Author's Note:

Well, that was a lot of drama. There'll be plenty more until we get to the more-fun part. And, of course, part of the episode The Zeppo, just because we need to let off a little steam... or, at least, the evil witch-demons part. Another disclaimer for even more conversation pulled from the episode and added to an AU context.

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Chapter 2

Rebellion

- - - - -

Giles set the last paper down, the color draining from his face. "Buffy?" he gasped, glancing up into her own. She was standing there, in the Library. Her arms were crossed and her face was very pale, as though she hadn't gotten much sleep the night before. She appeared to be edgy too, moving from foot to foot.

"It's all true," she said, her voice unwavering. "This is what the Council threatened me with. This is what they never wanted me to know. I hurt them and they hurt me. They're just a hell of a lot better at it." She blinked suddenly, the tears returning.

"Buffy, I..." But there were no words of comfort. No small words of anything. He couldn't even explain this because it wasn't something he even knew. "I don't know what to say."

She smiled. It was a very strained smile. "I didn't expect you to say anything," she said, sitting down at last across from him. "But for now, until we can figure out what this means... could we keep it just between us? If the Council forces any more action, I'll tell Willow and Xander... but..."

He reached over and patted her hand. "I understand," he said, attempting to comfort her with a smile and the small gesture. "I don't know what it is you're going through, but it's extraordinary how brave you've been."

"It's been all of ten minutes, Giles," she said, her voice rising slightly as she laid her head on her cold hand. "I think it was the longest night of my life and that is after the fact I killed Angel."

Giles could see that she was struggling to control her emotions. He stood up and walked around behind her. "Now that you are no longer deemed necessary in the fight between good and evil, I think it may be best if we limit our personal contact."

Buffy's eyes widened in horror as she spun around to stare at her former Watcher. "What?" she gasped. "You can't be serious!"

"You are not the only one being threatened by the Council," Giles said quietly, pulling off his glasses to clean them. "They told me that if you and I were to start an insurrection, I would be deported immediately. I don't even want to think of what they might do to you."

"I think deportation is the least of my problems right now," Buffy said, pulling the folder back into her arms and staring at the older man. "What am I going to do, Giles? I have this whole other life I never even knew existed. I have parents in England. My mother... Joyce... isn't my real mother. I don't even know where to begin."

"We'll have to wait and see if the Council forces another move on you, I suppose," he said, returning to his seat. "Although I suppose that might be a cause for insurrection."

Buffy shuddered slightly at the thought of what the Council would do to her if she did do something against their supposed orders. "I am feeling slightly rebellious, if that helps."

"It does, quite," Giles said, giving her a small smile. "Thank you."

Buffy stood up, reaching half-heartedly for her bookbag. "Well, I have to go and face the fate of the world in Algebra. I really hope they don't spring a test on me today. I'm really not in the mood."

As Buffy left the Library, Giles noticed the figure moving around inside his office. Faith stepped out, her arms crossed, a pitying look on her face. "What was that all about?" she asked, sounding perplexed.

"I'm sure by now you've heard everything," Giles said with a heavy sigh. Faith turned and took the chair Buffy had left. "I already told you I've been fired from the Council and that Buffy has quit the Council."

"Those bastards," Faith hissed vehemently under her breath. There was a lot of anger in her eyes as she stared at the swinging double doors. "What have they done to her?"

"I'm sure that you caught enough to put two and two together," Giles said, smirking slightly. "You're not a daft girl, Faith."

"What was going on when she said that Joyce wasn't her real mother?" Faith asked softly. "What did that Council do to her?"

"I'm probably not the best one to tell you this, but I really don't want you to force this issue on her either," Giles said, finally deciding to go ahead with the truth. "Buffy's adopted."

Faith's jaw dropped slightly. "Whoa," she said, blinking. "And I thought my life was hard."

"It's about to get a lot harder," Giles said, snapping back to attention. "You do realize that you will be patroling alone from now on. If Buffy or I ever get involved, we could both be deported."

"Wait a minute," Faith said, her eyes full of confusion. "You just said that Buffy could be deported too? Where is she actually from?"

"England," Giles replied with a slight smile. "Fancy that a thought."

The doors suddenly burst open and Willow, Oz and Xander filed in, all three of them looking harried and out of breath. "Giles!" Willow cried, running to his side. "We have a problem."

