya know, after I check out what big secrets are in that room you're in."

He laughed again and shook his head, not being phased by the fire in the least. "You're welcome to try," he told her simply. "But," he started again folding his arms over his chest, "you should ask yourself what you're in such a rush for…I mean, I can stand around and chat with you all night."

"I don't try," Buffy challenged, "I do."

"Young and cocky," he said. "Buffy, Buffy, Buffy…"

"How'd you know my name?" She asked edging towards him and away from the spreading flames. She definitely had to act now, because the fire company would likely be arriving soon. There'd be no explaining this to her parents if she got caught in a burning house in the middle of the night, while she was supposed to be grounded.

He just looked back at her calmly, loving the apprehension that was ebbing on her features. "I know a lot about you."

"If I cared I'd ask for some info on you," Buffy stated watching the vampire's fangs appear in a demonic grin through snarled lips, his thick neck tilting his head back as he laughed out loud.

"So funny, too." He commented with bright eyes, "So funny and in love," he added with a straight face. "With an Alexander Harris…what ever would the sweet innocent little Slayer's daddy think if he knew that you snuck out of your room and into the boys arms?"

Buffy inhaled a sharp breath and narrowed her eyes at him. He knew way too much about her and her whereabouts, and her Xander. He was too calm and too close. She kept her voice defiant, even though she was actually becoming frightened of him. "I don't think we'll ever know." She stated and stepped further away from the crackling flames, now almost meeting him in the hall. "I won't say anything and neither will he," she chose to try to act indifferent to him knowing about Xander and to not divulge any unnecessary information about him. "And you're going to be dead in about forty seconds…"

"Or I'll be watching you burn alive…" he smiled at her and Buffy felt a chill move down her spine.

"Well," she swallowed and readied her stake, "If that happens we go together."

"I have no doubt that I'll se you in hell."

That was the last thing he said as Buffy launched herself at him, her punch to his face barely having any effect…except in her own hand which almost folded at the contact. Dammit! she cursed and tried again, this time steeling her left wrist before swinging. But it had the same effect and he laughed…

"Is that what beat all my minions?" he asked in wonder, "Well good, they were weak." He landed a hard upper cut that caught Buffy on her chin and lifted her off the ground, sending her back into the burning room.

Buffy choked on the force of the hit as she hit the floor and then again on the smoke filling the room. She had been fighting for about thirty minutes so her lungs were already working overtime, now with the smoke, they were screaming in her chest.

She flipped back to her feet and flew into a side kick and then an immediate round house to his face, snapping his head back.

His hand gripped his chin when he next looked at her. "You're not going to kill me Slayer…not tonight. I'll let you leave." He turned to go back into the room but Buffy kicked him in the back of the knee, sending him to the floor.

"I finish what I start," she growled at him and lifted her stake. But as she brought it down, he turned suddenly and caught her wrist, bruising it in a vice grip and she fought not to scream.

"As do I," he lifted her up off the ground and Buffy glance briefly around the room she was now in. It looked like a children's room, full of toys and painted brightly even in the dark.

And there was a child. He was sitting on the bed in pajamas, his knees drawn to his chest…

But then she was thrown back from the room, through the hall and back into the other room. She landed hard again, but this time the large vampire had followed her. He picked her up again before she could react properly, this time by the shoulder and she felt it dislocate under his hand, but she didn't cry out, she didn't have time.

Buffy flew backwards through the flames and out of the previously broken window and the cool night air assaulted her senses. "Next time." She heard her opponent whisper before she started falling.

She hit the ground with a dull crack as she landed on the shoulder he had picked her up by and her vision went black momentarily with the blinding pain, but she was quickly refocused when she began to smell the smoke emanating from the room that she had just been ejected from. Buffy was on her feet in an instant, shaking off the physical pain from her decent and staggering beck towards the front door.

Giles was already moving towards the spot where his charge had landed and he grasped her upper arm to stop her trek back into the house. "We must leave." He cautioned hearing fire trucks in the distant background.

"There's a little boy in there," Buffy shook off his hand, but soon found that Giles had moved in front of her to block her path.

"Then I'm afraid that it is safe to assume that it is already too late for him." Giles said, reaching to turn her path again as the realization set on her face. "Now we must do going now, or else face have to explain this," he gestured to the fast burning mini-mansion behind them.

Buffy let herself be turned and she noticed the flashing lights approaching them. She couldn't get caught at the scene of this 'unexplainable' fire. If she were the arson charges that she would face would be a walk in the park compared to the wraith of her parents. Giles was rushing her down the path to his already running car, leaving her to get in while he jogged to the drivers side.

Within seconds they were headed away from the scene of the fire, although nothing had been said.

"You did very well," Giles commented quietly after a few moments of silence.

Buffy didn't even turn to face him as she ran the fight through her mind for the twentieth time since it had so abruptly ended. "I missed one," she said absently. "A grown one…and the boy."

