In the darkness of the night at Sunnydale high school in the science room, a fist punches through a windowpane and reaches in to undo the clasp. It's a boy and a girl, sneaking into the school.
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" The girl asked.
"it's a great idea, now come on," The boy told her. They crawl in. They come out of the classroom and walk down the hall.
"Do you go to school here?"
"I used to. On top of the gym, it's so cool. You can see the whole town," The boy continues down the hall, but the girl stops him close to the intersection.
"I, I, I, I don't wanna go up there," She said.
"Aw, you can't wait, huh?" He asked.
"We're just gonna get in trouble."
"Yeah, you can count on it," The boy told her.
They almost kiss when the girl startles, draws a quick breath, and turns her head around to look down the hall.
"What was that?" The girl asked with fear in her voice.
"What was what?" The boy asked her.
"I heard a noise," She answered.
"It's nothing!" He told her.
"Uh, uh, maybe it's something," The girl insisted.
"Or maybe it's some THING!" He teased her.
"That's not funny."
The boy looks down the other hall, "Hellooooo!" He turns to the girl, "there's nobody here."
"Are you sure?" She looks around with her back turn to him.
"Yeah, I'm sure," He answered.
"Okay," She turns back to him all vamped out. She growls and bites him. He grunts in pain as they sink to the floor.
Rowena awakes from her nightmare and shoots up in a cold sweat. Salem, her black cat, jumps up on the bed, and Rowena pets him as she takes deep breaths to calm herself.
"Something bad is going to happen, Salem. I just know it," She said.
Rowena walks down the hall of Sunnydale High School when she saw a girl bump into Buffy, making Buffy lose her grip on the bag and spill its contents. Rowena knew that Buffy was the slayer and the reason she was drawn to Sunnydale. Rowena continued her walk down the hall passing Buffy and Xander.
She went to the teachers' lounge and printed some things for her classes before going into her classroom and sat at her desk as her students come into the room. When the bell rings, everyone is in their seat.
"Alright, class. Today we're learning about the black death," Rowena writes "black death" on the chalkboard and then turns to the class, it's estimated that about twenty-five million people died in that one four-year span. But the fun part of the Black Plague is that originated in Europe how? Jennifer?"
"By bacteria and carried by fleas on rodents," She answered.
"Correct. As an early form of germ warfare. If you'll look at the map on page sixty-three you can trace the spread of the disease into Rome, then north and this popular plague lead to what social changes? Steven?"
The bell rings and the students get up to leave. Rowena's eyes followed Buffy as she left the room with Cordelia
At the quad at school, a black cat approaches Williow, who is sitting on a bench in front of a wall taking out her lunch and meows to get her attention. Willow looks down at the black cat, who was meowing before rubbing against her leg.
"Hello," Willow said to the cat before he jumped up on the bench. She inspects the collar around his neck and saw a round silver ID tag with a Triquetra engraved on the front and a name on the back, "Salem? That's a cool name."
Buffy approaches Willow, but she doesn't notice as she looks down at Salem and pets him.
"Uh, hi! Willow, right?"
Willow looks up and stammers, "Why? I-I mean, hi! Uh, did you want me to move? Or is this your cat?"
"Why don't we start with, 'hi, I'm Buffy, ' and, uh, then let's segue directly into me asking you a favor," She sits next to her, "It doesn't involve moving, but it does involve hanging out with me for a while. And no this isn't my cat"
"But aren't you hanging out with Cordelia?" Willow asked.
"I can't do both?" Buffy inquired.
"Not legally," She replied.
"Look," Buffy exhales, "I really wanna get by here-new school-and. . . Cordelia's been really nice. . . to me. . . Anyway, but, um, I kinda have this burning desire not to flunk all my classes, and I heard a rumor that you were the person to talk to if I wanted to get caught up."
"Oh, I could totallyhelp you out! Uh, if you have sixth period free we could meet in the library?" Willow suggested.
"Or not. Or we could meet someplace quieter. Louder. Uh, that place kinda gives me the wiggins."
"Oh, it has that effect on most kids. I love it, though, it's a great collection, and The new librarian is really cool," Willow told her.
"He's new?" Buffy questioned.
"Yeah, he just started. He was a curator at some British museum, or, or, The British Museum, I'm not sure. But he knows everything, and he brought all these historical volumes and biographies, and am I the single most dullest person alive?"
"Not at all," She assured Willow.
Xander hops onto the wall behind the girls and sits on it between them. Jesse stands in front of them and drops his bag.
"Hey!" Jesse greeted the girls.
"Hey, you guys busy? Are we interrupting? We're interrupting," Xander tosses his bag to Jesse. He then takes notice of Salem sitting next to Willow, "Whose cat is that?"
"Hey! It's not mine or Willow's. He just showed up," Buffy answered his question.
