Giles came running out of the office, his hair thoroughly tussled, and his
glasses on crooked. In his hand he was brandishing a rather pointy sword.
"Giles!" Buffy frantically called. "Willow. She's..she's..broken!"
Giles paused, giving Buffy a puzzled look. "Excuse me? Broken?"
Xander, who was currently standing beside Willow, helping her to remain sitting upright, gave Buffy a disapproving look. "Really, Buffy. Isn't broken a bit harsh. Maybe slightly rusty, but not completely - "
"No," Buffy shook her head. "That's not what a mean. She can hear what I'm thinking!"
"I can?" Willow squeaked. "No. It's a coincidence. I just..guessed. Yeah, that's it. Guessed." Willow shook her head, refusing to believe that she had the power to hear thoughts.
"Willow." Buffy said, frustrated by her friends denial. "Look. I'm sorry about the homework remark. I don't just want you for your brains, and you know it. I can't always control what I'm thinking. But that doesn't change the fact that you heard it. Xander-" Buffy turned toward the boy. "Think of a number between one and a million. Willow. Listen."
Xander scrunched up his face. *Ummmm. 25. No, ummm. 36. No, wait. 2 million.*
Willow rolled her eyes. "Xander, since when is two million between one and a million?" Suddenly, recognition dawned, and Willow's eyes widened. "Oh my God. I really can hear thoughts. But, how?"
Giles removed his glasses and began to clean them, an act that he committed whenever he felt awkward or confused. "I must say," he began. "I'm rather flummoxed. This is quite out of the ordinary. Did you do anything, or meet anyone recently that may have, I don't know, hexed you or something?"
Willow searched her brain trying to come up with something. "No. No one. Except you guys. And Angel. Oh, and Cordy. Maybe Cordy hexed me."
"I heard that," Cordelia said as she entered the library, looking perfect as always. She came up beside Xander and subtly entwined her fingers with his. "So, what's going on? Someone told me that Willow, like, totally freaked out in the middle of class. What's up with that?"
Xander turned to face Cordelia. "Willow can hear our thoughts, and we don't know how yet. So try to be sensitive, okay?"
"Ew. No. I don't want Little Miss Know-it-All crawling around inside my brain. I like having my own thoughts, thank you very much."
Willow's eyes welled up with tears, and Buffy tried to rectify the situation before Willow started bawling. She knew from experience that it took rather a lot to make Willow cry, but once she got going, it was hard to make her stop. "Don't worry, Wills. We'll make it go away. Won't we?" The slayer turned expectantly towards Giles. "Fix it."
Giles tried to speak slowly so that Buffy would understand. "I can't just 'Fix it,' as you put it. We still don't know how this happened. I mean it could be a Fvarian Demon, but they usually only come out in summer, and it's November, but maybe one didn't migrate or - "
"Oh!" Willow exclaimed, cutting Giles off. "Sorry, Giles. But, Oh!" Willow gathered her breath and began to gesture largely as she spoke excitedly. "That..that...that."
Cordelia huffed, impatiently. "For heavens sake, Willow, just spit it out already."
"Dü?ünce farkina varmak!" Willow declared as if that one phrase made perfect sense. As she noticed the blank expressions on everyone else's faces, she explained, "It's an ancient turkish spell. It's a truth spell, used to see the truth in a situation."
Giles began to catch on. "So, it enhances your sight, but if it went wrong.it could alter your perception of people as well." Willow nodded vigorously, but instantly regretted it as her head began to pound again.
"Oh. So maybe someone cursed you with this spell and it went wrong or something," Cordelia said, displaying her usual, yet still unexpected, insight.
Willow bowed her head, looking rather embarrassed. "Actually, not someone else. I kinda sorta found it a couple weeks ago when I was doing some research. I thought it might help me with the research and stuff, and maybe, my history test. It seemed like a good idea," Willow said, trying to defend herself as she withered under Giles's dissapproving stare.
"Very well," the librarian pronounced crisply. "So the three of you go back to class. We shall reconvene this evening and hopefully by then I may have unearthed something that will help us to reverse this spell of yours."
