CHAPTER FOUR
"Giles, is this necessary?" Buffy moaned.
"No, Buffy, I put off going to the traveling art exhibit at the Museum of Natural History in Los Angels with Jenny to spend a sweltering evening roaming Sunnydale just because it's not necessary." Giles glared at her as he cleaned his glasses.
She rolled her eyes. "No need to get snarky."
"There was no need the first twelve times you asked," he said.
"It's just that I feel bad you had to miss a date with Jenny for a training session." Buffy honestly felt badly about that. As much as she didn't want to think about adult smoochies, she liked that Giles had someone to care about. Being lonely was a terrible thing.
"Buffy, you still have this inability to sense vampires. That needs work. It would certainly benefit you to be able to do it."
"So I could find this Ilya guy faster," she said with a hint of self-flagellation.
"I didn't say that," Giles said, gently. Buffy knew he was thinking it though or else the training session could wait. "It would benefit you in general."
"I can sense, Angel." Angel was one of the reasons she was disappointed Giles was with her. It meant no Angel-alone time. Of course, she didn't exactly know where Angel was and that bothered her. He seemed somehow embarrassed to know Ilya the Ill, like he was somehow responsible for the vampire, only she had no idea why. Maybe there was something Angel held back or maybe he was just being Angel. Buffy knew how he liked to take responsibility even for things that weren't his fault. She just figured she didn't really understand men. She certainly didn't understand why Angle did half of what he did. She didn't know why Xander was so jealous even though she have never given him any indication she considered him as anything other than a friend, barring that one sexy dance when she had come back to the dale. She didn't know what was wrong with Giles that he was dodging dates with a woman he was obviously attracted to. He should be in L.A. having fun, not here with her in the park, trying not to step on used condoms in the dark.
"It's a start," Giles conceded, smoothing out an imaginary wrinkle in his shirt. Giles was in his casual wear, at least as he seemed to interpret casual; beige Dockers and a short-sleeved shirt sans jacket, vest or tie. That shirt revealed what all his usual layers of tweed hid. There was a human body under them. Even the slightest hint of sexuality in Giles made Buffy shudder. It was like trying to think about her parents together. Buffy held up her hand, stopping him.
"Sense one?" he asked, hopefully.
"Hear that?" she said, knowing she was so disappointing him. She felt a slight tingle. "Actually, yeah I think maybe I do sense one."
"Angel." That wasn't a question and it hurt a little that Giles thought she couldn't extend her abilities past sensing him. It hurt worse that he was right.
Buffy took off through the park but not so fast Giles couldn't keep up. She didn't want him to be alone. He might not be a twelve year old girl but that didn't mean he was safe from Ilya or any of the other uglies that might be out for a moon light stroll. She stopped behind a hedge row, hearing people talking clearly now. Giles tensed beside her, his breathing sounding a little ragged. She knew he could hear them too. Dru's wispy voice managed to carry as clear as a bell.
"But Daddy, I shouldn't let him see me."
"Where's Spike, Dru? He needs to know about Ilya."
Buffy could see Angel through the twists of the branches of the hedge row. There was a look of concern on his face. It made her furious. He should be staking Dru, not warning her.
"Spike doesn't know I've gone. He thinks I can't hunt for myself, all weak and pale like a baby." Dru leaned against him.
Buffy wanted to charge out there when Angel's big hands, the hands she loved feeling on her hair, stroked Dru's dark mane. He seemed so gentle and the flood of jealousy and confusion threatened to overwhelm Buffy. Giles' put a hand on her shoulder as if he sense her pain.
"Spike needs to know, Dru," Angel reiterated as if talking to a child.
"Is Angel trying to put them all together?" Buffy whispered to Giles whose face went harsher than she was used to seeing.
Dru pulled away from Angel and sat on the swings. She started swinging, looking like an overgrown living China doll in her pale blue gown. Buffy wondered about how formally Dru always dressed. She had noticed back when Merrick was still her Watcher that a lot of vampires' fashion sense never progressed beyond the day of their death. Dru was different. She was formal but not Victorian. Of course, Buffy had no idea where Dru could find Victorian clothes even if she still wanted them. Truth was, Buffy was used to dealing with young, newly made vampires. If she had to admit it, the older ones, the ones who were wily enough to survive, frightened her.
She shoved that thought out and another unwanted one flooded in. Dru looked so exceptionally feminine. She made it seem effortless, the same way Cordy did. Buffy remembered being like that once, before the whole Chosen bit. She missed it a little and she had to wonder, did Angel really not care that she showed up for dates all grass streaked and tousled? Did he secretly want her to look more like Cordelia, like Drusilla and just lied to her to protect her feelings? Did Dru still turn him on? Buffy knew Dru had been his lover. He had alluded to it and Buffy hadn't needed him to do so. She could tell.
"I should fly away, Daddy, like the doves." Dru swung higher. "Ilya makes my skin feel like ants are crawling all over it."
"You can't go, Dru," Angel said. "We need this to end here. Ilya will be looking for you. If you go, he'll follow. It'll be harder to find him."
