Chapter 17: I Robot, You Jane Part 1

"Oh," Buffy said. "Great. A book."

Willow and Dawn each looked over from their position in front of one of the scanners and smiled when they saw the disappointed expression on Buffy's face. Buffy pulled an oversized, ancient-looking book from the crate she'd just pried open and idly traced the carving on its leather cover.

"I haven't gone through the new arrivals," Rupert Giles told Buffy. He gestured toward where Willow and Dawn stood. "Put it in that pile –"

"Here, I got it." Dave, a shy, bookish kid with thick blond hair, took the book from Buffy and headed back towards his terminal. Next to him, a boy named Fritz worked diligently. Fritz was big and sturdily-built with short hair, the opposite of Dave.

"Thanks, Dave." Buffy grinned. "The Willow and Dawn pile."

"After I've examined it," Giles said absently, "one of you can, uh... skim it in."

"Scan it, Giles. Scan it."

The door to the library closed behind Paige as she strode in

"Of course," Giles said.

"I know our ways are strange to you," Paige said with amusement, "but soon you will join us in the 20th century... with three whole years to spare!"

"Paige," Giles said archly, "I happen to believe that one can function in modern society without being a slave to the idiot box."

Paige chuckled. "That's TV—the idiot box is the TV. This is the good box."

"Well," Giles said, undaunted. "I still prefer a good book."

"The printed page is obsolete," Fritz put in. "Information isn't bound up anymore, it's an entity. The only reality is virtual. If you're not jacked in, you're not alive." With that, he nodded to himself and flicked the off switch on his computer. A moment later the door to the library closed behind him.

They all stared after him, then Paige sighed as she muttered to herself. "And here I thought I had left stuff like that behind when Leo took over Magic School." She looked to Giles. "Not everyone is like him," she said. "I don't see the printed word disappearing for a while still yet." She looked to her charges, their friends and Dave. "All right, guys, let's wrap it up for the day."

Willow glanced at the stack of waiting books, then back at her terminal. She hated to leave stuff undone—it always came back to haunt you the next morning. "I've just got a few more to do," she told Paige. "I'll hang around for a bit."

"No problem, Willow," Paige said. "Need a lift home?"

"No, but thanks for the offer," Willow replied.

"I have to stay and clean up," Giles said stiffly. "I'll be back in the Middle Ages."

Willow looked over at Giles and nodded. "Okay. I'll let you know when I'm done."

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

The hours flew past, as they always did when Willow worked on computer projects. Despite her intention to stay only a little while, it was already late night, but at least the book in front of her, the leather-covered one that Buffy had uncrated just before everyone left, was the last one.

Willow opened it to the first page, grateful to find that even though it was weighty, the pages were thick and not numerous. After naming the file Willow/Book12, she carefully drew the scanner down the first page, keeping her eyes on the screen to make sure the image didn't blur or distort. While she couldn't understand the strange characters and foreign words, the information seemed to be transferring cleanly and rapidly.

Turned slightly to the right and with her gaze focused on the screen, Willow never noticed the pages of the book as she completed and turned each one, never saw the way the ancient words and symbols appeared to slip off the heavy parchment as the scanner passed over them. When the last of the book's content entered the screen, Willow saved the file without looking back at the book, then glanced around the library one last time. "Giles, I'm done," she yelled.

"Alright," came his reply from somewhere in the stacks.

On the computer, the screen suddenly went blank. After a beat, three words appeared, one letter at a time, across the center:

Where am I?

Willow hit the off button automatically. Finished at last, she gathered up her books and headed out of the library.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

The street was deserted of people as Buffy headed for home. Paige hard offered to orb both her and Dawn home, but she had turned down Paige's offer, while Dawn had taken it up. She had noticed since Paige had been unpossessed the something was on her Whitelighter's mind. Which made her want to walk home alone and think about what may have been so important.

In the distance an ambulance siren wailed; car horns sounded. Yet, beneath the traffic din, she heard a noise. She slowed and looked back. There was nothing there, but often there seemed to be nothing there while some demon stalked her.

