Disclaimers, etc, see part one.

This is the first of the chapters that was not on before the story was deleted. Two more chapters (after this) before you're up to date.

I accidentally included Hagrid before he actually got back. So, we'll just assume he back earlier J

New Challenge conditions:

Riley appears, as an okay guy.

Fred and George pulling Muggle inspired pranks on Snape, Hagrid and Dumbledore, and Giles, and someone else.

Mention of a non-Scourge vampire (Buffy-verse or otherwise).

Xander has to fulfil some Wizarding requirement before his next birthday, and he isn't happy about it.

There is some Black family issue with Xander's marrying Anya.

… … …

The rest of the school seemed in reasonably good spirits. Despite Ron's poor performance, the Gryffindors had won. Xander and Dawn were sitting with the Gryffindor team, on either side of Ron. Harry sat opposite his friend, flanked by Hermione and Ginny.

"Oh, did I tell you about Miss French?" Xander said.

"No," Harry said, leaning in for the story.

Ron still wasn't capable of answering anyone's concern. But whatever Xander had told him before the others had arrived to change, combined with Dawn's attentions had put some colour back into his cheeks.

"Well, she was the substitute Science teacher when we were in our Sophomore, what's that? fifth year. She was very attractive."

"And interested in bugs. So she went right for Xander," Dawn said, smirking.

"You weren't even there."

"I still remember."

"Anyway. She wasn't really looking for bugs. She was looking for… Actually, it's not a very interesting story."

Ron was suddenly much more interested. But Xander had gone back to his lunch.

"I'll tell you guys later," Dawn promised them. "Poor Xander."

"There are much more exciting Buffy fighting stories," Xander said.

"Are there any about Spike?" Hermione asked.

Xander scowled into his plate of casserole. Hermione looked expectantly at Dawn.

"What do you mean?" Dawn asked. She had learnt over the last week to recognise the burning thirst for answers in Hermione's eyes.

"Well, I recognised Buffy and Spike from the History of Dark Creatures: Vampires book. They have a whole chronology for him, do you know why he was called William the Bloody?"

Dawn shook her head. "You could try asking him. He's changed a lot from when he first came to Sunnydale."

"Yeah," Hermione said. She and Dawn were able to share a knowing grin, because none of the other Hogwarts students knew about Spike.

Hermione went on enthusiastically, "the History of Vampires had some amazing stories in it. Buffy is mentioned, too."

"Really?" Dawn asked, suppressing a thrill of panic. "I'd love to see it."

"I borrowed again earlier this week. I could show you after dinner. It's good. It's a few years old, though; it ends with Angelus and Akathla. It doesn't say anything about what happened to Spike."

"The government put a chip thing, like for a computer, in his head," Xander said. "It means he can't hurt humans."

"And then he fell for Buffy," Dawn said.

"What guys will do for girls," Hermione sighed.

Harry looked affronted.

"I once drank an entire gallon of Gatorade," Xander said, proudly.

"What's Gatorade?" Ron asked.

Harry leant over to explain about sports drinks.

Only Hermione looked appropriately put off by the declaration. Xander sighed and cut up another mouthful of food. Dawn was briefly relieved by the change in topic. But she should have learnt that Hermione's curiosity was difficult to deflect.

"That doesn't explain how he was accepted here," Hermione said.

"Nothing does," Xander said.

"It's a long story," Dawn said. "Buffy wanted him to come, and Giles obviously wrote to Dumbledore about it. He helped us when Buffy was away."

"So you know Giles well?" Harry asked. "I mean, I know he came with you, but I thought Dumbledore had contacted you himself."

Xander and Dawn shared a startled look. Xander nodded briefly for Dawn to explain.

"Willow found out that Xander's father was in England. Anya works with Giles in the Magic Box, so we asked him he knew of Hogsmeade, and he wrote letters."

"Buffy said that he wasn't a friend," Hermione said.

Dawn shook her head, agreeing with that assessment.

