Around noon the next day, Giles and I agreed to adjourn for a reprieve. The man desperately needed a change of clothes, some proper sleep, and a shower wouldn't hurt, and I needed time to collect myself.

Once in my dingy little excuse for a dwelling space, I found myself craving a drink. I had no blood packs, of course, and I didn't feel like going hunting. Before the Essence could begin whispering to me, tempting me with false promises and desires I didn't need to think about right now, I curled myself into a corner and pressed my face into the foul smelling wall.

I started processing the matter at hand, if for nothing more than to just ground myself in the here and now, and not what could be.

Fact #1: The Master was going to rise

Fact #2: If Buffy faced the Master, she would die

Fact #3: Buffy had refused to face the Master

Fact #4: Nothing in any of the lore books said there was a way around the Master's arrival

Fact #5: The world was going to end

I sighed and pressed the palms of my hands against my eyes.

Fact #6: I wouldn't force Buffy to face the Master

Fact #7: I would not let my friends be harmed.

I removed my hands and sat up slowly, my jaw tightening as I stood up. I stared at the ground, then lifted my eyes and looked at the boarded up window.

Fact #8: I would fact the Master instead.

Fool

I frowned, but refused to even acknowledge the Essence had spoken.

We're not strong enough. We must feed if we are to face the Master and live.

I continued to ignore it. I could feel it writhing and I accidentally let a growl escape. That wasn't me, the growl, that was the Essence. I swallowed the sound before it could repeat itself, and acted as though it hadn't happened.

You know we're right. Feed before the battle, the frenzy will aid us, make us strong, not as strong as the Master perhaps, but enough to hurt. Protect Giles, protect Xander, sweet Willow, the Slayer. We could protect the children

It was so hard not to listen to it. I needed some sort of superiority to the Master, but I had none. If even the Essence acknowledged feeding wouldn't save me, then I knew I really had no chance of surviving the fight. But neither did Buffy.

If I faced him first, and at least managed to hurt him in some way, make him slower, not as powerful, anything, then maybe, maybe Buffy would have a chance.

Protect your friends

I could save the children, give them a chance to flee.

Save your loved ones

I…I might be able to do this.

Feed

If I just fed…

Monsters of people out there

Someone who deserved death…

Kill

'STOP IT!'

I felt panic grip me as I realized what I had been listening to, letting it sway me.

Before the Essence could do or say anything else to tempt me, I swung my fist as hard as I could into the wall.

My hand went through the thin plaster and into the support beam behind it. The beam made a protesting sound, but it didn't give way, surprisingly.

"Margery?"

I gasped and spun towards the door. I'd been so caught up with the Essence's sway I hadn't even heard anyone approach. Not to mention I never expected anyone to ever come visiting, since I hadn't told anyone where I lived.

I frowned at the door, behind it, it smelled like…

"Willow?" I said in surprise, and dashed to the door. I yanked it open and gazed in surprise at how terrified she looked.

"Willow, what's happened?" I demanded, pulling her into my 'home'. Then I frowned and asked, "And how did you know where my dwelling place is located?"

"Oh, Margery," she said, her lips trembling querulously as tears brimmed around her big brown eyes, "something awful happened at school." She swallowed, struggling to compose herself. "Oh, and I-I followed you one time." She blushed a little at the admission.

"I knew you didn't want anyone to know where you live," she continued, "so I pretended not to know, but…I had to come to you."

"Why? What's happened?" I asked. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, wincing at the memory of whatever it was she had seen.

"Last night, Kevin was supposed to bring some equipment to the Bronze for Cordelia to use for the dance and he never showed, but we didn't think that much about it until we got to school today and we found him with some of his friends in the lounge, watching cartoons." She stopped, and looked at me. I frowned in confusion.

"And, this was…bad?" I asked. Willow made a choking sound and some tears fell.

"They were all dead, Margery." She sobbed, "All of them, they were just…dead. And there was so much blood…" she shuddered, made another sobbing sound, and then covered her face with her hands.

Impulsively, I reached out and pulled her close, letting her lean her head against my shoulder while I stroke her auburn hair.

"I'm so sorry, sweetling," I murmured, "Do you know what happened?"

She sniffled before answering, but kept her head where it was.

"I think it was vampires." She said, "There were holes in their necks, and some of the blood was splattered on the floor and the walls." She shivered again and I tightened my grip. She clung to me, still crying.

"They looked so scared, Margery." She said, "They looked…I knew them, Margery. I knew them all my life. And now they're just…gone. It must have hurt so much."

"Don't imagine it." I said seriously, "Don't step into that darkness. What is it they tell children…look but don't touch?" I pushed her back gently and locked eyes with her. "Don't imagine what happened, don't picture it. You don't want to know, and it will do nothing to help them now. It will only hurt you."

She wiped her nose with a shaky hand and nodded slowly.

"H-How do we fix it?" she asked, her voice a thick sounding whisper.

"I'll fix it." I said.

"What about Buffy?" she asked. I almost winced, but managed to hide it.

"You…can talk to Buffy," I said, "but…I think she deserves a rest. She's…" I paused and turned away, "she's been through a lot. She deserves a respite."