She shut her eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath. The child, who could very well have been and probably was a vampire couldn't have been more than eight years old. And he was dead. While she had been complaining about having to be the Slayer, he had been murdered. If she would have devoted more time to her patrol…been more alert…been a better Slayer…maybe…

"I'll look into that," Giles broke into her thoughts. "Do you remember what they looked like?"

"Yeah," Buffy shook her head briefly to try to clear it, "The man…he was tall and fangy and strong." She seemed to stop, thinking of something else for a moment, "It was like he was guarding the boy…but he looked regular…the boy wasn't a vampire."

Giles' brow furrowed and he cast her a quick sideways glance, only now noticing that she wasn't focused on the conversation that he intended on engaging her in. "That's odd," he commented quietly. "You don't think this child was a vampire?"

Buffy shook her head and spoke quietly, "No, not a vampire…something else maybe, but not a vampire."

"What do you think…"

"I don't know, okay," Buffy cut him off harshly while keeping her eyes on the road in front of them, "I don't know what he was…is…I don't know."

Giles nodded mostly to himself and stared out of the windshield. She was obviously upset and he had to assume that it was the usual gripe over being the Slayer, however, he had the sneaking suspicion that maybe it was more. He knew form his training as a Watcher as well as from the extensive reading of previous Watchers' journals that Slayers had to grow up much faster than others of their relative ages. Giles knew that Buffy was being exposed to things and situations that a normal teenager would most likely never have to deal with…most adults would never have to deal with, but what he was left to his own devises to figure out was how exactly she would cope with those things. He could only hope that she would let him do his job by her and help, but that didn't seem to be the case.

"Would, um,how…how is your shoulder?" he asked after a moment of watching her stare out of the passenger window.

"Fine." She mumbled.

Giles nodded, "You landed fairly hard…"

"It's fine." She bit out again. "I'm fine."

"Well," he made another attempt despite her tone, "I could check to see i…if it were dislocated. Perhaps wrap it for you…" He was headed towards his house and Buffy perked up when she saw that he had an obvious destination.

"Where are we going?" she asked suddenly, looking around the familiar streets of downtown Sunnydale. Her mind was jumping back and forth between knowing that she was unable to save the child back in that house, and had quiet possibly left him to die another, probably equally horrible death, and the fact that all she wanted to do now was get to Xander's so that he could make it all better…make her all better. She was almost thankful for the sharp pain in her shoulder because it allowed her to focus enough on her surroundings to inquire about where exactly Giles was headed and wonder just how much longer it would take her to get where she wanted to be tonight.

Giles faltered at her sudden outburst, breaking her apparent code of silence. "I thought you would look through some texts…identify the vampire…"

"I'm really tired Giles." Buffy lied finally turning to face him, hoping that her eyes wouldn't belay the anxiousness that she was trying to force out of her voice.

He nodded, "Alright." He thought for a moment, knowing that it was futile to force this particular Slayer to do anything, especially, he had learned quiet early on, when it involved books. "Shall I drop you off at your house?"

Buffy was focused on the view outside again as they drove past the street that would get her to Xander's house quickest. "Yeah," she said sarcastically, "I'm sure my dad would love to meet you…at 1:45 in the morning as you, a 45 year old man drop off his 15 year old daughter. Yes, drop me off at home."

Giles turned to face her an exasperated look on his face only to find she was smirking back at him. "Yes quite," he cleared his throat, "Shall I drop you down the street then?"

Buffy shook her head, "Here would be good," she hoped she didn't say too brightly.

Giles looked at the Main Street surroundings knowing that Buffy lived a good three miles from this particular point in town. "Drop you off here?" he asked confused.

"Yeah," Buffy said reaching for the door handle as Giles continued to drive. "It's a nice night; I'd like to walk a little."

Giles slowed the car, "But you're hurt a…a…and…"

"And I'm the Slayer," Buffy added her own end to the sentence. "You want me to patrol alone, I need to get used to walking back alone with my injuries, and how to take care of them myself."

Giles knew there was no use arguing as she seemed ready to jump out of the still moving vehicle. He had to wonder if she was telling him the whole truth, and if he even wanted an answer to his own question.

"I can still fight if need be," Buffy assured as the car slowed a little more, "And I'll call you when I get in if it'll make you feel better."

Giles sighed and stopped the car, "It would, thank you."

Buffy turned her face before she smiled and opened the car door.

"You did quite well tonight Buffy," Giles stated, a sense of pride in his voice, and she turned back to face him.

She let a smile creep onto her face, "Thanks."

Giles nodded and regarded her for a moment. "Well," he said as he watched her climb out of the car and into the deserted street, "You'll call…"

"I will," Buffy assured. "Night Giles," she said before shutting the door, not waiting for a response.

"Good night Buffy," he responded anyway to the closed door as he watched her walk away before heading back to his home.

Buffy on the other hand knew that Giles knew where she lived so she headed in the direction of her home until she couldn't see his tail lights anymore before she turned around and headed towards Xander's. She fought off the urge to run for a moment, and then realized that it was probably for the best as the fast pace at which she was walking was even causing her a slight pain in her arm. But even at a walk she was sure she could make it to his place in under ten minutes…ten minutes and then everything would be alright.

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End Part 5