Giles was panting, and sweating profusely. He had thought he was in pretty good shape but this – this was just too much. They had been training for 3 hours now, and Buffy didn't even look flushed. Rather – Giles blinked – she looked bored.
"Well then, you've done well, extremely well, I might add. I think we can finish training for today, and tonight, we go looking for your first vampire. There should be quite a few around, it's May dance in the park."
"Okay. I'm shower-bound. See you at dusk."
Giles watched her leaving, then turned towards the darker shadows of the library.
"Am I right? Is she ready to face her first vampire?"
Angel stepped out of his hiding place.
"Will she ever be? She is strong, and fast, and she enjoys fighting."
"I take that as a 'yes'?"
"This town is on the hellmouth, Rupert, and we need the slayer. I can't take them all, and neither can you."
"I know, Angel. You did so much already. You killed the Master after – " Angel cut him short, knowing how painful this memory was for the watcher.
"It will be different this time. She can do it."
Angel had known that something wasn't right when he met her, the first Buffy. He had been living in Sunnydale for a couple of years then, following Jenny's call as a teacher at Sunnydale High. Jenny had been a gift of heaven for the tortured vampire. Before he met her, he had roamed the streets without purpose, goal or interest in life. Jenny had been researching her family history then, coming upon the bizarre story of a vampire cursed with a soul by her great-grandmother. When she found un-living proof of that story, she took upon herself the responsibility to finish her ancestors' work and turn the monster into a man. She soon found help in the form of Rupert Giles and his mission: to train a teenage girl into a superhero and help her save the world from apocalypse, time and again. They gave Angel a purpose. The first Buffy had been nice, and had had a great sense of humour. She had never been too thrilled with the thought that she alone should stand against the forces of darkness. "It's great in theory, but as a lifestyle, it sucks," she used to say. Angel shook himself out of his memories, but couldn't stop the words tumbling from his lips: "Rupert – what went wrong then?"
"It was a simple, very stupid mistake. The council had advised me to go to Sunnydale and look for a girl named Buffy Summer. The council seer had received visions designating her as the chosen one."
"So they just gave you a place and a name?"
"Yes, that's how it has been done for centuries. How could we fathom two girls, with the same name? Yet, I should have known. She was so – mortal."
Angel looked at Rupert's sad, resigned face. "But she was brave."
Buffy walked out of the school into the bright sunshine. Training hadn't been as rewarding today. She had lacked concentration, all the time feeling a tingling sensation and the feeling of being watched. Also, she had outmatched Giles after the first week of training. It was time for a real challenge. Buffy smiled to herself, Wow to the new me: all fighty and slay-y Four weeks ago, she had been a normal girl pondering her choice of college, now she was Supergirl. But most surprising was how well it had all turned out. When she had called her dad to say that she would need to spend some more time at "Cathy's", he had confessed having an important business trip to attend. Then she had called her mother and confessed being lured to Sunnydale by a friend she had made on the bus. When Buffy mentioned Sunnydale, Joyce was all excited: "Is it nice there? Oh Buffy, could you check out the art gallery there? A couple of years ago, they were looking for a shareowner. Chicago is soo cold, I really should have taken their offer then."
Buffy had then explained about her new friends who were helping her preparing for Sunnydale University. Joyce had secretly been worried about her daughter who had seemed so uncertain in planning her future life, and now she was glad to find her suddenly full of purpose.
So she had moved to Sunnydale. She would move on Campus when her courses started, but until then she was staying with the Giles's. She had become good friends with the 'library gang', as Buffy had come to call the circle of demon fighters. Willow was the best friend any girl could dream of, supportive, enthusiastic and always willing to help her out. Xander was nice, too, but a bit too keen for Buffy's taste. He would be a much better friend with a girl to keep him in check. Cordelia was sure cut out for the bitchy-girlfriend-part, but she was obviously much more interested in that Angel guy. Buffy smirked. He claimed to be Jenny's cousin, but something about him creeped her out. It was the same feeling she had just experienced in the library, as if he had been watching her spar with Giles – eww!