Buffy didn't care much for the Sunnydale Zoo. Watching animals trapped in pens either lumbering back and forth or sleeping didn't make for a fun afternoon. She lost track of Willow, Jesse and Xander a while ago, so she just wandered along the path until she hopefully ran into them. She just took a moment to look at the nearest signs pointing to the reptiles, elephants and the Hyena House when she became aware of a wandering herd of jerk faces behind her.

"Oh, look," said Kyle, the leader. "It's Buffy and all her friends."

Buffy gave a tight smile. "Very witty."

Tor sneered. "Do you ever wonder why nobody cool wants to hang out with you?"

"Just thankful."

"Were you this popular at your old school?" Rhonda sneered. "Before you got kicked out?" The group laughed and continued on their way, leaving Buffy standing there alone.

"Careful!" Tor shouted to the elephants. "She might beat you up!"

The elephants looked just as nonplussed as Buffy. At least the pachyderms empathized with her.

To her relief, Jesse, Xander and Willow came running up.

"We just saw the zebras mating!" Willow gushed. "It was like the Heimlich, with stripes!"

"And I missed it. Yet somehow I'll find the courage to live on," Buffy sighed dramatically as she started walking.

The others fell in step around her. "Where were you?" Willow asked.

"I was looking at the fishes."

"Was it cool?"

"It was fishes."

"Not even 'fish-tastic'?" Jesse asked.

"I'm feeling' that you're not in the field trip spirit here," observed Xander.

Buffy shrugged. "Well, it would… It's nothing, I… We do the same zoo trip at my old school every year. Same old, same old."

Xander nodded in understanding. "Buffy, this isn't just about looking at a bunch of animals. This is about not being in class!"

Buffy pretended to think about it and nodded with a smile. "You know, you're right! Suddenly the animals look shiny and new."

"It's like Hobbes said," agreed Jesse. "Any minute spent outside and awake is a good minute."

Willow frowned. "Thomas Hobbes said that?"

"No, Hobbes from Calvin and Hobbes. That's the extent of my philosophical musings."

"I can think of worse influences," said Buffy, patting his shoulder.

They continued to walk for a while, basking in the sunshine and the lack of school, when they passed the Hyena House. Despite some caution tape saying 'Off-Limits', they saw Kyle and his gang, accompanied by another boy they knew as Lance, slip inside. They knew Lance to be a fairly harmless nerdy type, so to see him apparently laughing with Kyle's gang put them on edge.

"What are Kyle and his buds doing with Lance?" asked Willow.

"Oh, playing with him as a cat plays with a mouse," said Xander sadly.

Buffy could only glare after them. "What is it with those guys?"

"Probably genetics," said Jesse semi-wisely. "Their parents were probably cavemen. Sad, really."

"Yeah, well, I'd better extract Lance before…"

Xander interrupted. "I'll handle it. This job doesn't require actual slaying." He boldly set off under the tape and into the Hyena House, leaving his friends standing outside.

Buffy shifted awkwardly from one foot to the other. "You don't think we should follow?"

Jesse shrugged nervously. "We could. Or we could just wait for Xander to stagger out with a black eye and bad limp."

Hard to argue with logic like that, Buffy decided, immediately leading the others towards the Hyena House. However, just before they could waltz inside as their classmates had done, the Zookeeper suddenly stepped in front of them, looking incredibly irate.

"Oh, hold it, hold it, are you blind, or are you just illiterate? Because hyenas are very quick to prey on the weak!" he said fiercely.

Jesse yelped. "Hyenas? So sorry, we thought this was the gift shop!"

Zookeeper glared at him. "You're not going in there. Anyone that does is in a world of trouble."

"No, no one's going in there," Willow insisted, gently pulling her friends backwards.

"Why is it off-limits?" Buffy asked, still worried for Xander.

"It's a quarantine," the Zookeeper explained. "These hyenas just came in from Africa, so keep out. Even if they call your name."

Buffy frowned. "What are you talking about?"

"The Masai tribesmen told me that hyenas are capable of understanding human speech. They follow humans around by day, learning their names. At night, when the campfire dies, they call out to a person. Once they separate him, the pack…" He snapped his fingers, "… devours them."

Jesse began guiding his two female friends away from him. "Okay-y-y-y-y, let's step away from the crazy zookeeper," he said quietly.

The Zookeeper scowled at him but still turned away, apparently satisfied that he'd repelled them sufficiently.

The three friends waited outside for a few minutes until Lance suddenly came running out of the House, ducking under the caution tape as he did so. Jesse just barely managed to intercept him.

