I have no idea who came up with the name Linda Pryce as the name of Faith's watcher, but it seems to have become a common enough usage. So, thanks and credit for that are yours.
"Now that was unexpected," Xander sighed, shaking his head to clear his thoughts. He then turned with a smirk to the others, "And so endith the demonstration." Willow looked a little confused.
"Um, ah, Xander," she began, embarrassed and blushing, "What was the green light thing?" He looked at her confused, not expecting that question as he was unsure if he'd seen it himself.
"I'm not entirely sure, Wills," her best friend and now (?) answered her, "But I'm thinking other thoughts right now." She blushed deeper red and buried her face in his chest as he led her back to the group.
"As you may have noticed," Xander smiled a little tiredly, "There've been a few improvements, but I'm hungry. Doyle, you grab the cashbox this time?" The man held it up. "Cool," Xander continued, opening it, handing Cordelia a couple hundred for her costume and stating as much, then to the group as a whole, "Late diner, anyone? Ethan's buying."
"You okay, Xan?" Dawn asked as the three left the costume store for the umpteenth time, "You've been kinda off lately, since the, you know?"
"Hmm, it's not you Dawnie, really," he replied, "I guess I'm just starting to fray around the edges…okay, more than I have, but this is me, not the other memories. I like some of the things we've been doing and learning, but I guess I've finally started feeling trapped, kinda like that bad guy in that Eddings book of yours, where the Troll gods keep him in the same instant forever."
"It's been three weeks since we last went out, and your training's not seemin' to suffer, Xander," Doyle remarked, "Is there anything we can do?"
"I don't know," Xander responded, "Just suddenly not feeling at a hundred percent. So, what do we need now?"
"Oh, I stopped at the fix it shop, and they're going to put up a Thor's Hammer for us." Xander stopped dead in his tracks.
"You are obsessive about the show, aren't you?" Xander gaped, "But good thinking if it works."
"Hopefully, it's why I left all that material with Rayne; I'd finally gotten the designs I sprayed on it right, so I'm thinking we all at the first hint of magic stand under the thing."
"Cool," Dawn added, "But how did you pay for it all? We didn't do a money transfer this reset."
"Oh, I just grabbed Ethan's cashbox while you two were talking to him," Doyle responded, "That's why we need to go pay the fix-it guys now. I'll drop you off and handle things.
Elsewhere, Elsewhen
"Brother, did you feel that?" the female Oracle asked, concern showing.
"Something's shifting…at the Hell Mouth," the male considered, "And some of the other realities are starting to seep over and back
Doyle put the 'Hammer' in the back of the car; it was nearly time to be in place when he swerved and missed a concerned-looking English couple talking to Mr. Giles. With some time to spare, and because Rupert had never left the Library before, he pulled to the side of the street and called out, remembering that Giles didn't know him yet in this Reset.
"Hello, Mr. Giles is it?" Doyle called out, and the three English looked up at him, questioningly, "I'm Xander's Uncle Doyle, and heading to the Library. Need any help?"
"No, er, thank you though," Giles responded, "We're heading to an early dinner."
"Alright, I'll let him and the other…Scoobies…know," Doyle replied as he drove off.
HOW DA-A-RE YOU LAY Hands on… the woman next him began, Teal'c believing her at first to be goa'uld before she collapsed. He picked himself up from the ground, and came face to face with another Jaffa.
I am Bra-Tac of Chulak, young Jaffa in Tau'ri service, the individual addressed him, And what do you call yourself.
I am Teal'c, false one the former Prime declared, assuming a defensive posture with his staff, carefully stepping from under the structure, noting its resemblance to Thor's Hammer on Cimmeria. Pausing, he turned fully to the staff-holding man, This is a device of the enemies of the Goa'uld. I would aske a few questions, and other answers to yours, as I believe this device might not only have removed the symbiotes from our bodies, but altered us as well. The body I am in feels merely human, not Jaffa, and I have never before been of fair complexion.
Very well, agreed Bra-Tac, also noting the body difference, It is interesting to be free of the False Gods, though disconcerting. They exchanged questions and answers to the satisfaction of the other, then clasped wrists in satisfied greeting. Teal'c moved to the girl, dressed as a False God but after gently carrying her through the device, postulated she also was free of a parasite. He tapped her face lightly to bring her to consciousness.
Where? she began, then looked startled at the emblem of Apophis' First Prime on a young man dressed like a Tau'ri, Who are you and why are you dressed like Dan'yel?
Do you speak of DanielJackson of the Tau'ri? Teal'c replied, I am Teal'c.
The Sholva, she declared, causing him to grimace until he quickly realized it was said in tones of hopefulness, How did you free me of the Evil One Amonnet?