"She'll hear about it sooner or later," she said, "I'd rather she heard it from someone she knows."

I nodded.

"That's a good idea, sweetling." I said quietly. "I'll…I'll tell Giles about it."

She nodded, drying her tears on her sleeve. She turned to go, then hesitated, and turned back around to envelope me in one last grateful embrace.

"Thanks, Margery." She said, pulling away. I smiled at her, patting her shoulder and letting my hand trail down her arm before grasping her hand and giving it a reassuring squeeze.

"We'll fix this." I said, "I promise."

Later, at the library, I told Giles what Willow had told me. Of course, by then he had already heard about it from the rest of the staff.

"Buffy was right." He said, "The vampires are getting bolder. This wasn't just a mass feeding, it was a slaughter." He was agitated, and paced around the library, unsure of what he should do, or could do.

"Another sign?" I asked.

"Or a party," he said, "to celebrate the Master's return."

I frowned and glanced at the window. The sun was beginning to go down, which mean the Master would be rising again in a matter of hours. I swallowed and tightened my hands into fists. My eyes traveled to the cache of weapons locked behind the gate in the 'sensitive' material section.

Feed

I winced and looked away, but not at Giles.

"I think we should tell Jenny what's going on." Giles said quietly. It took me a moment to remember who Jenny was.

"Miss Calendar?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. I chanced a glance at him. He wasn't looking at me, he was looking down at an open book. One of the useless volumes we had hoped would provide us with an alternative.

"She deserves to know the end of the world is coming." He said.

There was a long silence before I realized he was actually waiting for my approval. He wanted me to tell him it was all right. He actually wanted my advice.

I was rather surprised at this, but hastened to answer.

"Of course, if you think we should, we should." I told him, "Just how much do you want to tell her?"

"Everything." He said. Then looked up at me.

"Ah," he caught himself, "Except…unless you don't want to tell her about your…condition?"

I couldn't help but laugh at the word.

"Being an abomination is not a condition, Giles," I said, "it's simply being." I paused, mulling it over. I didn't particularly trust the woman, but then again she hadn't really given me a reason not to. It was just my suspicious nature coming out, I suppose.

If Giles was going to tell her about the Master, Buffy, and the end of the world, my 'condition', as Giles called it, would come out sooner or later. Or, perhaps not, if the world did indeed end. And so far it seemed to be certain there was no 'if' about it.

For the sake of sounding at least partially optimistic, if the world did indeed end, I wouldn't have to worry about my secret for long anyway. If it didn't, then I would simply have to watch her a bit more closely.

"I've nothing to hide from her," I said, meeting his eyes, "if we're going to be combining our resources for this final battle, then you may tell her."

Giles nodded, a faint smile on his lips. He approved, and I have to confess that approval felt good.

"So let me get this straight," Ms. Calendar said after a very, very long conversation. It had really just taken so long because the woman wouldn't stop asking questions after every single revelation.

"The Master tried to open the Hellmouth," she continued, "but he got stuck in it. And now all the signs read that he's gonna get out, which opens the Hellmouth, which brings the demons, which ends the world."

While she was reiterating what we'd just told her, Giles had been rummaging around the weapons locker.

I watched him, and Ms. Calendar. Which was no easy task.

"In the proverbial nutshell," I said, "yes."

Giles, distracted, emerged from the cage for a moment, holding a scimitar, which he swung once. He frowned, humphed in disapproval, and ducked back into the cage.

"The part that gets me though," Ms. Calendar continued, "is how Buffy is the Vampire Slayer. I mean, she's so little." And then she looked at me.

"And I also can't believe you're a half-vampire." She smirked, coming closer for investigation. If I'd been a cat, I would have bristled. Since I was not, I simple tensed up and pulled away slightly when she leaned in for closer inspection.

"Like, you don't burn or anything in sunlight," she said, "and you don't look evil."

I almost rolled my eyes, but somehow refrained.

"As to the first," I said, "that's not how half-vampirisim works. As to the second…thank you?"

"But how does it work?" she insisted, sitting on the edge of the study table. I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose.

"I would love to go into detail about it," I said, "but the world is ending and I'm a bit busy. Giles what are you doing?" I asked when he emerged with yet another weapon.

"Did you manage to get in touch with this Brother Lucca chap?" he asked, ignoring my question. Perhaps he didn't ignore it, exactly, but when he gets into one train of thought it's very difficult to break him out of it again.

"As far as I can tell, no one can." Ms. Calendar replied, "He's disappeared."

'Convenient.' I thought with a frown.

"He did send out one last global, though," she continued, "a short one."

"And that was?" I asked.

"Isaiah 11:6, which I dutifully looked up." She answered, smiling proudly.

"The wolf shall live with the lamb," Giles and I both began quoting at the same time, "the leopard shall lie down with the kid, the calf, the lion, and the fatling together, and a little child to lead them."

Ms. Calendar frowned.

"That's kind of warm and fuzzy for a message of doom." She commented.

"Well that depends where he's leading them to," Giles answered, "Aurelius wrote of the Anointed One. The Slayer will not know him and he will lead her into Hell."