"Whoa, easy there, Lance! You okay?"

Lance jumped but then recognized Jesse. "Oh yeah," he panted. "Just… those guys."

"High school hormones do weird things to people," Jesse sympathized, patting his shoulder. "Supposedly it fades with age, but then you look at any Nascar crowd…"

Buffy and Willow joined them. "Where's Xander?" asked Buffy. "He went in there to help you."

Lance looked back in confusion. "He was there, but the hyenas started growling and…" He trailed off as Kyle and his gang came stepping out under the caution tape, and he immediately turned and ran off before they spotted him.

Much to Buffy's surprise, Xander stepped out with them, apparently laughing with them. Definitely set her 'not good' radar off.

The Bronze drummed away with music and dancing teens as Buffy and Willow came away from the bar. Buffy had herself a drink and a croissant – about as good as you would expect at a teen hangout, but she figured her appetite would get her past the taste.

As they sat at an empty table, Jesse came hurrying up. "Hey, sorry I'm late," he panted. "Got held up in Biology. Apparently, the teacher didn't appreciate the illustrations in my report."

Buffy rolled her eyes. "Perhaps they should've been more anatomically correct."

"It's not my fault I can't draw worth a damn."

Willow looked concerned. "Where's Xander?"

"Is he not here?" asked Jesse, looking around. "Figured he went ahead with you guys."

"Did he seem upset at all on the bus back from the zoo?"

Buffy frowned. "About what?"

"I dunno. He was quiet."

"Well, be fair to us, Will," smirked Jesse. "We're not all obsessed with his every move like you are."

Buffy grinned in agreement. "We're not constantly monitoring his health, his moods, his blood pressure…"

"One thirty over eighty!" Willow said automatically, looking weirdly pleased with herself.

Jesse frowned. "Okay, we were just joking around. Willow, as your friend, please find a hobby?" he pleaded, putting a hand on her shoulder.

Willow shrugged helplessly. "He makes my head go tingly. You know what I mean?"

"Only because you've told me every day for the last ten years."

"Oh, right, because we've only spent the last three listening to you whine about Cordelia!"

Jesse bristled a little. "I'm trying to quit!" he protested.

Buffy chuckled. "Man, you guys need to expand your horizons a bit."

"So no one makes your head tingly?" Willow demanded with a grin.

"Not of late."

"Not even for a dangerous and mysterious older man whose leather jacket you're wearing right now?"

Buffy pretended to be annoyed while she cinched the jacket tighter around herself. "Goes with the shoes!"

"Oooooh, Buffy's got a cru-u-u-u-ush!" Jesse teased.

"I suppose some girls might find him good looking…," Buffy harrumphed, "… if they have eyes, alright, he's a honey, but… it's just he's never around, and when he is all he wants to do is talk about vampires, and… I just can't have a relationship…"

Willow suddenly lit up. "There he is!"

Buffy jumped. "Angel?"

"Xander!"

They turned to see Xander walking into the club, checking out a girl on the way. To their surprise, she stared after him. He came up to their table. "Sorry I'm late, I… just forgot that we were gonna be here." He saw Buffy's croissant and tore a piece off. "Hungry!"

"Xander, you still want me to help you with geometry tomorrow?" Willow asked hopefully. "We can work after class…"

She trailed off as Xander took a swig of Buffy's drink before answering, giving Willow a thumbs-up and snapping at Buffy. "What is this crap?"

Buffy glared at him. "Well, it was my buttery croissant."

Xander made a face. "Man, I need some food! Birds live on this!" He roughly slapped Jesse on the back, making the other guy jump. "Am I right, McNally?"

"Uh, sure. I think," Jesse replied, rubbing the spot in confusion.

Buffy and Willow look at each other and then at Xander. He looked back and forth at them.

"What?"

"What's up with you?" Buffy demanded.

"Is something wrong? Did I do something?" Willow asked worriedly.

Xander scoffed disbelievingly. "What could you possibly do? That's crazy talk. I'm just… restless."

"Well, we could go to the ice cream place…"

But Xander pointed to the table. "I like it here." He looked up and scanned the area a bit, and then leaned toward Buffy and sniffed her hair, making her pull back in alarm.

"Okay, now what?"

"You took a bath."

"Yeah, I-I often do, I'm actually known for it."

Jesse pulled on Xander's shoulder. "Okay, heel, Xan-man. Personal space, okay?"

Xander shrugged him off and shot him a glare, but then he saw Kyle and his gang come in.

