I have done a few season 3 stories in BTVS, but I have never done this particular episode. Of course, there are necessary changes. Hope you enjoy the nearly 6,000 words!

Chapter 4: Dead Man's Party

*****A Few Days Later*****

Severus told the group a few days later when they were all together in the library at lunch.

He put the book on the table. "So Draco's instinct's about Mayor Wilkins being an evil wizard is correct," he shared. "I spoke to Rupert who suggested that I look through the city archives, which this library had copies of for some reason. If you look at the founding mayor Wilkins and each mayor after, they are not just juniors, they are identical to the current mayor."

The group gathered around to look at the photos. "Damn," Faith said. "That's really freaky."

"Told you," Draco said, looking smug.

"Mother is going to be so disappointed," Cordelia said with a sigh.

None of them noticed that Oz was in the library putting away books that he grabbed when Professor Snape was in his office. When he heard voices, he started to say hello. However, when the librarian said the words evil mayor, he could not help the human instinct to listen in.

"We should've known," Buffy muttered. "The town is on a hellmouth. How else are people so complicit? There's an evil wizard working his evil mojo."

"Man, this town is fun!" Faith exclaimed with a grin.

Draco looked at her in disbelief. "Really? You find evil wizards fun? Have you actually met any?" he asked.

"Well, no, but this town is never dull," she said. "I love it. And Cordy's got a magic elf that brings the best treats."

"Okay, now I just feel like a snake," Oz said from behind them. "I wasn't trying to spy. I was shelving books when you started talking."

"Oh, it's okay," Buffy said, waving him over. "We should've invited you. You already know about our calling. May as well know all the horrible truths we deal with." Then a thought occurred to her. "Unless you don't want to." She gave him an anxious look.

Oz smiled reassuringly at her. "It's good. It is always better to know the truth than be kept ignorant," he said. He sat down at the table next to her. "Magical elves, too, huh? Cool."

"So wolfboy is on board," Faith said in approval. "Awesome. I vote the more the merrier. We should also bring in Queen C's bambi looking friend."

"Bambi?" Cordelia asked, looking confused.

Buffy, though, got the reference and snickered. "I miss Xander. He would really like you," she said with a sigh.

"You know, Bambi the deer because she's blonde and all doe eyed and clueless," Faith explained.

"You are referring to Harmony?" Severus asked.

"Who else?" Faith asked, grinning.

"Why can't you call anyone by their names?" Draco asked.

"Because it's boring, Drake," she said pointedly.

When she grinned at him, flashing that sexy dimple at him, he lost his train of thought and forgot to be annoyed. Instead, he returned her smile.

"Why do we want to upset my friend more than she already is?" Cordelia said. "Let her enjoy her senior year as much as she can."

"Well, how about this? Mom said I can have a few friends over my house this weekend," Buffy said. "She's excited to be back to work at the gallery, happy that she didn't sell it but hired a manager instead. Not a big party, but you guys can come. Invite Harmony."

"You know you can't invite just Harmony without the other Cordettes," Cordelia said with a smirk.

"I can't believe you use that nickname," Buffy said with a snort.

"I'm not the one who came up with it," she replied.

"No, Jesse and Xander did," Buffy said. "It wasn't meant as a compliment."

"Maybe not, but we liked it," she said. "Plus, when you embrace something meant to be mean, it takes away the power of the insult."

Buffy was surprised at her insight. "You are full of hidden depths, aren't you?" she remarked.

Cordelia flashed her smile. The bell rang.

"You sure you don't want the Dingoes to play? We can provide music," Oz offered.

"I don't really have any money to pay you," she said.

"Buffy," Cordelia said. "You know that I am an heiress. I can totally pay the band!"

"Father, are you going to take Mom to the movies, so you're not hanging around being all lame?" she asked as her friends left.

"We will let you have a party from seven to ten, and then we will return," he said. "The party will be crashed."

"Works for me," Buffy said.

She walked out with Oz, who asked, "So would you like to get a coffee or something after school at the Expresso Pump?"

Buffy looked at him in surprise. "Oh, ah, sure," she said.

He smiled. "See you later," he said.

She told her cousin about her date with the guitar player. "That's great, Buffy," Cordelia said in approval. "You've had such tragic luck that it's bound to go better. You already know each other's weird little secrets, so now it's just getting to really know each other and decide if you like one another."

