Chapter 11 – The Forbidden Forest

Buffy moved stealthily down the dark hallway. Ahead of her, Mrs. Norris, the caretaker’s cat paused and looked around suspiciously. Buffy froze in her tracks as the cat glanced in her direction. She knew if she was caught out of bed after hours, she’d be in serious trouble. Giles had told her that there was only so much leeway she’d be given, and he wasn’t sure what the consequences of her after-hours activities would be.

Buffy smiled dreamily as she thought of Giles.

Giles had been true to his word about moving their relationship along slowly. Since the day they walked to Hogsmeade, they had not progressed very far passed the holding hands and kissing stage. Buffy found his insistence of moving slowly sweet, but frustrating. Giles seemed so sure that Buffy would suddenly wake up one morning and decide a romantic relationship between them was a huge mistake.

Mrs. Norris padded silently down the hallway, continuing on her rounds. Buffy decided against following her. There was only so much satisfaction one could get from shadowing Filch’s cat.

Silently, Buffy moved down another corridor, avoiding the ghosts that hovered here and there. Finally, she made her way back to the Gryffindor entrance. The fat lady in the portrait was snoring softly and Buffy had to poke the picture to wake her up.

"Password?" the pink lady grunted, starting awake.

"Jack o’ lantern." Buffy hissed, before the picture could fully wake. The portrait swung open, and Buffy scrambled through the entranceway.

The common room was empty, as it usually was whenever Buffy returned from patrol. The fire was banked and the coals glowed red. Poking the embers, Buffy brought the fire back to life and added another log. She dug out her backpack from behind one of the stuffed chairs and settled down at one of the tables by the fireplace.

Folding her feet under her, Buffy opened her book and started reading. Sleep was a long way off, and Buffy figured she might as well put the time to good use.

"Giles, I’m worried about Buffy." Willow said. Giles looked up from the papers he was grading.

"Is something wrong?" he asked in concern. Willow pulled a chair close to his desk and sat down. Leaning forward, Willow rested her elbows on her knees.

"She’s not sleeping, Giles." Willow said. "Last night, I woke up in the middle of the night, and she wasn’t in bed."

"Could she have been in the common room?" Giles asked. Willow shook her head.

"I checked. The common room was empty." Willow inched her chair closer to the desk and lowered her voice. "Giles, I know Buffy’s patrolling at night." she confided. "I’ve been awake a couple times when she’s left the room."

Giles leaned back in his chair. Taking off his glasses, he pinched the bridge of his nose.

"I know. She’s restless. By coming to Hogwarts, Buffy was essentially forced into retirement. But she’s still the Slayer." he told Willow.

"What are we going to do, Giles?" Willow asked. Giles shrugged.

"I’m not quite sure." he admitted. Seeing the worry still etched on Willow’s face, Giles leaned forward and took her hands in his. "I promise, Willow. We’ll figure something out." Willow nodded, her eyes full of trust.

"Thanks Giles." she said, standing. She moved toward the door. Willow paused, her hand on the doorknob. "And Giles, thanks for getting Xander the broom. We might even win the match this weekend."

"I should hope so." Giles laughed as she left the classroom.

Giles was about to return to grading papers when he heard heavy footsteps outside of the room. The door opened and Hagrid stood in the doorway.

"Hagrid!" Giles exclaimed, standing and holding out his hand out. Hagrid took Giles’ hand, dwarfing it in his large one. "What can I do for you?" Giles asked, gesturing at the chair Willow had just vacated.

"Rupert," Hagrid said, gently settling himself into the chair. "I’ve got a bit of a favor to ask of ya." The chair creaked under Hagrid as he shifted uneasily. "Actually, it’s a favor of you and your Slayer."

"You want me to go where?" Buffy demanded, her voice rising in disbelief. Giles stilled the punching bag with both hands before it hit him. Willow, Xander and Oz looked up from where they were studying at a table in the corner of the training room.