Buffy saw them, too. "Oh, great. It's the winged monkeys."

The gang came over to them. Xander stared back at them. Kyle stopped at their table, and he and Xander stared each other down. The gang went around to another table that's occupied.

Kyle leaned forward and gave one of the heavier boys a hard look. "Y'know, I don't understand why you're sitting at our table."

"Yeah," added Rhonda, looking just as frightening, "shouldn't you be hovering over the football stadium with 'Goodyear' written on you?"

They all laughed at the poor boy. To the alarm of his friends, Xander laughed as well. When they didn't laugh, he looked at them like children. "Kid's fat," he explained.

Buffy looked at Willow and Jesse, who looked just as lost as her.

In the school library the next day, Giles suited up in protective gear while Buffy trained on his Watcher ass. She enjoyed the adrenaline rush, but he enjoyed less of the kicks. He decided to cut training short and let her get to class.

Out in the hall, however, she found Mr Flutie the principal chasing a pig around. The surrounding students did their best to avoid them as they ran around. Jesse just barely managed to avoid it as Buffy came around the corner, reacted quickly to catch him and picked him up.

"Good pig wranglin', Buff!" Jesse approved in a southern drawl.

Buffy rolled her eyes. "Why am I holding a pig in a football helmet?"

Mr. Flutie finally caught up. "Lordy, Herbert! Gave Mr. Flutie quite a scare, didn't he?" He addressed everyone in the hall. "Students, I'd like you all to meet Herbert, our new mascot for the Sunnydale High Razorbacks!"

The students all clapped, still bewildered but otherwise calmed down.

Buffy snuggled the pig. "He's so cute!"

Mr. Flutie smiled awkwardly. "He's not cute. No! He's a fierce Razorback!"

Jesse frowned. "Is that why you gave him foam tusks, sir?" he asked.

"Exactly! He's mean, he's ready for action! See? The scary Razorback!" He gestured at the team colors tied around the pig's back.

Buffy nodded. "You're right. He's a fine mascot and will engender school spirit."

"Uh, he better. Costs a fortune to feed him."

Buffy and Jesse followed Mr. Flutie to the faculty room with Herbert in the Slayer's arms.

"See, the problem is you kids today have no school spirit," he said. "Hold on, let me get his outfit off." He continued to speak as he pulled the pig's cossie off. "Today it's all gangs and drugs and those movies on Showtime with the nudity."

Buffy and Jesse both looked at him funny.

"I don't have cable, I only heard," he said awkwardly. "When I was your age, we cared about the school's reputation and the football team's record, all that stuff!" Then, he smiled briefly. "Of course, when I was your age, I was surrounded by old guys telling me how much better things were when they were my age." He went into the faculty room.

Jesse patted Herbert's head. "Man, us kids today with our big pants and our hula hoops and our fax machines…"

Buffy giggled, but then, they heard footsteps, and up came Xander, looking teed off about something. Herbert squealed and thrashed as he walked by. Jesse managed to help her keep Herbert from jumping out of her arms, and the pig didn't calm until he'd passed. They both stared after his retreating form in confusion.

The rest of the day went by pretty roughly for anyone who crossed Xander's path.

Because of bad weather, the gym teacher forced everyone to play dodgeball. Xander and Jesse wound up on the opposite side of Buffy and Willow's side, and the crazy insanity that comes with this so-called sport commenced. Xander got the first victim, and they spent the next few minutes dodging and weaving around the rubber balls.

Jesse went down first thanks to a well-timed ball from the other side. He shook his head, relieved to be out and went to sit on the sidelines while the others continued to wail on each other. He made it just in time to witness Xander throwing a ball and nailing Willow hard on the back. She looked hurt and confused as she walked off of the court. Even more startling, Xander caught a ball while he watched Willow go, but soon continued the game. Willow sat down with Jesse, who wordlessly put a comforting arm around her while they joined forces to glare at Xander – not that he noticed.

A few seconds later, they saw just Xander, the Pack and Lance on one side, with Buffy on her own on the other. The Pack looked at her, then focused on Lance. He fell to the floor and cowered as they each threw their balls at him hard. Amid all the laughing and mockery, Buffy ran over and helped Lance up. She stared at Xander as he and the others left.

"Is it just me, or is Xander going all 'Lord of the Flies' lately?" Buffy grunted to Jesse after they'd endured the gym shower.

Jesse thought for a moment. "Never saw that movie, but probably, yes."

