The girls raced through the hallways, whipping around corners at break-neck speed. Images of their slain friend kept flashing in front of their eyes, and Amanda was trying desperately not to empty her stomach on the cool tiled floor.

Ahead, they saw the last corner before the exit. Dawn silently thanked whatever God there might be for letting them leave safely. Jade glanced back at the others and gave them an encouraging smile before taking the corner – and running smack into the creature they were trying to escape from.

The girls collided together as Jade bounced off the vampire's solid chest and Dawn and Amanda couldn't stop their desperate run. They fell to the ground in a jumble of limbs, and the vampire leered over them.

He reached for them with dirty, soil-caked hands. 'Newly risen,' Jade noted. She reached into her blouse and withdrew an ornate cross, brandishing it in front of her. The vampire hissed, and brought his hands up to shield his eyes.

Jade used his momentary weakness to her advantage. She lashed out with her foot and connected squarely with his stomach. He stumbled backwards, and Jade quickly climbed to her feet.

"Get up!" she hissed at her friends, who struggled to their feet behind her. The vampire glared at her, his yellow eyes glowing in the near-dark. She swung her bag in a menacing arc, prepared to use it to defend her life.

The vampire, undaunted, attacked. Jade smashed her heavy bag over its head, and it staggered to the side. Then she gave it a roundhouse kick to the jaw, and it slammed into the wall.

Dawn grabbed Jade's hand and dragged her back the way they came. Amanda was running ahead of them, tugging on classroom doors, trying to find one they could use as a safe-haven.

"Forget it," Dawn called to her, "we need to find another exit." She glanced behind her and saw the vampire rounding the corner, looking very pissed off. "And quickly!"

****

Willow drove home in contemplative silence. She was still a little amazed that her meeting with the travel agent had gone so…well. Absently, she fingered the envelope inside the leather jacket.

She stopped at a red light and saw the cemetery up ahead. "Why don't I just pop in and see how things are going?" she asked herself. "It's not cuz I want to see Kennedy, no siree, I just want to give Spike the good news about Romania. Yup. Romania."

The light turned green and she pulled up just outside the gates. She squinted out the windshield into the vast darkness between the headstones. As far as she could tell, there was no movement in the cemetery.

Frowning, she exited the Summers' jeep and warily slipped through the wrought-iron gates. She was tempted to cast an illumination spell, because it was hard for her to see her hand in front of her face, but she resisted.

She slowly made her way down the dirt path that wound beneath her feet. Having patrolled these grounds many nights over the past seven years, she knew that if she kept walking down this path she would eventually get to Spike's old crypt. From there, she could climb on top of the angel headstone and see the whole cemetery – it wouldn't be long before she located her friends.

A cool gust of wind tickled her skin, and she pulled Spike's duster tighter around herself. She was suddenly grateful for its warm comfort and familiarity when she was becoming concerned for Buffy's safety, and the well being of those under her watch.

Willow was kind of beginning to understand what it was about Spike that drew Buffy to him. He's always exuded this sense of danger, but now she saw that there was a soft side to him. Of course he'd always been kind to Dawn, but this extended beyond the people he cared about.

Take the travel agent, for instance. Spike hadn't been back from Africa and sane long enough to be able to rid him of his vampire problem, so he must have done it before he'd gotten his soul. But why? Obviously it wasn't to impress Buffy, because she knew nothing about it. So why would a man who claimed, at the time, to still be evil, save the life of someone he didn't even know?

Besides the enigma that is Spike, Willow also had to admit that there was something about this jacket that Buffy liked. After all, she had kept it in her closet after he'd left, even though he had tried to rape her and gave no indication that he'd be returning.

And it smelled of cigarettes and booze – why would Buffy want to put something in her closet that smelled of cigarettes and booze? Maybe because it smells like Spike?

Willow was dragged out of her ponderings by the sound of distant voices. She paused and listened hard – it was Buffy, and a decidedly British voice…Spike! "Thank the Gods," she muttered to herself before heading in their direction.

****

The vampire was clearly in no hurry. He walked after them, watching amusedly as they alternately tugged on doors and glanced back nervously at him. The one who fought him was gripping a stake tightly in her hand – she looked unafraid.

She stopped following her friends and stood in the middle of the hall. Dawn looked back at her and began to panic. "Jade, we need to go! Jade!"

"We should fight," Jade replied calmly. She could beat this vamp, she knew she could. Confidently, she twirled her weapon between her fingers.

Dawn gaped at her. "What? NO, we're not fighting! We're leaving. Now!"

But Jade remained where she stood and adopted a fighting stance. The vampire licked his lips, anticipating his next meal. Amanda nervously wrung her hands, unsure what was going to happen.

A noise behind her made her turn. Stalking towards them were two robed figures, ceremonial knives in hand. When she noticed their eyes were gouged out, she screamed.

