"Buffy vs. Dracula"

Based on the Buffy the Vampire Slayer Episode "Buffy vs. Dracula" Written by Marti Noxon and the Angel Episode "Judgment" Written by Joss Whedon and David Greenwalt

The following story is copyright © 2024 by Mark Moore.

It had been a hot summer. Buffy and her friends had gone to Los Angeles and spent the summer with her sister and father.

Now, on their first night back in Sunnydale, they were hanging out in Buffy's backyard, listening to music on her boombox while Joyce was cooking burgers on the grill.

Joyce looked at the others. "Girls, what kind of party is this? Get up and dance or...something."

Buffy looked at her. "Exertion can lead to sweatiness."

Tara nodded. "Which can cause the pain and heartbreak of stinkiness. Better to just stay put."

"Where's my burger?" Buffy asked her mother.

"The, uh, fire's not cooperating."

Amy gestured at the grill. "Ignis incende."

The charcoal burst into flame.

Buffy smiled. "Amy, check you out! Witch Fu."

Tara smiled at Amy.

Amy smiled. "It's no big. You just have to balance the elements, so, when you affect one, you don't wind up causing-"

A huge clap of thunder interrupted as dark clouds appeared out of nowhere, and it started to rain. Everyone jumped up, shrieking, and Buffy pick up her boombox.

"I didn't do it! I didn't do it!" Amy insisted.

They all ran into the house.

The next morning, in Giles' apartment, Jenny was typing on her computer as Giles looked on.

"There you go. All set."

"Thank you, Jenny. Obstinate bloody machine simply refused to work for me." Giles walked off.

"Just call me the computer whisperer." Jenny stood up. "Let's get scannin'. I want to see this puppy go."

Giles put a pile of old books on her outstretched arms. "Start with those."

Jenny scowled. "Start? Where is finish?"

"Jenny, it's essential that we begin archiving the library. I mean...most of these texts have no duplicates."

Jenny set the books down on the desk and sat back down. "It's just...you've been Mr. Project all summer, you know? Labeling the amulets and indexing your diaries."

Giles gave a little smile.

Jenny opened the scanner. "Shouldn't we be planning our wedding?"

"Yes, of course, but, now that I'm no longer a Watcher, I don't have access to their resources, so it's up to me to preserve whatever I can." Giles paused and considered. "What do you say to four hours of scanning and four hours of planning per day?"

Jenny nodded. "That sounds fair."

Buffy and Tara were eating dinner with Joyce.

"Thanks, Mom. Everything was yummy." Buffy put her napkin on the table.

Tara smiled. "Yeah, thank you, Ms. Summers."

"Hey, you up for dessert?" Joyce asked them. "We could, uh, take a drive, get some ice cream."

Buffy stood up. "You know, I-I would, but I kinda have to get out on patrol." She began gathering up the dishes.

"Now? It's 8:30."

"Well, vamps don't really care what time it is. You know, dark equals dinner bell." Buffy began carrying the dishes to the kitchen.

Joyce stayed seated. "Right, of course." She paused. "You know, I'm gonna have to get used to this place without you again. It gets so quiet."

Buffy walked back into the dining room. "You know, maybe we should make a regular date of this...when school starts."

Joyce nodded. "Mm."

"I'm sorry." Buffy kissed Joyce on the cheek. "Duty calls. It's a total drag." She kissed Tara on the lips. "Later, sweetie."

"Take care."

Buffy nodded and left.

Joyce looked down.

Tara could tell she was upset. "So, uh, chocolate or pistachio?"

Joyce looked at Tara and smiled.

Buffy was punching a vampire in the cemetery, having plenty of fun. She punched him several times and then grabbed his shoulders and kneed him. He got up, and she was on his back. He threw her down. She got up and charged, ducked a punch, punched him, and then kicked him. She tried to kick again, but he grabbed her and lifted her over his head, then threw her down. She got up again and jumped on him with her legs around his neck. He threw her down; she flipped him over and then staked him. Buffy stood up, satisfied, and began to stride away purposefully. She walked between the gravestones and suddenly stopped and whirled around.

"Very impressive hunt."

She saw a man walking forward out of the darkness. He was very thin and pale, had long black hair, and spoke with an accent, which Buffy thought was vaguely Eastern European.

"Such power."

"That was no hunt. That was just another day on the job."

She saw the man was wearing a long, flowing cloak and had long, flowing hair. He walked toward Buffy.

"Care to step up for some overtime?" Buffy offered.

"We're not going to fight."

"Do you know what a Slayer is?"

"Do you?" The man smirked.

Buffy was intrigued. "Who are you?"

"I apologize. I assumed you knew. I am Dracula."

Buffy's eyes widened, and she grinned in delight. "Get out!"

They stood in silence for a while.

"So lemme get this straight. You're...Dracula." Buffy hoped he wouldn't think she was mocking his accent, which she kind of was. "The guy, the count."

"I am." Dracula bared his fangs.

"And you're sure this isn't just some fanboy thing?" Buffy asked. "'Cause...I've fought more than a couple of pimply, overweight vamps that called themselves Lestat.

Dracula looked a little annoyed. "You know who I am. As I would know without question that you are Buffy Summers." He walked toward her.

"You've heard of me?"

"Naturally. You're known throughout the world."

Buffy smiled bashfully. "Naw. Really?"

"Why else would I come here? For the sun? I came to meet the renowned...killer."

Buffy felt upset. "Yeah, I prefer the term Slayer. You know, killer just sounds so-"

"Naked?"

"I'm the good guy, remember?" Buffy insisted.

"Perhaps, but your power is rooted in darkness. You must feel it."

Buffy frowned and pondered this for a moment. "No. You know what I feel? Bored."

She lunged at him with her stake. He dissolved into mist. As she straightened up, confused, he reappeared behind her. She turned and lunged again. He dissolved into mist again.

Buffy looked around. "Okay, that's cheating."

Harmony and Amy walked up.

"Hey, Buff, what's up?" Harmony asked.

"You look like you just-"

"Get out of here. Now."

Harmony frowned. "Fine, but I was gonna give you a sip of my mint mocha, but-"

Dracula reappeared behind her.

"Behind you."

Amy and Harmony turned and saw Dracula.

Amy smiled. "Hi."

Harmony smiled, amused. "Nice. Look who's got a bad case of dark prince envy."

Buffy held her stake, concerned.

"I have no interest in you. Leave us."

Harmony smirked. "No, we're not going to 'leave you'. And where'd you get that accent, Sesame Street?"

Dracula looked annoyed.

"Harmony, I'm pretty sure that's Dracula."

"Wow, really?" Harmony hurried to stand behind Buffy. "Hey, sorry, Doctor Acula, sir, I was...just jokin' around."

"This is not the time." Dracula locked eyes with Buffy. "I will see you soon."

He spread his cape out and moved toward them, turning into a bat and flying over their heads as they all ducked and yelled. The bat flew away, squeaking. They straightened up and looked around. The bat came back and flew around Buffy's head.

Buffy covered her head with her hands. "Bat! Ooh, bat!"