Buffy rolled her eyes as they rounded a corner and headed for her locker. As she worked the combination, their eyes fell on Xander and Willow nearby, with the Pack watching from a distance.

"And, well," they heard Xander say, "we've been friends for such a long time that I feel like I need to tell you something."

Willow looked so hopeful that it would've broken anyone's heart.

"I've, um…," Xander said before his expression turned mocking. "I've decided to drop geometry. So I won't be needing your math help anymore. Which means I won't have to look at your pasty face again." He and the others laughed while Willow's entire face collapsed in humiliation. She turned and walked quickly away, right past the extremely stunned Buffy and Jesse.

Buffy slammed her locker, but before she could say anything, Jesse already beat her to storming up to Xander, looking beyond pissed.

"Xander," he said, sounding calm enough to be frightening, "we've been friends a very long time, so I think I've earned the right to ask – what the hell is wrong with you?!" he shouted suddenly.

Xander looked startled for a moment, only to start laughing even louder. "Oh, sure, I'm gonna feel threatened by the six-foot-two string bean," he laughed, making the Pack laugh along with him. "Man, have you always been this much of a girl?"

Buffy immediately strolled over and stood beside Jesse. "Something wrong with being a girl, Xander?" she snapped.

Xander just looked at her and started laughing again. He went back to the Pack, and they left.

Buffy glanced up at Jesse. "Sorry if I somewhat emasculated you," she said a little sheepishly.

Jesse continued to glare at Xander's retreating form. "At the moment, I would've been very happy to watch you kick his ass," he muttered. "Come on. We gotta find Willow."

Soothing Willow's hurt feelings took the better part of a day, involving an overnight conference call, then well into the school day.

"I've known him my whole life, Buffy," Willow said, tears in her eyes. "Well, we haven't always been close, but he's never…"

Buffy looked pensive. "I think something's wrong with him."

"Or maybe there's something wrong with me."

Jesse frowned. "Xander's acting like a jerk, so it's your fault?"

"C'mon. He's not picking on you."

"He called me a bean pole yesterday! He laughed like Jack Nicholson playing the Joker!"

Willow refused to be swayed. "And he doesn't pick on Buffy either. He just sniffs her a lot."

Buffy shook her head. "No. That still doesn't explain why he's hanging out with the dode patrol," she said, hopping off the railing she'd been sitting on. "Something's going on. Something weird."

Jesse scratched the back of his head thoughtfully. "He has sniffed you a lot," he murmured. "In fact, I've seen him sniffing the air every so often. He's not much of a sniffer."

Buffy shrugged. "It's a start, at least. We'll talk to the expert on 'weird'."

Buffy and Jesse followed Giles around the library as he put books away and checked the stamps on the back. "Xander's taken to teasing the less fortunate?" he asked them.

"Uh-huh," said Buffy.

"And, there's been a noticeable change in both clothing and demeanor?"

"Yepper-doodles," said Jesse.

"And, well, otherwise all his spare time is spent lounging about with imbeciles."

Buffy looked worried. "It's bad, isn't it?"

"It's devastating. He's turned into a sixteen-year-old boy. Course, you'll have to kill him."

Jesse looked put out. "As a sixteen-year-old boy, I'm offended, sir."

"Giles, we're serious!" complained Buffy.

"So am I. Except for the part about killing him," said Giles. "Testosterone is a great equalizer. It turns all men into morons. He will, however, get over it."

"I cannot believe that you, of all people, are trying to Scully me. There is something supernatural at work here." She grabbed some books, not checking to see if their subjects related even remotely to the supernatural. "Get your books! Look stuff up!"

Giles took the books with an unimpressed expression. "Look under what?"

Buffy floundered for a moment before letting out an embarrassed sigh. "I don't know. That's your department."

"The evidence that you've presented me with is sketchy at best."

"It's just such a one-eighty, Giles," Jesse elaborated. "He was his normal goofy self all the way to the zoo, through the zebra habitat, and then…" He trailed off briefly, as if realizing something. "He went into the Hyena cage to protect Lance from Kyle and his goons. A few minutes later, Lance comes running out while Xander and Kyle are suddenly such chums." He looked at Buffy. "Could there be any connection, they wondered."

Buffy's eyes widened. "Oh, God, that laugh…"

Giles looked between the two of them. "You're saying that, uh, Xander's becoming a hyena?"

"I don't know. Or been possessed by one?"

"Not just Xander, all of them," said Jesse.

Willow suddenly came running in. "Herbert! They found him."

"The pig?" asked Jesse.