"So what about you? Any cute guys in your classes?" Buffy asked.

Cordelia shrugged. "Maybe. I'm not really paying much attention," she admitted. How could she admit that it still bothered her that George would barely talk to her?

"Are you going to the Magic Box after school?" Buffy asked.

"Magic Box? That place no longer exists. It's the Weasleys Magical Wonders," she corrected.

"That's too many words," Buffy said. "I'll stick to the Magic Box."

"You could at least call it the Weasleys since our friends, like, own it," she pointed out.

"Fine," Buffy said with an annoyed glare. "Are you planning on going to the Weasleys after school?"

Cordelia grinned smugly at her cousin or getting her way. "Not planning to, but I can," she said. "Why?"

"Can you invite the guys to my house Friday for the party?" she asked.

"Sure," she said. "I'll fill them on the mayor news, too."

"Thanks for being insufferable," Buffy said with a wave.

"Anytime," Cordelia replied as she left the library.

Cordelia was glad to have an excuse to see George, so she made Draco get a ride home with Harmony. She smirked and waved as she walked away, ignoring his panicked look as Harmony was more than happy to do so.

Draco, though, was not a novice at fighting off the advances of the fairer sex and beckoned to Faith, whose locker wasn't far from his.

"Faith, do you want a ride home? Harmony is really nice. She's giving me a ride since Cordelia ran off with my car," he said in an annoyed tone.

"Guess you better learn how to drive that beauty, huh?" Faith said with a snicker.

"I don't mind," Harmony added. She knew that she lived closer to Draco than Faith, so she would still get to be alone with the elusive Brit either way.

A relieved Draco got into Harmony's car, playing the gentleman, which allowed Faith to sit next to Harmony.

"I'm starvin'. Let's grab some grub," Faith suggested.

"Great idea," Harmony said, happy to have an excuse to spend more time with Draco.

They drove by the closest diner that served burgers and fries. Draco settled for a milkshake; something his cousin had introduced him to. He was disappointed that the two girls sat in a booth next to each other, but he contented himself with sitting across from Faith. Looking at her two beautiful women was never a hardship, and he had to admit it—Harmony was beautiful. In fact, her simple mind would make a good match for Vincent or even Theo, who would love to piss off his father by marrying a muggle who was beautiful but not a drop of magic in him. He snickered at the idea.

Harmony settled for a cappuccino.

"You can have some of my fries," Faith generously offered. Then she taught Draco how yummy a fry could taste dipped in a shake.

After several minutes, Harmony finally asked the question that was keeping her up at night. "So please tell me the truth," she asked. "Is Sunnydale on a hellmouth, and what is a hellmouth?"

Faith gave Draco a questioning look, and he nodded. She looked at Harmony. "Are you really sure that you want to know the truth? Once you know what's really true, there's no going back to pretending everything is sunshine and roses," she told her.

"I have to know," Harmony said. "I can barely sleep. That insane girl told me I was going to die. Then I want to L.A. and visited a psychic, and a death card came up. Something bad is going to happen to me. I have to know. Draco used the word hellmouth, and Cordelia said he is just teasing me. Now he won't say anything. I know she probably threatened him. Professor Snape told me not to worry because Buffy and Cordelia wouldn't let anything bad happen to me. Although that made me feel a bit better, it also brought up more questions, why are they the ones protecting me? That makes no sense! I have to know!"

"Okay," Faith said.

"I think you should know," Draco added.

"A hellmouth is a location where there's a literal doorway between this reality and a hell dimension of some kind. Some hells are so big and bad that if the hellmouth is opened, it can lead to the destruction of our world," Faith explained. "Sunnydale happens to be on one. In fact, it is located under the library."

Harmony's mouth fell open. "Seriously? Our school is literally hell?" she asked.

Faith nodded. "No joke. Buffy and I are supernaturally empowered fighters called vampire slayers because this town is full of vampires and demons. It is why you should not be alone at night, and why the town has such a high number of missing people. We are strong enough to fight monsters. We also heal really fast," she shared.

"Magic is real. Cordelia and I along with Professor Snape can use magic to also protect you," Draco added.

Harmony's mind raced as she tried to put things together. "Willow and Xander are at a magic school, aren't they?" she asked.

