Coricopat looked up from the books he was sorting as the two of them entered the library, "Oh, good evening you two, I hadn't expected to see you here tonight. Is there something I can do for you?"
"Yeah, I ran into a couple of vampires. Well, one really. The other one, Jerrie I think his name was, just sat in the shadows and ignored it when the first one called for help. Told me he'd see me Saturday." Grids rattled off.
Cori's brows rose as he set the books down and went to locate titles more necessary to this current search, "Jerrie you say?"
"Yeah. You know him?"
"Not that I recall. I'll see what I can find," the librarian replied.
Mistoffelees shifted. "Right, well, is there anywhere you want me to start looking?"
Cori offered him a slight smile, "There's a couple of volumes in the book cage that may be of use. I'll go fetch the things out of the stacks."
"Alright," Mistoffelees managed, going to the cage and fetching the books.
Coricopat came back down from the tacks, setting the pile of books in his arms on the table and beginning to skim through them. "Do you think perhaps Mac might know who he is?"
Grids shrugged, "He might. I haven't seen him for a few days."
"You guys have got to like exchange numbers," Mistoffelees said from where he was already opening a book.
"Either way, I'm sure this Jerrie isn't any worse than the others you've faced. You'll be alright." Cori reassured as he continued thumbing through the books.
Mistoffelees glanced up, pausing. "By the way," he said, "Here's your thermos back."
The librarian glanced up, offering him a faint smile, "Thank you."
"Sure," he murmured, before turning back to the book, flipping through the index. "Do you think Jerrie might be short for something?"
"It's certainly probable. I don't see it being his actual name. It's also entirely possible that he went by a different name at one point," Coricopat responded. "What did he look like?"
"Average height, skinny, red hair, green eyes, long coat," Grids answered.
"Did he have any hints to a nationality?" Mistoffelees asked.
"British," she replied, firmly.
"You're sure?" Cori asked.
"Yeah, I'm sure."
"Alright, well that might help me look," Mistoffelees said. Coricopat nodded his agreement.
Glancing up to ask a question, Mistoffelees nearly fell over when he saw Mac standing in the doorway. "I-ya, hi."
Cori looked up, "Oh, Mac. Hello."
Grids turned in her chair, offering him a bit of a smile, "Hey, where were you earlier?"
"Where was I supposed to be?" he asked.
"Well, Misto and I were at the Bronze. I thought you said you might be there."
"You said you weren't sure you were going," he said, looking confused as Mistoffelees smiled and went back to the book.
"I was being cool. You've been dating for what, two hundred years, and you don't know what a girl means when she says maybe she'll show? Come on Mac..." She smiled, shaking her head at that.
Cori bit back a chuckle, still perusing the books. "Wow," Mistoffelees said, blinking slightly. "Two hundred years of dating. If you only had two a year..." he paused and suddenly shut up. "So, do you know of a British vamp called Jerrie?"
"Excuse me?" Mac said, suddenly, snapping his head over to stare at the teen, the motion too abrupt for him not to have recognized the name.
Coricopat looked up at that, "Jerrie. Apparently British. You said red hair and green eyes, Griddlebone?" She nodded.
"Jerrie? British? Long black coat?" Mac asked, suddenly intent. "Cocky attitude?"
Grids nodded, "Yeah that sounds like him."
"Do you know him?" Her watcher asked quietly.
"Yeah, he..." the vampire paused. "He's harsh. Once he starts something he doesn't stop, until everything in his path is dead."
Grids sighed, "Great."
"Does he happen to go by any other names?" Mistoffelees asked.
"Mungojerrie," Mac replied.
"Great, thanks," Mistoffelees said, flipping through the index. Coricopat skimmed through the volumes he had, searching for the name.
Grids glanced up at Mac, "How do you know him?"
The space where Mac had been standing was suddenly empty. "I am putting a collar with a little bell on that guy," Mistoffelees said.
Grids sighed, resting her chin in her hand, "I'll help."
Mistoffelees handed her a book silently. She pulled the book over, starting to see what she could find.
o.o.o.o
Humming to herself, Cassandra looked over her collection of dolls that leaned against a wall of the old warehouse. They were old dolls, straight out of the Victorian era, and she turned one to face the wall. "Miss Edith speaks out of turn. She is a bad example and shall have no cake today," the vampire declared to the other dolls.