She walked on.

As she half-expected, she heard another sound. She took a few more steps, then stopped. This time she didn't turn around as she said, with resignation and determination in her voice, "It's late. I'm tired and I don't want to play games. Show yourself."

Something dropped to the ground behind her, savagely growling as she whipped a stake out of her jacket and whirled around. As she raised the stake high to strike, a hand grabbed her wrist from behind.

A hand with talons for fingernails. It was joined by the hand of another, which yanked her arm. The first twisted her wrist until the stake clattered to the cement.

There were three of them, dressed in weird armor, uncommonly strong, even for vampires.

Buffy said, "Oh, okay nice. Hey, ow, okay. I'm letting go. I don't want to fight all three of you."

Without warning, she kicked the vampire in front of her—he wore a braided ponytail and a wicked-ugly set of fangs—right where it counted. "Unless I have to," she said, and they were off. As the ponytail guy doubled over, another one, who had a scar that had sealed his eye shut, slammed her in the back.

They flung her against a chain link fence. Then two pulled her between them as One-Eye moved in for the kill. He bared his fangs and lowered his face toward her neck. She smelled death on him.

Her death.

Suddenly a familiar voice rang out as someone yanked One-Eye's head back.

Paige.

She said, "Good dogs don't bite."

Buffy threw herself backward, kicking her legs up and catching her two captors in the head. One went down. Ponytail grabbed her and threw her against the fence as Paige dodged One-Eye.

Paige went for the one who had fallen as One-Eye ripped a pointed spike off the wrought iron fence and lunged at her.

"Look out!" Buffy shouted as he slashed Paige across the ribs. She fought Ponytail, smashing his head back with her open hands, and then slamming both her fists, doubled together like a wrecking ball, into his face.

Paige was down; Buffy paused to kick One-Eye in the face, then urged Paige to her feet, screaming,

"Run!"

They flew. Down one block, through an empty lot, and across another block as they moved into a residential area. Paige matched her step for step. As one, they turned onto Revello Drive. Buffy spared a glance at Paige; she was holding her side. Buffy frowned, worried, but pumped harder as the snarling vampires gained on them. Dashing ahead of Paige she opened the front door.

Buffy herded Paige inside, yelling, "Get in! Come on!"

Just as she shut the door, One-Eye leaped onto the porch, grabbing for her. She smashed his hand with the door. He pulled it free and she slammed the door shut. She locked it as she looked through the panes, fighting to catch her breath.

Behind her, Paige said, "It's all right. A vampire can't come in unless it's invited."

"I've heard that before, but I've never put it to the test."

The three vampires paced the porch, growling.

Buffy stared at the sight of Paige standing in her house, hurt, but alive and staring back at her. She said, "I'll get some bandages. Take your jacket and your shirt off."

Paige followed her into the kitchen, shedding her jacket and pulling off her white blouse, leaving her clad only in her bra from the waist up.

Buffy reached to get the first aid kit out of the cupboard. Then as she turned and saw that Paige had her back to her and was clad only in a bra from the waist up, her heart began to pound. She paused, hypnotized by the sleek taper of the muscles in her back and her arms, the smooth skin on the nape of her neck.

A large tattoo of a triquetra rippled on Paige's right shoulder as she moved slightly, and Buffy stirred from her daze and said, "Nice tattoo."

"It's from the Book back home," Paige reminded her. "Piper, Phoebe and I all have one, in different places of course."

Buffy nodded as she began to bandage Paige's wound. The wound wasn't deep thank goodness.

They were standing very close together. Buffy was aware that Paige's face—her lips—were inches from hers.

To distract herself, Buffy said, "I was lucky you orbed in."

"I sensed that you were in trouble," Paige said.

Buffy smiled. "I'm glad you did. Paige, you know how I said I didn't want you to orb me home. I noticed how things have changed between us. You've been a little distant lately. And I wanted time to try and figure out why."

Paige let out a sigh. She knew she would have to tell Buffy. "The Elders are the ones that have been messing with our lives. You are my reward for everything I've done the last couple years with Piper and Phoebe and I am to be yours for everything you will do in the future."