"You are smarter than people think, aren't you?" Faith asked, impressed.

"It's a school that trains witches and wizards. A really evil one murdered Buffy's father. Buffy is both a slayer and a witch, so she is very powerful," Draco said.

"I knew it!" Harmony exclaimed. "I knew she was a weirdo of epic proportions."

"Very true," Faith said, snickering. "But you better not let her hear you say that."

"So my best friend is a big fat liar?" Harmony proclaimed.

"Well, my cousin is just trying to protect you," Draco defended. "She thought you would not do well if you knew the truth. She said she wanted you to enjoy your senior year without worrying about what might kill you before your graduate."

"I was already worried about that," Harmony pointed out. "I appreciate you guys telling me the truth. I will tell Cordelia that I'm not a child that she needs to protect."

Draco was glad that the poor girl knew the truth and a bit impressed with how well she took it.

*****Weasleys Magical Wonders*****

Cordelia took a deep breath before opening the door of the twins' shop, and then she pasted on a breezy smile.

"Hey, guys," she said. Fred was helping a customer and waved at her. George was behind the counter.

George greeted her with a, "Hullo."

"How are you?" she asked.

"Very well," he replied. "Things are going great."

"Good," she said.

"How are you? School good?" he asked.

"Fine," she said. "So Uncle Severus looked through the town's archives. It seems the current mayor has been alive since the founding. The photos are all exactly the same."

"So Malfoy was right?" George asked, disappointed.

"Yep," Cordelia said. "An evil wizard explains a lot about this town. He's got to be using some type of magic to keep people so complicit and not fleeing."

"I guess that makes sense," George added.

"Oh, and Buffy wanted me to invite you and Fred to her house Friday for a party. Do you think you can come? I can pick you both up, so you easily find it," she invited.

"We've been there before," he replied. "We can apparate."

"Oh, yeah," she said, feeling stupid. "Make sure you land in the backyard, okay?"

"Of course," he said.

She hesitated a moment before adding, "Just so you know, I don't plan on bringing a date."

Then she left. George rang up the customer that Fred had helped, and then they left.

"What did Cordelia want?" he asked.

"To invite us to a party at Buffy's on Friday night," George said.

"Awesome!" Fred said, rubbing his hands eagerly. "American girls who love British accents! And we're business owners before we're twenty. They love that kind of thing over here."

"True," George said with a smile. "And the mayor is evil."

"Really? Mum's going to be really disappointed," Fred said with a sigh.

"Yeah," George agreed.

Fred had a feeling that there was something his twin was leaving out. "Was there something else she said?" he asked.

"She offered to pick us up, but I told her we could apparate there," he said.

"Sure," Fred agreed. George still looked distracted, so he prodded some more. "Anything else?"

"She told me that she wasn't going to bring a date," George shared. "Am I supposed to care?"

"I don't know. Do you?" Fred asked.

George waited a long moment before admitting, "I guess I do. But she really hurt me, and I don't know what she wants."

"Well, maybe you should ask her," he said. "I'm not trying to get her attention anymore, so she no longer has the pressure of choosing or the worry of coming between brothers."

George smiled. "Like any girl could," he scoffed.

"American women are silly sometimes," Fred agreed.

"Okay. I'll talk to her at the party," he said. Maybe, he could see if they could start over. He was in her town; no reason really to keep her at a distance.

*****Expresso Pump*****

Buffy and Oz drove to the popular coffee place after school since Oz had a van, and his place wasn't very far from it.

"This is a lot of car," Buffy said as she got into it.

"Yeah," he agreed. "It's mainly to move the band around. Not my first choice for a vehicle, but it has come in hand packing around all the instruments."

"Makes sense," Buffy said.

"Do you have a license?" Oz asked.

"No. Mom hasn't really had much of a chance to teach me," she admitted. "I was in Scotland, and there, kids are more interested in getting a license to apparate."

"What's that?" he asked.

"Magically able to teleport from one place to another," she said.

Oz looked suitably impressed. "That would be amazing," he agreed. "But I'd still need my van to carrying around all my band's equipment."

Buffy laughed. "That's probably true," she said.

They arrived at the Expresso Pump, and Buffy was pleasantly surprised to find that although neither were avid conversationalists, they had enough to say. At times, though, both were content to drink their coffees and sit in silence.

Oz appreciated a girl that did not mind a silence.