The bat squeaked and flew away again.

Later, at Giles' apartment, the gang was recounting the encounter to Jenny and Giles.

"And then Buffy's all 'Look out!'" Harmony yelled. "And then fucking Dracula's standing right behind us."

She sat on the sofa, where Amy and Sandy were already sitting. Buffy and Tara were standing. Jenny was sitting at Giles' desk, and Giles was leaning against it.

"And then he lunged at us like whoosh!" Amy did some hand gestures.

Harmony nodded. "He totally looked shorter in person."

"I told you he'd heard of me, right? I mean...can you believe that?" Buffy asked.

Jenny and Giles nodded patiently.

"Count Famous heard of me."

Tara looked at her. "I couldn't believe it the first twenty times you told us, but it's starting to sink in now."

"I'm sorry. I was just...blown away."

"It's not that surprising that he's heard of you, Buffy. You are a Slayer."

"I guess. Just...the way he said it, you know, I mean...he made it sound so-"

"So what?" Tara asked with a teasing glare.

"Oh! No. Certainly not sexy! He of the dark penetrating eyes and lilty accent-"

Tara stared at her, amused.

Buffy gave an embarrassed smile. "I'll shut up now."

Harmony smiled. "I wonder if he knows Frankenstein."

Sandy looked at her. "I'm pretty sure Frankenstein's not real."

Tara sighed. "And if you mean the monster, it's not called Frankenstein."

Jenny shrugged. "Who knows what's real? Until tonight, I didn't think Dracula was."

Buffy smiled. "He's pretty cool."

The others stared at her.

"You know, from - from a whole...evil thing perspective."

Amy rolled her eyes. "Please. He was no big whoop."

"No big whoop? What about that thing where he turned himself into a bat? That was awesome!" Harmony exclaimed.

Giles nodded. "It must have been, yes."

Everyone looked at him.

"I must admit: I'm sorry I missed that."

"Bat!" Buffy wiggled her hands near her head.

Tara smiled.

"How come he can do that?" Sandy asked Giles.

"I-I have no idea. There's a great deal of myth about Dracula. I imagine the trick to defeating him lies in separating the fact from the fiction."

Buffy looked at all of them. "So we should take things slow with Dracula. I mean...he said that we would meet again, but I would like to avoid that until we do some serious homework."

Jenny thought about it. "I don't know. I mean...he may have a bunch of awesome party tricks, but he's still just a vampire. I say we load up with stakes and crossbows and go after him now."

Amy raised her hand. "Second."

Tara shook her head. "No, Buffy's right. Dracula's too slick to fall for the usual shit."

Buffy nodded. "So we hold off. No killing until we know exactly what we're dealing with."

Tara smiled. "You're not just saying that because of those dark, penetrating eyes of his, are you?"

"Noooo, his eyes were..." Buffy paused. "There were - There was no penetration." She smiled, embarrassed. "Cross my heart."

Tara kissed Buffy on the lips.

"All right." Giles looked at Jenny. "Jenny, you and Tara find out everything you can about the actual legend of Vlad the Impaler on the Internet, and, uh, I'll check the library."

Jenny and Tara nodded. Everyone started to get up.

Buffy looked at everyone. "You guys, we'll reconvene here in the morning."

Everyone nodded.

Amy and Harmony were walking down the street, toward Harmony's car.

Harmony noticed the Espresso Pump. "Ooh! Want an espresso?"

"Depends. Any good marathons on TV tonight?" Amy asked.

"Not that I know of."

"Then no." Amy headed toward the Miata.

Harmony headed toward the Espresso Pump. She jumped in shock when she saw Dracula waiting for her. She sighed. "Great. Perfect." She suddenly decided she wasn't scared. "You know what? You're not so big."

Dracula scowled.

Harmony took a stake out of her purse. "Okay, let's do it. And no poofing. Come on, puffy shirt. Pucker on up, 'cause you can kiss your pale ass-"

"Silence."

"Yes, master." Harmony shook her head. "No, that's not-"

Dracula lifted a hand. "You will be my emissary, my eyes and ears in daylight."

"Your emissary?"

"Serve me well. You will be rewarded. I will make you an immortal. A child of darkness that feeds on life itself. On blood."

"Blood? Yes! Yes! I will serve you, your excellent spookiness."

Dracula frowned.

"Or master. I'll just stick with master."

"You are strange and off-putting. Go now."

Harmony nodded, turned to go, then turned back. "But master, how can I find-" She saw Dracula was gone. "Brilliant. What an exit! Guy's a genius!" She giggled crazily and walked into the Espresso Pump.

When Buffy and Tara got home, they noticed the lights were off.

"That's weird. Mom usually leaves a light on for me." Buffy inserted her key into the lock and unlocked the door. She opened it.

Buffy and Tara walked into the house. Buffy turned on the light. Tara closed and locked the door.

"Mom!" Buffy called.

There was no answer.

They walked into the kitchen. Buffy turned on the light.

They looked around. Buffy noticed a sticky note on the island and picked it up.

"What's it say?" Tara asked.

"'Girls, I had to go out of town suddenly. I'll be back tomorrow.'"

The two of them looked at each other in concern.

Dawn was sitting in her bedroom, listening to "Oops!... I Did It Again" by Britney Spears on her boombox while laying on her bed and writing in her diary.

Suddenly, her door opened. Hank and Joyce walked into the room.

"Honey?" Hank asked.

Dawn looked in surprise and grinned. "Mom, what are you doing here?!"

Joyce looked at Hank in shock. "You didn't tell her?"

"I wanted to make sure before I said anything. I figured it'd be best if we told her together."

Dawn was suddenly nervous. "Tell me what?"

Hank walked over to her. "Turn off the radio, honey. We gotta talk to you."

Dawn sat up and set her diary aside. She shut off her boombox. Joyce walked over and stood to Hank's right.

"Something's happened at work. I have to go overseas to manage our operations in Europe directly."

"How long will you be gone?" Dawn asked.

"I don't know. See, the thing is...you would have to come with me."

"What?!" Dawn blurted in shock.

Hank held up a hand. "But I know you wouldn't wanna do that, and I don't wanna take you out of the country, so I asked your mom, and she's agreed, to take you to live with her and Buffy in Sunnydale."

Dawn sat in shock, trying to process this.

Joyce stepped forward and sat to Dawn's right on the bed. "I'll be staying here overnight, and I'll help you pack. You can visit your friends and say goodbye, and we can head to Sunnydale tomorrow evening." She reached out to put a hand on Dawn's shoulder.

Dawn jerked away. "I don't wanna leave."

"I know you don't, sweetie, but...you can't stay here by yourself."

Dawn stared at her father. "Sell the stupid company."

"And what?" Hank asked her. "What would we do for money?"

"Fuck! I hate this!" Dawn stood up and ran out of the room.

The next morning, Buffy, Tara, and Amy were sitting on Giles' couch. They had each gotten a chocolate donut out of the box on the coffee table.

"Are there any more?" Harmony asked eagerly.