"Reward?" Buffy asked confused.

"They steered us together in the hopes we would fall in love with each other. The premonitions Phoebe has been receiving were from them in a further attempt to steer us in that direction. Buffy, I'm not saying I don't love you, I do. But you are sixteen and won't even be legal for two more years. We both need to figure this out, to make sure that we do indeed have feelings for each other or if its simply just a crush."

Buffy finished the bandage and straightened up as she looked at Paige and then she moved closer to the older woman and smiled as she caught the scent of Paige's body, the smell of Paige's perfume. She leaned and planted a kiss on Paige's lips. "Paige, I've known since I met you, there is no one else. Not right now anyways, maybe your right this is just a crush and in two years I will have found someone else. Till then, you are the only person I love in that way."

Paige smiled and as she was about to kiss Buffy they heard the front door open. "Your mom and Dawn," she whispered. She had orbed Dawn to Joyce when she had gotten Buffy's unconscious call.

Buffy raced to the door. Both Joyce and Dawn were still standing on the porch, Joyce was putting her keys back in her purse and reaching to open the mailbox. Buffy jerked both of them inside and scanned for the enemy.

"Honey, what are you doing?" Joyce asked.

After glancing out at the yard, Buffy quickly closed and locked the door. "Vampires followed me and Paige home," she responded.

"You and Paige are alright then?" Joyce asked as Paige joined them, she wore her blouse and jacket.

"We're fine," Paige said. "Buffy, you should call Giles let him know about the vampires. I'll orb home and have Leo take a look at my wound."

Buffy nodded as Paige orbed out.

"You sure you're okay?" Dawn wondered.

"I'm fine, Dawnie," Buffy answered.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

The next day at the Sunnydale High School library—Buffy and Paige told Xander, Dawn, Willow, and Giles what had happened the night before.

"You left the Bronze and were set upon by three unusually virile vampires . . ." Giles said as he laid down the book and pointed to an engraving. "Did they look like this?"

They were Buffy's three vampire amigos.

Buffy nodded. "Yeah. What's with the uniforms?"

Giles looked grim but satisfied. "It seems you encountered the Three—warrior vampires, very proud and strong."

Willow blinked, impressed. "How is it you always know this stuff? You always know what's going on. I never know what's going on."

Giles waved a hand at the piles of dusty books as he sipped from a coffee cup. "Well, you weren't here from midnight to six researching it." Buffy's call had reached him just as he was ready to turn in.

Sheepishly Willow agreed. "No, I was sleeping."

Giles turned to Buffy. "Obviously, you're hurting the Master. He wouldn't send the Three for just anyone." He thought a moment, cleaning his glasses. "We must step up our training with weapons."

Xander added, "Buffy, you'd better stay at my place until these samurai guys are history."

Buffy wasn't quite sure she'd heard him right. "What?"

Giles shook his head. "Neither Buffy nor Paige are in any immediate jeopardy." He put his glasses back on. "Eventually the Master will send someone else, but in the meantime, the Three, having failed, will offer up their own lives as penance."

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

After the report on the three Willow sailed smilingly through the horde of students like it was nothing more than a few people in an uncrowded Weatherly Park.

"Willow –Willow! Hey, wait up!" Buffy said as she caught up with her friend.

Hugging her books, Willow grinned. "Buffy! I didn't even see you."

Buffy squinted at her. "Or hear me, I've been walking just behind you since we left the library. What was up last night?" she asked as they started walking again. "I tried your line like a million times."

"Oh, I was ..." Willow hesitated. "I was talking," she finally finished.

"You we're talking and you told Giles you we're asleep." Buffy said.

Willow nodded sheepishly.

Buffy made a gesture with her hand for Willow to continue. "Talking to ...?"

Instead of answering, Willow only smiled.

"Okay, that's it," Buffy said. She tagged after Willow clearly interested. "You have a secret and that is not allowed."

"Why not?"

"'Cause ... there's a rule." Buffy said taking on a petulant why-aren't-you-sharing-with-me? tone, and Willow just had to take pity.