Willow nodded. "Dead. And also eaten. Principal Flutie's freaking out."

Buffy looked sharply at Giles. "Testosterone, huh?"

Giles immediately went to his office to get his books and look stuff up.

A few minutes later, Buffy, Willow and Jesse sat around the library going through books.

"Wow!" Buffy announced. "Apparently Noah rejected the hyenas from the Ark because he thought they were an evil impure mixture of dogs and cats."

"Hyenas aren't well liked," sighed Willow.

Jesse shook his head. "Kicked out the hyenas and he still couldn't find room for the unicorns," he tutted.

Willow slumped over in her chair. "Why couldn't Xander be possessed by a puppy or, or some ducks?"

"That's assuming 'possession' is the right word."

Giles came over from the cage, another book in his hands. "Oh, I'll say it is. The Masai of the Serengeti have spoken of animal possession for generations. I should have remembered that."

"So how does it work?" asked Jesse.

"Well, apparently there's a sect of animal worshipers known as Primals. They believe that humanity's consciousness, the soul is a perversion, a dilution of spirit. To them the animal state is holy. They are able, through trans-possession, to draw the spirit of certain animals into themselves."

"And then they started acting like hyenas?" asked Buffy.

"Well, only the most predatory of animals are of interest to the Primals, so, uh, yes, yes, that would fit, yes."

"So, what happens to the person once the spirit's in them?"

Giles' expression turned grave. "If it goes unchecked…"

He handed Buffy the book, open to a certain page. She took one look, slammed the book shut and quickly made for the door. "I gotta find Xander."

Willow picked up the book and opened it to the bookmark while Jesse looked over her shoulder. They saw a drawing of people with limbs bitten off, heads missing and other massive injuries.

Buffy stepped into the teacher's lounge and found the mangled remains of Herbert's cage. Her heart broke for the poor guy, but she took a deep breath and inspected the cage. Twisted metal and scattered sedar chips. She stepped on something that crunched and crouched down to the floor. She found parts of Herbert, some vertebrae and other bones. She picked up a rib, crinkling her nose in disgust.

She got back up and started to turn around, only to find someone in the doorway. "Xander!"

Her friend stood between her and the hallway, looking ready for a fight. She tried to evade him, but he quickly matched her movement.

Unnerved but trying not to show it, she took a breath. "This is ridiculous. We need to talk." She then faked him out and jumped on him, knocking him down with her on top holding down his arms.

Much to her chagrin, Xander smiled. "Been waiting for you to jump my bones," he purred. Then, he growled and rolled Buffy over onto her back, putting himself on top now, pinning her arms down.

Buffy struggled to get free. "Get off of me."

Xander smirked. "Is that what you really want? We both know what you really want. You want danger, don't cha? You like your men dangerous."

Buffy really didn't want to hurt him, so she attempted to get through to the real him. "You're in trouble, Xander. You are infected with some hyena thing, it's like a demonic possession!"

The smirk never left Xander's face. "Dangerous and mean, right? Like Angel. Your mystery guy. Well, guess who just got mean." He began to giggle a little as he leaned in closer. "Do you know how long… I've waited… until you'd stop pretending that we aren't attracted…"

Not particularly wanting to hear the rest of that sentence, Buffy threw him off of her and quickly got up to face him. He leapt up, too, and began to approach her as she backed away.

"Until Willow… stops kidding herself… that I could settle with anyone but you?"

"Look, Xander, I don't wanna hurt you…," she started, but he grabbed her by the shoulders and pushed her against the vending machine.

"Now do you wanna hurt me?"

Buffy struggled, but the possessed Xander proved too strong.

"Come on, Slayer. I like it when you're scared. The more I scare you," he paused to sniff her, "the better you smell." He moved in and kissed her roughly on the neck.

Willow and Jesse sat at a computer watching footage of feeding hyenas when the door burst open, and they saw Buffy dragging Xander into the library over to them.

"Oh good, you found him," Jesse deadpanned.

"Hurry up," grunted Buffy. "We gotta get him locked up somehow before he comes to."

Willow jumped to her feet. "Oh, my God, Xander! What happened?"

"I hit him."

"With what?"

"A desk."

Jesse opened the cage door, and Buffy dragged him in. "I take it he wasn't in a reasonable mood?"

"No, he tried his hand at felony sexual assault."

Willow gasped. "Oh, Buffy, the hyena in him didn't…?"