Buffy looked at the box. "Just jelly; you want it?" She picked one up and held it out.

Harmony grabbed the donut. "Thanks!" She eagerly bit into it and quickly started pacing behind the couch.

Tara looked at Amy. "Harmony seems kinda...hyper today."

Amy nodded. "She's been like that since last night. She ordered a fucking extra large espresso."

Buffy nodded. "That'll do it."

Harmony walked in little circles, nibbling quickly at the donut. Sandy walked by and looked in the box for a donut. She took the last remaining jelly donut. Harmony sat on a stool, still feeling jittery. Sandy walked to a chair opposite the couch.

Jenny was sitting at Giles' desk, looking at her laptop. "Well, I think we have Dracula factoids."

Harmony was still eating the donut. "Like any of that's enough to fight the dark master."

Everyone gave her a strange look.

Harmony's mind raced. "...bator."

Jenny cleared her throat. "A lot of it, we already knew. Turn-offs: wood, fire, crosses. Turn-ons: nice duds; minions; long, slow bites that last for days..." She shook her head. "Dracula likes to live in style, which means we can rule out the usual dumps vampires haunt."

"Ah! But he's smart enough to figure that we probably already know that. I'm guessing he's lying low." Harmony licked her donut.

Giles walked out from the kitchen.

"Actually, my research indicates otherwise. Drac isn't the lay-low type."

Giles gave Jenny a glass of milk. "So we can, uh, check out the nicer places. Don't you think, Buffy?"

Harmony moved from stool to stool, tapping her fingers nervously.

"Yeah. We'll check all the swanky places first. What else did you guys get?" Buffy asked him.

"Well, Jenny has most of it, actually."

Jenny nodded. "Dracula's modus operandi is different from other vampires. He will kill just to feed, but he'd rather have a connection with his victims. And he has all of these mental powers to draw them in. He - He can read and control minds...appear in dreams..."

Buffy thought about that. "Uh-huh."

Amy looked at Buffy. "Makes sense. That stare..." She thought for a moment. "He just kinda...looked right through you. Didn't you feel it, Buffy?"

Tara looked at Buffy.

Buffy paused. "No." She got up. "No, I didn't."

"See?!" Harmony yelled. "Buffy didn't feel it. I think you're drawing a lot of crazy conclusions about the unholy prince."

Everyone gave her a strange look.

Harmony's mind raced. "...bator."

Giles looked at everyone. "The point is, though he goes through the motions of an intimate seduction, the end result is the same. He turns them into a vampire."

Buffy hadn't considered that.

"Well. That is intimate. Dracula's gifting these ladies with his own blood. And blood..." Harmony noticed a spider on the counter next to her and glanced around to see if anyone was looking. "Blood is life."

Everyone looked at her, confused.

"According to them." Harmony slammed her hand down on the spider.

"Um..." Giles tried to regain his train of thought. "Just be aware that he - he tends to form a relationship with his prey."

When no one was looking, Harmony scooped the spider into her mouth and chewed.

"It's not enough for him to take her. She must want to be taken. She must...burn for him."

Buffy felt uncomfortable. "That's...interesting. I'm gonna go find him." She stood up and started to leave.

Everyone got up.

Tara looked at Buffy. "You shouldn't go by yourself, Buffy. I mean...this guy's seriously dangerous."

"It's cool, I got it." Buffy opened the door and left.

Buffy walked through the courtyard outside Giles' apartment.

Tara ran out after her. "Hey."

Buffy turned on her, angry. "What?!"

Tara started at Buffy's outburst, then she nodded. "You're under the thrall of the dark prince!"

"I am not under the thrall of the dark prince. You're delusional."

Tara was hurt, but she looked at Buffy with pity. "That confirms it. You wouldn't talk to me like that otherwise. Or do my concerns really mean so little to you?"

The others walked outside. Buffy sat on the edge of the stone fountain and put her head in her hands in shame.

"Why didn't you say anything?" Giles asked her.

"'Cause she didn't want to worry us, right, Buffster?" Harmony suggested.

Buffy looked apologetically at Tara. "I'm not sure why I tried to hide it. Uh, there was just this voice, and it was - it was telling me to deny it." She was on the verge of crying. "I'm sorry."

Tara sat down to Buffy's right and hugged her with one arm. "It's okay, sweetie. That's thrall."

"You're saying Dracula has some sort of freaky mind control over her?" Harmony asked. "You're watching too many creature features, girl."

"But it does seem like he has this...control over me...even though a big part of me is resisting."

Harmony grabbed a fly off a nearby leaf and ate it.

Tara stared into Buffy's eyes. "I don't wanna lose you."

"I swear to you: I'm your girl, and I'm gonna stay that way."

"Okay. But you are not going anywhere near him again."

Giles nodded. "Uh, Tara's right, you should - you should stay out of sight. Let the rest of us look for Dracula."

Harmony smiled. "You can come over to my place. I'll make sure you stay put."

Giles nodded. "Good. Um, Jenny and I can, uh, can...search for Dracula."

Cordelia was in the middle of an acting class.

"But why, Johnny? Why?" Cordelia asked.

He sighed. "Because it's over."

"No, I love you! I gave you everything. Didn't I?" Cordelia asked.

He picked up a bag. "Yeah, and now it's time to move on."

"No. You can't. You're everything to me. I'm nothing without you, baby. Nothing." Cordelia slapped him in the face.

"Ow." He looked at the acting coach. "Hey, ow, she hit me!"

Cordelia looked at the acting coach. "I threw that in myself. She seems so spineless. Begging this creep not to dump her."

Her acting partner went and looked through the script book.

"That was just amazing! You were Eleanor, body and soul."

"Hey, where does it say that she hits me?"

The coach ignored him. "You're on fire, Cordelia. This is exciting work. Let's take it again. And put the focus on how conflicted you-"

Cordelia's beeper went off. She looked at it. It read "911".

"Cordelia..."

Cordelia picked up her bag to leave. "Sorry. Duty calls."

Angel, Wesley, and Cordelia strode into a big gym.

"Can I help you?" an attendant asked.

They never broke stride.

The attendant followed them through the gym. "I'm sorry, this club is for members and their guests only."

Angel looked straight ahead. "Yeah, well, I'm thinking of joining."

"Excuse me! But you can't come in here without a membership or a guest pass!"

"Are you sure we're in the right place?" Cordelia asked Angel.

"This is a tad public for a Praetorian sacrifice."

"The quadrants match. It's a Carnyss demon, and they love muscles and mirrors."

They came to a stop, the attendant still behind them.

"Hey, listen! I'm not fooling around. I will call the pol-"

Angel kicked in the mirror and stepped through, surprising a red-robed human and a demon with sword raised to sacrifice two bound-and-gagged humans.

"Stop that." Angel batted the charging human against a wall and began to fight the demon with the sword.

Wesley ducked or deflected a couple punches from the human, then hit him with a right cross, kneed him in the stomach, and dropped him on the floor. He nodded to Cordelia, who dropped a round, metal weight on the guy's head, knocking him out. Angel managed to take the sword away from the demon and stabbed it through the heart with it. Angel, Cordelia, and Wesley freed the sacrifices, then they walked back out into the gym.