"Daddy's worried about all the little ones Ilya will eat up," Dru accused.
"Yes, I am, Dru. But if you and Spike help track him down no one else has to die," Angel said.
"Spike won't help you."
"But you might. Remember what Ilya did to you, Dru. That terrible thing that made you and Darla castrated him."
Buffy shivered at the oily texture of Angel's voice. It's effect on Dru was immediate. The vampire leapt off the swing at the highest point of the arc. Buffy didn't know how Dru landed so gracefully in high heels. Dru caught the swing and hurled it at Angel. The chains snapped and he swatted the seat away.
"Bad Daddy!" Dru's nail sliced across his face and Buffy noticed Angel didn't defend himself. He just causally wiped away the blood. "No one is allowed to talk about that."
"Sorry, Dru but I need your help. You needed...focusing."
"Bad, bad, Daddy."
Buffy watched the insane vampire stalk off. She should go after Dru, finish her off. Buffy knew she could take the creature. Buffy saw how weak Dru was. Of course, that might take away Ilya's motive for being in Sunnydale and she shared Angel's fear that the pedophilic vampire might move off to who knew where, killing more children.
She thought for a moment about going to talk to Angel but at the moment she couldn't fight the unreasonable swell of emotions. She didn't like being reminded that Angel had an attachment to his childe. She didn't know why it bothered her so much, why she felt threatened when she knew the only thing that Angel felt for Dru was remorse and guilt. Knowing that didn't stop her feet and Buffy let them carry her away. She was barely aware of Giles behind her.
"Buffy, I think we should-"
She whirled, coming to an instant stop. "I don't want to talk about what we just saw, Giles."
"Buffy, you have little choice. Angel is putting Drusilla out as bait. If Spike doesn't come to her aid, Angel most likely will spare her to kill the Russian vampire. Ilya is clearly the greater of the evils," Giles said, his eyes showing concern for his young charge.
"So, do I throw in and help the vampire pack turn on their own?" Buffy snarled, starting back off. She forced Giles to almost trot along to keep up.
"I'm not saying that, Buffy but surely you and Angel working together would do better than either of you apart," Giles said as they turned onto the streets of Sunnydale's business section. The Bronze wasn't too far away. The coffee shop was closer.
"Did you miss the part where he's inviting Spike to play? Remember Spike? He of the two dead Slayers fame. We know he wants me dead. What makes you think he won't try for me while I'm busy with Ilya?" Buffy shot a hot look over her shoulder and Giles quieted. She didn't think it would be that easy. Angel would protect her from both Spike and Ilya but she realized Giles was truly afraid for her should Spike catch hold of her. He hadn't looked that worried since the Master and the prophecy and all that. Suddenly Spike seemed almost like a greater evil than Ilya.
"It is a concern, Buffy."
"Well, what I'm more concerned about, is stopping Ilya before he kills another kid." Buffy sighed. "So I guess I will be talking to Angel about this, but I can't help thinking if he wanted me in on his plan he would have told me."
"Would he? Angel seems quite adept at shielding you from things he'd rather not have you know," Giles said and it stung.
Buffy shrugged. "At least I don't have to worry about Dawnie. Mom caught her trying to shoplift some lip gloss today at the mall and she's so grounded. No leaving the house, no Fall Ball next weekend."
"Fall Ball?" Giles wore the puzzled look he usually did when he didn't get a pop culture reference.
"Think of it as a homecoming dance for the elementary school. Okay, mostly they get together in the gym with too many parents watching and they pretend to dance and play games. Dawn and Ginny were supposed to go. I didn't want my sister out there if this sick perv isn't stopped by then, but how could I tell Mom that a pedophile vampire is stalking the night?" Buffy had given that a lot of thought. She had nightmares about staking Ashley and in place of that poor child's face she kept seeing Dawn's.
A scream tore the night air, diverting her from further thought. Slayer and Watcher raced toward the sound, leading them to the alley behind the coffee shop. The angry girl band was still playing inside. Buffy could hear the lyrics. She knew them. They were local. Dawn liked them. The screamer was gone by the time they got to the alley but Buffy saw what the screams were about. Another young girl, throat sliced, panties in a heap near her head, lay in the filth behind the store.
"I should have stopped him before..." Buffy trailed off.
Giles put a hand on her shoulder. "You can't protect them all, Buffy. You will find him and this will end."
She wanted to believe him. The band had stopped playing and she heard people coming out of the store. The screamer must have gone inside to call 911. In the crowd pushing out of the coffee house Buffy saw something that made her blood crystalize. A pack of young girls stood there, looking guilty at getting caught out breaking curfew, looking scared knowing one of their number was missing. Dawn and Ginny stared at Buffy before breaking into a run. Their friends followed in their wake.
"Go, Buffy. Get them home safely. I'll stay here with this poor child," Giles said. "And I will call your mother, tell her that I saw Dawn here, if you don't want to be the one to tell her."
"Thanks, Giles," Buffy said, already in motion. She was ready to kill her sister. In the end she settled with rounding up as many of the barely pubescent brats as she could and taking them home.