"No," Buffy assured her as they got him situated in the cage, "but it's safe to say that, in his animal state, his idea of wooing doesn't involve a Yanni CD and a bottle of Chianti." They stepped outside and locked the cage door. "There, that oughtta hold him. Where's Giles?"

"He got called to some teacher's meeting," said Jesse as he dusted his hands.

"What are we gonna do?" asked Willow despairingly. "I mean… how do we get Xander back?"

"Right now, I'm a little more worried about what the rest of the pack are up to."

"The rest of the pack were spotted outside Herbert the mascot's cage," Giles announced, making them all turn as he re-entered the library. "They were sent to the principal's office."

"Good!" said Willow. "That'll show 'em."

Giles didn't share her enthusiasm, even taking his usual British stuffiness into account.

"It didn't show 'em, did it?" asked Jesse knowingly.

Giles exhaled but remained silent, looking at his feet as though searching for what to say on his shoes.

Buffy swallowed. "They didn't hurt him, did they?"

At last, Giles found his voice. "They, uh… ate him."

The three teens stared blankly at him, their mouths hanging open. Willow gently lowered herself into a chair, stunned.

"They ate Principal Flutie?" Buffy asked.

"As in, literally ate him?" asked Jesse, looking like he might be sick.

Giles cleared his throat. "The, uh, official theory is that wild dogs got into his office somehow. There was no one at the scene."

"But Xander didn't," Willow said feebly, looking at Buffy. "He was with you."

Giles turned his head and saw Xander in the cage, sagging with relief. "Oh! Uh, well, that's a small mercy."

Buffy looked at him hopefully. "Giles, how do we stop this? How do you trans-possess someone?"

"I-I'm afraid I still don't have all the pieces. Um, the accounts of the Primals and their methods are a bit thin on the ground. There is some talk of a predatory act, but the exact ritual is, is, um…" He picked up a book and skimmed through it. "The Malleus Maleficarum deals in the particulars of demonic possession, which… may apply…" He looked through a few pages. "Yes, one should be able to transfer the spirits to another human."

Jesse looked incredulous. "Are you offering?"

Giles' face turned awkward. "Oh. Good point."

Buffy shook her head. "What we need to do is put the hyena back in the hyena."

"But until we know more, uh…"

Jesse snapped his fingers. "Remember the crazy zookeeper? Seemed pretty passionate about the hyenas. Claimed they could understand English and everything."

"Maybe he didn't quarantine those hyenas because they were sick," Buffy agreed.

Giles nodded as he put the book away. "We should talk to him."

Buffy started to leave, but came to a stop. "Oh, wait, somebody's gotta watch Xander."

Willow got up decisively. "I will."

"Will, are you sure?" Buffy asked, looking at her cautiously. "If he wakes up…"

But Willow held her hand out for the keys. "I'll be alright. Go."

After a moment to exchange glances with Jesse, Buffy gave Willow the keys to the cage and grabbed her coat, followed by Giles and Jesse.

The Zookeeper stared at them from across his desk. "The students have been possessed by the hyenas?"

"Yes," said Giles.

"Are you sure?"

Buffy nodded. "We're really, really sure."

"Gotta say – you're taking this better than we thought you would," Jesse noted.

The Zookeeper gestured around some papers on his desk. "The zoo imported those hyenas from Africa. There was something strange about them from day one. I did some homework… That particular breed is very rare. Totally vicious. Historically, they were worshiped by these guys…"

"Primals," Giles supplied.

"Yeah! Creepy guys! Now, they had rituals for taking the hyena spirits, but I don't see how that could've happened to your kids."

Giles straightened his glasses. "Uh, we don't know exactly how the ritual works. We know that it involves a, um, um… predatory act and some kind of symbol."

The Zookeeper looked thoughtful. "Predatory act? Of course. That makes sense. Where did you read that?"

"Do you have Sherman Jeffries' work on cults and on…"

Buffy and Jesse exchanged weary glances. "Boys?" Buffy said pointedly.

"Sorry," Giles said sheepishly.

But the Zookeeper seemed optimistic. "Look. I think we may have enough information so that together we could pull off a reverse trans-possession."

"What do we do?" asked Buffy.

"We've gotta get those possessed students over to the hyena cage right away! I'll meet you there. We can begin the rituals."

Buffy winced. "W-well, we can guarantee one of them, but there are four more, and we have no idea where they are."

"No, I wouldn't worry about that. After hyenas feed and rest they will track the missing member of their pack until they find him. They should come right to you."

Buffy's eyes widened in horror. "Willow!"

Giles and Jesse looked at her, and then a moment later, their expressions matched hers. They ran out of the office.

