"What…What precisely have you planned?" Giles didn't sound overly concerned; however, Tara noticed his eyes were wide behind the lenses of the glasses he had returned to their perch on his nose.

Buffy snorted. "Not what you're thinking, Giles," she answered. "I know Faith and I haven't impressed you with our planning skills up to now; give us some credit, though. Staying alive trumps making jokes. We put our movie-watching weekends to good use and set up some traps. Riley and Friends better not try to steal any Christmas gifts."

"Chr-Christmas gifts?" Turning in her chair, Tara watched Buffy smile. She was happy. Almost giddy. Why was Buffy giddy? What kind of traps and she and Faith thought up?

To make the situation more frightening, Faith began laughing.

"OK, not that I don't like hearing you laugh, Faith…" Willow rolled her chair next to Faith and wrapped one arm around her waist. "I am big on the freak when you and Buffy are sharing the fun. Fistfights, I can handle. A pair of giggling Slayers? Not so much. What, exactly, did you do?"

"I'm totally offended you would be happier if Faith and I were pounding on each other." Tara thought Buffy's pout was cute. "Fine!" Throwing her hands in the air, Buffy continued. "All we did was set up a few traps, Will. You know… Concrete buckets perched over doors. A tape recorder in a freezer. Nothing deadly, I swear."

The relief from the rest of the group was palpable. "Forgive me, Buffy. I shared Willow's unease; I should have trusted your judgment." Giles cleared his throat – and changed the subject. "It appears as if you did pay attention to some of my past lectures on strategy and environmental weaponry. I am curious how you believe Tara's glamours would work with one of the traps you set"

Ah. That was the reason for Faith's earlier smile. Tara had missed that connection. Leaning back in her chair, she waited for Buffy to answer.

"Yeah. There's this big hole in the floor over by the main office. We used some drop cloths the construction guys left to hide it. You can still see it, though. If Tara can make the cloth look like tile…" Tilting her head at Tara, Burry raised an eyebrow. "Faith and I dragged a few of the wrestling mats underneath the hole. No one's going to get hurt by the fall."

Face warming at Buffy's reassurance, Tara hesitantly nodded her assent. "I th-think I can do that, Buffy." She gestured to the pile of supplies they'd gathered. "W-we have enough for two or th-three spells."

"Thanks, Tara. You, too, Will." Buffy yawned. "God, we need to get that camera then some sleep. Faith, stay behind with the girls…" She broke off, blushing, when Faith snorted and coughed to hide what Tara suspected was a laugh. "I mean, stay with the gang while I grab the camera. Mom, Giles, you get first sleep shift. I want two of us watching the video all the time in case Ethan shows up."

Her hand brushed Tara's under the table, fingers momentarily closing in a warm caress. Tara unconsciously squeezed back. When Buffy stood and strode from the door, her hand felt cold. Abandoned. Glancing up, she saw Faith watching her closely. "Wh-what?" Tara stuttered.

"Nothin'." Buffy had been right. Faith lied very badly. It was clear she was holding something back. "Just wonderin' why I ain't going after the camera instead of B."

"That's easy, honey." Joyce smiled and pointed at the way Willow was resting against Faith, eyes blinking sleepily. "Buffy knows Willow went through her magic supplies with Tara after all that computer work earlier. They've been friends a long time. Why would Buffy risk tangling with a tired, grumpy witch?"

Instead of denying the point, Willow snuggled closer to Faith. "Not grumpy," she mumbled through a yawn. "Only tired. It's been at least a month since the last time we saved the world, and I'm out of practice."

A sharp movement across the room prefaced Giles' exclamation. "Bloody hell!"

"Rupert?" Joyce was the first to respond, even as Willow and Faith straightened. "What is it? What's wrong?"

"Movement in one of the bloody cameras." Giles hurried to the desk and leaned close to Willow's laptop. "I cannot see them now; however, I am sure I saw two, perhaps three people outside the administration office."

And Buffy was in the school alone. Tara bit her lip so hard she tasted blood. They had to find her. Warn her.

Unfortunately, Tara wasn't in charge of the team. "Time to get things rollin' then," Faith said, sounding almost relieved. "Red, you stay here and wait for B and the camera. Me and Tara'll do the spells." She kissed Willow quickly and sprang out of her chair. "Come on, Blondie. Don't got time for napping."

Tara wasn't napping; she was wide awake and living in a nightmare. "Wh-what ab-bout Buffy?"

"B's fine." Faith didn't share Tara's concern. She rocked impatiently near the door. "Let's go. I wanna get Ethan's goons outta the way."

Common sense said Faith was right. Still, Tara hesitated. She needed to know Buffy was safe.

