The Circle of Scooby

by red-jacobson

The activation of the world's slayers has caused massive destruction throughout the multi-verse, and the Circle of Ouroborus is determined to prevent that happening and recruit three natives of the critical timeline to save the multi-verse!

7. Chapter 7

STORY TITLE: The Circle of Scooby

PART: 07 of ?

AUTHOR: Red Jacobson ( )

DISTRIBUTION: , Archive of Our Own, Twisting the Hellmouth

DISCLAIMER: None of the Characters You Recognize belong to me, the Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Angel Characters belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy (Grrr! Argh!), and the Boondock characters belong to the Estate of Robert A Heinlein and his publishers.

SUMMARY: The activation of the world's slayers has caused massive destruction throughout the multi-verse, and the Circle of Ouroborus is determined to prevent that happening and recruit three natives of the critical timeline to save the multi-verse!

FEEDBACK: Of course! It Makes Me Write Faster

RELATIONSHIPS: Xander/Cordelia/Tara

RATING: PG-13

WORD COUNT: 4,174

SPOILERS: A Crossover with RAH's Lazarus Long Books. I'm afraid that, while I'm going to do my best to explain things, at least a passing familiarity with Time Enough For Love, The Number of the Beast, The Cat Who Walks Through Walls, and To Sail Beyond the Sunset would help you understand who these characters are. None, but if you don't know how the Buffy the Vampire Slayer story goes by now, why are you reading this story?

CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE DEPARTMENT: I'm borrowing a bit of Cordy's childhood background from my buddy IronBear's stories, specifically Rio Blanco on the Mouth of Hell, and the Hell-er-nator Stories. If you want some amazing Xander/Cordelia stories, do yourself a favor and check him out!

A QUICK NOTE ON ANONYMOUS REVIEWS: It doesn't do either of us any good if you ask me questions about the story, but don't sign in so I can reply. The guest who left an unsigned review for the first chapter asked some fairly interesting questions about the story that I would have enjoyed discussing with him or her, but as it is, there's no way that can happen. So please, if you have questions or concerns about the direction the story is going, please do us both a favor and sign in so I can respond to you. Thanks!

SPECIAL THANKS TO PAX HUMANA: For Beta and Typo-busting services.

Spike and Drusilla's Lair

457 Crawford Street

Sunnydale, CA

Late Halloween Night

The minion trembled as Spike raged in front of him. He knew that Spike was going to be furious at the news but he couldn't get anybody else to tell Spike what he saw.

After cursing and swearing vengeance on everything and everyone in the universe, Spike started to calm down and said, "Alright, go over it one more time for me. What exactly did you see? And what did you do?"

The minion nodded and started talking, "I was coming back to the lair after trying to find you and could see Dru running in the middle of the street, screaming about burning. I started moving faster, so I could get her out of the street and get her back here, when a big car, a convertible came up behind her going really fast, and it hit her, knocking her under the car. I chased after them because Dru was under the car as it started swerving. By the time I was within 50 feet or so, the car left the road and crashed into a pump at the 7-11. The whole thing burst into flames and exploded. I hit the ground and was lucky that I was only burned on my back. I'm sorry Spike but there was no way I could have gotten her free before the fire got us."

Spike sat there staring at him, before putting a cigarette in his mouth and lighting it. He thought he was going to actually manage to walk out of there when Spike gave him a nod but then Spike was standing again, his game face showing, and he felt the claws of Spike's hand hitting his neck, and then he knew no more.

TCOS & TCOS & TCOS

Five minutes Later

Spike stared at nothing, still trying to understand how his Dru could have been taken from him, and by the whelp and his bitches. Oh, they were going to pay! How they were going to pay! He would break the mutt's back before using his favorite spikes to hang him on the wall. Then he would take both of his bitches, and all of his minions would take them, while he watched and couldn't do anything. And after all three of them were just about dead, he would dump them on the lawn of the Slayer's house and set them on fire. He was going to laugh as they burned, then the whole fucking world will burn!

Standing, he walked to the stairs to the dungeons. He was too angry to hunt and needed to work it out.

Looking into the pens, he spotted a teenage girl, dark haired and stacked. He saw her and immediately thought of the rich girl. Yes, she'll do just fine!

Reaching into the pen, he grabbed her by the hair and, when she was close enough, he ripped off the remains of her clothes. She was screaming in terror and pleading as he dragged her up the stairs to his room.

It took her nearly six hours to die.

TCOS & TCOS & TCOS

Sunnydale High School

Library

Saturday, November 1st, 1997

1:25 pm

"Now, Watcher, unlock your files and bring out everything you have on Heather MacLeod and her friends that called themselves the Misfits. I have a feeling a couple of people will find the information enlightening."