"Hey!" Willow greeted the boys.
"Hey there!" Jesse drops Xander's bag next to his.
"Buffy, this is Jesse and that's Xander," She introduced the boys to Buffy.
"Oh, me and Buffy go waaay back, old friends, very close. Then there's that period of estrangement where I think we were both growing up as people, but here we are, like old times, I'm quite moved," Xander said.
"Is it me, or are you turning into a babbling idiot?" Jesse teased.
"No, it's, uh, it's not you," He retorted.
"Well, it's s nice to meet you guys, I think," Buffy said.
Xander jumps down to retrieve the stake from his bag.
"Well, you know, we wanted to welcome ya, make ya feel at home unless you have a scary home…" Jesse told her.
"And to return this," Xander holds up a stake," The only thing I can think is that you're building a really little fence."
Xander hands the stake to Buffy and she takes it.
"Hah, no, um, a-a-actually it was for self-defense. Everyone has them in L.A. Pepper spray is just so passé," Buffy told her, trying to give a normal reason why she has a stake.
"So what do you do for fun, what do you like, what do you look for in a man, let's hear it," Xander said.
"If you have any dark, painful secrets you'd like us to publish?" Jesse added.
"Gee, everyone wants to know about me. How keen," Buffy voiced.
"Well, not much goes on in one Starbucks town like Sunnydale. You're pretty big news," Xander told her.
"I'm not. Really," She humbly said.
"Are these guys bothering you?" Cordelia asked, interrupting them as she walked up.
"Uh, no!" Buffy replied.
"She's not hanging out with us," Willow added, trying to keep Buffy in Cordelia's good graces.
Jesse stands next to her," Hey! Cordelia!"
"Oh, please!" She said to Jesse before turning her attention to Buffy, "I don't mean to interrupt your downward mobility, but I just wanted to tell you that you won't be meeting Coach Foster, the woman with the chest hair because gym was canceled due to the EXTREMEdead guy in the locker."
"What?" Buffy asked.
"What are you talking about?" Willow questioned.
"Some guy was stuffed in Aura's locker!" Cordelia restated.
"Dead," Buffy said.
"Totally dead. Way dead."
"It's not just a little dead, then?" Xander questioned, in a somewhat joking tone.
"Don't you have an elsewhere to be?" Cordelia asked, getting annoyed with him.
"Y'know, if you need a shoulder to cry on, or just to nibble on…" Jesse began saying to Cordelia.
"How did he die?" Buffy asked.
"I don't know," Cordelia replied.
"Well, were there any marks?"
"Morbid much! I didn't ask!" Cordelia exclaimed.
"Um, I gotta book. I'll, I'll see you guys later," Buffy looks at everyone before she grabs her things and leaves.
"What's her deal?" Cordelia asked, staring after her.
Salem jumps off the bench and runs away. He climbs up a tree before walking onto a branch and then looked into a classroom window. The classroom was empty except for the teacher, Rowena who sat at her desk. Salem then tapped on the glass and gained Rowena's attention.
Rowena snaps her fingers to open the window and Salem jumps into the classroom. Rowena stands up from her desk and walks over to the student desk Salem was sitting on.
"How was the scouting? Has the new Slayer discovered the boy from my dreams?" Rowena asked Salem.
"She is on her way to the locker room now, Rowena," He replied, with a British accent.
"Good. She'll be on her way to meet the Watcher soon and he has no doubt made his presence known to her."
"Do you think it would be best to inform the Slayer of who you are now?"
"No, I don't want to reveal myself yet. I want to see what heart this Slayer has before I do. That was a mistake that I do not wish to repeat, especially since it almost cost me my life and gave me a scar," Rowena subconsciously rubbed the scar on her forearm that was covered by her clothes.
That night Rowena disguised herself as a teenager with the help of a glamor. Her outfit is a red velvet long-sleeved off-shoulder shirt with straps, a black skirt that ended just above her knee, black thigh-high socks, and black buckle detail chunky-heeled Mary Janes. Her hair was a lighter shade and her face was a bit different to throw people off.
Rowena arrived just as Buffy walked up to the entrance. Buffy gave the doorman some money and walks in. When Rowena arrived at the entrance, she did the same thing as Buffy by giving money to the doorman before she walks in.
She makes sure to keep a good distance from Buffy to not raise any suspicions. The band, Sprung Monkey, is playing "Believe" loudly, and the dance floor is crowded with people. Rowena sat at the bar just as Buffy did to sit with Willow and made sure she could see them out of the corner of her eye. Seconds, after sitting down a young man walked up to her.
"Hey, you look so familiar. Didn't we take a class together? I could've sworn we had chemistry," He said, flirting with Rowena and wrapping an arm around her shoulder.
