Xander snorted as he stared at the television screen, an emergency news
report was urging civilians not to panic and an expert was busily blaming a
large cloud of minute rock particles in space for the unexpected eclipse.
"Interesting the explanations that can be conjured up to explain all this mystical crap." Muttered Gunn as he diverted his attention from his book to watch the news report.
"Humans are experts at denial." Agreed Giles, taking a swig of tea.
Buffy scowled irritably as she tossed aside yet another unhelpful volume, "Maybe it really is a humongous dust bunny drifting about up there and we're all wasting our time."
Anya's head jerked up at the mention of the word bunny, "Don't say that word!"
The Angel investigations crew looked baffled.
"Anya finds b-u-n-n-y-s a very scary thing," Xander explained.
"Uh huh, because they're so little and furry and dangerous." Agreed Gunn with a teasing grin.
Xander shrugged, "My mom is scared of cockroaches, they aren't exactly dangerous either. You can't rationalize fear."
Buffy grinned, "Wow, Xander. That was a bit deep, are you coming down with something?"
"Bunnies are evil." Anya blurted incongruously and loudly as Xander opened his mouth to defend himself against Buffy's teasing.
Angel grinned as he watched Giles and Wesley twitching at the interruption to their research. What the hell, he might be the second oldest person present but he wasn't the most mature. "Actually, I'm with Anya, my sister had a pet rabbit when we were kids and it used to bite really nastily, even now I've still got scars from bite marks on my ankles!"
Anya beamed triumphantly even as she shuddered, "You see!"
"Makes a change for you to be the one with bite marks huh?" Joked Xander.
Angel felt Buffy draw in a deep shocked breath, ready to defend him he felt sure but the grin on Xander's face was completely without malice so he just grinned back, "Maybe it was a vampire bunny."
"Yeah, like that book, 'Bunnicula' I think it was," agreed Oz, paying full attention for the first time.
"That was such a cool book!" Chirped Willow snuggling against him, "The cat tried to kill him with a steak of the edible variety but they ended up as friends."
"Cats would eat bunnies." Anya warned darkly with great enthusiasm.
As Willow squeaked in horror at the idea of the poor confused vampire bunny being slaughtered by a cat Giles cleared his throat loudly. "As fascinating as this conversation undoubtedly is, could we please concentrate on the books to hand, not ones about demonic you-know-whats."
There was some shuffling in seats and muffled groans at this but everyone obediently bent over their books again.
Silence reigned for a few moments until Angel pushed his chair back with a crash making everyone start nervously, "Lorne." He muttered to Wesley, slightly embarrassed by the effect he had had on the gathering.
Wesley eyed him silently for a moment before nodding, "You're right, he knows something about almost everything in this town. We should talk to him."
Angel shook his head as the Scooby gang began drifting away from books and chairs looking happier at the thought of non-book related information gathering. "No, just me, in case Lorne doesn't have anything for me you should all keep looking."
Angel swept his coat from the stand and shrugged into it as a disappointed Xander and Anya coiled back into their seats, Buffy however was still right beside him. "I should come too, you know, as back up."
Angel half smiled down at her, there was no way he could let her come along. "I'm not going to fight, just to uh, chat. I won't be long, Caritas isn't far."
"Caritas?"
"Lorne's club."
"Well, I should still come, safety in numbers and all, just because you're not looking for a fight it doesn't mean you won't find one."
Angel frowned, he had been ready to refuse and simply stride from the room but Buffy was pouting adorably and peeping appealingly at him from under lowered lashes.
Giles smirked behind his book as he watched his slayer, he'd fallen victim to that manoeuvre himself a few times and he watched amusedly as the broody, uncompromising vampire visibly crumbled under Buffy's best persuasive display of cuteness.
Angel sighed, so much for being a tough guy. "Okay, grab your jacket, lets go."
Buffy squealed with delight and hooked her own jacket from the stand before grabbing her boyfriend's hand and trotting out of the library beside him.
Xander scowled around a whole Twinkie from his position under an upside- down copy of a huge leather bound demonic dimension directory, "Can I date Angel too?" he asked rhetorically as he sprayed Twinkie crumbs across the table. "How come Buffy gets to go sweeping off to a club with her toothy honey while the rest of us grovel in mounds of dusty books?"
"You have me!" Anya told him indignantly. "How can you entertain thoughts of Angel? I am over seven hundred years older than him and therefore am far better at sex!"
Gunn and his two remaining Angel Investigations colleagues hooted with laughter, still unused to Anya's antics.
Oz and Willow smiled affectionately before returning to their websites.
Giles merely sighed and reached over to turn Xander's book upright as he tried to smother Anya's outrage with a crumby kiss, hopefully this Lorne fellow was as useful as Angel and Wesley deemed him, or this was going to be a very long and trying night.