"Go on," Willow said softly. She smiled and shrugged when Tara glanced at her in surprise. "You have to go. You're a Scooby now. The rest…" Her eyes flickered to Faith before coming to rest on Tara again. "Everyone has a job, Tara. We trust each other to do our parts."

In other words, Buffy's job was to get the camera – and Tara's was to set the wards and cast the glamours. She had to trust Buffy to come back alive. Standing and walking toward Faith, she prayed more fervently than ever before.

"First things first, T. That hole needs to look like a floor." Faith took off running the second they left the construction office, and Tara struggled to keep her in sight. Catching up was out of the question. "Hurry up. If Giles was right, the guys are gonna be there soon."

Tara somehow found a little more speed. As she ran, she reached into Willow's backpack and grabbed one of the small bottles nestled inside. "I n-need to be right next to wh-whatever you put over the hole," Tara gasped out.

Faith nodded. "First stop's right around the corner." Her speed slackened and she hugged the wall, gesturing for Tara to join her. "When we get closer, I'm gonna check the coast is clear. Stay put until I tell ya' to move." Glaring at Tara as if waiting for a complaint, Faith slowed further. "I don't hear nothin'. Anything on the witchy radar?"

Since leaving campus, Tara had kept her shields up. She didn't want to lower them now. She did, though. They had to know if Ethan was nearby. Pulling her internal walls down by inches, she peeked hesitantly over the top.

The narrow view showed nothing. Only the electrical tingles of normal, ambient energy brushed across her senses.

Growing bolder, Tara probed farther. The tingles grew to a teeth-chattering buzz. "He's h-here," she whispered, shields slamming closed. "N-not ar-round the c-corner; in the sc-chool, though." The knowledge rattled her confidence in their plan. Her palms grew slick with sweat where they gripped the nylon strap of Willow's backpack.

"Good." Faith slipped a dagger out of her belt. "I'll be right back." In a heartbeat, she disappeared into the gloom ahead.

Tara hated waiting. She really hated waiting alone, in the dark, while Ethan Rayne was hunting. The darkness closed in, still and stifling. Tara bit her lip and squinted. Was that movement ahead? "Faith?" she called softly, creeping a few steps closer to the end of the hallway. "Faith?"

No one answered her.

Now Tara realized why Willow was so bad at following orders. Staying behind sucked. She had to force herself to stop moving. She reached back into the backpack and pulled out the bottle for the spell. To keep her mind occupied on something other than shadows, Tara mentally practiced the incantation she'd need for the glamour.

"T, we gotta go. Now!" Faith appeared out of nowhere, nearly scaring a shriek from Tara. "Three of them soldiers is coming down the hall."

"I'm ready," Tara vowed, even though she wanted to run back to the construction office.

Faith gripped her arm and pulled her around the corner. Dim light flickered over the floor and walls farther down the connecting corridor, and Tara heard soft, erratic footfalls. That must be the soldiers.

"This is as close as I can get ya'," Faith almost breathed in Tara's ear. "Can't risk gettin' too close and fallin' in…"

The comment wasn't funny. Still, Tara fought a completely inappropriate giggle. She sucked in a deep breath and unstoppered the perfume bottle. "I can do this." She could. And there was no more time to waste before proving it. Closing her eyes, Tara blocked out the faint sound of Faith's breathing and slowed the pounding of her own heart with a skill born of long practice – and desperate need. Calm replaced her lingering dread and fear.

"I hail to the West and the forces of water," she began, pouring the first drop of potion onto the floor. "Hear and aid me in this magic tonight."

Another drop landed as Tara began the second cantrip. The words, however, were not the most important part of the spell. They were only an invocation, a plea for help in building an image. It was the image that left Tara shaking with effort.

Tan tiles fanned out in an interlocking pattern. Tara couldn't see the tarp covering the hole so she let the image overlay the entire area.

"They're comin', T. Finish up!" Faith had moved; she was no longer standing at Tara's shoulder. Her voice floated out of the darkness.

"By the powers of the West and the forces of water, I charge this place to remain, as I See." Sweat trickled down the side of Tara's face as she opened the door to her energy reservoir, borrowing more heavily for the last part of the spell. The tiles wavered for a second then firmed. "So mote it be." The flash of light blinded Tara; though it wouldn't be visible to Faith or the soldiers. Blinking dazedly, she turned and said, "It's finished."

"'Bout fuckin' time." Faith shoved Tara back down the hallway. "Any longer and we'da been there when the Goon Squad got there."

Tara didn't bother to point out that they would have been safe because of the hole separating them from the soldiers. Instead, she stayed silent and ran, chasing Faith down another dark and littered hallway.