Rowena glares at the man and narrows her eyes, "Get your arm off of me in five seconds or you will lose it," She threatened.
The man looks at her with a nervous look before walking away. Rowena's attention returned to the two girls.
"Audire," Rowena spoke, enabling her to hear Buffy and Willow's conversation from a distance.
"Why not?" Buffy asked Willow.
"Well, when I'm with a boy I like, it's hard for me to say anything cool, or, or witty, or at all. I-I can usually make a few vowel sounds, and then I have to go away," Willow explained.
"It's not THATbad!" She stressed.
"No, i-it is. I think boys are more interested in a girl who can talk."
"You really HAVEN'Tbeen dating lately."
"It's probably easy for you," Willow said.
"Yeah, real easy," Buffy replied, looking down at her drink.
"I-I mean you don't seem too shy," She rephrased.
"Well, my philosophy, do you wanna hear my philosophy?" Buffy asked her.
"Yeah, I do!" Willow responded, enthusiastically.
"Life is short."
"Life is short!" Willow repeated.
"Not original, I'll grant you, but it's true. You know? Why waste time being all shy and worrying about some guy, and if he's gonna laugh at you. Seize the moment, 'cause tomorrow you might be dead," Buffy told her.
"Oh, that's nice!" Willow commented.
Buffy looked up at the upper level of the Bronze. Rowena followed the direction of her gaze and saw the Watcher.
"Um, I'll be back in a minute," Buffy gets up to go.
"Oh, tha-that's okay, you don't have to come back," Willow told her.
Buffy smiles and repeats herself, " I'll be back in a minute."
Buffy leaves Willow and goes to the upper level toward the Watcher, no doubt to have a word with him.
"Seize the moment," Willow said to herself.
Rowena left her seat at the bar and went upstairs to join Buffy and her Watcher, Giles. When she was on the upper level, Rowena made sure to keep her distance just as she did downstairs.
"So, you like to party with the students. Isn't that kinda skanky?" Buffy said to Giles.
"Oh, right, this is me having fun," Giles responded in a sarcastic tone, unknowingly, making Rowena laugh, "Watching... clown hair prance about is hardly my idea of a party. I'd much rather be at home with a cup of Bovril and a good book."
"You need a personality, stat!" She told him.
Giles points to the crowd below, "This is a perfect breeding ground for vampire activity. It's dark, it's crowded... Besides, I knew you were likely to show up, and I have to make you understand-"
"That the Harvest is coming," Buffy interrupted, "I know, your friend told me."
"What did you say?"
"The Harvest. That mean something to you?" She asked, "'Cause I'm drawing a blank."
"I'm not sure. Uh... W-who told you this?" Giles inquired.
"This... guy. Dark, gorgeous in an annoying sort of way," Buffy began describing the man who told her about the Harvest, "I figured you two were buds."
"No. The Harvest. Did he say anything else?"
"Something about the Mouth of Hell," Buffy replied, "I reallydidn't like him!"
The music from the band ends and the crowd applauds them. Buffy turns away from Giles and leans on the railing, looking down at the crowd. The band begins playing another song and the crowd dances.
Giles moves around Buffy, leans on the railing, and looks down at the crowd, "Look at them, throwing themselves about, completely unaware of the danger that surrounds them."
"Lucky them," She commented in an almost sad voice.
"Or perhaps you're right. Perhaps there is no trouble coming; the signs could be wrong. It's not as though you've been having the nightmares," Giles said.
Buffy grows silent in fear from what Giles had just said, knowing that her nightmares mean trouble is on the way. Rowena's mind goes back to the nightmares she had not too long ago of the boy and girl breaking into the school and the girl revealing herself to be a vampire before killing the boy.
Buffy and Giles continued with their conversation which had turned into Buffy telling him that she doesn't want to mainly focus on being the Slayer and that she wants to try to be a normal teenager.
"I didn't say I'd never slay another vampire. It's not like I have all these fluffy-bunny feelings for them, I'm just not gonna get way extracurricular with it," She told him, "You know, if I see one, sure I'll-"
"Will you be ready?" Giles questioned, interrupting Buffy, "There's so much you don't know about them, about your own powers. A vampire appears to be completely normal until the feed is upon them, only then do they reveal their true demonic visage."
"You're like a textbook with arms, I know this," She stated in annoyance.
"The point is, a Slayer should be able to see them anyway. Without looking, without thinking," He said, "Can you tell me if there's a vampire in this building?"
"Maybe…"
"You should know. Even through this mass and this... din, you should be able to sense them. Well, try! Reach out with your mind," Giles instructed as Buffy looks around, "You have to hone your senses, focus until the energy washes over you, until you, you feel every particle of-of-"
"There's one," Buffy interrupted.
"W-where?"