Giles had to admit he was taken aback by the venom in Principal Snyder's voice; it seemed far more personal than the almost indifferent malice the man displayed to everyone since he had taken Bob Flutie's place. He also did not like the casual reference to Patrick Remington-Travers, who had been a fairly well-respected Watcher until his disappearance.

He froze in place as he suddenly remembered when Remington-Travers had disappeared, as well as the entire team sent to perform the Tento de Cruciamentum on Heather MacLeod, the Slayer who was activated in Sunnydale. They had all either died or disappeared within 3 days of the Slayer's death. Forcing himself to move smoothly into his office, Giles realized that he was in extreme peril, and if he even attempted to contact the Council there was no doubt his body would never be found!

Contrary to what Xander and apparently Principal Snyder believed, he absolutely abhorred the way the Senior Council Members treated the Slayers and was already planning ways to make sure Buffy survived her 18th birthday. He couldn't say anything here, because the Principal wasn't the only one concerned about being monitored, but maybe, with the help of Snyder and whoever his allies were, they could find a way?

Finding the copy of Remington-Travers' Watchers diaries, he scanned through the first one, covering his contact with Miss MacLeod. His eyes widened as he saw her initial reaction to being told to keep her calling a secret from her friends. He couldn't imagine the man appreciating being told, and he quoted her directly, "Blow it out your Limey arse, Sassanach! My friends have had my back since I was 6 years old and I trust them a fuck of a lot more than some cock washer from who knows where. You can accept that my friends are going to know everything or you can try to cause trouble. If you do that, you'll find out what being arrested and deported from the US of A, never allowed to return, feels like. Your move, English."

While part of him was appalled at the way the girl spoke to the Watcher assigned to guide and assist her, a much larger part, the part who delighted, along with Ethan and the others, in tweaking the noses of pompous authority, wanted to cheer the girl on!

With a grin at her audacity, he continued reading, until he came to the names of Heather's friends and support group. His grin dropped when he recognized several of the names, starting with Tony Harris and Jessica Stein and Paul Stein, who was Jessica's brother, and now a detective with the Sunnydale Police Department. Romulus Snyder was no surprise but seeing the name of Charles Chase made his eyes go wide. It was no surprise when he found that the group referred to themselves as 'the misfits' since Principal Snyder had already identified the name of the group.

Taking the journal to the copier in his office, he made copies of the first pages and, with shaking hands, he moved to the last entry, which confirmed that the man had injected his Slayer with the necessary drugs. There was no entry beyond that, and the team sent to investigate wasn't able to find any sign of the man. Copying that page as well, Giles was struck by a sudden inspiration, and wrote on the top of Xander and Snyder's copy, "Please help me save her!"

Grouping the copies together, he walked out of the office and handed Xander and Principal Snyder their copies first, because he put the page with the message on top. He didn't stop to look at their reactions as he handed out copies to Buffy, Willow, and Miss Chase. Even though Xander vouched for Miss Maclay, he didn't know her and this didn't really apply to her, and Jenny seemed to be more interested in the girl as a practicing witch. Giles admitted he was curious as well because she would be an asset to the group. If he managed to retain any influence over any of them when they finished reading.

Sitting down at the end of the table, Giles looked up and his eyes met the Principal's, who seemed to be measuring him, before giving a short nod. Turning to Xander, the young man stared at him, before the ice-brown eyes warmed again and he grinned. With a mental sigh of relief, he sat back and waited until Xander and Miss Chase came to the information that would surprise them.

TCOS & TCOS & TCOS

Rom was honestly surprised, and rather impressed, that the Watcher actually asked for his help and seemingly Tony's boy's help in keeping his Slayer alive. If it was a legitimate request, and something told him that it was, the man could possibly be turned into an asset, if not an ally, when the time came to explain everything.

But that could wait, he was watching Harris and Cordelia for their reactions. He wasn't disappointed when first he and then she slammed the papers down with identical expressions of disbelief, Harris looked up and stared at him, "Are you shittin' me? Them, and you? And these other two? What the fuck happened?"

But Cordelia's reaction was more interesting, she gasped and went pale before she steeled herself and said, "Actually, Xander, I believe him. I just remembered something, a picture that Daddy had in his office of him with his friends in High School, and there was a couple there that looked a lot like your parents, and now that I'm thinking about it, I recognize the other two as well.

"I found Daddy staring at the picture once, and it looked like he was crying. I didn't understand, I couldn't have been more than six but I asked him why he was crying and he showed me the picture. He pointed out a red haired girl who was standing in the middle of the group, a smile on her face. Daddy said her name was Heather and she had been one of his best friends all through school. He said that it was the anniversary of the day she died. He didn't say any more and I didn't see the picture again."