The attendant stared. "That guy has horns."

Angel walked past. "Steroids. Not good for you."

Later, inside Cordelia's apartment, Cordelia was standing at a whiteboard with "cases", "leads", "progress", and "status" written across the top and various information below it.

Wesley looked at her. "I'm beginning to think it was the Sloth demon."

Cordelia wrote on the board. "Sloth demons don't sacrifice adolescents, Wesley. It was a Carnyss."

"No, I don't mean the demon we killed last night. I mean the one we-"

"That was a nice gym." Angel played with some glass figurines that Cordelia had sitting on a shelf.

"-incinerated a month ago. I think that's what Wolfram & Hart raised in that box when Angel was fighting Vocah."

"The thing about a gym is that you're not alone. You've got people around. That encourages you to work out."

Cordelia took the glass figurine away from him and set it back on the shelf. "You don't have to work out. You're eternal."

"I may not always be."

"It was the Vartite monster." Cordelia turned back to arguing with Wesley. "It took two days to kill that thing! It's got Wolfram & Hart written all over it."

"You got your steam. You got your sauna. You got fresh towels. I mean...how bad could it be?"

Cordelia looked at Angel. "You shower with a lot of men."

"I'll always be a loner."

Cordelia held up a finger and scrunched up her face.

Angel dropped the unicorn figurine and hurried to catch her. "Vision."

Cordelia sneezed. "Just a sneeze."

Angel and Wesley turned away. "Oh."

"'Oh'?!" Cordelia asked.

"I mean...bless you." Angel turned to the broken figurine on the floor. "Sorry about this."

"Why can't we work out of Wes'?" Cordelia asked Angel.

"We're getting a new office. I just haven't-"

Cordelia held up a finger and scrunched up her face again. "Sneeze." She sneezed. "Followed by vision."

Angel and Wesley jumped to her side and caught her.

She had a vision of a blurry gray monster face. When it was over, she found herself sitting on the sofa, Angel kneeling in front of her.

"Are you all right?" Angel asked her.

"I'll survive."

Wesley was at the whiteboard. "What have we got?"

"A nasty-looking demon. Didn't recognize it."

Wesley wrote "N. D. U. O." on the board. "Nasty Demon, Unknown Origin."

Angel looked at him. "There's an awful lot of that in this town. I'm sure he'll feel right at home here."

Angel was sketching the demon from Cordelia's vision.

Cordelia watched him draw. "The eyes are a little further apart."

Angel adjusted the drawing.

"They look right through you. I-I don't think this guy is afraid of much."

"Wes, I'm thinking northern Pakistan, Hindu Kush..."

"Right. Or maybe the Tien Shenin in Kazakhstan. Which means I need Suleman's Compendium."

As he walked towards the books, one of them flew up and hit him. Wesley let out a surprised yell.

Cordelia looked at him. "Don't yell like that! You'll scare him."

"Scare him?"

"Dennis is very sensitive. He's just trying to help! He's more a person than a g-h-o-s-t."

Wesley looked at Angel. "We have to get an office."

Wesley flipped some pages, and Cordelia let out a scream, startling another yell out of Wesley.

Cordelia pointed at a picture in the book. "There! There!"

"Prio Motu demon. It's a killer."

Angel took the book. "Ancient Ofga-beast, bred to maim and massacre."

Cordelia rolled her eyes. "Oh, goody. A pit bull."

Angel got up. "Okay." He started to write on the whiteboard. "Now, we know what we're dealing with."

"Prio Motu."

"Now, we need to find it. Right now, we got to narrow it down to somewhere."

"I may be able to help us with that. I've been broadening our contact base. Reaching out to the underlife. I may have someone who can help."

"Who?" Angel asked Wesley.

"A parasite demon named Merl."

"Maybe it's time we pay your stoolie a little visit." Cordelia raised her fist. "Make with the chin music until he canaries."

Angel and Wesley looked at her.

"I've been watching a little noir festival on Bravo."

Joyce took Dawn to Checkers for lunch. They sat at a table, silently eating their cheeseburgers and fries and sipping their Cokes.

"Um, you're going to have to sleep either with me or on the couch tonight. There's a spare room that I've been using for storage, but I haven't had time to clear it out yet. We'll do that tomorrow and set up your room."

Dawn stuck a fry in her mouth. "Where am I gonna go to school?"

"Uh, well, the high school students have been sent to Sunnydale Junior High ever since the, uh, incident at graduation last year. They've finally started clearing out the debris this past summer, but it'll be a while before they start building the new high school."

"So I've gotta attend school with a bunch of sixth-graders. Great. I thought I was getting away from all of those immature little shits this year." Dawn sipped her Coke.

"I know it's not gonna be easy for you, sweetie, but Buffy and I will help adjust."

"You could help me by moving into my house, so I don't have to move and leave all my friends."

"You know I can't do that, sweetie. I've got a business in Sunnydale."

"And that means more to you than I do. Got it."

Joyce sighed.

An ugly, gray, bald demon was sitting at his kitchen table.

Wesley sat down next to him. "Hello, Merl."

Merl was silent.

"Cat got your tongue, Merl?" Cordelia asked.

"I don't have a tongue."

"Oh."

Angel leaned down next to him.

Merl looked at Wesley. "And, uh, keep the bloodsucker away from me."

"He won't hurt you."

"I know his rep, okay? He eats his own kind. Beating on demons wherever he finds 'em."

"Especially when they waste my time."

Wesley slid an envelope with money across the table. "We're looking for the Prio Motu."

Merl looked at the money. "Woah, woah, woah! You've obviously never seen one up close. I mean Prios are stone-cold killers. They've got these teeth that'll, um..." He paused. "You gotta sweeten this - a whole lot. And keep my name-"

Wesley put some more money on top of the envelope.

Merl took it. "This Prio you're looking for, he don't like it above ground. So he'll be traveling in one of those sub-tunnels of the Rodondo line."

Angel started to leave.

"Prios are nasty. Not some big mosquito like you. Best of luck, though."

Angel turned to leave.

In Westhampton Beach, Long Island, New York, a fifteen-year-old girl with long black hair named Kennedy Pérez Limón was splashing in the water outside her parents' beachfront summer home. With her was her girlfriend, a seventeen-year-old girl with long platinum blonde hair named Emma Winters. The two girls were naked and squealing as they chased each other. Finally, they joined hands and ran out onto the beach.

There was a beach towel nearby. They sat down on it. Kennedy lay back, and Emma lay on top of her, kissing her passionately.

Kennedy broke the kiss. "You've wined me and dined me; now, sixty-nine me."

Emma grinned and turned around. She buried her face between Kennedy's legs. Kennedy put her hands on Emma's ass and pulled her close. Kennedy stuck out her tongue and started licking Emma's pussy. Emma started licking Kennedy's pussy. Kennedy inserted her left index finger into Emma's asshole and started finger-fucking her.