"Right there, talking to that girl," Buffy points over to the male vampire and girl with red hair. Rowena quickly realized that the girl is Willow.
"You don't know-"
"Oh, please! Look at his jacket. He's got the sleeves rolled up, and the shirt!" Buffy pointed out, "Deal with that outfit for a moment."
Giles examined the outfit for a moment before turning to Buffy, "It's dated?"
"It's carbon-dated," She stated, "Trust me, only someone living underground for ten years would think that was still the look."
"But you didn't... hone," Giles chastised her.
Buffy notices that the girl is Willow, "Oh, no."
"Isn't that-" Giles began before Buffy interrupted him.
"Willow."
"What's she doing?" Giles questioned.
"Seizing the moment," Buffy replied before she heads down to rescue Willow.
Rowena had already made her way downstairs before Buffy did and watched as Willow is being led out of the Bronze by the vampire. Buffy has lost them and she tries the back. Rowena made her way through the crowd and was able to keep an eye on Willow and the vampire. Rowena waits outside the Bronze for Buffy to appear and aid her in finding Willow. She soon spots Buffy walking outside, trying to find Willow.
"Hey, you're leaving already?" Xander said, walking by Buffy.
"Oh, Xander! Have you seen Willow?" Buffy asked, stopping Xander from walking away.
"Not tonight, no," He replied.
"She left with a guy."
"We're talking about Willow, right?" Xander questioned, "Scorin' at the Bronze, working it, girl-"
"No, I need to find her," Buffy interrupted before walking a few steps, "Where would he take her?"
"Why?" Xander questioned, following Buffy, "Oh, hey, I hope he's not a vampire because then you might have to slay him."
Buffy is taken aback as she stops in her tracks, "Was there a-a-school bulletin? Was it i-in the newspaper? Is there anyone in this town who doesn't know I'm the Slayer?"
"No. I only know that you THINK that you're the Slayer and the reason why I know that-" He began saying before Buffy interrupted him.
"Well, whatever, it doesn't matter, just tell me, where would Willow go?" She demanded.
"You're serious!" Xander said, with a shocked expression on his face.
"We don't find her and there's gonna be one more dead body in the morning!" Buffy told him.
Rowena walks over to them and acts as if she only heard a small portion of their conversation.
"Hey, did I hear you guys mention the name 'Willow'?" She asked.
"Yeah," Xander and Buffy replied.
"Does she have long red hair and dressed like she doesn't belong in the Bronze?"
"Yes. Did you see where she and the guy she was with went?" Buffy questioned.
"I saw them going that way," Rowena pointed toward the direction Willow and the vampire went, "I think they're heading toward the cemetery."
Buffy ran off in the direction of the cemetery with Xander and Rowena following close behind.
The three arrive at a mausoleum to find Willow on the floor of the mausoleum with Jesse, barely conscious. Two vampires were also in the mausoleum, one male and one female. Rowena recognized the female vampire from her nightmare.
"Well, this is nice. I-it's a little bare, but a dash of paint, a few throw pillows... call it home!" Buffy moves behind the coffin to draw the vampires away from the others.
"Who the hell are you?" The female vampire demanded.
"You mean there's actually someone in this town who doesn't know already? Whew, that's a relief, I'm telling you! Having a secret identity in this town is a job of work," She told the two vampires as they closed in on her.
"Buffy, we bail now, right?" Xander asked in a frightened tone. Rowena could tell that he was still having a hard time believing this was happening.
"Not yet!" The male vampire yelled at him.
"Okay, first of all, what's with the outfit? Live in the now, okay? You look like DeBarge!" Buffy mocked the male vampire. The vampires close in on her. She turns to the female vampire, "Now, we can do this the hard way, or... well, actually there's just the hard way."
That's fine with me," She replied.
"Are you sure? Now, this is not gonna be pretty. We're talking violence, strong language, adult content…" Buffy began before the male vampire roars from behind her.
She pulls the chair leg out from inside her shirt. He attacks from behind, but Buffy neatly jams the makeshift stake into his chest. He falls back and turns to ashes. The female vampire can't believe her eyes and neither can anyone else, except Rowena.
"See what happens when you roughhouse?"
"He was young and stupid," The vampire said to Buffy.
"Go!" Buffy yelled at Xander and Rowena.
"Don't go far!" The female vampire yelled at them.
Buffy and the female vampire start to fight. The vampire punches high, but Buffy blocks. Xander and Rowena help Willow pick up Jesse. Xander and Rowena carry Jesse out of the mausoleum and they start to run. They run past various tombstones and a few trees before they were almost out of the cemetery.
"We'll get the police, it's just a few blocks up," Willow said.
They are stopped by a group of vampires. The four looked around and saw they are surrounded by vampires, including the female vampire Buffy was fighting.
"Oh, crap," Rowena breathed.