Don't get spoiled and expect two chapters a day. lol. I just did it 'cause I had extra time.
"Spikey." Drusilla lay on the floor of the warehouse, gazing at the dark ceiling. "It's raining sparks tonight."
"No, Dru. It's clear, a dry May day."
"But, Spike, they're dying! Can't I get the last bit? The crumbs left for the mice?" She was persistent.
"What is it, Pet? A vision?" He got up.
"Languages…they're talking nonsense, William, babbling on and on." She grasped her head angrily. "Make them stop." She whispered as she pulled her knees close.
"You want to look at the stars, love? I'll bring you the sun." He smiled as he sat next to her.
"A large ratty rock - a cat waltzing, waltzing, on the pond. Too large to be a pond." She confused herself as she bobbed around.
"Is it a lake?"
"Yes, with fishes. Fishes with great large jaws."
"Where is this rock, dear heart?"
"A man, he's chipping away at it. Chip." Then she smiled and began to laugh. "But there's a toy surprise! A large doll." Her smiled turned into a large open grin. "Spike, will you get me the doll? I would name him Charley, after that boy I ate last night." She bit her lip.
"You want a dolly, darling?"
"Yes. Yes, I do."
A Museum curator examined as one of his employees dusted off a large box like rock. There were many inscriptions.
"Hello?" Giles entered politely.
"Rupert Giles?" The curator went to greet him.
"Yes." Giles replied simply.
"Doug Perren." They shook hands, awkwardly. "Thanks for coming."
"Oh, not at all. It's... flattered to be asked." Giles blushed modestly.
"I spoke with Lou Tabor at the Washington Institute, and he told
me we had the best authority on obscure relics right here in Sunnydale."
"Oh..."Giles laughed "He may have, uh, exaggerated a little." Giles saw the rock and began another sentence "Ah, is this the..."
"This is our baby." Giles and Doug walked closer. "Construction workers dug it
up outside of town. Don't have a clue what it is. Any ideas?"
He touched the exterior and began. "A few. None I'd care to share
until I can verify" He noticed the writings on it "You have, uh, carbon dated
it?"
"The results'll be back in a couple of days. I'll go out on a limb
and say old." Doug guessed.
Giles smirked. "Um, yes, it, it certainly..." He picked up a jar and scraper.
"predates any, uh... settlements we've read about" He pointed at a place on the rock."Um,
may, may I?"
"Yeah. Sure."
Giles leaned in and began to scrape at the corner of the obelisk,
catching the debris in the jar. He dug into an apparent groove. A few
scrapes later he stopped and tapped the scraper clean on the jar.
"I assume you've, uh, you haven't tried to open it."
"Open it?" Doug was surprised at the suggestion.
He leaned over to see what Giles has discovered.
"Ah, I'll be damned. I figured it was solid. What do you think is
in there?" Doug smiled.
"I don't know." Giles said as he stared at it.
"Well... I guess we won't know until we open it up."
"Yes, but could I ask, um... would you wait? I, uh...
I'd like to work on translating the text. It-it-it might give us an
indication of... what we'll find inside." Giles considered it.
"You don't want to be surprised?" Doug raised his eyebrows.
"A-as a rule, no." He sighed as he rubbed his glasses.
"Alright. You're the expert. But I'm pretty damn curious, though." Doug settled on Giles' decision.
"Yes. Yes, so am I."
"Gawd! My French exam about killed me!" Buffy exclaimed in the hallway.
"Did it have fangs?" Xander asked quickly.
"No?" Buffy replied with a strange glance at Xander.
"So studying at the Bronze tonight?" Willow asked almost rhetorically.
"Totally." Buffy said without reserve. "I am study girl tonight."
"Are you sure you'll actually be studying?" Willow said, doubt apparent in her tone.
"Yes! I will study! With five minute dance breaks every twenty minutes. But still, grinding the math into my head."
"Angel-age?"
"Maybe. It was kind of a 'I might be there' thing." Buffy shrugged. "Oz playing?"
"His heart out!" Willow exclaimed. "He's debuting a song he wrote for moi' tonight."
"Excited much?" Xander immersed himself in the conversation again.
"Yep. Song dedication, big thing." Willow motioned.
"Uber-yay for Wills." Buffy smiled. As they walked past a class room, she stopped in her tracks. "This is where I get off, English, exam over Tale of Two Cities." She said confidently, then paused. "Wait, did I read that?" Buffy panicked and ran into the classroom.