Summary: Yet another Halloween fic.
Disclaimer: I own... hmm. I own nothing. The bank owns any money I make, at the moment.
Feedback: Why not? It helps me write more and better...
Pre-fic Comments:
I'm surprised I haven't gotten any flames about this... maybe I'm not trying hard enough.
* * *
"Okay," Xander said to his two co-conspirators, "wish me luck."
With that, he sauntered into the Library, looking for Giles. He found the aging Englishman stacking books on a shelf at the back of the raised section.
"Hey, G-man," Xander said.
"Don't call me that, Xander," Giles said out of habit. "What can I do for you?"
"I'm doing kiddy escort duty tonight for Snyder," Xander explained, "and I need ideas for a costume. Could I borrow some of your books, go as a demon or a black mage or something? You know, as an attempt to make this kinda less painful than it already is."
The Californian was pretty sure that the Watcher would have a hissy fit at this.
"A-A-Absolutely not!," Giles sputtered. "My books are for research in, into demons and vampires! Not for teenagers to use as fashion inspiration!"
Behind Giles, Xander could see Willow and Buffy sneaking into his office.
"You sure?," Xander asked. "I wanna dress as something different to everybody else."
"There are plenty of things you could costume yourself as," Giles said, frowning slightly. "Here."
He pulled a book by H Rider Haggard from the shelf. "You could go as Allan Quartermain, for instance. A hunter and adventurer into the darkest parts of unknown Africa."
"That guy from the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen?," Xander asked. He wasn't really interested in anything Giles had to offer -- he doubt G-man would want to piss off Snyder. "I didn't know you read comic books."
"Er, you what?," Giles blinked. "This is a wellknown book, a classic, and existed long before any comic books."
"You mean you haven't experienced the joy that is the American comic?," Xander asked, genuinely horrified. He was glad he had been volunteered as the distraction -- he hadn't known that Giles was so desperately deprived. "Look, I've got some old issues of the Uncanny X-men. I'll bring them tomorrow for you to read, okay? Heck, I've even got a copy of From Hell -- I'm sure you'd get a kick out of that."
Giles didn't really want to read any comic books, but also didn't want to be rude to Xander and alienate him. "Er, alright. But please bear in mind what I said about my books and costumes?"
"Gotcha," Xander said, saluting him. "Well, I'm off to Ethan's Costume Shoppe, then. Thanks for the advice!"
Giles waved back as the teenager left the Library. "But I really didn't offer that much advice..."
* * *
"Miss Edith needs her tea."
Spike's head turned from a videotape of the Slayer in action. He always had time for his Drusilla.
"C'mere, poodle."
"Do you love my insides? The parts you can't see?"
"Eyeballs to entrails, my sweet. That's why I've got to study this Slayer. Once I know her I can kill her. And once I kill her you can have your run of Sunnyhell. Get strong again."
"Worry... everything is switching. Outside to inside. They're all on their side..."
"Really? Did my pet have a vision?"
"Do you know what I miss? Leeches."
"Come on, talk to daddy. What is this thing?"
"Tonight."
"Tonight's Halloween. Nothing happens on Halloween."
"Someone's come to change it. Someone new."
* * *
Ethan Rayne frowned as another puerile American brat bought yet another rubber demon mask. Really, none of these plebians had any imagination at all. He was, frankly, surprised that this country managed to put a man on the moon and develop Teflon.
He looked up as a boy and two girls accosted him. Rayne obediently put a charming smile on his face. Perhaps they wouldn't be quite so shallow.
"How can I help?," he asked.
"We're looking for some parts for our costumes, and they're... unusual," the short blonde said. She had the air of a leader about her.
"I'm looking for some me-sized batwings, horns, tail, leather pants," the boy said.
His imagination boggled. "Might I enquire as to what you're wishing to appear as?"
"An incubus, kinda like this one."
The boy pulled a dusty old tome out of his bag, opening it to a large picture of an incubus, dressed in leather pants and very little else.
"Well, well...," Ethan said. "This has been the most interesting request I've had all day."