"Hagrid said that there’s a monster or something in the Forbidden Forest." Giles told her. Buffy put her taped hands on her hips.

"Giles, it’s called the Forbidden Forest." she pointed out. "Of course there are monsters in there." Giles rolled his eyes in exasperation.

"A monster that isn’t supposed to be there." he clarified in exasperation. Buffy resumed her pummeling of the punching bag.

"So I get to go out looking for it?" she asked.

"You’re dropping your shoulder." Giles informed her. "And you are the Slayer." he pointed out. "This does fall under your job description." Buffy jumped backwards and gave a roundhouse kick to the bag.

"Nuh-uh. Vampire Slayer." she said.

"Alright then, how about this? You’re bored out of your mind with the lack of physical exertion and this will certainly alleviate that." Giles said. Buffy bounced on the balls of her feet.

"Fine." she grumbled. "I’ll do it." Picking up a towel, she wiped the sweat from her face. She grinned while it hid her face. <Yes!> she thought. <A hunt.>

Giles hid a smile as Buffy toweled herself off. He could all but touch the excitement radiating from Buffy at the thought of going out patrolling. As unfortunate as an unwanted monster in the forest was, it was possibly exactly what Buffy needed.

"So what’s the deal, Giles?" Xander asked, setting aside his Charms textbook. "A big bad beastie is threatening Hogwarts?"

"Hardly, Xander." Giles replied drolly. "Hagrid said that something has entered the forest that shouldn’t be there. He’s tried tracking it’s path of destruction, but hasn’t been able to catch sight of it."

"Not exactly a stealthy man, our man Hagrid." Oz offered. Giles nodded in agreement.

"You’re probably right." Giles looked over at Buffy, who’d flopped into a chair, towel around her neck, sneakered feet propped on the table. "Whatever it is, Hagrid is concerned that it may frighten some of the more dangerous creatures out of the forest and onto the school grounds."

"It’s never a good thing when scary things get scared." Willow said, shuddering delicately. Oz rubbed her shoulders comfortingly as he looked up at Giles.

"So, an old fashioned group patrol?" he asked. Giles shook his head.

"The forest is extremely dangerous." he said. "I think tonight it’ll just be Buffy and myself."

"Oh, reconnaissance mission." Buffy said in mock excitement. "Yay!"

"Lots of Watcher-Slayer bonding." Willow pointed out. Buffy slid a glance toward Giles, who seemed to be blushing just a bit.

"There is that." Buffy agreed.

"As long as it’s not Watcher-Slayer bondage." Xander interjected, shuddering. "I don’t even want to think about that." Buffy and Willow grinned at each other as Giles blushed even more. Willow, of course, knew all about the events that transpired during the walk to Hogsmeade. And Buffy wouldn’t have been a bit surprised if Oz had noticed the change in her relationship with Giles. But Xander remained his usual clueless self, blissfully unaware of the impact of his comment.

"Yes, well…" Giles cleared his throat, his gaze fixed firmly on the table. "I thought we’d patrol after dinner." Buffy shrugged, dropping her feet to the floor and standing.

"Works for me." she said, moving past Giles. In the split second that her body blocked Giles’ from the gang’s view, Buffy slid her hand along Giles’ stomach. She could feel his muscles tense underneath her fingers. She smiled suggestively up at him. "I’ll meet you here after dinner. I’m gonna hit the showers."

"Make sure you dress warmly, Buffy." Giles called after her. "It’ll be cold out there." He was surprised at how normal his voice sounded. The slightest touch from Buffy had the ability to throw him off kilter, which was probably her intention. Giles smiled to himself. <Two can play at that game.> he thought.

"You can’t be serious." Ron said, looking up from his Divination homework. "You’re going into the Forbidden Forest voluntarily?" A look of horror spread across his face at the thought. Buffy nodded as she paged furiously through her Potions book, looking for a potion that would neutralize the effects of a love potion.

"There’s something in there that shouldn’t be." she said absently, marking a passage with her finger as she copied the information.