Giles turned and gestured at Faith. "She's the only qualified party to hear what you have to say, so tell her. I'm not longer a member of this group and neither is Buffy."

"But we just ran into her on our way to talk to you!" Xander said, sounding as confused as Faith felt. "She told us to come to you... that it would make you feel all important."

"There was a demon outside my house last night," Willow said, turning to Faith and cutting off the looks that Xander and Giles were sending each other. "It was a she, at least I think it was... and it was getting pretty happy blowing off steam on a group of unsuspecting boys."

"What do we do?" Oz asked, coming up behind Willow and taking her hand.

"Suit up," Faith said, rising. "I figure it be best if I tracked it now, since I'm not bound to this school like the rest of you. Giles, I know you're not my Watcher or a Watcher anymore, but I'd appreciate any help you could loan. I promise I won't tell the Council anything if you do decide to help. Wil, talk to B. I need her with me on this. I think this is a bit more dangerous than even I think it could be."

"All right," Willow said. "I'll definitely try talking her into going all-out Slayer again."

"Good," Faith said shortly. "We'll meet here at sunset?"

After they'd all agreed, they split up. Oz, Xander and Willow returned to class as the bell above their heads rang. Faith took her coat and followed them out, fully intent on doing some recon. And Giles sat in his chair, staring into his office, feeling like things were only going to get worse.

- - - - -

It was misty inside the cold cavern. A sole figure moved about inside. The darkness only seemed to add depth.

Faith moved along an interior wall, her eyes searching for the sole figure, heard hissing and snarling as she quietly turned to find her prey. Buffy was on the opposite end, also deeply hidden. Giles was standing near the entrance in the last bit of light from the day.

Coming through one of the tunnels was Willow, holding a thick candle in her hands. Her eyes were strangely glowing from the only light in the dim cave. "Obscurate nos non diutius," she muttered softly before blowing the candle out.

A sudden gust of wind swept through the cold cave and the mists and fog vanished, windswept. The demon was suddenly in the center, snarling and hissing as she turned, trying to find an appropriate target.

Buffy grinned from her corner. Although she wasn't the only chosen one anymore, she felt oddly compelled to leap forward and attack. The rebel inside of her was screaming out to do the right thing and to not put her friends in any danger.

With a small cry, she leapt onto the demon, both of them tumbling to the ground. All at once, Giles and Faith moved into the light.

Faith leaned down and lifted a sword as she saw Buffy and Giles hurling the demon back into a wall. The creature bellowed and tossed Giles aside as though he were a limp ragdoll. Buffy held her ground though, turning to Faith. "Now!" she cried.

Faith charged forward, impaling the sword through the demon. It let out one last cry as Faith pulled the sword out. The demon landed with a thud, dead. Giles sat up, gasping while Buffy leaned down to gently help him to his feet. "Are you all right?" she asked him gently while Faith dropped the bloody sword and moved to kick the demon, checking to make certain it was really dead. "Are you okay Wil?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Willow said, stepping into the light. "The sh-shaking is just a side affect of the fear."

"If it wasn't for that clouding spell--" Buffy started.

"Yeah, it went good!" Willow said, her voice still slightly high-pitched. "Nothing melted like last time."

Faith glanced around the cave, almost pensively. "These babes were wicked rowdy. What's their deal?"

"I wish I knew," Giles said, a hint of bitterness in his voice. "Most of my sources have dried up."

"I don't think mine would help me anymore either," Buffy said, her own bitterness in voice as she glanced around. "Well, as long as you're all okay, Giles, Willow and... where's Xander?"

From underneath a pile of rubble in the dark corner, Xander emerged, looking shaken but uninjured. "I'm good," he said, kicking aside a bit of metal twisted around his ankle. "We're fine. Just a little bit dirty." He continued to move his way toward the group, stumbling slightly and wincing when he looked up into the light. "Good show, everyone. Just great." And just to prove his own competence, he tripped over his feet, but recovered quickly.

Buffy and Giles exchanged a quick glance.

"I think we have a hit!" Xander said, recovering, flashing the tiniest of a thumbs up.

"Are you okay?" Willow asked, not really sure whether or not Xander was okay.