Jerrie approached her quietly from behind, sliding his arms around her waist and resting his chin on her shoulder, murmuring, "Cassandra, are you gonna eat something?"
She leaned back against him, shifting her shoulders slightly to find the most comfortable place. "I'm not hungry," she pouted. "I miss Prague."
He sighed, "You nearly died in Prague, Cass. That idiot mob...this is the place for us. The Hellmouth'll restore you. Put color back in your cheeks, metaphorically speaking. And in just a few weeks..."
"The stars will align and smile down on me!" she declared in a sing song voice, throwing her hands up and fluttering them back down.
He grinned, "And then, God, this town will burn."
"I like fires, they're pretty," she hummed.
"But baby, none of that's gonna happen unless you eat." He motioned to one side of their room where the girl who was supposed to be Grids' partner for parent night was chained and gagged.
Cassandra looked the girl over and pulled Jerrie with her to settle on the bed, glancing up as she could hear the other vampire's chanting. "They're preparing."
Jerrie settled next to her, nodding slightly, "St. Vigeous is coming up. Should be a party. And I need a party. Man, I'm restless. Can't wait to ice that Slayer."
"You should go cleanse with them," she said suddenly.
"Cass..." He sighed, starting to shake his head.
"The boy doesn't trust you, and they follow him," she said, before pulling back slightly and looking over her long brown hair. "Sometimes I think all my hair is going to fall out."
He ran a hand over her hair, "Never happen." After a moment he rose again, "Alright, I'll go get chanty with the fellahs, but you have to do me one favor." He grabbed Sheila, handing her to Cassandra, "Eat something, Princess." Offering her one last smile he headed upstairs.
Cassandra accepted the human, turning to the dolls. "See, Miss Edith? If you'd been good you could've watched with the rest," she said before burying her fangs in the girl's neck.
o.o.o.o
The next day, the dreaded day of Parent's Night, the gang was in the library, most of them working on stakes or research. Grids was off to one side, working on chopping carrots for parents' night, glancing at the progress the others were making form time to time.
"Do you think Shelia will actually show?" Mistoffelees asked, glancing up from his book and trying not to look like he wasn't looking at Coricopat and Demeter.
Grids shrugged, "I doubt it. She doesn't seem to care about getting kicked out. Or about anything for that matter. I kind of envy her that a bit right now."
"She doesn't strike me as very happy," he replied.
Cori cut in from where he was skimming over one of the diaries, "For three nights the unholy ones scourge themselves into a fury, culminating in a savage attack on the night of Saint Vigeous."
"Anyone else remember when Saturday night meant date night?" Tugger piped up from where he was sharpening a stake.
Bomba glanced at him from where she was working on another stake, "You sure don't."
Grids looked up at the clock, "The parents start arriving in an hour. Okay, banners are in place, the lounge is comfy, what am I forgetting…?"
"Punch," Mistoffelees replied, not looking up from the book.
"Punch! I need punch!" She looked around, as though seeking help on that front.
Mistoffelees glanced up. "Hm?"
"The important thing in punch is the ratio of vodka to snapps," Tugger declared and when everyone looked at him, added. "That joke was obviously too sophisticated for this crowd."
"More like the crowd is disturbed by it," Mistoffelees told him.
Bomba tossed the stake down ont he table, "My fingers are cramping. How long have I been doing this?"
"Three minutes," Tugger told her, mostly serious.
"So can I go now? She's not gonna need that many stakes, I mean if this Jerrie guy's as mean as you all said, it should be over pretty fast." She paused, catching the looks that were being sent her way and spoke to Grids, "We're still rooting for you Saturday. I'd be there myself but I've got a leg wax."
Grids rolled her eyes, "Whatever. You guys hold the fort. I'm punch bound." She slipped out of the library.
Pausing for a moment, Tugger and Mistoffelees both reached over for some of the vegetables. She stuck her head back in, "Hands off!" And she was gone again.
o.o.o.o
A while later, Mistoffelees approached the school lounge, black slacks and lime green shirt almost making him look respectable if not for the unruly wave of his hair and bright color. "Hey," he said, approaching Grids. "What sort of punch did you make?"