We do not know how we came here, but this device Teal'c said while gesturing, seems to have removed our larvae as well as your possessor. We are free and apparently healthy, though we also do not seem to be in our original bodies.
Teal'c my old student, the other man broke in, Perhaps we should find cover and determine our situation. I'm noticing that down this… road there seems to be either a small riot or other disturbance.
This seems much like a Tau'ri settlement, the younger Jaffa considered, Perhaps we should witness and perhaps offer assistance in exchange for information.
"Lead on, my friend, the 'older' man directed, You have more experience with regular humans than I.
Two minutes later, the three 'aliens' came upon a disturbance involving two males, three females and a varied group of eight things attacking them. Teal'c and Master Bra-Tac raised their staffs and fired from thirty feet away into the three largest of the aggressors, creating howls of agony from the burning holes that in a moment killed two and scorched the other. Firing again, the beast went down as they charged to the rescue. Two men in black leapt out at Sha're Jackson as she tried to keep up with the Jaffa, causing her to call out.
"Teal'c assist the wife of your ally," the Master cried out as he pushed his new body to incredible maximums, "I'll defeat the others!" Using the two heaped demon bodies as leverage, Master Bra-Tac somersaulted into the air and over the older-seeming people holding their attackers back with sticks of some variety as the red-haired girl whirled a sword against three more to protect a cowering human woman wearing huge mound of cloths.
Swirling staff ends left into the side of a knee, up and right into a jaw, Bra-tac pressed between the two to rap each atop its skull before turning to attack the rear flank of the red-head's three. Striking end into the side of a skull, kick to the back of a knee, two things fell to the ground, tapping them each again in the head, he noted the red-headed human girl had rendered unconscious her opponent as well.
Not much of a fight Bra-Tac remarked as he saw Teal'c and Sha're walk up, Hmm?
I was forced to use my staff weapon on each, they were quite strong, the Jaffa responded, And when I did manage solid shots, they turned to dust. He turned to the shocked Tau'ri, addressing them in their own language, "I am Teal'c and this is Master Bra-Tac and Sha're Jackson, I hope we did not offend you by offering assistance without entreaty."
"Quite alright, er, yes," Giles began, "It appears that somehow people have, have become their costumes. The larger beings are as they appear, but the smaller ones you rendered merely unconscious are actually children."
"How may we be of assistance to you?" Teal'c asked after a nod from Bra-Tac., "Such a one as to cause this is without honor and must be neutralized."
"Yes, er, perhaps we should try to determine a common denominator," Giles replied.
"Perhaps if you made use of your Yellow Pages you could find a seller of costumes and work out from there?" Teal'C offered, "I have seen you Tau'ri many times make a telephone call to determine such. I believe they call it dictionary assistance."
"Directory assistance, actually, but excellent idea," Giles said, and after handing change to him gestured for Wesley Wyndham-Price to head over to the pay phone as they checked on Buffy and introduced themselves, including Linda Pryce. The young man returned a moment later, a paper in hand.
"If it is indeed a local phenomenon, there are only two current stores that specialize," the Watcher-in-Training informed hem, "A place called Party Town, and another called Ethan's." Giles started and paled slightly before showing anger.
"Ethan's?" the man remarked, shades of Ripper coming out, "If it's bloody Ethan Rayne, as I believe it could be, that's our first stop. Did you get an address?" Wesley nodded, "Let's go, then."
Ten minutes later, the group found itself outside Ethan's shop to find the door open. Bra-Tac and Teal'c entered first, careful of possible attackers or traps, but found none. Pressing into a backroom, they found three people watching what appeared to be a large television of some kind.
"Spike!" Giles gasped as he entered the room, eyes showing fear and resolve, "Ethan!"
"Hello, Rupert," the chaos mage smirked, "Just me and a couple of restored humans watching the fun?"
"Fun?" Giles began to rage, "Children are dying!" Teal'c and Bra-Tac tensed and readied their staff weapons. Ethan's eyes widened as he realized his magic might soon backfire on him…literally.
"And?" Ethan said, "How do you know I'm responsible?" He received many glares, "Alright, it was I." Giles was about to strike the man but a staff weapon end cracking a kneecap floored the mage with a scream. His two guests screamed and ran for the back door. Teal'c ran to intercept, knocking over a glowing icon on his way over. He fired one last shot, grazing the male vampire in the ass, starting a small fire soon put out. Suddenly, with a crash, the magic of transformation went away. Drusilla and Spike ran now at vampiric speed, surprising Teal'c/Doyle enough that he slowed, his staff turned back into a toy.
Xander/Bra-Tac turned to the gathered others, smiled, and headed over to loot Ethan's remaining cash while removing much of his costume's bulkier aspects. He grabbed wood staves from a shelf, tossed one to each person, "In case of more vampires…" The group nodded in acceptance of the statement.