Title: Principal Wood And The Manifest Spirits Of Sunnydale High

Author: mispel

E-mail: mispel@email.com

Rating: PG

Summary: Lessons revisited. The truth about how the 'zombies' came to haunt the school and Spike and Wood's involvement in their appearance. Ch 2: Buffy is unhappy about the new school. Xander interrogates an eyewitness. Wood meets spirits of schooldays past. Snyder and Ms. Calendar size up the new principal.

Spoilers: season 7

Disclaimer: I own none of it. Joss, ME and Fox own all

Feedback: Any comments would be welcome.

A/N: I filled in the blanks to try and explain a few things. I tried not to make this repetitive. Scenes that are not in the fic happened as they did on the show. The timeline is a tiny bit different.

Chapter 2

"They are undoing all our hard work," Buffy complained as she and Dawn ate lunch in the kitchen.

"That was a cool accomplishment - blowing up the school. It catapulted you from petty, gym burning delinquent to crazed bomber. And a hero to truants and school haters everywhere," Dawn said perkily.

"Giles did it, you school lover."

Buffy pouted, feeling that all her criminal endeavors were going unappreciated.

"Arsonist!" Dawn said, and after drinking some of her chocolate milk, she continued. "Though, burning the gym I can get behind. Phys ed sucks."

Buffy agreed but that wasn't the reason. It was war and impending apocalypse and politicians about to feast on recent graduates.

"There were extenuating snake and vampire related circumstances. Both times," Buffy defended herself to the indifferent Dawn.

Dawn went so far as to shrug.

"And don't get attached to the new school, miss apple polisher. The first sign of giant snake infestation and I'll have Xander take the wrecking ball to the place," Buffy finished pointing threateningly with a pickle.

But Dawn just looked down at her half-eaten sandwich with the half circle bite marks and lettuce sticking out.

"I kind of miss Doublemeat Palace," she said to Buffy's surprise.

"You were sick of it. As was I."

"It was an adventure. Chowing down on mutant meat process burgers. Never knowing what you were really eating. If with the next bite you would turn into a cannibal."

Buffy stared at Dawn as she kept looking at her sandwich wistfully.

"You'll fit right in at my old school."

Once again Wood had no idea how he had made it out of the basement. He sat in his office, his face still a little damp from the water he had splashed on it. He tired to go over what had happened. There was that sudden urge for self-mutilation and an echo of strange words in his ears. They came to him in his own voice, but he couldn't remember saying them. Once he was out of there, he discovered he had dropped the knife. He wished he had held onto it. And not for his collection. He hadn't had time for a good look, and the blood obscured the blade, but he was sure there had been something written on it.

Wood leaned back to rest his eyes only to be startled when his cell phone rang. He groaned as he smoothed down his suit and went to the ribbon cutting ceremony.

Spike had stumbled into the room and now there was no door. He clawed at the walls frantically.

"It's not time for my burial! The priest hasn't said his prayers!"

Panicking, he circled the room. The walls were solid and wouldn't let him trough.

"I was just playing. I won't dirty Mother's clothes. Let me out, Miss," Spike pleaded. Then he collapsed. He could feel blood drying on his chest, the wound closing. He stared up, and the ceiling seemed far away.

The sun was almost blinding. The scissors were huge. Wood tried not to laugh. He felt lightheaded. Somehow he got through the speech, smiled and shook hands.

Enjoying the first blast of air-conditioning as he walked back into the school, Wood let the doors close behind him with a whoosh and just stood there. His eyes just couldn't adjust to the artificial light. He saw spots. When they were gone, he saw movement out of the corner of his eye but there was nothing there when he turned to look.

"I probably have sunstroke."

Keeping alert, he started toward his office. Now and then sounds would reach his ears, like raspy whispers.

While the ceremony went on in front of the school, the construction site was almost deserted. The building stopped as those workers who didn't go off to have lunch, stood around and watched the ribbon cutting.

Xander drove to a private home that was being remodeled a few miles away. There he found the man he was looking for sitting on some bricks, eating lunch. One of the guys had told Xander that's where he had been working since he was fired.

"Hey, Tim," Xander greeted him casually.

Tim closed his thermos quickly and said, "Hey, man" with a mouth full of baloney sandwich.

"Thanks for the unobstructed view of your lunch. How are things?"

Tim grinned, half-chewed sandwich still on display.

"Good. Way more relaxed here. And they could use a good carpenter."

"Glad you like it."

Xander looked around to make sure no one was nearby.

"I wanted to ask you about the school basement."

Tim gave Xander a strange look, then he shrugged.

"I got lost. I told my ex boss already. I guess he didn't like my story," Tim said bitterly.

"Tell me about it. You said the walls moved."

Tim chuckled.

"Nah, I was just lost. That place is damn confusing."

Xander sighed. Tim took another bite of his sandwich before he was done with the first.

Xander decided not to try to argue. He straightened and gave his voice an edge.

"Other than the moving walls, did you hear or see anything else?"

"No," Tim said uncertainly.

"What did you see?"

"I..."

Xander folded his arms over his chest and stared down at Tim then at his thermos knowing what he had in there.

"I don't want to bother you, man. Since you like this job, I hope you keep it. But I need to know what's down there," Xander said his voice stern and low.

"There's someone. I heard a voice. I called the guy, thought he might know the way out. But he was gone. That's it."

After that Tim refused to look up at Xander and focused on thoroughly chewing his lunch.

"Thanks, man," Xander said, back to a casual tone and left.

Principal Wood's office was dark. He hadn't turned the light off or closed the shades when he left. Flicking on the light switch, he opened the door slowly. There was nothing he hated more than the blink of florescent lights as they came on. They just wouldn't stop. Even through the strobe effect, he could make out someone sitting in his chair.

"I know you," Wood said to the familiar figure.

The lights came on. The room didn't look right to Wood. Everything in it seemed to have shifted a little.

"Principal Snyder, deceased," Wood said.

"That's very good, you get a gold star."

Snyder's raspy voice was pure sarcasm. The man was dressed in a once cheap, off the rack suit now falling apart at the seams. The top of his head was a seeping wound, the skin curled down to his face. The face looked like it had been dipped in acid.

"Nothing like the first day of school. The smell of fear, and the terror. Ahh, good times."

"What are you doing here?" Wood asked.

"You didn't really expect me to miss it, did you?"

"I kind of did."

The thing stood up and moved around the office. He seemed to be appraising the decor.

"Things are changing. Even you can feel it," Snyder said as he looked around critically.

"I feel a little queasy, actually."

Snyder made his way toward Wood. Suddenly the grotesque face was inches from his. Snyder thumped him on the chest.

"This isn't your school! It's mine!"

And he was gone.

Wood struggled for a second then started to breathe again.

"Don't mind him," a feminine voice said and a woman appeared by his desk.

Wood just stared. The dark haired woman ran her decomposing finger over his desk. Her head sat at an odd angle.

"Do you know me too?"

"Yes. Miss Calendar."

"That's so impressive."

Her voice was mellow and just a little husky. Her hair fell over her eyes, but Wood could make out greenish white skin, splitting over the cheek bones.

"You know this school can be a lot of fun," she said sounding seductive.

"Why are you here?"

"For the fun. We couldn't have done it without you. I want you to remember that tomorrow. When they start dying."

She was gone just like Snyder.

Wood slumped with the closed door against his back.

"Damn. What the hell did I stumble into?"

He remembered the blood and the knife from the basement. Wood went to his computer and started searching. He was at it for hours before he found the answer. Grabbing his suit jacket, noting that he had wrinkled it, he was out the door.

To be continued