It was really nice.

Buffy felt a sense of calm in Oz that seemed to soothe the slayer inside of her. It had been so long since she felt the peace his presence brought.

It was really nice.

*****Friday*****

Buffy was still a bit surprised that her parents were letting her throw a party.

"How many people did you invite?" Joyce asked.

"Oz, Faith, Cordelia, Draco, the twins, and Cordelia invited the Cordettes," Buffy listed.

"The Cordettes?" Joyce asked.

"That's like three or four more of her minions—Harmony is one, but now she knows all about us, so I guess she's a probationary Scooby," Buffy said. "Willow would not be pleased."

"Is that it?" Joyce asked. "That's not too bad."

"Well, the band Cordy hired," Buffy said. "And then whoever Cordelia invited because she's really popular, and there's no telling."

Joyce sighed. "This party could get out of hand," she pointed out.

Severus came in carrying a package. "The man in the black square brought this in," he said.

"It's the UPS truck, Father," Buffy said, grinning. "Who's it for?"

"Your mother and I," he said.

"Father, are you and Mom going to patrol tonight, so I don't have to? I guess Faith can leave the party to do it," Buffy said.

"I will be happy to do a sweep if your mother does not object," Severus said, looking at Joyce.

"I guess we can go to dinner and then do that instead of a movie," Joyce said. "A live show is always better, right?"

Severus smiled and pulled her in for a hug.

"Are you going to open your gift?" she asked her parents.

Joyce read the card. "Oh, it is from that buyer in New York. They have this great Nigerian display that I was admiring before I moved. He heard about my nuptials and return to the states," she said. "How nice."

"Well, what did he send you?" Buffy asked impatiently.

Severus opened the box and peered inside. "It's a mask of some kind," he said.

Joyce eagerly reached in and pulled it out. "That's so amazing! I can't believe he remembered how much I admired this Nigerian tribal mask!"

"It's so creepy," Buffy remarked.

"No, it's not. It's beautiful," Joyce said.

"I think it's lovely," Severus said.

"You lived in a dungeon for most of your life. You have no vote," Buffy said.

"His vote is the only one that matters as we're going to hang in our room," Joyce said, grabbing her husband's hand.

"Thank God. I don't want to look at the creepy thing every day," Buffy said. "Can I have some money to go to the store for snacks for my party?"

Severus opened up his muggle wallet and gave her two twenties. "Make sure that you shut the party down by ten or I will when I get here," he warned her.

"Okay," she said. She gave him a hug. "Thanks, Father. You're the best!"

She called Cordelia and asked her to meet her at the store, and they got things for the party.

"We have to have some wine or wine coolers, Buffy, or they'll think you're totally lame," Cordelia said.

"I do not look old enough to buy alcohol," she pointed out.

"Fine, I'll just bring some from home," Cordelia said with a shrug.

"No one better bring a keg. My father will flip, and I'll be grounded forever," she said.

Buffy hadn't had a party since her time in Los Angeles and was a bit excited to have one now. She wished, though, Willow and Xander could be there. "Why can't we use our floo and get Willow and Xander to come for our party?" Buffy asked.

"There's an eight-hour time difference, Buffy," Cordelia pointed out. "It's midnight right now, so without notice, it can't happen. Dumbledore and them will be in be asleep right now."

"Fine," Buffy said in resignation. "We should've planned better."

"Next time," Cordelia agreed.

Buffy was just going to have to get used to not having her best friends with her. Strangely, her cousin and one-time nemesis was a great comfort to her now.

A few hours later, it was party time. Oz and his band were the first to arrive.

Cordelia had the brilliant idea to use their magic to disappear the dining room table for dancing, and she got Narcissa to come help set up the party since she had the best test. She assured Buffy that she knew how to bring it back.

"This house is too small. Why did we not have the party at our house?" she asked, looking around in distaste.

"Because Buffy wanted to have it at her house," Cordelia said. "Don't be a snob, Aunt Cissa. You can work your magic."

"Fine. I suppose we can make the dining hall bigger for dancing and decorate it. Add some decoration along the staircase. Build a stage at that end of the dining hall for the band," she said.

She pointed as she took out her wand. Oz was leading Devon and the Dingoes into the house, and Cordelia quickly shut the dining room door.