"We know him because of his job. He was never a friend, but I liked him. I don't trust him anymore."

Hermione didn't have anything to say in response, but she looked sympathetic. Dawn had a moment to reflect on how much of what she had said was actually true. She knew that she would be wherever Buffy wanted to be, but she was beginning to think that their visit to Hogwarts could be more than the holiday she had hoped for when Buffy hadn't questioned taking her out of school.

Her pensive thoughts were interrupted by McGonagall and Giles arriving with in steps of each other. They weren't happy, but they had definitely been talking to each other, probably since Harry had been sent out of McGonagall's office.

"I had a lesson with McGonagall, today," Xander said. "I can turn anything you want into a button."

Ron pinched a bit of mashed potato off his plate, moulded it into a disk and placed it on the table. Hermione rolled her eyes in disgust. Dawn grinned. Xander raised his wand and with an over the top flourish produced a button out of the mashed potato. It was a bit lumpy, and an off white colour, but it was definitely a button. Dawn clapped.

"What about charms?" Dawn asked.

Xander spent the next few minutes floating things and making small showers of different coloured sparks. Hermione, particularly, was intrigued by his progress, because he wasn't going along with the classes, instead getting training from Willow, Tara and McGonagall.

Xander chuckled at the attention his meagre magic was getting. Draco Malfoy seemed to find it equally amusing.

"You're doing well for someone who's practically a Muggle," he drawled. "But, then, I don't suppose you could actually have been worse than your father."

Xander shrugged. He was fairly sure that some of what he had seen would cause this ferret to wet his pants. Dawn scowled, mostly on Ron's behalf, but was weary of her relative weakness.

Ginny grabbed Harry to keep him down. But Hermione leapt to her feet.

"Did your father have to teach you how to try to be an annoying git, Malfoy?" she said.

Draco raised one mocking eyebrow at her.

"Because I thought snide remarks were the last resort of the weak and stupid."

Draco's jaw clenched, and Hermione felt a thrill at knowing she had gotten to him. He ran an eye over the teacher's table, including the menacing looking Spike. Two of them, Willow and Tara, were already headed in his direction so Draco turned and swept away.

Hermione glared daggers at his back as he walked away.

Willow came up to them, watching Malfoy, too.

"Do you want me to do something to him?" she asked.

"I'll get him one day," Hermione said.

Ron looked at her, a little taken aback by, and in awe of, the venom in Hermione's voice. Willow took a place beside him; Tara sat on the other side of Dawn, opposite Ginny. She spared the girl a smile.

It took Harry that long to realise that Ginny still had a hand on his arm. The slight pressure was soothing, and his arm was warm where her hand had rested. Harry grinned at Ginny, who blushed and took her hand away. She was pretty when she blushed like that, Harry thought, and quickly turned his attention back to the table.

Willow and Hermione were making arrangements to do some magic training together. Ginny was eager, too, so the three of them, Dawn and Tara began trying to work out when they could have a meeting.

They finally agreed on Monday.

"We were going to do that other thing on Monday," Harry said.

It took a moment for Ginny and Hermione to work out what he meant.

"Oh, well, they can come, too," Hermione said. "I'm sure they've got loads they could tell us."

The newcomers shared a glance. Harry turned a questioning look with Ron. Ron seemed to like the idea of spending an evening with Dawn, even in the company of a lot of other people. But Harry was still slightly paranoid. He wasn't sure if Professor Giles couldn't be trusted, and then if these people would tell him things. He wanted to trust them, but he didn't want to make any mistakes.

"We like to keep the meetings secret, you know," he said. "Because our last Defence teacher banned all clubs and would have reported it to the Ministry."

"That's okay," Xander said. "We'll be in our rooms from after dinner on Monday, and you can come and pick us up, or something."

Harry spared a glance for Seamus, sitting further down the table and nodded at Xander's suggestion. They would meet on Monday evening. The group finished their lunch together, then Dawn joined Harry, Ron and Hermione to visit Hagrid.