She offered him a smile, motioning to the punch she'd just finished, "Lemonade. I made it fresh and everything."
Smiling, Mistoffelees picked up a cup. "Great. How much sugar did you use?"
She looked at him warily, "Sugar?"
He took a sip and blinked, carefully setting it back down. "It's... good," he managed.
Grids drew a deep breath, "Now if we can just keep Mom and Snyder from crossing paths for the next three hours it'll all be good."
Mistoffelees nodded, still eying the punch as Jennyanydots entered. "Oh, Mrs. Summers!"
Grids turned, offering her a bright smile, "Hi, Mom."
"Hi honey, hi Misto," her mother greeted them, half hugging her daughter. "Did you do all of this honey?"
She nodded, "I did. How 'bout some lemonade," she broke off as she saw Principal Snyder approaching, "- after Misto shows you the library. I have to stay here and hostess."
"Not the library, there's work being done on it, remember?" Mistoffelees said quickly. "How about French class, Mrs. Summers?" He asked, steering her away.
"Why, don't worry about me, Misto," she said, following him. "Isn't your uncle coming?"
"He's out of town," Mistoffelees replied easily. "This way then."
Grids watched them go before turning and offering the Principal a smile, "Hello, Principal Snyder."
"Was that your mother?" he demanded, agitated.
She swallowed, nodding, "Yeah, I wanted to introduce you. She wouldn't have said too much, she doesn't speak a word of English." Now if she could keep them apart that lie might hold up
Shaking his head, he stalked away to greet some other parents instead, keeping an eye on her.
Bomba approached about two and a half hours later, "Cori has us locked in that library working on your weapons. Even slaves get minimum wage." She stared at the other girl for a long moment, "You're starting to look pretty slagged. What are you, just skipping foundation entirely now?"
Grids smiled thinly, "Bomba, I have at least three lives to contend with and none of them really mesh. It's like oil and water and… a third unmeshable thing."
"Yeah. And I can see the oil." She looked up as Misto and Jenny approached, "Is that your mom? Now that's a woman who knows how to moisturize. Did it like skip a generation?"
"I've seen every classroom on campus," Jenny said, approaching her daughter and Bomba, Mistoffelees trailing behind her. "Yet none of your teachers seem to be about. At least Mistoffelees is good company."
"Yeah, he's great company and a really good friend," Grids agreed quickly, "But I bet you didn't see the boiler room. And that's really interesting because of the boiler being right there in the room and all and..."
Her mother blinked at her as the principal approached quickly. "Hello, I'm Jennyanydots Summers."
"I'm principal Synder," he replied. "And we need to talk. My office is this way if you could..."
Grids paled as they left, "He didn't look very happy..."
Bomba couldn't resist a smirk, "When they're done talking…"
"What?" the blond turned to the other girl.
"My guess? Tenth high school reunion? You'll still be grounded."
"Bomba," Mistoffelees said, holding out a cup. "Have some punch." Bomba took it from him, meandering away as she took a sip, nearly choking on the sugar-less lemonade.
o.o.o.o
Cori was still skimming over the diaries in the library for some sign of Mungojerrie, "Ah, there you are..."
"There who is?" Demeter asked, glancing over.
Our new friend Jerrie. Known for his rather brutal methods...Ah, here we go, good news, he's barely two hundred, not even as old as Mac. So less experienced. And, oh. Oh dear."
"That's a bad look," Tugger remarked, off his expression.
He drew a deep breath, "Jerrie has fought two Slayers in the last century. He killed them both."
o.o.o.o
Back in the lounge, Jenny approached her daughter quickly, face dark. "Grids... get in the car."
Grids hesitated but nodded, turning to leave but froze as Principal Snyder shut off the last light and the huge picture window in the lounge shattered. Jerrie leaped through it, flanked by six other vampires who quickly fanned out.
He grinned as he locked eyes with Grids amid the chaos of the few people remaining panicking, "What can I say? I couldn't wait."
Mistoffelees' eyes widened and he grabbed for Jenny, pulling her backward.