"Well, of course there is. It’s the bloody Forbidden Forest. That’s why it’s forbidden." Ron insisted.

"Ron…" Harry started. Ron ignored him, leaning towards Buffy.

"Do you have any idea the things that are in there?" he asked. "They’d make your hair stand on end. Giant spiders, flying cars, a giant three-headed dog named Fluffy, probably some blast-ended skrewts…" Ron ticked each item off on his fingers as he listed him. Buffy reached over and stopped him, even as Xander shuddered.

"Giant spiders?" Xander whispered to Willow. "Now I’m really glad we’re not going."

"Ron, I think Buffy can handle herself." Hermione interjected. "She is the Slayer, you know."

"Fine. Don’t blame me if you’re eaten by Aragog." Ron muttered, returning to his homework. Hermione huffed, annoyed. She muttered something about ‘cowardly boys’ as she paged through her book.

Buffy barely paid attention to the conversation around her. Snape had assigned a two parchment essay on how to recognize that one was under the effects of a randomly assigned potion. Buffy had ended up with love potions, and she had a sneaking suspicion that it was hardly a random assignment.

In fact, Buffy was almost positive that Snape knew that there was something going on with her and Giles. She supposed he thought he was being clever. However, as she was not only over the age of consent in both the United States and the United Kingdom, and only making a "special guest appearance" at Hogwarts, Buffy couldn’t imagine that Snape could actually do any lasting harm.

But all that was irrelevant right now. What mattered was that the essay was due tomorrow, and she’d left it until the last minute. Giles would be here any moment to start patrol and she wasn’t anywhere near done.

As if conjured by her panic, Giles appeared in the entrance way, crossbow in hand.

"Buffy, are you ready?" he asked, buttoning up his heavy winter jacket. Still scribbling furiously, Buffy shook her head.

"Nope. I’ve still got a parchment to fill on the signs of having taken a love potion and how to counteract it." she said, never looking up.

"Buffy, we need to go now if we want a decent chance to catch whatever this is." Giles said, determinedly. Buffy glanced up at him briefly, then returned her attention to her essay.

"Just an hour, Giles." she said. "I should be done by then."

"We don’t have an hour, Buffy" Giles told her, impatience creeping into his voice. He wondered why she’d waited so long to work on this assignment, and then remembered that is was Buffy. "Can’t you finish it when we get back?" Buffy shook her head, flipping pages back and forth, writing furiously all the while. Giles sighed, took off his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Buffy." he said, a note of steel in his voice. "Bring the damn essay and let’s go." Buffy’s head snapped up and she stared at him.

Everyone at the table was silent, watching the exchange between Watcher and Slayer.

"Fine." Buffy said, tossing down her quill and slamming her book shut. "But I don’t want to hear how I’m not putting in my full effort when I get a crappy grade." she muttered angrily. Giles sighed as he watched her stomp up the stairs to her dorm. Buffy was still muttering to herself when she came back down, bundled up in her heavy jacket, the bright red and yellow Gryffindor scarf trailing behind her. "I won’t be to blame if I don’t get a good grade. Oh, no, we couldn’t wait an hour to finish my essay." Buffy snatched up the essay, her quill and a bottle of ink, shoving them all in her pockets.

Harry and Ron watched this in awe. They couldn’t imagine talking to Professor Giles that way. Ron waited anxiously for Giles to yell at Buffy or at least turn her into a toad. Instead, Giles merely watched Buffy stomp around with an amused, if slightly exasperated, look on his face.

The Scoobies paid no attention to the exchange. They’d barely looked up during the argument. In fact, the minute Buffy had shut her book, Willow had snatched it up and was now leafing through it.

"Shouldn’t we say something?" Harry whispered. Xander, who’d been gazing longingly at Katie Bell, jumped at his voice.

"What? Who?" he asked. Following, Harry’s gaze, Xander looked over just as Buffy stopped in front of Giles and was poking him in the chest as she spoke.

