A New Beginning –by NearlyHeadlessNic.
Author's Note: Some one asked how did Hermione and Harry got accepted into UC Sunnydale when there wouldn't be any record of them going to a muggle school. Well, can we just say they wangled their way into it for the sake of the story. Thank you for who ever brought it up. I love that, because I won't end up with plot holes (even though I just have)
Oh, and I'd just like to say that I am from merry old England, so if Buffy speaks wrongly…just tell me and correct me.
Chapter three --- Giles' Secret.
As always, the front door of Giles' apartment was unlocked. Buffy turned the handle and entered the living room with no trouble at all. Giles looked up from the couch and took one more sip of his cup of tea. He stood up to face the Slayer.
"News Buffy?" He asked.
Buffy opened her mouth and then closed it again, obviously pausing and thinking about what she about to say, "Well, not exactly trouble." She said vaguely.
Giles looked curiously at Buffy, "Not trouble, but something else?" He inquired.
"Sort of. Last night I was patrolling the campus and this gang of vamps were closing in on this couple. I went to dust them, but the couple helped me…I guess"
The Watcher was confused, "What are you trying to say?"
"This guy and girl, they had these sticksand did some serious magicks with them. They dusted two of the vamps. Plus when I talked to them, the girl, Hermione, she automatically knew I was the Slayer. The guy, Harry, just stood in awe about it." Buffy explained, "I just thought you ought to know."
Giles' eyes widened when he heard the names Harry and Hermione, he thought for a while. Then got up and moved to one of his weapons trucks, opened it and fiddled within it, evidently looking for something.
"Giles, what are you doing?" Buffy ask intrigued.
"Those sticks you saw them holding and performing magic," He pulled out a long box of out the trunk, closed it and waked back to his desk. Buffy stood beside him, "What did it look like?"
Buffy shrugged, "I don't know, thin, wooden, shiny."
Giles opened the box and lifted a 15inched willow wand with a unicorn hair core before Buffy.
"Like this?" he asked. Buffy simply nodded. "Right, can you get these two people to come here this afternoon with you. I think we need to talk."
Although confused about Giles' request, Buffy was going to follow it through anyway. She understood that all would be explained later. She walked back to Stevenson Hall and back to her dorm, as she had to get her notepad and books for Psych class, which was in twenty minutes. She collected her bag from her room and locked the door behind her. The guy next-door was coming out too. Buffy furrowed her eyebrows, she could only see his back, but she thought he was familiar. He turned to lock his door, as she did and Buffy realised who it was, Harry.
"Hey, I didn't know you were the boy next door." Buffy smiled. Harry turned and laughed.
"I didn't realise you were the girl next door."
Buffy saw the books that Harry held. They were the same ones that Buffy carried in her bag. "Your taking Psych?"
"I'm going to try," Harry answered.
"Yeah, Professor Walsh isn't afraid of the big words." Buffy joked.
"Agreed." Harry said as he lent on the wall casually.
"So is your girlfriend taking Psych too?" She asked.
Harry looked confused, "Girlfriend?"
"I assumed you and Hermione…"
"No, were just best friends," Harry declared, "And, yes she is taking it."
Just then, Hermione walked up the corridor looking for Harry only to find him chatting up a girl. But as Hermione approached closer she realised that it was Buffy, from last night. Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
"Hey," Hermione greeted the pair. "Was I interrupting anything?"
"No, nothing." Buffy said innocently, "Actually I need to talk to both of you."
"Why?" Harry questioned.
Buffy lowered her voice so it was no more then a whisper, "I talked to Giles, my Watcher about what happened last night. He wants to talk to you two. Don't ask me about what though, but I think it's pretty big."
Hermione was suspicious, but the chance to meet a Watcher, an actual Watcher, was not a chance to miss.
Harry wasn't sure either, would this Giles guy know who he was? Know of the Wizarding World? But then again, he'd met the Slayer last night. Someone he was sure to be a myth or folklore, despite Hermione's constant blabbering that she does actually exist. Harry's was willing to take a chance on the girl
"Sure," Both Hermione and Harry said in unison.