"So Lucca think the Anointed One is a kid?" Ms. Calendar said.

"If the vampire that Buffy killed is not the Anointed One, then it may well be." Giles answered. He slid a dagger out of its scabbard and gazed at it.

"Then we need to warn her." Ms. Calendar said.

"There's been a bit of a complication." I murmured.

"Yes," Giles said, sliding the dagger back into its scabbard, "we don't plan on involving her at all."

Ms. Calendar looked at us as though we'd gone mad. Honestly I'm surprised she hadn't earlier, but no matter.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Buffy's not going to face the Master," Giles said, leaning forward, "I am."

I stared at him for a moment, thinking my hearing had betrayed me.

"What?" I demanded. He merely looked at me, a cold resolve in his eyes. I grabbed his arm and pulled him away from the table, more angry than shocked now.

"You are not facing the Master." I told him in a growl.

"Yes, I am," he said, trying to pull free of my grip, but I wouldn't let him, "it's about time I proved myself capable of more than just reading."

"You have next to no combat experience," I replied, "I will face him. At least then it won't be like a lamb going to the slaughter."

Giles glared at me for saying that.

"I can hold my own," he said, "for a time, at least. I owe it to Buffy."

"You don't owe it to her to die, Giles." I snapped, "The Slayer still needs her Watcher. No, I am going and that's final." He looked as though he wanted to argue but I interrupted him, "And if I must render you unconscious to ensure your safety, by God, Giles I'll do it."

To drive home my point I grabbed him by his shirt and pushed him against the wall, one arm pressing against his throat just enough to make it hard for him to breathe.

"I will do this." I repeated.

"No, you won't."

I turned at the sound of Buffy's voice. I mentally kicked myself for letting someone approach unnoticed again. I was getting sloppy.

I let Giles go and stepped back to get a good look at her.

She had on a beautiful, elegant evening dress that was perfectly white, over which she wore a leather coat. It suited her. Tough, but feminine and lovely. It described Buffy to perfection.

"So I'm looking for a kid, huh?" Buffy said, coming towards us, hands on her hips. "And he'll lead me to the Master?"

"Buffy, I'm not going to send you out there to die." Giles said after he'd gotten his breath back. "You were right, I've waded about in these old books for so long I've forgotten what the real world is like. It's time I found out."

"No, it's not." I snapped at him, "I'm not letting you kill yourself."

"Ditto." Buffy said, "You're not going up against the Master."

"I've made up my mind." Giles said.

"Unmake it, then." I replied.

"Will you stop treating me like a child?" he snapped at me.

"Then stop behaving as one!" I growled back at him, "You know this is foolhardy yet you're trying to do it anyway, and it benefits no one."

"I've made up my mind too." Buffy broke in, crossing her arms.

Giles whirled on her.

"I made up mine first," he winced and glanced at me, realizing how childish that sounded, "I am older and wiser than you," he said, and looked at both of us, "so just do as you're told for once."

"Giles." I reprimanded. "I'm older than your great, great, great, great-grandfather."

He floundered for a moment.

"Well, I'm still older than her." He pointed at Buffy.

"Look," Buffy interrupted us, raising her voice, "as wise and experienced as you may be, o Ancient One," she made a mock bow to me, "I have an edge over the both of you, in case you've forgotten: I'm the Slayer."

"I don't care what the books say," Giles said, "I defy the Prophecy and I'm going. And nothing either of you say will change my mind."

I raised an eyebrow, and then looked at Buffy.

"I know." She said. I almost missed it, but she very, very subtly shot me a quick glance that could have been mistaken for her simply looking down at the floor in submission. I caught the hint, and glided behind Giles before he'd even realized I'd moved.

Buffy started to take a step back, then quickly stepped forward again, bringing her fist up at the same time. She swung, not hard, but even a light swing from a Slayer is powerful, and she knocked Giles out with one blow.

His head snapped back, his body stiffened for a moment, then immediately gave up the struggle for consciousness and went limp.

I quickly stretched my arms out and softened his decent.

Ms. Calendar let out a cry of surprise and alarm and rushed over to him, so I stepped back and locked eyes with Buffy.

She lifted her chin.

"Are you going to make me knock you out too? Or are you going to respect my decision?" she asked. Her eyes glinted defiantly, and my shoulders slumped in defeat.

"Buffy," I murmured, and to my surprise I felt a lump form in my throat, so it made speaking difficult, "you're…you're just a child."

"A child who might just save the world." She pointed out.

"But the Prophecy-"

"Might be wrong." She finished for me. She gave a toss of her head and smirked. "I got this, Marge."

I closed my eyes and shook my head.

"I wish you'd let me do this, child." I told her. Her expression softened and she crossed the distance between us to embrace me.

"I wish I would, too." She whispered to me. Then pulled back, and pretended there weren't tears in her eyes, and I did the same. I also mentally denied that there were currently cold tears sliding down my face.

"Good luck, Buffy." I told her. She nodded.

"See ya around, Marge." She replied, and then turned and walked out to find the Anointed One, and try and save the world.