"Just know that my grade rests on your shoulders." she was telling him, emphasizing each word with a poke.

"Oh that?" Xander asked. "Nah, that’s pretty normal." he assured Harry. "The Buffster rants and raves, Giles stares at her silently, she runs out of steam and pretty much does what he wanted her to do in the first place." Xander gave Harry a wry grin. "It’s a finely tuned system." Xander leaned closer to Harry. "Do you think Katie would go out with me?"

Harry stole a glance over at the girl in question. Now that Xander wasn’t watching her, she was watching him. Harry grinned at Xander.

"I think she’d say yes." he said, tongue in cheek. "You should ask her to go to Hogsmeade with you or something." Harry encouraged. Xander looked a bit panic-stricken.

"Ask her, as in ‘ask her’?" Xander stuttered. He threw a wild glance at Katie. "She’s human right? Not a bug, mummy princess, a former demon or anything, is she?"

Ron’s gaze swiveled from watching Buffy argue with Giles to Xander.

"Are you mental?" he asked Xander. Without waiting for an answer, he turned to Harry. "Our lives are officially not weird." he said. Harry nodded in agreement.

"Are you quite finished?" Harry heard Giles ask Buffy. Buffy crossed her arms over her chest and gave one final grumble before nodding. "Good, can we go now?"

Much to Harry’s amazement, Buffy gave Professor Giles a beaming smile and all but danced out of the common room. Professor Giles rolled his eyes and followed her out. Harry looked around the table to see if Xander or the others noticed, but they were all absorbed in their homework. Shaking his head in wonder, Harry went back to work.

Buffy and Giles left the castle and tramped across the lawn towards the Forbidden Forest. Buffy inhaled deeply, filling her lungs with the cold night air.

"Everything is so different here." she said suddenly. "I can’t believe you ever wanted to leave England." Giles gave her a curious look.

"To be completely honest, Buffy, I didn’t want to leave. But I was assigned to an active Slayer. There wasn’t much choice in the matter." he said. Buffy dropped her gaze and stared at the ground as she walked.

"I’m sorry." she said quietly. Giles looked at her sharply. Even in the dark, he could see the sadness on her face.

"Whatever for?" he asked. Buffy glanced up at him, then back at the ground. Understanding dawned on Giles. Grabbing Buffy’s arm, he forced her to stop.

"It’s not your fault, Buffy." he said sincerely. "Leaving England was a choice I made when I accepted my destiny to become a Watcher." Giles caressed Buffy’s cheek. "Besides, knowing you has been worth any price." he said softly. Buffy looked up at him hopefully, her eyes bright with unshed tears.

"Really?" she whispered. "Are you sure?" Not caring that they were still within sight of the castle, Giles leaned down and gently pressed his lips to Buffy’s. Buffy curled her fingers in the lapel of his jacket, holding him close to her.

"Better?" he asked, moving away a few minutes later. Buffy nodded, resting her cheek on his jacket. "Good, because we still have an unknown creature in the forest to track." Buffy giggled.

"You better watch out," she laughed, snuggling against him. "or you’re going to turn my head with all this romantic small talk." Giles held Buffy close for a moment, silently wishing that their lives were different. Finally, he moved away from Buffy.

"Speaking of romance, I believe we have an essay to finish." he said lightly. Buffy recognized that Giles was trying to lift the mood, and twining her fingers through his, she followed his lead.

"Love potions." she grumbled, as they started through the forest again. "Topics were supposed to be randomly assigned, but he had that evil gleam in his eye when he gave me mine." Buffy told Giles. "And does he ever wash his hair?" she demanded suddenly. Giles chuckled.

"You’ll have to excuse me if I decide not to wonder about Snape’s personal hygiene." he said to Buffy, drawing closer to the forest’s edge. "And you’re correct, it’s unlikely that you were assigned love potions by accident." Giles confirmed.

"He knows about us, doesn’t he?" Buffy asked. Giles shook his head.

"I don’t think so. I think he knows how I feel about you though." he said. Buffy rolled her eyes.