"Well," she amended, "I sort of met someone."

"This is so important, your first boyfriend," Buffy said with a tone of excitement. "When did you meet?"

"Last night." Willow told her. "I was in a chat room and we just seemed to hit it off."

Buffy's smile grew wider and she switched directions so she could look at Willow full in the face while they walked, like a skater doing a backward stroll. Her questions tumbled out. "Does he go here? What's his name? Have you kissed him? What's he like?"

Willow's mouth turned up with amusement. "No, Malcolm, no, and very nice," she said answering everything in one shot.

Buffy flounced forward, but her excitement was still obvious. "You are a thing of evil for not telling us this right away!"

"Well," Willow admitted. "I wasn't sure there was anything to tell. But last night …" She hugged her books tighter. "Oh, we talked all night. It was amazing. He's so smart, Buffy, and he's romantic and we agree about everything."

"What's he look like?"

"I don't know." Willow answered cheerfully.

Buffy's mouth worked, but she seemed at a loss for words as she followed Willow from the hallway into the computer lab.

"You've been talking to a guy and you don't know what he looks like. He didn't give you a picture?"

"No," Willow replied.

"Morning, kids." Willow and Buffy looked up as the computer teacher came into the lab. "Buffy, are you supposed to be somewhere?"

"I have a free period." she replied.

"Cool. But this is lab time so let's make it a nice short visit, okay?"

Buffy nodded. "Oh sure."

Willow quickly ran through her log-on procedure as Buffy sat next to her. The instant it made the connection, the computer flashed a message:

You have mail!

"It's him!" Willow said excitedly as she opened the message.

I'm thinking about you.

"He's so sweet." Willow said, charmed.

Beside her, Buffy seemed less than impressed. "Uh, yeah, he's a sweetie."

"What should I write back?" Willow asked. Her fingers were posed over the keyboard as she tried to think.

Buffy cleared her throat pointedly. "Willow, I think it's great that you've got a cool pen pal, but ... don't you think you're kind of rushing into all this. You know what I mean?"

"I'm thinking of you too," Willow blurted, talking as she typed. She almost hit the Enter key, then gasped. "No–that's incredibly stupid."

"Will," Buffy interrupted, "down girl. Let's focus here, okay. What do you really know about this guy?"

Willow sat back sullenly. "See, I knew you'd react like this."

"Like what?" Buffy demanded. "I just want to make sure you're careful."

"Buffy –"

"He could be different than you think."

"His name is Malcolm Black," Willow said with exaggerated care. "He's eighteen, he lives in Elmwood which is like eighty miles from here. And he likes me."

"Short, tall, skinny, fat..." Buffy looked at her expectantly.

"Why does everything have to be about looks?" Willow demanded, frustrated.

"Not everything," Buffy acknowledged. "But some stuff is. I mean, what if you guys get really, really intense and then you find out he... has a hairy back?"

Willow's eyes widened as she considered this, then her jaw set. "Well, no. He doesn't talk like the kind of person who has a hairy back. And anyway, that stuff doesn't matter if you really care about each other." She looked down at her hands. "Maybe I'm not his ideal either," she said softly.

"Hey," Buffy said. She put an understanding hand on Willow's arm. "I just want to make sure he's good enough for you, that's all. I think it's great that you met someone."

"Hey." Both Willow and Buffy jumped as Fritz appeared on the other side of the cubicle divider without warning. "Are you done?"

Buffy stared at him, her hazel eyes widening. "What?"

"I'm trying to work."

"Okay," Buffy said a little testily. "Sorry."

Buffy glanced at Willow, then over to where the computer teacher sat at her own terminal, thankfully not noticing their exchange. "Boy, Fritz is even more charming than usual."

Willow frowned a little. "I don't know what his problem is lately."

Buffy stood. They both knew it was time for her to make tracks. "He needs to get out more," she said. "Or ever." She looked at the computer, then at Willow, as though she wanted to say something more. Instead, Willow felt Buffy touch her on the arm again, then her friend strode away.