Grids grabbed a chair as Jerrie headed straight for her, she swung it as hard as she could and let it fly, hitting him solidly in the head and sending him stumbling back, "Run!" She grabbed her mom's other hand and pulled her and Misto toward the nearest exit. Grids pivoted as she saw a Vamp between them and the door, "They've got the exits, this way! Everybody!"
Mistoffelees nodded, herding the remaining parents and Snyder toward the North Hall where the library-and weapons-were.
Jerrie shook his head, clearing it as he started down the hall, grabbing a parent who had been grabbed by another vamp by the neck, "No one gets out. Especially the girl."
Mistoffelees skidded to a stop in time to turn the final corner toward the library as those inside came out to see what the noise was about.
Grids rounded the corner, calling ahead to the others, "It's Jerrie and a small army! Look out!" Another vampire came down the hall toward them. She glanced back to see two more closing fast and yanked open the nearest classroom door, motioning for her group to get inside. "In here, hurry!"
The group rushed inside, Mistoffelees slamming the door shut as the library group darted inside their own room.
Grids looked around, locating a lab table and starting to push it toward the door, "Barricade the door!" The metal slats on the windows would deter the creatures from that entrance at least.
Complying, they got the door barricaded, Snyder standing to the back and all but screaming, "Oh my god!"
The lights went out. Jerrie glanced up as the emergency lights came on. They weren't much, which would make it harder for the prey to see, always a plus. His hand still on the parent's throat, he turned to one of the other vampires, "Where did the Slayer go?"
"Nobody got out," a lean vampire insisted. "As for her... she either went that way... or that way," he said, and pointed in another direction entirely.
Jerrie's grip tightened, "You don't know?" He sighed heavily, turning to the terrified man in his grip, "It's so hard to find good help these days. I'm a veal kinda guy, so you're too old to eat." The parent breathed a sigh of relief as Jerrie's grip loosened. The sigh was cut short as the vampire snapped his neck, "But not to kill." He turned back to the other vampire as he dropped the body, "I feel better now."
o.o.o.o
In the library, Cori picked up the phone, trying to get a dial tone. "Damn it, they cut the phones." He turned to Tugger, "There's an old boarded cellar behind the stacks. You can get out that way. Find Mac. He knows about Jerrie, we need him."
"I'm not going anywhere until I know the others are alright!" Tugger attempted to declare.
"Tugger, no one is going to be alright if we don't get some help, and soon."
Well when you put it that way," Tugger muttered. "You had just better hope nothing happens to Grids, or Mistoffelees," he added, not entirely sure why he felt threatening Cori was going to help.
The librarian frowned at him, "Get going. We'll do what we can, but we need help." Nodding, he headed toward the back stacks.
In the science room down the hall Grids was seeking some sort of weapon and a way out of the room that wouldn't let the Vampires in while a parent panicked, "Who are these people, what do they want?"
"I didn't get a look," Jenny said. "But was there something wrong with their faces?"
"Yes!" Synder declared as Mistoffelees glanced over to Grids. "P.C.P. It's a gang on P.C.P!"
Grids rolled her eyes, shaking her head as she turned to Mistoffelees, "I'm going to see if there's a way for me to get to the library and get some supplies, alright?"
"We've got to get out of here!" the principal declared, heading for the window with the metal slats.
Mistoffelees had started nodding and paused at that. Grids whirled, moving over to stop him, speaking softly, "You can't go outside. They will kill you."
"Don't you dare tell me, I tell you!"
She pulled him down from the chair he had been climbing up on to get to the window, enunciating each word but keeping her tone even, "Listen to me. They will kill everyone in this room. Nobody goes out. Nobody comes in. Until I say so. Do you read me?"
"Who do you think you are?" he demanded.
"I'm the one who knows how to stop them," she replied.
Her mother stopped her as she turned. "Are you crazy? I know you've been accused of fighting and all that, but are you out of your mind? Those guys are serious. You can't go out there."
"I know. That's why I'm going up there," she nodded to the ceiling, climbing up onto a lab table, "Don't worry, I'll be alright, Mom." She pushed a ceiling tile aside and levered herself up into the crawlspace above.
Mistoffelees scrambled on the table below her. "Be careful. You already know that of course, but I'm serious." He bit back a request to make sure Cori was alright, feeling like it would be too out of place.
"I will be." She murmured, making her careful way away.