"Interesting the explanations that can be conjured up to explain all this mystical crap." Muttered Gunn as he diverted his attention from his book to watch the news report.
"Humans are experts at denial." Agreed Giles, taking a swig of tea.
Buffy scowled irritably as she tossed aside yet another unhelpful volume, "Maybe it really is a humongous dust bunny drifting about up there and we're all wasting our time."
Anya's head jerked up at the mention of the word bunny, "Don't say that word!"
The Angel investigations crew looked baffled.
"Anya finds b-u-n-n-y-s a very scary thing," Xander explained.
"Uh huh, because they're so little and furry and dangerous." Agreed Gunn with a teasing grin.
Xander shrugged, "My mom is scared of cockroaches, they aren't exactly dangerous either. You can't rationalize fear."
Buffy grinned, "Wow, Xander. That was a bit deep, are you coming down with something?"
"Bunnies are evil." Anya blurted incongruously and loudly as Xander opened his mouth to defend himself against Buffy's teasing.
Angel grinned as he watched Giles and Wesley twitching at the interruption to their research. What the hell, he might be the second oldest person present but he wasn't the most mature. "Actually, I'm with Anya, my sister had a pet rabbit when we were kids and it used to bite really nastily, even now I've still got scars from bite marks on my ankles!"
Anya beamed triumphantly even as she shuddered, "You see!"
"Makes a change for you to be the one with bite marks huh?" Joked Xander.
Angel felt Buffy draw in a deep shocked breath, ready to defend him he felt sure but the grin on Xander's face was completely without malice so he just grinned back, "Maybe it was a vampire bunny."
"Yeah, like that book, 'Bunnicula' I think it was," agreed Oz, paying full attention for the first time.
"That was such a cool book!" Chirped Willow snuggling against him, "The cat tried to kill him with a steak of the edible variety but they ended up as friends."
"Cats would eat bunnies." Anya warned darkly with great enthusiasm.
As Willow squeaked in horror at the idea of the poor confused vampire bunny being slaughtered by a cat Giles cleared his throat loudly. "As fascinating as this conversation undoubtedly is, could we please concentrate on the books to hand, not ones about demonic you-know-whats."
There was some shuffling in seats and muffled groans at this but everyone obediently bent over their books again.
Silence reigned for a few moments until Angel pushed his chair back with a crash making everyone start nervously, "Lorne." He muttered to Wesley, slightly embarrassed by the effect he had had on the gathering.
Wesley eyed him silently for a moment before nodding, "You're right, he knows something about almost everything in this town. We should talk to him."
Angel shook his head as the Scooby gang began drifting away from books and chairs looking happier at the thought of non-book related information gathering. "No, just me, in case Lorne doesn't have anything for me you should all keep looking."
Angel swept his coat from the stand and shrugged into it as a disappointed Xander and Anya coiled back into their seats, Buffy however was still right beside him. "I should come too, you know, as back up."
Angel half smiled down at her, there was no way he could let her come along. "I'm not going to fight, just to uh, chat. I won't be long, Caritas isn't far."
"Caritas?"
"Lorne's club."
"Well, I should still come, safety in numbers and all, just because you're not looking for a fight it doesn't mean you won't find one."
Angel frowned, he had been ready to refuse and simply stride from the room but Buffy was pouting adorably and peeping appealingly at him from under lowered lashes.
Giles smirked behind his book as he watched his slayer, he'd fallen victim to that manoeuvre himself a few times and he watched amusedly as the broody, uncompromising vampire visibly crumbled under Buffy's best persuasive display of cuteness.
Angel sighed, so much for being a tough guy. "Okay, grab your jacket, lets go."
Buffy squealed with delight and hooked her own jacket from the stand before grabbing her boyfriend's hand and trotting out of the library beside him.
Xander scowled around a whole Twinkie from his position under an upside- down copy of a huge leather bound demonic dimension directory, "Can I date Angel too?" he asked rhetorically as he sprayed Twinkie crumbs across the table. "How come Buffy gets to go sweeping off to a club with her toothy honey while the rest of us grovel in mounds of dusty books?"
"You have me!" Anya told him indignantly. "How can you entertain thoughts of Angel? I am over seven hundred years older than him and therefore am far better at sex!"
Gunn and his two remaining Angel Investigations colleagues hooted with laughter, still unused to Anya's antics.
Oz and Willow smiled affectionately before returning to their websites.
Giles merely sighed and reached over to turn Xander's book upright as he tried to smother Anya's outrage with a crumby kiss, hopefully this Lorne fellow was as useful as Angel and Wesley deemed him, or this was going to be a very long and trying night.