Rom leaned forward, "There is a lot of history to be told but it's just for the two of you right now. I'll be in contact with you to tell you what I can. But, and this applies to all of you, I will not look, act, speak or treat you any differently once I walk out this door. And you must not, if you value your immortal souls, act any differently around me, or refer to me acting differently, no matter how safe you think you are. You don't understand, yet, just what a risk I'm taking breaking cover like this, although I suspect, based on Mister Harris' comment, he might have a very good idea who the local adversary is?"

The young man nodded and held out three fingers against the table before retracting them. Rom gave him a nod as well in return but nobody else seemed to notice. Turning to the librarian, he said, "Leave the CD player in here when you leave, I'll pick it up later."

Standing, he made sure his mask was in place until he was outside the library and heading toward his office. Putting a scowl on his face, he stalked through the halls until he reached his office. He could think about how to tell the kids the whole story later. Right now he needed to see if anyone besides Jess and Tony had replied. It would be good to have them back in the game and the rest of the misfits would offer the help the two of them refused before.

TCOS & TCOS & TCOS

Xander looked around at the others and saw the same shock on Cordy, Tara, Willow, and Buffy's faces that he was sure was showing on his. Giles and Jenny didn't seem to have any reaction and Angel was curious but not very much so. He shook his head, "Okay, that was something I never expected but I can't deal with it right now, okay? Cordy and I will talk, since we were the ones directly affected."

Grimacing, he continued, "I'm not going to be using names, and I don't want any of you to use names either, but I can confirm that he is correct about the enemy and, if he suspects anything, being killed is the least of our worries. But for this year, last time it was Angelus, but hopefully we've avoided that. I need you, Angel, and you, Giles, to keep an ear out for rumors that the statue of Acathla has been found or that attempts are being made to put the Judge back together. I'm planning on removing Spike and Dru before they contact the Terrakans because we had to deal with three of them attempting to kill Buffy." He grinned at Cordy, "Of course, according to the memories I was left, it was while the two of us were escaping from one of the assassins that Cordy and I kissed the first time, so it wasn't all bad."

Cordy grinned back, and Buffy rolled her eyes, but Willow looked stricken. Deciding to give his best friend a break, he said, "Will? There's somebody that you will meet fairly soon, and the two of you will be very happy together for quite a while, so don't worry. Cordy and I are together, but you'll always be my Willow, even if you keep breaking Yellow crayons."

Willow giggled, and her expression lightened up. Turning to Buffy, he said, "Buff, sometime in the next few weeks, an old friend of yours from Hemery is going to show up suddenly. His name is Billy Fordham and he's not what he seems. I'm not going to lie, he's in a really bad situation, and I'm going to talk to him, to see if there's anything worth saving. If there is, I'll do my best to help him. I can't promise anything."

Buffy had lit up at Ford's name but subsided glumly when Xander finished. It couldn't be helped. If Ford was redeemable, he'd figure out how to get him to Boondock to be treated and have his memories adjusted.

"Giles, I wasn't kidding about that tattoo on your arm, the Sleepwalker is going to wake up very soon, and he's going to kill all of your old gang, except for Ethan. You need to find a way to break the connection all of you share with that thing, okay? I've heard of something called a 'Ritual of Disavowal' but I don't have the knowledge of anything more than that. I hope you can find something."

"Janna, secrets get people killed, if you are serious, tell him everything you can. I've done what I can to short-circuit your reason for being here, so there's no reason to keep the secret."

Jenny had gone pale when he used her true name, while Giles and Angel stared at her, Giles in surprise, but Angel was looking angry. "Hey! Angel, what they did to you was over 75 years before she was born. You want to get angry? Fine, but get angry at those who deserve it. She doesn't even know why she is here, she was just told to watch for certain things and report to her uncle. She wasn't the one who cursed you, so lose the anger, okay?"

Looking around at the rest of them, Xander stood, "I'm sorry, I can't deal with this right now, I'm still trying to deal with the bombshells that he dropped on us earlier. Cordy? Tare? Let's boogie. Guys? I'll talk to you when I've dealt with things."

The two girls followed him out of the library, leaving the others sitting silently.

When they got to the parking lot, Cordy squeezed his hand, "Where do you want to go, babe? My parents are still in New York but I'm planning to have quite a conversation with him when they get back."

He shook his head, "Actually, I think I need to try and talk to my parents, to see what happened. And then, the three of us need to evac to Boondock to get help dealing with this crap, and maybe finding a way for Tara to get through the changes quickly."

Tara gave a bitter laugh, "That would be appreciated, it took every ounce of concentration to keep from reacting to what he had to tell us, when I just wanted to curl up and cry hearing about what happened to Heather, and that Giles knew it was being planned for Buffy."

Xander shook his head, "Don't write off Giles yet, he put a note on the copy he handed me, asking for help to keep Buffy alive through it. If he's serious, then I'll help him as much as he'll let me. Including locking Travers and the watchers he brought with him into the house with Kralik and setting it on fire!"

Cordy nodded, "We'll be right beside you, you know that. But, do you want Tara and I with you when you meet with your parents? For emotional support if nothing else."