Kennedy heard someone clear his throat. That immediately ruined the mood. Emma scrambled off Kennedy and tried futilely to cover herself with her arms.

Kennedy gave the man standing before her a death stare. "Ramón, what the fuck do you want?"

Ramón Gutiérrez looked away. "You were supposed to be back yesterday."

Kennedy shrugged. "My dad and stepmom decided to extend our vacation a bit."

Ramón started walking away. Kennedy sighed, stood up, and caught up with him.

"You need to get as much training in as you can before school starts."

Kennedy rolled her eyes. "So I'll miss a week. Big fucking deal. I'm ready."

"Are you sure about that? If the Slayer dies, you could be called. At any time. With no notice."

"I'm ready." Kennedy paused. "You've upset Emma."

"Oh, I see. Do pass along my apologies." Ramón sighed. "See you back in Soho, Kennedy." He walked away.

Kennedy stopped walking and watched him go, then she turned and went back to Emma. "Sorry about that."

Emma stopped trying to cover her breasts. "He doesn't like me."

"Fuck him." Kennedy smiled. "Now, where were we?"

Emma didn't say anything. Kennedy kissed her on the neck repeatedly. Emma giggled and picked Kennedy up, supporting her ass with her hands. She took Kennedy's right nipple into her mouth, closed her lips around it, and sucked on it. Kennedy moaned in approval, running her hands through Emma's wet hair.

As the sun was setting on the horizon, Giles and Jenny walked through the grounds of a mansion. Jenny had a notepad. Giles carried a bag.

"Another bust." Jenny crossed an address off on the notepad.

"And it's getting dark. I should have turned up a better lead. There must be an easier way to find him."

"Too late to worry about that now. If we hurry, we can hit these last places."

They left the estate.

Dawn brought the last box full of her things to the Jeep and waited for Joyce to take it.

Joyce sighed, took the box, and put it in the back. "Is that everything?"

"Yeah."

Hank spread his arms. "I'm gonna miss ya, kiddo."

Dawn refused to make eye contact with him. She opened the passenger door, got into the Jeep, and slammed the door shut.

Joyce opened the driver-side door and got into the Jeep. She closed the door and stared at her daughter. "That was very rude, Dawn. Go say goodbye to your father."

"No."

Joyce sighed. "Fasten your seatbelt." She fastened her own seatbelt, put the key in the ignition, and started the engine.

Dawn fastened her seatbelt and stared down at her lap, refusing to look at her father or her house. She started crying.

That evening, in Cordelia's apartment, Angel brought her and Wesley up to speed.

"He was good?" Wesley asked.

Angel nodded slowly. "Yeah."

"And you-" Cordelia made a cracking sound.

Angel looked at her. "Yeah."

"Ooh. Well. That's bad."

Angel looked away.

"Which, of course, you already..." Cordelia paused. "Right."

Angel got up. "He was a demon. I just assumed-"

"Well, why wouldn't you? Cordelia said he was a nasty demon."

"Well, he looked nasty! I didn't say he was a killer; you did!"

"That's what Prio Motus are! They hunt. They kill. What, we're supposed to think a creature like that can suddenly change its modus operandi overnight? Turn into some noble protector and..." Wesley looked at Angel, who was standing with his back to them. "...defender of...Oh, God."

"I didn't feel any fear when I saw him. Angel was probably supposed to help him, not..." Cordelia sighed and looked up. "Thanks for the obscure visions, assholes! We're doing great with that."

Angel shook his head. "I killed an innocent being. He was a soldier like me. Whatever his mission is, it's mine now." He went to put on his coat.

Cordelia offered him a weak smile. "Well, that's a start! You said he was protecting a pregnant woman."

"From something called the Tribunal. I want you two to find out what that is."

Wesley nodded. "We will."

Angel was about to leave.

"Angel!" Wesley called.

Angel stopped but didn't turn around.

"You didn't know."

"I'm thinking somebody did."

In Harmony's bedroom, Buffy and Amy were sitting on the bed while Harmony paced.

"What time is it?" Harmony asked.

Amy checked her watch. "Uh, almost eight." She stood up.

Harmony pushed her into the closet and shut the door.

"Hey! What the fuck?!" Amy yelled.

Harmony put a chair under the doorknob to hold it shut.

Amy banged on the door. "Harmony, open the fucking door!"

Buffy sat, feigning obliviousness, through all of this.

Harmony turned to Buffy. "I'm supposed to deliver you to the master now."

Buffy looked up at her.

"There's this whole deal where I get to be immortal. You cool with that?" Harmony asked her.

"Take me to him." Buffy stood.

Gunn, Chain, and two other young men walked around a corner as a guy got ready to get into his nice car.

He saw them and started to run off. "Just take the car!"

They ran after him.

"Hey, look out!" Gunn warned.

The man looked back. As he turned back around, he ran right into a vampire. The vampire was about to bite him when Gunn pushed back his hood and pulled out a stake. He knocked the vampire off the guy and quickly staked him. The man pointed at the dead vampire, unable to get a whole word out.

"You should probably go home now."

The man looked at Gunn, who motioned with his eyes back to where his car was parked.

After a beat, the guy took off at full speed.

"Uh, you're welcome?" Gunn asked.

"People nowadays. Would it kill him to say thank you?" Angel asked.

Gunn put the stake away. "Angel."

"Been a while. You well?"

"Picture of health and harmony. Look at you, dog! You haven't aged a bit!"

"I got a situation."

"So much for the small talk." Gunn looked at the others. "Sweep Olympic up to Broadway, and I'll hook up with y'all back at the crib."

Chain and the other two walked away. Gunn started walking.

Angel walked beside Gunn. "Where is home nowadays?"

"Friendly landlord off 8th. We keep the block safe for democracy; he hooks us up with the rent."

"You ever hear of a Prio Motu?"

"Is that like a '62 Chevy with the big cam?"

Angel looked at him.

"All right. I could have just said no."

"It's a warrior demon. He was living down here."

"Well, isn't that nice? I thought all we had to dodge was roaches and vampires! What is this demon up to?"

"Not much. He's dead. But I wanna find out where he was living. It'd be underground somewhere near the D.W.P."

"Well, I know all the pockets. And I'm getting the sense that you wanna do this now."

"It's kind of urgent."

Harmony and Buffy walked up to Dracula's castle, walking up the steps. Harmony opened the door and led Buffy in. There were wooden furnishings. Torches and candles were everywhere.

Harmony led Buffy into the dining room. "Master? I deliver the Slayer. She who you most desire."

Buffy walked in behind her, still looking kind of catatonic.

Harmony gave a little bow. "Sorry, whom."

Dracula stood by the fireplace, wearing black pants, a red shirt, and a black vest. He turned slowly.

"So now comes the immortality, right?" Harmony asked him. "You do the thing, and-"

"Leave us."

Harmony stopped talking.

"We must not be interrupted."

"You bet." Harmony left the room.

Buffy and Dracula stared at each other across the long table.

"I knew you'd come."

