"People once believed that when someone dies, a crow carries their soul to the land of the dead. But sometimes, something so bad happens that a terrible sadness is carried with it and the soul can't rest. Then sometimes, just sometimes, the crow can bring that soul back to put the wrong things right."

― James O'Barr, The Crow

"Is this gonna happen again?" asked Sergeant Tom McClowery of the Cleveland PD, looking around the exterior of the building where he and his partner Sergeant Pete Winton had been called in after a minor riot had been reported there.

"No," sighed Xander Harris.

Backed up by tonight's Slayer squad called in at way-too-late-o'clock to meet with the city's legal authorities in the know of what lurked around their town's Hellmouth, this man in his mid-thirties rubbed tiredly at the skin under his eyepatch. Next, Xander glared at what was perched on the railing for a handicapped ramp a few yards away.

The large crow sitting there hunched down and ruffled its feathers in sullen defiance.

Shaking his head, Xander told Sergeant McClowery what their supernatural agency had learned over the last couple of hours, "After she and her mom passed away, Andrew spent the next month in a serious funk. He seemed to get better while busy planning for when the film came out. Making his costume, staying online with other devotees, that kind of thing. Naturally, he camped out here three days early to be first in line, living on junk food the whole time. And after all that…Andrew Wells choked to death on a Jolly Rancher candy five minutes before the first midnight showing."

Both of the cops looked blank at hearing that. McClowery was the first to speak, "Yeah, too bad, but why exactly would it make this Andrew guy come back as a zombie and then break into there?"

Standing among the scattered debris of a crowd which had been expecting to see the latest installment and instead had fled in terror at what they'd just experienced, Sergeant Winton had to agree. Pointing past overturned lawn chairs, blankets, sleeping bags, and discarded food wrappers at the wrecked front entrance of one of Cleveland's movie theaters, this policeman still wanted to know, "You sure it's the right thing to do, just waiting him out?"

The headmaster for the Cleveland Slayers House firmly nodded. Xander cautioned the other two men, "Like me, Andrew's a Sunnydale native. Magic has a tendency to act really weird around us because we were born right on a Hellmouth. Not to mention even other Star Wars fans think our cook's kinda way beyond obsessed about his fondness for a certain actress. We interrupt him, Andrew might get…testy."

All there eyed the smashed double doors wrenched apart and then torn off their hinges to be hurled into the cinema's foyer when a supreme geek ignoring his recent demise had stormed inside to claim an aisle seat, middle row. A silent agreement was made among everyone to just stay where they were for now and hope things worked out in the end.

Soon checking his watch, Xander announced, "Okay, the movie should be over. You can bet he'll stay for the credits."

Glancing over his shoulder at the small group of supremely fit young women appearing totally ready for action, Xander appealed to them.

"Girls, I know Andrew's a definite pain in the ass, but try not to do anything permanent to him if he won't come quietly. Maybe Willow can help somehow or not. In any case, the funeral's gonna be depressing enough without having to bury a hundred and sixty pounds of sliced nerd."

Various petulant shrugs from his ladies indicated his request had been heard and if possible would be acted upon, but they couldn't promise anything. Knowing that was as good as he was going to get, Xander returned his attention to the inner auditorium doors just in time to see these open.

Lurching into view, Andrew clutching an empty popcorn bucket made his way outside the movie theater showing Star Wars: The Last Jedi. In his handmade robes imitating this exact science-fiction clothing and with a bloodless face, this man only a year or two younger than Xander stopped short at seeing his boss and also several Slayers pulling out from their own track suits numerous hand weapons.

Actually, Andrew didn't seem too concerned about the latter. Instead, he beamed at Xander, to then enthusiastically announce, "Carrie Fisher was absolutely great! It was worth it all, being here to see her as Princess Leia one last time!"

Right after saying this, the revenant's eyes rolled up into his skull and he dropped lifelessly onto the ground.

Xander, the Slayers, and the policemen all stared in disbelief at Andrew's corpse, until their attention was attracted by the crow hastily taking off with flapping wings into the dark skies above. Its ludicrous task finally finished, that mystical bird gave the impression it was glad beyond measure to have this over with, judging by the unique exhibition of utter embarrassment the crow was still displaying during its speedy departure.

"Well," Xander managed, "Looks like Andrew had a good time at the movies, I guess."