He looked at the two of them, and nodded, "Everything inside me screams to handle this on my own, but I know better. Please. It would help for the two of you to be there with me."

Tara and Cordy both hugged him before they got into the car.

TCOS & TCOS & TCOS

The Library

A few minutes later

Buffy sat, the damning page in her hands, and she didn't know what to do. She'd trusted Giles, she'd trusted him, and that bastard was planning on drugging her to see if she survived a vampire without her powers! How could he? No! No, she couldn't take this, she had to get out, get away, she couldn't breathe, no, she didn't want to die, maybe Xander would help her?

She stumbled to her feet, barely registering that Giles was reaching for her, she shoved him away, "NO! Stay away from me! I won't let you kill me, I'll kill you first! Gotta get out of here! Xander! Where's Xander? Gotta get to him, gotta get out of here!"

She was still yelling and crying as she ran out of the library, blinded by tears, she stumbled toward the exit to the parking lot, hoping to catch Xander. When she got to the parking lot, she looked around desperately for Cordelia's car but there was nothing there, no sign of her car or even any tire tracks that she could follow...

She fell to her knees, still crying, until she heard Willow's voice, and felt her friend's arms around her, and she clung to Willow, as the rest of her world fell apart around her.

Eventually, the tears stopped and she hugged Willow, "Thanks, Will, I needed that. Now, let's go find a bathroom, I need to clean my face, then we can gorge ourselves on ice cream, what do you say? I really don't want to be alone right now."

Willow forced a smile and nodded, "Whatever you need, Buffy, whatever you need."

Climbing to her feet, Buffy wiped her eyes and walked back into the school, making sure she stayed far away from the library.

Washing her face and doing her best to repair her makeup, she wondered just how many more shocks she was supposed to take? Finding out that she and Angel had no chance of anything was rough but she could deal with it. She wasn't happy but she could deal. And then finding out that the Watchers, who were supposed to be the good guys, wouldn't have a problem killing her friends, or even her mom if they were in the way? She was still trying to deal with that, when those damned journals and what Xander and Principal Snyder said became just too much. She knew that there was always a chance that a vampire or demon could get lucky some night but to die because Giles stripped her powers away? In the name of fucking tradition? Hell no! She didn't even want to try and deal with that, her anger just might keep her alive.

TCOS & TCOS & TCOS

Giles groaned as he grabbed the chair and pulled himself off the floor. He landed heavily in the seat and reached up to touch his jaw. It hurt like hell, but at least it didn't seem to be broken, thank heavens!

He looked around and saw Angel staring at him in disgust, which just added to the pain he was feeling. How low do you have to be when the Scourge of Europe looked down on you?

Forcing himself to speak, he opened his mouth and gagged, tasting blood on his tongue. Reaching for his handkerchief, he tried to spit the blood out of his mouth, only to feel a tooth coming along with it. He was trying to wipe the blood off his lips when Jenny approached him, some wet paper towels in her hand. He sat back and closed his eyes, letting her fuss over him as he tried to find something to say that would help.

When she was done, he tried to smile but it hurt too much. Looking back at Angel, he managed to croak, "I would never have gone through with it, and I asked Xander and our guest for their help to avoid it. But how do I get Buffy to believe me?"

Angel shrugged, "I honestly don't know, Giles, but I'd try to find a way. I'll stop by her house later, tell her what you said, but other than that, it's up to you. Now, if you don't mind, for the first time in years I feel the need to get blind stinking drunk and try to forget this whole day!"

With that, the vampire stood and stalked into the stacks, heading for the sewer entrance.

Jenny looked at him sadly, and said, "Come on, English, let's go back to my place, I've got a first aid kit and a couple of bottles of good booze. We need to have a serious conversation, and I'm far too sober for that right now."

He nodded, "I think that's a damn good idea, getting bloody legless won't fix the problems, but at least I'll be too drunk to care and tomorrow I'll hurt too much."

TCOS & TCOS & TCOS

Boondock

Time Corps Headquarters

Mission Central

Time Immaterial

Commander Dejah Thoris Burroughs-Carter, known to one and all as 'Deety', reached for the connect button as it started flashing red. She frowned, wondering what had gone wrong with the Sunnydale mission?

"Mission Control, Commander Carter, do you need assistance?"

"Hell, yes, we need assistance!" Cordelia's frantic voice came over her headphone, "We need an immediate extraction for five of us. Xander's gone catatonic, and his parents are hysterical. Tara and I are barely holding it together, but we need help, ASAP!"

Pressing the button to alert Jake and Sharpie, Deety said, "Hang on, Cordy, help is on the way. It should be there in 3, 2, 1, Now!"

"They're here, we'll see you soon!"

End Chapter Seven

I told you things weren't always going to go our heroes' way, didn't I?