"Tip-top, really," Xander said, rather unconvincingly. "If anyone just sees my spine lying around, just try not to step on it."

They decided them to burn the three demons, even as Willow quipped she'd brought marshmallows. As they left the burning cave behind, Buffy pulled Giles aside. "I can't pretend that wasn't fun," she said, her voice a little sad. "I can't believe I just gave all of that up."

"You acting rashing, Buffy," Giles admitted, "but you were well within your rights as a human being."

"Giles, I don't know if I can turn anything around or bring anything back," she said, her voice tight. "I don't want to go back. I want to learn more. Now that I have another family out there, Giles, I want to learn more about them.  But... from a distance. I can't just walk away now, with the Mayor and this and everything."

"I understand," he said as they continued walking into the sunset. "But you have to realize Buffy that sooner or later the Council will realize that you have been helping out here. They won't be pleased and they will make you suffer."

"D-Do you want me to just walk away?" she asked, her voice shaking slightly.

"Not now," he said gently. "Those demons were just the beginning, I'm afraid. I'm sorry I hadn't trained you both to deal with such creatures. Perhaps this is one of the factors that went into the Council's decision to have me fired."

"I quit because they had you fired," Buffy said, giving him a small half-smile. "I think I have you beat."

"A lot of bloody good that did," Giles said, anger in his voice now as they approached Sunnydale. Faith and the others were about a quarter mile ahead and talking about what they needed to do next. "I'm not going to pretend we don't need you here, but if you stay, you risk getting yourself deported or worse. The last thing either one of us needs is for you to be put in danger. If anything should happen to Faith, the Hellmouth would be left defenseless."

"I'm well aware of that," Buffy said, crossing her arms as they walked into town. "I don't want this any more than you do, Giles. I'm not even sure why I came tonight. Maybe it's because I thought I could redeem myself in your eyes."

"You have nothing to atone for," Giles reminded her. "I'm not the one you fired. And I'm not the one that let you quit."

"I did it for you, partly," she said, giving him a small smile. "But I did it for myself, too. I really hope Faith knows what she's in for."

Giles shook his head in bewilderment. "So do I, Buffy. So do I."

- - - - -

"The end of the world?"

Even the words echoed on Buffy's tongue as she stared at Giles incredulously. Faith stood to her right, her arms crossed, her own mouth echoing the same words.

"Can they do that?" Faith asked, trying to understand what Giles was telling them. He left the book cage and walked over to the checkout counter, where he'd placed the materials he'd been researching.

"They seem fairly committed," he said, turning back to stare at both Slayers. "The Sisterhood of Jhe is an apocalypse cult. They exist soley to bring about the world's destruction," he said, handing Faith one book and lying one open on the table for both to see. "And we have not seen the last of them. More will follow." He gazed at them both, the seriousness of the situation starting to sink in for both of them.

"I know I'm no longer your official Watcher, but I fully intend on staying here to the end," Giles said, the comment directed at Faith.

She gave him a quick smile. "Thanks, Giles." Her eyes then swept to Buffy, who was shifting uneasily again. "What about you, B?"

"You got me," Buffy said with a tense expression on her face. "I'm not the type of girl who can resist the apocalypse." She turned back to Giles. "Do we know why they're here?"

A very dark expression crossed his face as though he were reluctant to reveal what he knew. "They intend to open the Hellmouth."

"The Hellmouth..." Buffy echoed, her eyes widening in horror. "You mean, the one that opens--"

"About twenty feet from where you're standing," Giles said, his voice completely devoid of emotion now. Buffy and Faith both turned to stare at the Library table and chairs. Buffy paled visibly, but Faith turned back, looking almost excited for the challenge.

"Oh, my God," Buffy moaned. She turned to Faith, who had finally realized the danger of the situation and blanched.

"We'd better get the gang together and get into researching this, eh?" Faith asked.

"You're the boss," Buffy said and Faith grinned. "But I'm going home. I don't think Mom will understand that I'm out doing the Slayage and I'm not technically one of you anymore. Good night."

Without another word, she left them behind.

The following night, Buffy sat next to Willow in the Library, deep in research mode. Giles was pacing back and forth, cursing out the Council for not even taking his calls. Willow tried to console him by saying they had more books to go through, but this made him even edgier. Not wanting to stay around all of this tension, Buffy rose to hit the streets.

