A/N SamonIIImantrim, Eyghon possibly being like Freddy Krueger is nightmare fuel. Thanks ever so much. 😳

On the other hand if you follow the dots, Giles was affected by Day of the Nightmares in the Spring, which began because of a boy in a coma, a state one cannot wake up from and that could have gotten Eyghon's attention, reminded him of this group that managed to use and then defeat him once. So he begins manifesting in the dreams of one of the members, eventually enough to possess him. And then another and another and yes, the odds of Giles' group being the only ones who summoned that particular demon? I wouldn't bet on it.

According to Jenny's Uncle, all it took to break Angelus' curse was one moment when the soul wasn't plaguing the demon. (Pretty sure that's exactly how Enyos put it). Defeating a demon, the way they did Eyghon, by having Angel and Angelus battle it would have given both of them a moment of satisfaction, that could very well have been enough to cause a single moment where the soul wasn't plaguing the demon. Curse breaks and Angelus is loose.

Or, Eyghon defeats Angel and cages Angelus himself and has a body that Angelus maintains but Eyghon controls which doesn't deteriorate the way the others bodies did.

And more plot bunnies are born. 😯

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While Xander was trying to figure out how to help Cordelia and her family, Rupert Giles was putting a teapot on his stove before starting up the coffee maker. The smell of coffee reminded him of a neighbor he'd once been close to and he sighed before going back to preparing for the visit with Buffy and her mother. Joyce Summers being aware that Buffy was the Slayer was not something that would please his superiors, on the other hand, Buffy hadn't been raised by the Council, like Kendra Young, the Slayer Called after Buffy's brief death, had been. The Council hadn't known she existed until Merrick located her. That she'd survived even that long had surprised them, that she was still alive was even more surprising to them. They'd felt without their guidance the chances of her surviving were pretty much impossible and yet, here she was, nearly two years after being Called and still the Slayer.

If Rupert Giles was being honest with himself, her survival might be because of her strong family ties and friendships and the absence of the Council from her life, something his father would have considered blasphemy, no doubt.

A knock on the door shook him out of his thoughts and he went to answer it, finding Buffy and Joyce Summers there, he motioned them in, old habits dying hard. The vampires might be gone, but long engrained habits remained.

"I'm making both tea and coffee." He told Mrs. Summers. "I wasn't sure which one you would prefer."

"Coffee is fine." She answered, lips firm and eyes narrowed. Giles went to the kitchen and returned a few minutes later with a tray that included his cup of tea and a cup of coffee for both Joyce and Buffy. Buffy picked up her cup and Joyce noticed the cream in it. "You know my daughter well enough to know how she prefers her coffee." She said flatly, glaring at the middle age man in front of her.

"I know you've been made aware of Buffy's Calling as the Slayer," Giles said evenly. "and that she's informed you that I'm her Watcher. I was assigned to her when you moved to Sunnydale."

"In January of this year." Joyce said, struggling with her anger. "You've had a secret relationship behind my back with my daughter for nearly a year. This after another one of you also had a secret relationship with my daughter for several months beginning in January of the year before. Then, as I understand it, he died during a battle with a vampire. Where were you and your Council when Buffy ran away on the back of a motorcycle after burning down the gym? Where were you and your Council when she was expelled because of that? Where were you and your Council when she came back and tried to tell us about vampires while facing arson charges? Where were you and your Council when my husband and I, as well as the police, thought she was suffering a mental health crisis because of all that and worked out a plea deal that put her in a hospital for months?"

"I was unaware of any of that until I was assigned as her Watcher." Giles answered, sipping his cup of tea. "Nor did my superiors see fit to explain their reasoning. I can hazard a guess though."

"You've undermined my relationship with my daughter, something you had no right to do." Joyce gripped the coffee cup and tried to hold on to her temper. "You've encouraged her to lie to me. You've encouraged her to sneak out at night. You've endanger her life, my youngest daughter's life and her friend's lives. Why? Did your Council make her this Slayer?"

"No, we are not responsible for any child being Called as the Slayer. But we have taken it upon ourselves to guide each one."

"Why?"

"Someone must and the world needs them."

"Bullshit." Buffy choked on her sip of coffee, she didn't remember ever hearing her mother swear.

"The world does not need child soldiers and human sacrifices and nothing you can say can justify what's been done to her or any of the other children 'Called' as Slayers. But you have knowledge and resources that might help keep my daughter alive and we need that knowledge and those resources. As long as you can help me keep my daughter alive, you have a use. But if I for one moment think you're endangering her again, your usefulness ends. Am. I. Clear?"

"Quite."