"Great, we'll go after Psych." Buffy proposed.
Giles sat at his desk with a pensive look on his face, studying his long wand that his was holding in his hands. So long he had been keeping it all a secret, away from his Slayer and her friends that he had become so close to over the past three years.
When Buffy retold the story of who she met the previous night, Giles hardly believed his ears. Everyone knew of the story of the fall of Lord Voldemort. It may all be a big coincidence, but every thing just seemed to fit – it was too big of a coincidence to be a coincidence.
The names Harry and Hermione weren't to common, were they? Well, Harry might be, but Hermione no. But the fact that they were friends holding wands, much like the one Giles was holding now and carefully caressing the wood, was just too accidental.
The door opened and Buffy walked through with two other young individuals, one a slim girl with long bushy hazelnut hair, the other a man with unruly raven coloured hair and, more noticeably, a thin lightening bolt shaped scar on his forehead.
So he was right, Giles was right in thinking that Buffy met the infamous Harry Potter and Hermione Granger.
"Giles, this is Harry and Hermione," Buffy introduced.
"Charmed, I'm sure." Giles replied, nodding at both.
There was an awkward silence, no words were spoken. Giles kept looking at both Harry and Hermione, his eye not accepting who was in front of him.
"So what's up Giles? Why'd you want me to bring these two here?" Buffy asked her Watcher.
"Oh yes," Giles turned to Harry, "How did you do it?"
Harry looked confused, "Do what?"
"Find all the Horcruxes, my research has only gone so far, showing there's one from to do with each house of Hogwarts. But where were they?" Giles asked eargerly.
"Wait a minute, how do you know about them? Who are you?" Hermione questioned.
"My name is Rupert Giles, I am a wizard, I went to Hogwarts, I -," Giles was cut off abruptly by Buffy.
"You're a wizard! Since when? And why haven't you told me? It's not like I'm important to the world, I'm only The-Chosen-One after all."
Giles inhaled a large breath and turned to Buffy. "I am a wizard, yes Buffy, I have been since I was born and the reason why I didn't tell you was because of the research I was doing for Albus Dumbledore."
"You knew Dumbledore?" Harry inquired.
"Yes, he was my headmaster from my third year onwards at Hogwarts and founder of The Order of the Phoenix, which I was a member from the very beginning." Giles paused, "Now can I ask a question?"
Both Harry and Hermione nodded.
"Why are you both here in California? Away from your family and friends in England. You have just defeated the most powerful wizard of all time and now your living as muggles and going to a muggle university. Why?"
"Muggles?" Buffy asked the three English folk in the room.
"Non-magical people like yourself." Giles answered, still looking at Harry and Hermione.
"Wait, Will is a witch and she doesn't have one of those stick things." Buffy stated.
"No, Willow is what we," Giles indicated himself, Harry and Hermione, "would call an Earth Witch. She wasn't born with the magic we have, but has learnt to use and invoke magic for her own and others benefit. And also, these are called wands." Giles explained, picking up his own and passing it to Buffy who analysed it cautiously.
"A wand?" she asked incredulously. "Like magicians?"
"No, not magicians" Harry answered, grinning and laughing.
"A wand channels a person's magic," Hermione began, "When you cast a spell, the magic is directed through it." She explained.
Buffy nodded and passed the wand back to Giles.
"Thank you Buffy. Now, back to my question. Why are you here?" Giles directed at Hermione and Harry.
"We got sick of it, sick of the newspapers and magazines hunting us down." Harry said.
"We gave one interview, but they were hungry for more." Hermione added.
"We had to go into hiding eventually." Harry included, almost hating the words he was saying.
"I had an idea that we'd go muggle for a while. Let the world's hyperness die down before we go back. Coming to America seemed a good thing to do. We didn't think we'd find another wizard, let alone the slayer." Hermione finished looking at Buffy.
Buffy was somewhat confused. The English double weren't exactly who she thought they were, Giles knew who they were. And Giles was a wizard. This just didn't make sense.
Author's note: There's chapter number three. Review please, all types welcome.