She decided to hit Willy's first but found the place trashed and ripped apart. Cowering underneath his own bar counter was Willy, looking as though he'd been literally tossed from one end of the room to the other.

Buffy gasped and ran to the phone, dialing 9-1-1. After she'd put the phone down, she ran to his side and bent down, gently cupping his face in her hand as she checked to see if he were still alive. He groaned, his eyes opening slightly and, upon seeing a Slayer, he groaned again. "Tonight," he moaned, his eyes starting to roll into the back of his head. "Tonight it'll happen."

"Tonight?" Buffy gasped.

He nodded, painfully. "Before sunrise. That's what they said."

"Why did they do this?" Buffy asked, gesturing around the trashed bar.

"They were looking for Angel," he said, his voice cracking slightly as he slumped even further.

"Angel?" Buffy breathed, searching Willy's face for clues. "Why?"

"They said they were coming after you, too," Willy replied, gazing at the Slayer, his gaze blurred and unfocused, "and nothing could stand in their way because tonight was the night..." His voice died out as a wave of pain and nausea hit him hard. He coughed, choking up the blood he knew he was internally bleeding. "Oh, man!" he wheezed, his voice getting even weaker.

"The ambulance is on its way," Buffy said, trying to console the man.

"Look kid," he said, attempting to focus his attention on her again. "My clientele isn't exactly nuns and orphans, but I never seen anything like these demons."

"I'm gonna stop them," Buffy said, promising this to both herself and to the barkeep. Even though she wasn't under Council orders anymore, there was no way she could walk away from this now. The entire world would fall in a matter of hours of the Hellmouth were to open.

"That Hellmouth opens..." Willy choked, gagging, "they're gonna be the least of your problems is my train of thought." He gazed at her, his eyes very serious. "If I were you, I'd be thinking about how I'd want to spend my last night on Earth."

The wail of a siren told Buffy the ambulance had arrived. She turned back to Willy and hesitantly patted his shoulder. "Don't worry, Willy. I'm not going to walk away from this one." He gave her a brief smile before his eyes closed and he lapsed into unconsciousness. "I can't just walk away from this. No matter what they might do to me, it'll be a cold day in Hell before I walk away."

She rose and left as the paramedics entered. she stayed until Willy was safely in the ambulance before turning to walk back towards the school.

Tonight. The apocalypse was happening tonight. They had no time to contact the Council and tell them any of this information. If Faith were to fight this alone, she'd be dead. She needed both Giles and herself on this.

She walked past the school, instead deciding to check on Angel. If the Sisterhood of Jhe had paid him a visit, she wasn't sure if he would be dead or alive. She stopped first at a payphone and quickly dialed the extension to the Library. Willow picked it up on the first ring. "Hello?"

"Wil," Buffy said, trying to keep her voice strong. "Is Giles back?"

"Yeah," Willow said, turning the phone over to the former Watcher.

"Giles?" He quickly replied. "I've got some news. They're coming tonight."

"I... Buffy... are you sure?" Giles asked, his shock evident even on the other end of the receiver.

"They broke up Willy's place," Buffy said, swallowing hard. "H-He said they were coming after Angel. I need to check on him, Giles. Call Faith. And see if there's anything you can do to seal the Hellmouth before we get there."

"We'll do a spell," Willow said in the background. "It'll be all right, Buffy."

"I'll be back soon," Buffy said, hanging up the phone without saying goodbye. She continued walking until the mansion came into view. Climbing the stairs, she knocked, hard. Angel opened the door, his face serious.

"Buffy."

"We have to talk."

"I know." He held open the door for you.

"I just back from Willy's," she said, her voice shaking. "He said they would come after you."

"I took out two of them on the road," he said as she followed him by the fireplace and they both sat down. "It's serious, Buffy."

"Willow's going to work on a spell to bind it," Buffy replied. "And they've called Faith." She still hadn't told him that Giles had been fired and that she had quit the Council. There would be time enough for that later. "Oh! I don't know what to do," she cried, jumping to her feet.

"Then let me decide for you," he said, turning on her. "I can face this thing."

Buffy shook her head, not believing what she was hearing. "You can't."