"Why? Because I'm under your thrall?" Buffy whipped out a stake and dropped the dazed expression. "Well, guess again, pal."

"Put the stake down."

"Okay." Buffy put it down, then looked at her hand in surprise. "Right. That...was not...you." She was unconvinced. "I did that. I did that, because...I wanted to."

Dracula watched her.

"Maybe I should rethink that thrall thing." Buffy looked around nervously and gave a little whimper.

Gunn and Angel were walking through some tunnels.

"How deep are these?" Angel asked.

"Pretty deep, bro. We cleaned a vampire nest out of here last year. We've been patrolling it on occasion ever since. This Prio Motu guy, what was he up to?"

"He was protecting a young pregnant woman."

"He was on our side?"

"Yeah."

"Well, did you find the motherfucker that killed him?" Gunn asked.

"I'm the motherfucker that killed him."

"Oh." Gunn noticed a vent in the wall. "Oh, look. Hold on. That wasn't there before."

They walked over to it.

"You feel any air coming out of this vent? I don't feel no air." Gunn found a latch at the side and pulled it open.

They walked in, closing it behind them.

"The guy kept a neat house."

Angel picked up a book. "Kamal."

"What's that?"

"That was his name. Gunn..." Angel went to open a carved box. He closed it again and laid his hands against its sides.

"We supposed to be looking for something?"

Angel pulled open a hidden drawer and took out a round metal disk.

"Like that?"

"I hate to ask, but-"

"Night's still young. What you need?"

Angel handed him his business card. "I work with a couple people at this address. The one on the back. We're working out of this apartment in Silverlake, temporarily."

Gunn took the card.

Angel held out the disk. "I need them to see this right away. Tell them it might have something to do with the Tribunal."

"The Tribunal. Got it." Gunn paused. "What, you're gonna hang here and soak up the guilt?"

"Something like that."

Gunn left.

Jenny and Giles walked up to the castle.

"I've lived in Sunnydale for years now. Know what I've never noticed before?" Jenny asked.

"Uh, a castle?" Giles guessed.

Jenny nodded. "A big fucking castle."

Jenny opened the castle door, and she and Giles entered, looking around.

Jenny pointed down one hallway. Giles nodded and went down it. Jenny went the other way.

Cordelia and Wesley were researching at her apartment. There was a knock on the door.

Cordelia got up. "Who is it?"

"Gunn."

Wesley got up. "What was that?"

"Something about a gun. What if it's a demon with a gun?" Cordelia asked, scared.

"Listen up, whoever you are, we are well armed, and we know how to do battle, so if you know what's good for you-"

"My name is Gunn. Angel sent me."

Cordelia unlocked and opened the door. "Well, this is a little embarrassing." She stepped aside. "Please, come in. Come in."

Gunn walked in.

Cordelia closed and locked the door. "Wesley, you've heard Angel talk about Gun. He's a great guy with a really fly street tag."

"What's he fly?" Wesley asked her.

"It's how they know you on the street, dorko. Gun. It really lets them know you mean business."

"It's my name. Charles Gunn. Two 'n'."

Cordelia laughed, embarrassed. "Oh, Lord, will no one shut me up?"

Wesley offered his hand. "Uh, I'm Wesley Wyndam-Price, and this is Cordelia Chase."

Gunn turned away and looked at the whiteboard.

Cordelia smiled. "It's nice to finally meet."

Gunn looked at her. "I've seen you before."

"Really? The Tan 'n' Screen commercials!"

"I saw you in bed."

"What?"

Wesley started to walk away. "Uh, I-I can see this is none of my business-"

"You, too."

Wesley looked at him. "Now, just a moment!"

"In the hospital...after Angel's building blew? He sent me there to keep an eye on you two."

Cordelia smiled, relieved. "Right."

"I'm just messing with y'all. I was hoping for some demon fighting tonight, but I wound up with a delivery job instead." Gunn handed the talisman to Wesley. "Angel said it might have something to do with the Tribunal."

Wesley examined it. "Well, this could be an emblem or...some sort of protective amulet."

Gunn pointed at the board. "These all the cases y'all got going? Isn't this the well-oiled machine?"

"We set them up, we knock them down. Or we did until Angel knocked down the wrong..." Cordelia paused and then smiled optimistically. "I'm sure he is getting on top of it now."

"You are magnificent."

"I bet you say that before you bite all the girls."

"No, you are different. Kindred."

"Kindred? Hardly."

"I have searched the world over for you. I have yearned for you. For a creature whose darkness rivals my own. I can feel your hunger."

"Stay away from me."

"Are you afraid I will bite you?" Dracula walked slowly toward her. "Slayer, that's why you came."

"No. It's not gonna happen."

Dracula still walked toward her. "Stop me. Stake me."

Buffy backed up a little. "I..." She glanced at the stake on the table. "Any minute now."

"Do you know why you cannot resist?"

"'Cause you're famous?"

"Because you do not want to."

Buffy shook her head nervously. "My friends-"

"They're here."

She looked at him.

"They will not find us. We are alone."

Buffy was anxious.

"Always alone." Dracula began to circle around her. "There is so much I have to teach you. Your history, your power...what your body is capable of..."

Buffy shook her head. "I don't need to know."

"You long to. And you will have eternity to discover yourself." Dracula came back around in front to face her. "But first...a little taste."

"I won't let you."

"I didn't mean for me."

Angel walked into Cordelia's apartment. Cordelia and Wesley jumped up from the table.

"Angel! Are you all right?" Cordelia took in his appearance. "What happened?"

"Is she here?" Angel asked her.

"The pregnant woman? No. Gunn, brought us the talisman, but-"

Angel looked at Wesley.

Wesley went back to his books. "Working on it."

"I told her to come here. She doesn't trust me. Why should she?" Angel hit the whiteboard.

"You can't see everything. You're just a vampire like everyone else..." Cordelia paused. "That didn't come out right."

"I thought I was out of the tunnel." Angel slumped down on the sofa.

"Sure, you did...because the tunnel is...you know, it's something we all..." Cordelia frowned. "Are we talking real tunnel or symbolic? Just give me that much."

"I-I saw the light at the end of the tunnel...that someday I might become human. That light was so bright that I thought I was already out."

Cordelia sat down beside him with a sigh. "Yeah. We all got a little cocky, didn't we?" She paused in thought. "It's gonna be a long while...until you work your way out...but I know you well enough to know you will." She took his hand in hers and interlaced their fingers. "And I'll be with you until you do." She kissed him on the lips.

"What about your inevitable stardom?"

"I'm not saying I won't have a day job."

"I think we got something. It's medieval. A small badge or coat of arms - to be presented when going before the Cahair Binse. Roughly translated, that's 'Chair of Judgment'."

Angel looked at Wesley. "The Tribunal."

"Right. An ancient court to settle grievances."

"You mean...with, like, lawyers and stuff?" Cordelia asked.

"This is a little more primitive. It's a fight to the death."

"That's why she needed a champion. Where would this Tribunal take place?" Angel asked.