When they got back to the school, they found the library a mess and the cage door wide open with no sign of either Willow or Xander. However, they soon heard the sounds of growling and howling down the halls, and they turned to follow in hopes that they'd find Willow in one piece.

Running down the hall, they spotted Heidi – a member of the Pack – and could hear Willow yelping and screaming inside a classroom just ahead. As Heidi headed for it, Buffy grabbed a fire extinguisher off the wall and knocked her over the head with it, sending her into a heap at their feet. Willow ran out of the room, jumped over her and headed for Giles and Jesse.

Xander suddenly came running out and attacked Buffy. She responded by kicking him and sending him crashing to the floor. Buffy had just ditched the extinguisher when the other three pack members appeared at the end of the hall.

"Run!" Giles shouted. He herded Jesse and Willow back into the classroom, and Buffy followed, closing and locking the door behind her. The Pack pounded on the door but couldn't get in and soon left.

"Are they gone?" asked Jesse nervously.

"They could be faking it," said Willow.

Buffy shook her head. "No, they're hungry. They'll be looking for somebody weak. I'm really sorry, Will. I didn't know they were gonna come after Xander."

Willow took a few deep breaths but still smiled nervously. "It's okay."

"We must lead them back to the zoo if we're going to stop this," said Giles.

"And before their next meal," said Buffy. "Guess that's my job."

Giles looked uncertain. "Well, individually they're almost as strong as you. As a group they're…"

"They're tough, but I think they're getting stupider. You guys go to the zoo and I will bring them to you."

She turned and left the room, briefly signaling to the others the coast was clear for them.

Fairly confident Buffy would lure Xander and the Pack to them, Giles, Jesse and Willow ran to the Hyena House.

"Where's the zookeeper?" asked Willow.

Giles took a moment to get his breath back. "Uh, he must be inside. I-I'll go in and prepare things. You just warn, uh, us when you hear Buffy and the others approaching." He ran in, leaving Willow and Jesse to watch and wait.

Giles ducked under the tape and came into the main area. "Doctor?" he called out. "Uh… zookeeper?"

A door closed behind him, and he jumped as the Zookeeper stepped out, all made up in robes and blue and white face paint that looked very angry – still wearing his glasses over it.

"Oh! Oh, of course, the, uh, Masai ceremonial garb. Yes…," Giles stammered. "Very good. Are you, uh, otherwise prepared for the trans-possession?"

The Zookeeper nodded. "Almost," he said as he started to move around the habitat.

Giles eyed him suspiciously, but in watching him, he noticed markings on the floor. "Oh, right! The, uh, sacred circle. Yes, you'd need that to, um…" He paused, hoping his instincts were wrong. "This would be here when… when the children first came. Why would you…?" He ran out of steam as realization hit him. "How terribly frustrating for you, that a bunch of school children could accomplish what you could not."

The Zookeeper simply stared at him through the mask. "It bothered me. But the power will be mine."

Giles tried to get away, but the zookeeper hit him in the gut with his stick and again on the back, knocking him out. He tossed the stick aside and dragged Giles away.

Willow and Jesse kept watching and listening, and soon, they could hear the sounds of hyenas yapping in the distance. Satisfied, they ran inside.

"They're almost here!" Willow shouted as they ran under the caution tape. "Giles! Giles!"

They skidded to a halt when they saw the Zookeeper. "Whoa," said Jesse, already not liking what he saw. "Interesting look. The glasses kind of undercut it, though."

"Where are the hyenas for the trans-possession?" asked Willow warily.

"They're right here in the feeding area."

Willow went to see the hyenas, but the Zookeeper stopped her.

"Stay back! They haven't been fed."

"Where's Giles?" Jesse asked, already suspicious.

"He's… laying in wait."

Willow looked between them. "They're almost here," she told the Zookeeper. "Shouldn't you bring the hyenas out?"

"When the time is right," he replied. "I'm gonna need your help." He took out some wire and started binding her wrists together.

"Right, because this is totally normal," Jesse said, already starting to advance on them, but the Zookeeper held out a knife that kept him at bay.

They heard footsteps echoing in the entrance behind them. "They're right behind me!" Buffy's voice rang out.

"You say one word to her, and the girl dies right now," the Zookeeper snarled.

Jesse glared at him. "Probably shouldn't have mentioned 'predatory act' before. This is what you've wanted the whole time, isn't it?"

The Zookeeper smirked. "Not as dumb as you look."