"Giles!" Buffy frantically called. "Willow. She's..she's..broken!"
Giles paused, giving Buffy a puzzled look. "Excuse me? Broken?"
Xander, who was currently standing beside Willow, helping her to remain sitting upright, gave Buffy a disapproving look. "Really, Buffy. Isn't broken a bit harsh. Maybe slightly rusty, but not completely - "
"No," Buffy shook her head. "That's not what a mean. She can hear what I'm thinking!"
"I can?" Willow squeaked. "No. It's a coincidence. I just..guessed. Yeah, that's it. Guessed." Willow shook her head, refusing to believe that she had the power to hear thoughts.
"Willow." Buffy said, frustrated by her friends denial. "Look. I'm sorry about the homework remark. I don't just want you for your brains, and you know it. I can't always control what I'm thinking. But that doesn't change the fact that you heard it. Xander-" Buffy turned toward the boy. "Think of a number between one and a million. Willow. Listen."
Xander scrunched up his face. *Ummmm. 25. No, ummm. 36. No, wait. 2 million.*
Willow rolled her eyes. "Xander, since when is two million between one and a million?" Suddenly, recognition dawned, and Willow's eyes widened. "Oh my God. I really can hear thoughts. But, how?"
Giles removed his glasses and began to clean them, an act that he committed whenever he felt awkward or confused. "I must say," he began. "I'm rather flummoxed. This is quite out of the ordinary. Did you do anything, or meet anyone recently that may have, I don't know, hexed you or something?"
Willow searched her brain trying to come up with something. "No. No one. Except you guys. And Angel. Oh, and Cordy. Maybe Cordy hexed me."
"I heard that," Cordelia said as she entered the library, looking perfect as always. She came up beside Xander and subtly entwined her fingers with his. "So, what's going on? Someone told me that Willow, like, totally freaked out in the middle of class. What's up with that?"
Xander turned to face Cordelia. "Willow can hear our thoughts, and we don't know how yet. So try to be sensitive, okay?"
"Ew. No. I don't want Little Miss Know-it-All crawling around inside my brain. I like having my own thoughts, thank you very much."
Willow's eyes welled up with tears, and Buffy tried to rectify the situation before Willow started bawling. She knew from experience that it took rather a lot to make Willow cry, but once she got going, it was hard to make her stop. "Don't worry, Wills. We'll make it go away. Won't we?" The slayer turned expectantly towards Giles. "Fix it."
Giles tried to speak slowly so that Buffy would understand. "I can't just 'Fix it,' as you put it. We still don't know how this happened. I mean it could be a Fvarian Demon, but they usually only come out in summer, and it's November, but maybe one didn't migrate or - "
"Oh!" Willow exclaimed, cutting Giles off. "Sorry, Giles. But, Oh!" Willow gathered her breath and began to gesture largely as she spoke excitedly. "That..that...that."
Cordelia huffed, impatiently. "For heavens sake, Willow, just spit it out already."
"Dü?ünce farkina varmak!" Willow declared as if that one phrase made perfect sense. As she noticed the blank expressions on everyone else's faces, she explained, "It's an ancient turkish spell. It's a truth spell, used to see the truth in a situation."
Giles began to catch on. "So, it enhances your sight, but if it went wrong.it could alter your perception of people as well." Willow nodded vigorously, but instantly regretted it as her head began to pound again.
"Oh. So maybe someone cursed you with this spell and it went wrong or something," Cordelia said, displaying her usual, yet still unexpected, insight.
Willow bowed her head, looking rather embarrassed. "Actually, not someone else. I kinda sorta found it a couple weeks ago when I was doing some research. I thought it might help me with the research and stuff, and maybe, my history test. It seemed like a good idea," Willow said, trying to defend herself as she withered under Giles's dissapproving stare.
"Very well," the librarian pronounced crisply. "So the three of you go back to class. We shall reconvene this evening and hopefully by then I may have unearthed something that will help us to reverse this spell of yours."