"Sorry. My aunt is helping with the decorations. Devon, why don't you and Oz set up and the others go get some ice?" Cordelia suggested.

The guys put down their stuff and accepted the money she handed.

"Well, Draco's mom is using her magic on the room," Cordelia said.

"What's the big deal?" Devon asked.

Cordelia opened the door, and he and Oz saw dazzling sparkles in the air, things flying in the air. Then the room literally seemed to expand.

"So working her mojo wasn't just an expression?" Devon asked.

"Is Buffy going to be upset at you showing this to Devon?" Oz asked.

Cordelia shrugged. "It's my aunt. Devon knows your secret, so I figure he can keep one. If you're going to be hanging around, he's bound to see something weird," she said.

"So you all are witches?" Devon asked.

"Not all of us. Just me, Buffy, my aunt, cousin, and her dad," Cordelia said. "Males are called wizards."

"Cool," Devon said. "Do you have a magic wand too?"

Cordelia pulled it out to show him.

"Cordy, what are you doing?" Buffy asked.

"Aunt Cissa is decorating the dining room, making it bigger for dancing," Cordelia explained. "I sent the other Dingoes on an ice run. Told Devon about magic."

"Gee, why don't you tell him Sunnydale is on a hellmouth, too?" Buffy said sourly. "I'm telling Father. He will not be pleased. And Mom's going to be pissed about her dining room! We didn't ask her."

"Chill," Cordelia said. "She'll never even know."

The door opened. "Okay, it is now ready for the band," Narcissa announced.

Buffy's eyes widened as she looked at her unrecognized dining room. The size was more than doubled, and there was literal stage in the far end.

Cordelia used her wand to levitate the remaining instruments to follow Devon and Oz to the newly constructed stage. When Devon noticed, he was taken aback. She giggled and waved from the door.

Oz just smiled and shook his head.

Narcissa decorated the stairway with white roses and changed Buffy's red silo cups to white to match the white roses. Then she changed her plastic bowls holding chips to crystal. She configured books from Joyce's library into stools for extra seating along the wall in the dining room.

"Where did you put my mom's dining room table?" Buffy asked.

"I put it in a pocket," Cordelia said.

"What pocket?" Buffy asked.

"The pocket that Luna told me about," she said smugly. "That girl sounds crazy, but if you listen enough, she has some useful tidbits."

"Well, she is a Ravenclaw," Buffy said.

An hour later, the party was in full swing. Everyone was impressed with the decorations.

"Wow, Buffy, this place is amazing!" Harmony gushed.

"Draco's mom has impeccable taste," Cordelia said. "I let Aunt Cissa decorate."

"Mother loves decorating," Draco agreed. He looked at Faith, who was surrounded by several guys. "Who are all the guys? I thought this party was going to be small?"

"Oh, well, we're cheerleaders. We can't go to a party without inviting the football team," Harmony said as if that was obvious.

"Well, Uncle Sev will be here at ten to shut down this rager," Cordelia announced.

"You have top shelf wine here," Harmony said. "I doubt anyone will care."

"Who made these tiny sandwiches? They're delicious," Larry asked.

"That would be our cook. He insisted that I bring something," Cordelia said.

Draco ignored the girls and pushed his way through the football players surrounding Faith. "Would you like to dance?" he asked her.

"Sure," she said, smiling at him and holding out her hand.

"Hey, if you wanted to dance, I'll dance with you," one of the guys around her said.

"You didn't ask," Faith said with a smirk.

Draco led her to the dining room where the music was playing. It was a fast song, and they began to dance. He watched her move around him, and he tried to mimic the teenage boys around him. How could he think, though, with such a goddess in front of him?

When the song was over and a slower song played, he had never been so grateful. He pulled her in close. "You are so beautiful," he couldn't resist telling her.

Faith looked up at him, not sure he was serious. However, he was looking so intense, so she couldn't resist leaning in to kiss him.

Draco felt like he was outside his body as she pressed her lips against his, but he wasted no time. He pulled her close, returning the kiss with pleasure.

Cordelia was watching from the sidelines with Harmony.

"I didn't know Faith liked Draco," Harmony remarked. "I wish she'd told me."

"I'm sorry, Harm. He's not been able to take his eyes off her since he first saw her," Cordelia told her.

"She is very pretty," Harmony agreed, feeling a pang.

