"We have a problem at the zoo, Sir." Deputy Mayor Finch informed Mayor Wilkins.

"What kind of problem?" He inquired, as he looked over his schedule for the day.

"Something got into the male lion's enclosure and killed and ate a portion of it."

Ricard Wilkins looked up at his Deputy and blinked as he processed that statement. "I'm unaware of anything that would prefer to eat a lion as apposed to the bounty of humans available in Sunnydale."

"It may not be a demon, Sir. The police have conducted a search of the zoo hoping to find what might be responsible and explain Sunnydale's policies to it."

"I take it they didn't find a demon?"

"Dr. Weirick, a zookeeper assigned to the new hyena exhibit, which is still closed and under quarantine, appears to have been attempting a transpossession ritual. All the paraphernalia for it was discovered in his office along with a crudely painted animal head on the floor in front of the hyena's enclosure."

"I take it, he is not possessed?"

"No, Sir. Under questioning he admitted he'd been unable to trigger the transpossession and he doesn't understand why."

"But someone may have accidentally succeeded in doing what he couldn't personally do." The Mayor leaned back in his chair as he considered that possibility. "Which means we may have a possessed person or persons running around Sunnydale. Which could invite additional problems if they're not found quickly."

"Up to and including exposure, yes, Sir." Finch shifted nervously as Mayor Wilkins continued to mull over the situation.

"Possessed people often remember the experience." Wilkins observed. "Some even seek to replicate the experience, I understand it can be akin to a high from a drug. Which may mean Sunnydale may gain another Magic user."

"It's one possibility, yes, Sir." Finch agreed.

"They contribute to our local economy, we should encourage more citizen to turn to Magic." Wilkins smirked. "It can lead to demon worshipping as well, as it did for me. Have the police remain alert for any other indications of this possessed individual or individuals and for now their orders are to cover up as usual any evidence and capture, not kill, the victims and dispossess them. Keep me apprised of the situation and those orders may change if it appears exposure is imminent."

"Yes, Sir."

"As for Dr. Weirick, have the police dispose of him. If he'd have actually succeeded in getting himself possessed he would have been driven mad by it and most definitely would have caused problems for our fair city. That can't be tolerated."

"Yes, Sir." Finch swallowed hard to avoid gagging as he knew what 'disposed of' entailed. A slow and excruciatingly painful death.

"Have the zoo closed for the day while the remains of the lion are dealt with."

"Already done, Sir."

"Good, it's nice to know I don't need to micromanage my people, that they can handle the unexpected without hand holding, so unsanitary. It's too bad we have a standing ordinance against security cameras being placed in publically owned establishments in Sunnydale or we'd already know who our unfortunate victims of possession are."

"Yes, Sir." Finch nodded obediently.

"Of course the privacy of our most important residents is paramount." The Mayor continued. "And guaranteed by the local government. Which, of course, is me." He chuckled.

"Will there be anything else, Sir?" Finch asked.

"I don't believe I have anything else to add." The Mayor smiled cheerfully. "Was there anything else of concern?"

"Not that I'm aware of, Sir."

"Then you're dismissed for now, Allen. I need to get back to preparing for my day." The Deputy Mayor quickly and gratefully escaped the Mayor's presence. Sometimes he wondered if being this afraid all the time would cause a heart attack.

A frustrated Diana Dormer and Jesse McNally drove away from the zoo after being told it was closed for the day after the unexpected death of one of the lions. The remains needed to be examined to determine if the animal had contracted an illness, they were told.

"The zoo was a place to try find answers." Diana explained. "But we have no where else to look for answers, so that leaves me one option. I need to attempt a locator spell to try to find Faith. There's one that's been developed specifically to locate the Slayer."

"Why didn't you try that first?" Jesse asked, curious about an actual Magic spell.

"It's normally used for two reasons, to locate a newly Called Slayer and to locate the body of a deceased Slayer."

"Oh." Jesse felt even more scared now. "You're afraid you're going to find her dead."

"Yes and I'm afraid that's why I delayed using it as a means of finding her." She confessed. "I don't want confirmation she's dead, but by delaying finding her, I may have allowed death time to catch up with her." She smacked her hand on the steering wheel angrily. "I let my feelings cloud my judgement, if she dies because I've ceased to be a professional and come to love her like a daughter, I'll never forgive myself."

"I personally think she'd prefer you be more Mom, then Watcher." Jesse told her. "Even now. She loves you too."

Diana pulled up in front of the home she shared with Faith and stared at it for a moment. "She is my child in all the ways that matter and I will find her. If she's being a normal teenager and acting irresponsibily, I'll ground her for the rest of her life. If she's in actual danger, I'll destroy whatever's dared to hurt her." She stepped out of the car and squared her slim shoulders, a mother on a mission.

Jesse silently followed her into the house and prayed his friends were just being irresponsible, then he'd get to yell at them too, for scaring the crap out of them both.

But if they really were in trouble, he was prepared to help destroy whatever was responsible that too.