A harsh buzzing ring woke Rupert Gile's from his slumber. The older man rolled over and looked at his bedside clock with sleep bleary eyes. The red numbers glared five in the morning. Giles rolled over again and groped for the phone. He lifted it to his ear and mumbled a hello.
"Rupert Giles?" came a clipped British accented voice across the broken connection. Giles instantly sat up straighter, alert and slightly irritated.
"Travers? Quentin Travers? Do you have any idea what time it is here?" he said in his ow gruff British accent.
"Yes I know Rupert but this is a matter of some urgency. There has been an accident involving the other slayer. Faith." Travers told him. Gile's stomach did a few flip flops before plummeting to his feet.
Faith was the girl called to be slayer after Buffy died the first time. Faith was erratic from the start but after a short stint as Buffy's partner in slaying she accidentally killed a man and went off the deep end. She allied with a evil master mind who wanted to ascend into a pure demon. Buffy managed to defeat them both ad sent faith into a coma. A year later faith awoke and terrorized Buffy and her friends before fleeing to los Angeles where she ran into a master vampire named angel, who had been cursed with a soul. Angel was Buffy's former paramour but had left knowing he could never give her a normal life. Angel managed to help faith and faith turned herself into the police for her crimes.
Giles cleared his throat and took a deep breath before replying.
"What is it?" he asked, his voice deceptively calm.
"There was a riot at the prison where she was being held and faith was shot three times protecting a fellow prisoner from an insane guard who started the entire thing. The man is on trial no for the murder of three other inmates and two guards. Faith died for almost two minutes before the emergency team was able to revive her. Now you might see where our predicament comes into place. Because of this, another slayer has been called. A sixteen year old Irish girl named Kia Finnegan." Travers paused waiting for some reaction. Giles was silent for a few seconds digesting this information.
"So there is three now." He said a little dazed.
" yes Rupert. Now here comes the clincher. The council would like you and miss summers along with your ally William the bloody and any of your little crew who would like to go, to travel to new York and talk to her. Inform her of her sacred duty. The council hopes that your approach might be more affective then ours for this girl. Pleas talk it over with group and I will call back at seven tonight. If you check your mail you will find we have sent you all the files we have on her and her past. Good bye Rupert." Travers finished and the phone clicked as he hung up.
Giles slowly set the phone back in its cradle and stared at it for a few seconds before picking it back up and dialing the familiar numbers.
"Hello?" came a sleepy female voice followed by another female voice sounding distant asking who was on the phone.
"Its Giles. I need every one to meet at the magic shop at seven. It is a matter of some urgency. Is Buffy there?" Giles asked. Willow yawned loudly on the other side of the connection before replying.
"No she and spike were tired from patrol and crashed at his place." Willow told him. Giles let a small smile cross his face and his expression grew softer when he thought of spike and Buffy. Just a year ago if he had heard that Buffy was sleeping at spike's crypt he would have been angry and immediately suspected foul play of some sort but during the time when Buffy had been dead spike had earned the respect of every one in the group, especially Giles. All of them felt almost Gile's children to him and spike, although older that Giles year wise was still a child. A young man who never had the chance to grow up. And as much as he was concerned for Buffy, getting involved with another vampire, he actually was rather happy that Buffy and spike felt something for each other.
"Well, could you get a hold of them and tell them to get to the magic shop? Its really urgent." Giles said sounding a little concerned. Willow frowned.
"Apocalypse?" she asked.
"No no not that dire, just, please get a hold of every one. Call Xander to please." Giles requested.
"Yeah sure Giles. Ill see you then." Willow promised and they both hung up. Willow turned in bed to look at Tara who was staring up at her with sleepy blue green eyes.
"What's up?" Tara asked. Willow sighed and snuggled back down into her girlfriends arms.
"Giles. Says we need to meet at the magic box at seven. No apocalypse just something dire. We need to call Xander and Anya too." She said with another yawn. Tara reached over willows shoulder and grabbed the phone. She quickly dialed the number and filled Xander and Anya in on the situation then replaced the phone on its stand. Willow looked contemplatively at Tara and bit her lip.
"What would you think of spike and Buffy?" she asked. Tara frowned and absentmindedly played with a lock of willows flaming red hair.
"Spike and Buffy? What do you mean?" she asked. Willow shrugged her shoulders and smiled.
"Well as a couple. I mean couldn't you see them getting all snuggly together after patrol every night? I mean she is sleeping over there right now. Maybe they are already together and she just hasn't told us..." willow trailed off at the end and her face furrowed into a frown. Tara gently smoothed the worry lines off of willows face.
"You know she would tell you about something like that." Tara assured her. Willow shook her head.
"I'm not so sure. I mean maybe a year ago or so but lately. I know there's something she's been keeping from me, all of us, and its not about spike. I don't think she would tell me about spike, we all hated him for so long she might be embarrassed or not want us to hate her. Oh god! She wouldn't tell me! I'm a bad friend." Willow whimpered. Tara pulled willow closer to her and gently stroked her hair.
"Buffy loves you, and she knows you love her. She knows we all do. She might just need some time. She'll tell us. Just give her time." Tara assured her then grinned mischievously. "Speaking of time. We have about two hours to kill, have any suggestions?" Tara asked wiggling her eyebrows suggestively. Willow smiled.