"There is no way to tell. They're mystical events; they could rise up in our reality whenever they please."

"Look, we got to find her right away - whatever it takes."

The door opened, and Veruca walked into the apartment.

"Hey. You guys still hangin' out here?" Veruca asked.

"Yeah. How was your gig?" Cordelia asked.

"Awesome." Veruca closed and locked the door. "Dip a finger in me and paste one of my words on your machine. Let me be a distraction. Let me be a dream. Let me be the future. Let me be..."

Cordelia suddenly felt something. She looked at Veruca. "You'll eventually heal, but it will take time."

Veruca looked at her. "What?"

"Sandy." Cordelia looked at Veruca in sympathy. "You still hurt."

"How...did you know I was thinking about her?" Veruca asked, walking toward her.

"I dunno. I just got this...feeling."

Wesley looked at her. "Cordelia, I believe you're, uh, anagogic."

"Really? I look like I'm eating enough."

"Psychic. You're connected to the mystic." Wesley looked at Veruca. "When you sing, you bare you soul. She sees into it."

Veruca frowned. "Freaky."

"Some new power?" Cordelia asked Wesley.

"Or a latent power that hadn't manifested itself until now, perhaps brought on by the onslaught of visions that you received months ago."

Cordelia thought for a moment and then grinned. "Hey, that's it!" She ran over to her karaoke machine, which was sitting in a corner of the living room. She turned it on and picked up the microphone. She held it out to Angel.

Angel shook his head.

"I can't read you unless you sing!"

"I don't sing."

"Come on, Angel. I wanna hear you sing."

"No."

Wesley looked at him. "It would be for a good cause. We might learn something."

"Who's the boss here?" Angel asked.

They all looked at him.

"There are three things I don't do: tan, date...and sing in front of people!"

Cordelia still held out the microphone. "It's the only way. Now, get your undead ass over here and pick a fucking song."

Angel sighed, walked over, and looked through the karaoke CDs in Cordelia's collection. He selected one, put it in the machine, and selected the track. He grabbed the microphone out of Cordelia's hand. The song started playing.

"I remember all my life,
Raining down as cold as ice,
Shadows of a man,
A face through a window,
Crying in the night,
The night goes into...

"Morning, just another day.
Happy people pass my way.
Looking in their eyes,
I see a memory.
I never realized
How happy you made me.

"Oh, Mandy,
Well, you came, and you gave without taking,
But I sent you away.
Oh, Mandy,
Well, you kissed me and stopped me from shaking.
And I need you today,
Oh, Mandy."

Cordelia took the microphone away from Angel. "That's enough." She shut off the karaoke machine.

"Tell me where they are."

"The Tribunal will be wherever she is. She can't escape it."

"Where is she?"

"My question first. And answer true, because you know I'll know. Why 'Mandy'?"

"Well, I-I know the words." Angel leaned in close. "I kind of think it's pretty."

Cordelia smiled. "She'll be at 4th and Spring. The trial will be there."

"Trial? How does it work?"

"I don't know. I can only tell you what I tell you. The rest is up to you."

"Can I save her?"

"Try...and find out." Cordelia kissed Angel on the lips. "Good luck."

Jenny moved through the dark hallways. She tried a door, but it was locked. She turned away, but then the door opened, and Harmony walked out.

"Nobody harms my master."

"Your master?"

"You want him? You come through me."

Jenny punched her in the face. She fell down.

"Okey-dokey." Jenny stepped over Harmony and through the door.

Giles was in another part of the castle. He tried a door, and it opened. He stepped into the darkness beyond and fell off a ledge to the floor about eight feet below.

"Oh, good show, Giles. Uh...at least you didn't get knocked out for a change." Giles turned over on his back with a groan. "Oh...oh, ladies."

Three naked vampire women began crawling over him.

"You would...be the three sisters, yes?" Giles guessed.

"They began kissing his cheek and rubbing his chest.

"E-Excellent, right. Uh, I'd heard that you were myth. Obviously erroneous."

One of them ripped his shirt open and began caressing him.

"Aah! Ooh, that's, uh, that, uh..." Giles giggled. "...tickles! Ooh, uh...oh, dear God." He started panting.

Dracula held up his arm and rolled up the sleeve.

"What are you-"

"All those years fighting us. Your power so near to our own..." Dracula cut his arm with a fingernail until blood welled up. "...and you've never once wanted to know what it is that we fight for?" He held his arm out to Buffy. "Never even a taste?"

Buffy was conflicted. "If I drink that-"

"I have not drunk you. You must be near death to become one of us. And that comes only when you plead for it."

Buffy stared at his wrist. "I'm not hungry."

"No. Your craving goes deeper than that."

Buffy stared at him.

"You think you know...what you are...what's to come. You haven't even...begun."

Buffy looked at his arm, then at his face. She took his hand in both of hers and put her mouth on the bloody wrist.

"Find it. The darkness. Find your true nature."

Buffy drank deeply of his blood. Her eyes widened as a very quick series of images flashed by. She couldn't discern what they were.

Buffy lifted her head, blood on her lips. "Wow."

She suddenly shoved out her hand and pushed Dracula away. He landed on the table and slid across it on his back.

Buffy nodded. "That was gross."

She walked forward as Dracula got to his feet.

"You are resisting."

"Looks like."

"Come here. Come to me." Dracula held out his hand.

"You know, I really think the thrall has gone out of our relationship. But I want to thank you for opening up my eyes a little."

"What is this?"

"My true nature. You want a taste?"

Dracula growled and lunged at her. She jumped over his head, whirled, kicked him, punched him twice, and kicked him into a wall. He spun back, grabbed her arm, punched her, and flung her across the room. She landed on the table on her back.

Jenny walked up to an open door. "Buffy? Are you in-" She stopped herself before falling into the pit. "Rupert! Rupert!"

One of the vampire women was sucking Giles' dick while the other two were licking his neck. Jenny pulled out a silver pentacle and held it up. The three female vampires hissed and slunk away. Jenny tossed the pentacle to Giles, who caught it. Giles pulled up his underwear and pants.

Jenny reached out to him. "Come on, come on. Grab my hand."

"Thank God you came."

"Come on!"

"There was no possible escape." Giles still stared back toward the sisters.

He took Jenny's hand, and Jenny pulled him up.

Giles noticed his foot had only a sock on it. "Oh, my shoe." He pointed back into the pit. "Silly me, I'll just pop-"

"No way!" Jenny pulled him away. "No more vamp pit for you. Come on."

They got up and moved off down the hall.

Buffy ran across the room. She barreled into Dracula, and they fell to the floor, rolling. He was on top. He punched her, she punched him, then she grabbed his shirt and flipped him over. Now, she was on top. She punched him a few times. Then he caught her fist and flung her off him. He was grinning. They both got up, grabbed each other, and fell down again. Buffy was on top. She brought both of her hands down, but he blocked and flung her away again. She flew backward and hit the wall. She grabbed him; he flipped her across the table and then jumped onto it. She hit him with a chair and then swept his feet out from under him. He punched her. She grabbed a torch, and he rolled away just as she hit the table with it. They faced each other across the table.