"Look," he said, almost angrily, "I can at least buy you enough time for Willow's spell to bind it." He reached for her face, his hand trembling, a lost hint of emotion in his tone. "Buffy, this is worse than anything we've ever faced. This is the only way."

She was crying now, large tears rolling down her pale cheeks. "I can't watch you die, again. I'm not going to let you die. If I did, it would be worse than killing you. And you would never come back."

"Nothing can change how I feel about you," he said, pressing his hand against her cold cheek. "Not even death."

"Don't talk to me like that!" she shouted, leaping away from him, horror flashing in her eyes. "You may be ready to go, but I'm not ready--" Her voice cut off as the tears overcame her voice. "I just can't..." She took a deep, shuddering breath. "This is my fight... and if you won't do it my way, then you're not going in there."

"If I don't, then everyone dies," he said, walking away from her, his hands deep in his pockets. "And the world will fall. This is the end, Buffy. This is really the end."

"I'm feeling rebellious," Buffy said, trying for a short smile. "Of course it's the end. Pity it didn't happen a few days ago."

"What are you talking about?" he asked, noting a dark look in her eyes. He didn't like it and he wondered if she noticed it was there.

"Nothing that can't wait," she said, glancing back up at him. "If you're coming with me, we'd better go. We don't have much time."

They arrived at Sunnydale High at the same time Faith did. She looked ready to roll, although there was a different look in her eyes. "You ready to rock?" she asked, holding the doors open as both Buffy and Angel walked through.

"You know me," Buffy said as the three marched down the hall. Faith kept looking at her. If the world wasn't in peril, she would have definitely asked about Buffy's situation. They all trooped into the Library as Giles was reading from the Hebron's Almanac and chanting in Latin.

The ground began to tremble. One by one the floorboards wrenched loose. Lightning appeared from nowhere, streaking back and forth across the Library as a dangerous, multi-headed creature rose up, growling.

"Oh, my God," Buffy gasped, bringing a hand to her throat.

"Oh, my God," Giles replied, his hand tightening over his weapon. "It's grown."

One by one, they all entered the fray, attacking the large demon.

- - - - -

Buffy Summers stared at her front door as she limped down the driveway, cradling her arm, which had been broken during the attack. She looked up, her vision blurring as she stumbled, falling onto the steps of the front door.

Joyce, who had been watching from the front window, pulled the door open and gently helped her daughter inside. "Buffy... what happened to you?"

"Apocalypse," Buffy gasped as Joy eased her down onto the floor. To Joyce's surprise, Buffy was in tears. Joyce didn't have the heart to repeat a phone message she'd received less than ten minutes ago. Bending down, she wrapped her arms tightly around her own daughter, feeling as though she should be grateful her daughter was alive, even after fighting yet another battle of impending doom.

Buffy smiled as Joyce hugged her. She felt as though she were being hugged as a mother would hug her daughter. In the back of her mind, Buffy wondered if she would feel the same way if her true birth mother held her the same way Joyce was holding her now. "Do you have... any bandages?" she asked her mom in a tight voice.

"Is your arm broken?" Joyce asked in mock horror.

Buffy nodded as Joyce ran up the stairs. Once inside the bathroom, she pulled out an old splint and a first aid kit. She turned and stared back down the dark hallway, biting her lip. She had to do it. Buffy had to know.

When she returned downstairs, Buffy had eased herself into a dining room chair, wincing in pain as she cradled her arm. "Buffy," Joyce said gently, beginning to wipe off her face with a towel. "The Council called about fifteen minutes ago. They told me that you'd gone ahead and disobeyed a direct order."

"I'm not even paying attention to who they are anymore," Buffy said, her voice strong as she stared at her mother. Joyce looked seriously worried as she gently bandaged Buffy's cheek. "What is it, Mom?"

Joyce smiled at the word before continuing on. "They told me that if you ever went into another battle with their Slayer again, they would deport you. And God knows what else, those bastards."

Buffy blinked away, chuckling half-heartedly. "I guess I should have known it was coming," she replied, her voice getting tight. "I'm so sorry... but I just couldn't walk from this one. I can't just stay here and watch my friends die."

Joyce hugged her again, feeling her daughter's pain. It was bad enough they were willing to deport a true Summers girl, but the fact that they were ripping her child from her was too cruel. Far too cruel.

And yet she knew that this battle had only begun.

- - - - -