Dawn whipped around and had to stifle a scream herself. The Bringers were advancing on them, which meant they were trapped between a rock and a hard place. Jade risked a glance at the commotion behind her and pulled a double take.

"What the Hell are they doing here?" she demanded of no one in particular. Dawn looked at her, and Jade saw the fear in her eyes. In one decisive motion, she ran at the vampire and shoved him forcefully into a door, which broke under his weight.

"This way!" she screamed, and took off towards the exit once more. Amanda and Dawn followed her, no questions asked. But when they reached the main foyer, they found more Bringers.

"Holy shit," Dawn breathed. They were coming out of every orifice this school had – they were screwed.

"What do we do?" Amanda asked as she clung to Jade's arm. For once, the rebel was at a loss. She knew how to kill vampires and werewolves and various other demons – but Bringers? They were only supposed to come after Potential Slayers, for one thing. And she had never encountered them before.

Dawn glanced furtively around, trying to come up with a plan. What would Buffy do, what would Buffy do…?

"I've got an idea!" she cried, and raced for the second floor stairs.

****

"Willow!"

"Buffy, what's going on?"

The redhead had found the Slayer coming out of a derelict crypt, cell phone in hand. She could see Spike and the Potentials through the door that lay only half on its hinges. The vampire was trying to lift what looked like felled cement supports.

"Will, I was just about to call you! We've got a problem."

"What kind of problem?"

"Kennedy's trapped in a big hole…"

Willow missed the rest of Buffy's explanation because her heart had suddenly begun to beat so loudly it was all she could hear. Kennedy's in trouble?

"How can I help," she interrupted. Buffy stopped mid-sentence and regarded her friend. She knew that Willow and Kennedy had gotten close in the time the Potential had been staying with them, but she hadn't been sure just how close until this moment.

"I thought you might be able to magic her out or something – if you're feeling up to it of course! I mean, not that you wouldn't be up to it, but…okay, why don't you just do what you can, and we'll go from there."

Willow and Buffy exchanged lop-sided smiles before heading into the crypt. Spike stepped away so that the witch could assess the situation. She knelt next to the pile of rubble and put her hands out.

She closed her eyes and focused on channeling the magic. It seeped from her outstretched palms and snaked through the spaces in the rocks, down, down into the cave below. There sat Kennedy, tired, dirty and frightened.

//It's okay,// Willow spoke into the other girl's mind. //We'll get you out of there.// Kennedy nodded, and even though Willow couldn't see her, she knew that she'd heard.

She stood then and faced the blondes. "I can't just 'poof' her out or anything, but I can help you move the rubble." Willow took position on the floor, Indian-style, and placed her wrists on her knees, allowing her hands to dangle loosely. She slowed her breathing and focused her mind, and the rocks began to tremble.

Buffy and Spike were able to remove the rocks as Willow loosened them, and soon they had made a hole big enough for Spike to reach in and pull the trapped girl out through.

He lay on the ground and reached his arm in as far as he could. Kennedy reached up and grabbed it just below the elbow, and he did the same to her. He pulled her straight up, the muscles of his back rippling beneath his shirt as he pushed himself up. Buffy took a moment to secretly admire him before he had lifted Kennedy as far as he could unaided.

She stepped up and grabbed Kennedy's other arm and together they hauled her out of her stony prison. The girl clutched her rescuers for a few moments before she felt she was strong enough to stand.

"Sorry," she mumbled as she pushed her dirty hair out of her face. Spike rubbed her back gently, reassuring her with words of forgiveness. She smiled shyly at him before running over and embracing the other Potentials who awaited her with open arms.

Willow stood, brushing the crypt dust off her clothes. Kennedy disengaged from her group hug and took her hand.

"Thanks, Willow," she said, giving her a meaningful look. Willow blushed slightly and stammered that it was nothing. But Kennedy would have none of it, and snaked a loving arm around her waist, causing the witch to blush even more furiously.

"Well," Buffy began, trying to take everyone's attentions away from the lovebirds, "I think that's enough excitement for one night, don't you guys?"

"Oh, the night is young yet," came a voice from the crypt door. The group turned as one and regarded the stranger in their midst.

"Who are you?" Buffy demanded warily. The boy looked to be about Dawn's age, with shaggy blond hair and silky black clothes that reminded her of Angel when she had first met him.

"Vampire?" Molly squeaked.

"Not a vampire," Buffy replied.

"Not human, either," Spike added. He stepped a little closer to Buffy, ready to protect her if a fight broke out. He couldn't hit humans, but whatever creature this guy turned out to be was fair game.

"It's not important who and what I am," the boy argued. "What matters is that your sister's life is in danger."

Buffy stiffened at the mention of Dawn. "What kind of danger?"

"Bringers," he replied. "And lots of them. They're attacking the school as we speak, and if we don't hurry, your sister and her friends will be dead in a matter of minutes."