The twins finally appeared. "Why don't you dance with Fred? He's much more fun than Draco anyway, and he's British, too," she suggested, waving at the duo.

"Hello, my lovely ladies," Fred said, greeting the pair with a bow.

Harmony giggled. "Hi," she said. "Would you like to dance?"

"Dance with a beautiful American? It's a lifelong dream of mine!" Fred declared, holding out his hand.

Charmed, Harmony took his hand, forgetting all about Draco.

"Glad you guys could make it," Cordelia said. "Would you like something to eat?"

"Actually, I am starved," George said.

She took him to where the food was, and they shared some snacks while chatting companionably. For Cordelia, it was a relief. She finally felt like they were friends again. For George, it was nice. He had decided not to keep her so distant. Friends was a nice place to start.

"Have you forgiven me?" Cordelia asked him.

George looked at her a long moment. Finally, he nodded. "I'm trying to. I want to," admitted. "I'd like us to be friends again."

Cordelia smiled. "I want that more than anything," she told him. "I didn't mean to hurt you. I didn't realize that I could. I thought it was a game with you and your brother more than you actually liking me. I am really sorry."

George knew it was time to let it go and nodded. "Would you like to dance?" he asked.

"I would love to," Cordelia replied, taking his hand, happy that they were friends again.

Buffy watched her friends all getting along with one another. The party was a huge success. So many compliments as people came into her house, impressed with Mrs. Malfoy's decorations. When Draco started making out with Faith on the dance floor she wondered if she needed to get a water hose to cool the pair off. Then the music stopped as the band took a break and a CD played instead.

This meant that Oz would get to spend some time with her. She looked at her watch. It was just now eight thirty—still plenty of party time.

Oz headed straight to her side when the band took their break.

"Hi," he said, smiling at her.

"Hi," Buffy said, returning his smile.

"I know it's just a CD, but I would love to dance with you," Oz said.

Buffy had giant leap frogs in her stomach. Oz was so cute and different than any guy she had ever met. His brain was unique, and he accepted all of who she was without a second thought. She held out his hand, and he pulled her close.

They got to dance about fifteen minutes before the screaming began.

Oz heard breaking glass. "Something's wrong," he told her.

He took her to the doorway of the dining room. A zombie broke through the kitchen door.

"What the hell?" Buffy asked in dismay.

Another one put its hand through the kitchen window. Buffy heard screams from the living room area. "Go see. Get Cordelia or Faith or the twins. I gotta take care of this," she said.

Oz nodded and ran to obey while she considered what to do. "Get back everyone," she yelled at the few in the kitchen area.

George and Cordelia were soon there with her as several more zombies came into the kitchen.

"We've got to close that kitchen door somehow," she said.

George took out his wand and transfigured the door to steel and then shut it. "There," he said.

"How do you kill a zombie?" Buffy asked.

"Didn't you watch a zombie movie?" Cordelia asked.

"No," Buffy said. "I hated gory movies as a kid."

Cordelia snorted in amusement and then grabbed a kitchen knife, stabbing one in the brain. "Like that," she said. "Go for the brain."

"Gross," George said.

Buffy transfigured a kitchen knife into a sword. "I'll just whack them," she said with a smirk.

In the other room, Faith and Draco were faced with a similar dilemma as zombies crashed through the front door and screams caused everyone to run into the dining room. They pushed their way through to see what was going on. Fred grabbed Harmony's hand to pull her along.

"Come on. Something's happening," he said.

"Normally, I don't run toward danger," she remarked.

"What's the fun in that?" he said with a wicked smile.

Harmony found herself returning his smile and following him and looked on in horror as zombies filled Buffy Summers foray. "What the heck? Who ordered zombies?" she asked.

"Buffy sure didn't," Faith said as she attacked one with her fist.

Harmony began to understand what a slayer was as she watched Faith fight. Draco shut the dining room door, keeping most of the guests safe and from watching the feats of supernatural skills on display.

More zombies, though, kept coming.

"What the hell is going on?" Faith demanded. "Something is drawing them here!"

"I don't know," Buffy said. "We don't have anything that could be drawing them that I know of," she said.

"Nothing new in the house?" Draco asked.

"Just this creepy Nigerian tribal mask my mom got as a gift today," Buffy said.