"Minx." She accused before planting a long slow kiss on Tara's lips.
"Rupert Giles?" came a clipped British accented voice across the broken connection. Giles instantly sat up straighter, alert and slightly irritated.
"Travers? Quentin Travers? Do you have any idea what time it is here?" he said in his ow gruff British accent.
"Yes I know Rupert but this is a matter of some urgency. There has been an accident involving the other slayer. Faith." Travers told him. Gile's stomach did a few flip flops before plummeting to his feet.
Faith was the girl called to be slayer after Buffy died the first time. Faith was erratic from the start but after a short stint as Buffy's partner in slaying she accidentally killed a man and went off the deep end. She allied with a evil master mind who wanted to ascend into a pure demon. Buffy managed to defeat them both ad sent faith into a coma. A year later faith awoke and terrorized Buffy and her friends before fleeing to los Angeles where she ran into a master vampire named angel, who had been cursed with a soul. Angel was Buffy's former paramour but had left knowing he could never give her a normal life. Angel managed to help faith and faith turned herself into the police for her crimes.
Giles cleared his throat and took a deep breath before replying.
"What is it?" he asked, his voice deceptively calm.
"There was a riot at the prison where she was being held and faith was shot three times protecting a fellow prisoner from an insane guard who started the entire thing. The man is on trial no for the murder of three other inmates and two guards. Faith died for almost two minutes before the emergency team was able to revive her. Now you might see where our predicament comes into place. Because of this, another slayer has been called. A sixteen year old Irish girl named Kia Finnegan." Travers paused waiting for some reaction. Giles was silent for a few seconds digesting this information.
"So there is three now." He said a little dazed.
" yes Rupert. Now here comes the clincher. The council would like you and miss summers along with your ally William the bloody and any of your little crew who would like to go, to travel to new York and talk to her. Inform her of her sacred duty. The council hopes that your approach might be more affective then ours for this girl. Pleas talk it over with group and I will call back at seven tonight. If you check your mail you will find we have sent you all the files we have on her and her past. Good bye Rupert." Travers finished and the phone clicked as he hung up.
Giles slowly set the phone back in its cradle and stared at it for a few seconds before picking it back up and dialing the familiar numbers.
"Hello?" came a sleepy female voice followed by another female voice sounding distant asking who was on the phone.
"Its Giles. I need every one to meet at the magic shop at seven. It is a matter of some urgency. Is Buffy there?" Giles asked. Willow yawned loudly on the other side of the connection before replying.
"No she and spike were tired from patrol and crashed at his place." Willow told him. Giles let a small smile cross his face and his expression grew softer when he thought of spike and Buffy. Just a year ago if he had heard that Buffy was sleeping at spike's crypt he would have been angry and immediately suspected foul play of some sort but during the time when Buffy had been dead spike had earned the respect of every one in the group, especially Giles. All of them felt almost Gile's children to him and spike, although older that Giles year wise was still a child. A young man who never had the chance to grow up. And as much as he was concerned for Buffy, getting involved with another vampire, he actually was rather happy that Buffy and spike felt something for each other.
"Well, could you get a hold of them and tell them to get to the magic shop? Its really urgent." Giles said sounding a little concerned. Willow frowned.
"Apocalypse?" she asked.
"No no not that dire, just, please get a hold of every one. Call Xander to please." Giles requested.
"Yeah sure Giles. Ill see you then." Willow promised and they both hung up. Willow turned in bed to look at Tara who was staring up at her with sleepy blue green eyes.
"What's up?" Tara asked. Willow sighed and snuggled back down into her girlfriends arms.
"Giles. Says we need to meet at the magic box at seven. No apocalypse just something dire. We need to call Xander and Anya too." She said with another yawn. Tara reached over willows shoulder and grabbed the phone. She quickly dialed the number and filled Xander and Anya in on the situation then replaced the phone on its stand. Willow looked contemplatively at Tara and bit her lip.
"What would you think of spike and Buffy?" she asked. Tara frowned and absentmindedly played with a lock of willows flaming red hair.
"Spike and Buffy? What do you mean?" she asked. Willow shrugged her shoulders and smiled.
"Well as a couple. I mean couldn't you see them getting all snuggly together after patrol every night? I mean she is sleeping over there right now. Maybe they are already together and she just hasn't told us..." willow trailed off at the end and her face furrowed into a frown. Tara gently smoothed the worry lines off of willows face.
"You know she would tell you about something like that." Tara assured her. Willow shook her head.
"I'm not so sure. I mean maybe a year ago or so but lately. I know there's something she's been keeping from me, all of us, and its not about spike. I don't think she would tell me about spike, we all hated him for so long she might be embarrassed or not want us to hate her. Oh god! She wouldn't tell me! I'm a bad friend." Willow whimpered. Tara pulled willow closer to her and gently stroked her hair.
"Buffy loves you, and she knows you love her. She knows we all do. She might just need some time. She'll tell us. Just give her time." Tara assured her then grinned mischievously. "Speaking of time. We have about two hours to kill, have any suggestions?" Tara asked wiggling her eyebrows suggestively. Willow smiled.
"Minx." She accused before planting a long slow kiss on Tara's lips.