"A guy like you should think about going electric. Seriously."

Dracula growled and turned to mist. Buffy looked around, saw where the mist was converging, dropped the torch, and ran toward the mist. She grabbed her stake off the table as she ran, leaped to the top of the stairs, and was there to stake Dracula just as he appeared from the mist. He looked shocked.

Buffy stared at him. "How do you like my darkness now?"

Dracula growled, fell down the stairs, and exploded into mist. Buffy sauntered down the stairs. Jenny and Giles rushed in.

"Buffy! You okay?" Jenny asked.

"Yeah. Chock full of free will."

"And Dracula?" Giles asked.

"Eurotrashed."

Harmony rushed in, holding a torch. "Where is he? Where's the creep that turned me into his spider-eating bitch?"

Buffy looked at her. "He's gone."

"Damn it!" Harmony yelled.

Jenny looked at her. "It coulda been worse. At least, you weren't seconds away from getting sucked by Dracula's women like Rupert here." She suddenly smiled. "Sucked from the neck, anyway."

"I was not making time! I-I was, uh, just about to kill those, uh, loathsome creatures when you interrupted me." Giles wrapped his torn shirt around himself.

Jenny grinned. "You were gonna nuzzle 'em to death?"

Jenny and Buffy grinned and started to walk away.

"Of course not! I was in complete control." Giles walked after them.

Harmony followed them. She suddenly realized something. "Omigod, I trapped Amy in the closet! Oh, she's gonna kill me to death!"

Buffy suddenly decided to turn around and head back into the room just to be sure. The fog appeared and began to converge. As soon as Dracula had fully appeared, Buffy staked him again. He gasped.

"You think I don't watch your movies?" Buffy rolled her eyes. "You always come back."

Dracula exploded into mist again. Buffy folded her arms and watched. The fog began to collect again.

"I'm standing right here!"

The fog dissipated.

Outside, the group headed toward Jenny and Harmony's cars.

Buffy hesitated for a moment. "Giles?"

"Yes?"

"You haven't been my Watcher for a while. I haven't really needed to come to you for help."

Giles felt sad. "I agree."

Buffy gestured helplessly. "And then this whole thing with Dracula...it made me face up to some shit."

Giles was concerned.

"Ever since we did that spell where we called on the power of the Slayer...I've been going out a lot."

Giles was surprised.

"Every night."

"Patrolling?"

"Hunting. That's...what Dracula called it. And he was right. He understood my power better than I do. He saw darkness in it."

Giles was very concerned. They stopped at the cars.

"I need to know more. About where I come from, about the other Slayers. I mean...maybe...maybe, if I could learn to control this thing, I could be stronger; I could be better. But...I'm scared. I know it's gonna be hard. And I can't do it...without you. I need your help." Buffy paused. "I need you to be my Watcher again."

Giles stopped frowning. He then smiled. "I'd be delighted."

Buffy smiled, relieved. "Thank you."

Joyce unlocked and opened the front door of her house and stepped aside. She looked at Dawn.

Dawn reluctantly walked onto the front porch, carrying a suitcase with both hands. She walked into the house. Joyce followed.

"Buffy?! Tara?!" Joyce called.

Tara walked out of the kitchen, holding a bowl full of chocolate ice cream. "Ms. Summers. Dawn. What's going on?"

"Dawn is moving in. Her father has to go overseas on business. Is Buffy home?"

"No, Amy and Harmony are keeping an eye on her, because she's under Dracula's thrall."

"Oh." Joyce paused, then frowned. "What?"

"Yeah, Drac's in Sunnydale."

Joyce shook her head. "Uh, when you're done with your ice cream, can you help us bring Dawn's things in?"

"Sure."

"Thanks." Joyce walked back outside.

Tara looked at Dawn and could tell she was upset. "Want some ice cream?"

Dawn hesitated, then set down her suitcase. "Okay."

They headed toward the kitchen.

"But that doesn't mean I'm getting settled in."

"Understood."

Angel returned to Cordelia's apartment.

"How'd it go?" Cordelia asked.

"Saved her and her baby."

Cordelia grinned. "That's my guy."

Angel took down the whiteboard.

Wesley nodded. "Good idea. Start over with a fresh slate."

"Actually, we're starting over with no slate."

"Of course. We shouldn't be keeping score. We're not running a race; we're doing a job - one soul at a time."

"You guys hold the fort. I've somewhere to be."

Faith was wiping down a table in Helen's Kitchen when the door opened.

Faith didn't look up. "Just about to close."

"I won't be long."

Faith looked up. "Hey."

"Hey. How you doing?"

"Pretty good, I guess."

"Doesn't sound like it."

"Bad day. One of the regulars got pissed at the service that I gave her and tried throwing down with me. She had low self-esteem and a homemade knife, so..."

"Oh. Is she...you know...alive?"

"She lives to tell the tale. Took the knife away, and I can't say much for the wrist it came in."

"Oh."

Faith shrugged. "What about you? Has your night been equally shitty?"

"I had to sing Barry Manilow."

"You're kidding."

"In front of people."

Faith tried not to laugh. "And here I am, talking about my petty little problems."

"Just wanted to give you a little perspective."

"'Copacabana'?" Faith guessed.

"'Mandy'. I don't wanna dwell on it."

"The road to redemption is a rocky path."

"That it is."

"You think we might make it?" Faith asked him.

"We might."

"Couple burger patties left on the counter. Was about to throw 'em out. Want one?" Faith offered.

"Sure." Angel sat in a booth.

Faith walked over to the counter, picked up the plate and two forks, and walked over to the booth. She set the plate down and sat across from him. She offered him a fork.

Angel cut one of the patties. "Food getting any better?"

"You know, it's not that different from what I grew up on. It's a little one-note. Eating the same thing every day."

"I wonder what that's like."

Faith chuckled, cutting her own patty. "Right..."

After picking up her van at Harmony's house, Buffy returned home.

Once inside, Buffy walked upstairs and peeked into Joyce's bedroom. No one was in there.

Tara walked out of their bedroom and over to her. "Buffy-"

Buffy looked at her. "Hey. Mom's not back yet, huh?"

"She's in the basement, moving some stuff around. Buffy, there's something-"

Buffy headed for their bedroom. "You can tell me when we're in bed. I have a taste for pussy!"

Buffy walked into their room and saw Dawn looking through her stuff.

"What are you doing here?" Buffy asked in surprise.

Dawn turned around, surprised, then gave Buffy a sour look. Buffy wasn't too pleased either. Tara entered the room.

Joyce walked upstairs and entered the room. "Oh. You're home. Uh, did Tara fill you in?"

Tara smiled nervously. "I didn't have time. She just got home."

"Oh. Well, uh, I was in LA. Your father had called. His job is taking him overseas, and he thought it would be best if Dawn stayed with us, so she could remain in the States." Joyce smiled nervously. "Surprise!"

Buffy was shocked. "I can't believe this."

Dawn glared at her. "That makes two of us."