"So you can't do it?," the boy asked, dejected.
"Not at all," Ethan replied. "I can do it indeed. In fact, I'm willing to give you a discount for making my day interesting. If I might ask, where did you get that book?"
"We kinda borrowed it from Giles," the blonde said nervously.
"Giles?," Ethan asked. Surely not...
"Rupert Giles," the redhead answered. "The school librarian. He's kinda into this demony stuff."
Oh, this was too rich. "Ah, Giles is an old friend of mine. I insist upon a discount for friends of his."
"Cool!," the blonde said. "I'm after some bodypaint, red contacts. I want to look like snake lady here."
She turned the book to another picture, of a scaled woman with slitted eyes and forked tongue.
"And I want some fangs, and pointy ear things," the redhead asked. When Ethan turned to look at her, she reddened. "I'm going as an elf that Lestat caught up with... and I'll be quiet now."
Lestat... oh. That series of books. Well, another type of vampire in Sunnydale should make things interesting. "Give me half a minute, and I'll get those items for you."
He ducked out to the back room, taking the opportunity to strengthen the spells on the items they wanted by about a hundred times. Ethan had never quite forgiven Ripper for abandoning him for the Watchers.
And one good turn deserves another.
* * *
Later that night found the three getting changed at Buffy's house.
"Come on," Buffy shouted at her mum's guestroom door. "If me and Willow are going around in bikinis, you can go around in leather pants."
Xander opened the door. Wow... Buffy hadn't realised that Xander had developed muscles.
"Wow...," Buffy said. "What's the problem?"
Xander held up the two leathery wings. "I can't glue these on -- they go right where I can't reach."
"Okay," Buffy sighed. "I'm coming in."
Xander stood in the middle of the room, watching Buffy's actions through the mirror on the dresser. She opened the tube of glue, then sneezed.
"Fumes much? I don't believe this."
"Well, it's no good if they fall off," Xander reasoned. "Thank God the tail is sewn to the pants."
"I dunno," Buffy said as she applied liberal amounts of glue to Xander's back, and to where the wings anchored onto his back. "If the bottom half of you looks half as good as the top half, I wouldn't mind."
"Ha, ha," Xander said slowly. "Xander Harris, free peepshow to Slayers."
Buffy smacked his leatherclad butt once, lightly. "You better believe it. Now hold still while this glue sets."
He obediently remained motionless as Buffy held the wings in place. "Does your mother know about this?"
"Nope," Buffy replied. "I think that she still thinks we're going as pirates."
"Well, that explains why we're getting away with this," Xander said. "If Snyder was any more intelligent than he is, he'd be making us dress as what he wanted us to."
"Okay, the glue's set," Buffy said. She pulled on one of the wings experimentally, to see if it was attached firmly.
"Ow!," Xander complained. "You're pulling at the skin on my back when you do that."
"Sorry," Buffy said, quite obviously not sorry. "Well, you've done your horns yourself."
And so he had. The short, two inch long horns poked through his fringe of hair at the front, having used the same glue. The effect was quite demonic, and also quite hot -- if it wasn't for the fact he wasn't setting off her Slayer scope, she'd probably either be attempting to chat him up or kill him.
"You guys done?," Willow asked, entering the room. She was dressed in tight black pants and a bikini. Her hair was dyed blue, and she had attached the ear tips and the fangs. Her face was also quite pale.
"Wow, looking good Wills," Xander said, giving her a thumbs up. "But how did you get your face so pale?"
Willow's mouth fell open as she looked at Xander with all his costume on. "Wow... that is so cool, Xander."
"Talc powder," Buffy answered. "You'd be seeing a face as red as her normal hair other wise. I'm pretty much done."
The Slayer was wearing the same clothes as Willow, and had a pair of fangs as well. Her skin was painted green, with lines indicating snake scales. The effect was quite good.
"Are you three ready to go?," Joyce called from the kitchen.
* * *
Post-fic Comments:
Do you think they'll catch hell from Joyce? How many more times worse will it be from Snyder?
And will the paling effects of the talc powder hold out against the Blush of Doom?