"Whereas you're even crazier than you look, which isn't easy in that getup. Kudos."

Buffy's footsteps finally reached a crescendo as she came skidding into the room and saw Willow being held by the zookeeper.

"Buffy, it's a trap!" Willow cried.

Before anyone could react, Xander charged in and grabbed Buffy from behind, sending them both to the floor. The others came in and got on top of her, too.

The Zookeeper started chanting. "YU BA YA SA NA!"

Taking advantage of the distraction, Jesse lurched forward and managed to punch the Zookeeper's hand that held the knife at him, sending it clattering to the floor and allowing Willow to slip out of his grasp.

The Zookeeper didn't seem to notice. He had the Pack's attention. They looked up at him and their eyes all flashed green. Then, the zookeeper's eyes flashed green. He turned to Jesse and Willow and growled, leaving them with no clear escape route.

Xander, however, had by now come to his senses. He spotted his two oldest friends in trouble and charged the zookeeper, knocking him down and away from them. The Pack had also regained what little senses they had and got off of Buffy.

The Zookeeper got up and punched Xander, about to attack him, when Buffy got up and punched him square in the face paint. He attempted to charge Buffy, but she knocked him back down. He charged her again, and she tossed him over onto his back. He got up and tried again. Buffy got under him and threw him up and into the hyena pit. He tried to climb out, but the hungry hyenas dragged him back down.

While Kyle and his goons ran away from the gruesome sight, Buffy ran to the pit to see if she could save the zookeeper, but she instead had to look away in disgust.

While Jesse and Xander started to untie Willow, Giles came out of the back room, rubbing a bump on his head. "Uh, did I miss anything?"

The next day at school, Buffy and Willow walked together discussing what would happen due to Principal Flutie's untimely demise. They'd just ascended some stares to the balcony when they saw Jesse come around the corner.

"Ladies," he said warmly, "I've brought someone who has a few things to say to you." He paused as no one showed up. When they looked confused, he rolled his eyes and called back around the corner. "Dude, that's your cue!"

A moment later, a very sheepish-looking Xander stepped out of hiding. "Hey."

"Hey, are you feeling?" Willow asked excitedly.

"Like garbage," he said. "And not just because I might have trichinosis from eating a live pig."

Buffy frowned. "Wait, you remember that? Yesterday, you acted like you didn't."

Xander looked very shamefaced. "I… lied."

"We're chalking that up to a less-than-healthy case of denial," Jesse added.

Xander rubbed his hands awkwardly. "Look, guys, I am so sorry for all the hell I put you all through when I was possessed. It's like, I knew everything I said was wrong and gross and horrible – and oh god, the sniffing – but I couldn't figure out how to make myself stop doing it. For some reason, it just felt right – and that feels so wrong."

Willow looked sympathetic. "Xander, you still saved me and Jesse from a crazy zookeeper guy."

"Only when I became myself again. I should've tried harder to fight it." He looked at Buffy. "And I am really sorry about… what happened in the faculty lounge. Man, I can't even say it."

Buffy gave him a long look, but eventually, she smiled sadly. "Yeah, maybe that's for the best. I know it wasn't you, Xander. You literally couldn't help it."

"Hopefully next time one of us is possessed," said Jesse, "we'll come with a great big neon sign on our foreheads for the occasion."

Xander chuckled, but he still looked ashamed. "So, are we all still friends?"

"Of course!" Willow said eagerly, hugging him immediately.

Buffy's smile became more genuine as she watched them. "This is definitely the superior Xander. Accept no substitutes."

Once the hug ended, Buffy and Willow headed off to class with the promise they would see the boys at lunch. Waving goodbye – with a promise to go vegetarian for a while – Xander and Jesse went in the opposite direction.

"See? Told ya they'd understand," Jesse said, patting his friend on the shoulder.

"Yeah, I guess," Xander sighed. "Just feel like they're gonna look at me differently now."

To their surprise, though, they found Giles waiting for them nearby, and he'd clearly seen the whole thing. "Well," he said, straightening his glasses, "that's a possibility – but they'll also see you as someone willing to own up to his behavior."

Xander looked hopeful. "Girls like that kind of thing?"

"More than testosterone."

Jesse nudged Xander. "There, see? Now you just have to own up to bed wetting, and you're all set."

The joke successfully melted the tension out of Xander's posture, and he gave Jesse a playful shove. "Aw shut up, man!" he laughed.

The two boys walked off to class, still laughing and shoving each other, leaving Giles to roll his eyes and mutter something about 'maturity'.