Everyone looked at her at once. "Seriously?" Harmony asked. "Even I can see that one."

Buffy looked sheepish. "It's upstairs in my parents' room," she said.

Zombies were on the stairway, so Buffy had to do a running flip to get over the bodies.

While she was going up there, her parents had decided to drive by the party before patrolling, just to make sure all was well. It was clearly obvious that things were not. Joyce slammed on the brakes, and she didn't even turn off the SUV before jumping out.

"Joyce, stop!" Severus ordered. He quickly got out his wand and used a spell to incinerate the animated corpses that were surrounding their home.

"What is happening?" Joyce asked Draco as they made it to the front door.

"Somehow, the zombie apocalypse started about a half hour ago," Faith answered before he could.

Buffy was at the top of the stairs holding the mask. "Okay, I got it!" she exclaimed.

"What are you doing with my mask? Put that back!" Joyce ordered.

"No, we think that's the reason for all the zombies," Cordelia said.

"Oh, dear," Joyce said, looking guilty.

"What should I do?" Buffy asked.

"Break it," Oz suggested.

"Yes, break it," Cordelia seconded.

Devon opened up the dining room door just as she did, and all the bodies fell to the ground.

"Damn," he said. He shut the dining room door. "Okay, they almost got the infestation over. Let's just play some music and dance." Everyone cheered as he went back to the stage to sing.

Oz smiled as he heard his buddy singing.

Severus went around using his wand to get rid of the bodies.

"I'm sorry, Mom. The party was going so well," Buffy said with a sigh.

"Harmony, get into the kitchen. Grab all the wine bottles and go out the back door before Mrs. Summers see them. Hurry. Take Fred," Cordelia whispered.

She nodded and grabbed him.

Of course, once Fred realized what the problem was, he just transfigured the wine bottles into his favorite British drink. "Butter Beer. Here. Try it," he said.

"Butter in beer? Gross!" Harmony said.

"No, that's just the name," Fred insisted. "It's a Brit drink. Non-alcoholic."

She took a sip. "Oh, that's not too bad. Weird. But actually not as gross as it sounded," she said.

"Let's make this bottle another popular Brith drink. Pumpkin juice," he said with a smile.

"Now you've just gone nuts," Harmony said with a shudder. "Pumpkin juice? I draw the line!"

Fred was laughing when Joyce came in to inspect the kitchen. She almost cried when she saw the mess. "Mrs. Summers, would you like to try some British drinks? There's Butter Beer—no actual beer in it—and pumpkin juice," he said.

"I need actual alcohol to clean up this mess," she said with a sad sigh.

"Oh, I can clean it no problem," he said. "I know all my mum's cleaning spells." He pointed his wand at the broom in the corner and then went around repairing all her dishes.

Joyce just stood there smiling.

"Magic is so cool!" Harmony gushed as she watched Fred work his magic.

Joyce nodded. "It really is," she agreed.

Back in the living room, Cordelia and Buffy were doing the same thing in the living room.

"Damn, B," Faith said, slapping her on the shoulder. "You throw one hell of a party!"

"You would say that. It was a disaster!" Buffy complained.

"Nah," Oz said. "Devon's got them in there still dancing. It's not quite ten yet. Let's go dance. Then we'll shut it down in ten minutes."

Buffy looked at her father for permission. "Fine," he said. "This was not your fault. It was your mother's."

Buffy grinned. "Those are the most beautiful words you have ever spoken, Father," she said, hugging him.

Severus laughed as she went into the dining room. He saw that their dining room was much bigger. He looked at his niece. "How did that happen?"

"Aunt Cissa helped decorate," she said with a smile.

"That explains it," he said. He watched the teenagers mingle with twenty or thirty other teenagers on the dance floor. The party was much bigger than his daughter had expected, but he was not particularly surprised. His niece was too popular.

It was good that his daughter could find some fun in the midst of her chaotic life, so he would not begrudge her these fleeting moments of joy. He watched her dance with the werewolf.

Was it dangerous that his daughter get close to a werewolf? Of course.

Yet it was a vast improvement over her last boyfriend, and it was not a Weasley boy.

Severus was content.

******Chapter End*****

Well, I hope you enjoyed this 15-page update! I really enjoyed writing it. Reviews are always very appreciated. I hope your holiday was fun. Happy New Year! I hope to finish this story in 2024!