"Snape thinks he’s being all devious and underhanded, huh?" They paused at the edge of the Forbidden Forest. Buffy pressed her lips together as she studied the foreboding darkness, then turned to look at Giles’ profile. "Just for the record, you do actually know what’s supposed to be in there, right? ‘Cause I don’t want to kill the wrong monster." Giles looked down and smiled.

"Yes, now let’s go." he said, as he stepped into the well-worn path that wound between the trees. Buffy grabbed his arm and stepped in front of him, taking the lead. She pulled a stake from her jacket pocket as she crept down the path. She may not have known where they were going, but there was no way she was letting Giles be the first line of defense.

Almost immediately, Buffy noticed how silent the forest was. Normally, there would be crickets and bugs and other such noises. Instead, there was only the sound of their footsteps and the wind rustling the leaves. Above their heads, the tree branches grew together, only letting the occasional shaft of moonlight through. Her Slayer vision adjusted to the near blackness, and she checked over her shoulder to make sure Giles was ok.

Buffy grinned when she realized that he’d brought a flashlight with him, and was using it to illuminate the path in front of him.

"Not exactly wizard-issue." she whispered. Giles shrugged.

"It’s a better weapon than my wand." he whispered back, hefting the heavy instrument as if testing it’s weight. As he did, the beam of the flashlight lit up a break in the overgrown forest. "Buffy." he whispered, focusing the beam on the spot.

Turning, Buffy crept through the overgrowth, to the damaged trees.

"Whatever did this left a trail to follow." she said. Giles picked his way after her, following her down the path of destruction. "It’s also really big." Buffy commented, looking up several feet above her head. Giles followed her gaze with the flashlight. By his estimations, the creature was at least seven feet tall.

"Be careful, Buffy." he cautioned. Buffy threw a look over her shoulder.

"Gee, Giles, thanks for the advice." she said sarcastically.

The snapping of branches and a loud growl echoed through the woods. Buffy whirled toward the sound. Her gaze snapped to Giles, who gave her a curt nod, sending her off and running, ducking tree limbs and hopping over stumps.

By the time Giles caught up with her, Buffy was already engaged in battle with the creature. He’d been correct in his estimation of the demon’s height, but he hadn’t realized how broad the creature would be. It’s yellow mottled skin was broken by thick ridges on it’s chest and back. Buffy grunted as she kicked at one of it’s hoofed feet. The creature howled in pain, enabling Buffy to grab the curled horns on the top of it’s head and flip it onto the ground.

All of Buffy’s efforts seemed only to enrage the creature, rather than causing it any real pain. It floundered to it’s feet and swinging wildly, knocked Buffy across the clearing into a tree.

"Ow!" Buffy yelped in pain as her head knocked against the tree trunk. "That hurt!" she yelled angrily, launching into another attack. Buffy drove it backwards with repeated kicks. The creature stumbled, but quickly regained it’s balance. Giles snapped to attention as the creature swung around to face Buffy.

"Buffy! Watch out!" Giles threw himself at Buffy, knocking her to the ground just as something flew over their heads. Buffy pushed Giles off of her and sprang to her feet, but the demon had gone crashing deeper into the forest.

"What did you do that for?" she demanded, reaching down to pull Giles to his feet. Giles didn’t answer. Instead, he was staring at the tree Buffy had been standing in front of moments before. Buffy twisted around to follow his gaze.

"Oh, that’s just a world of ew." she muttered, wrinkling her nose in disgust. The tree was covered in a greenish-gray substance that dripped suspiciously down the trunk. "Oh, that’s demon booger, isn’t it?" Buffy grimaced at the sight.

Giles took off his glasses and polished them on his jacket, more to avoid looking at the tree than anything else.

"I believe so, yes." he said. Buffy swallowed hard in an attempt not to gag, and looped her arm through Giles’.

"You’re officially forgiven." she said, pulling him away from the tree and back toward the path. Buffy peered into the dark forest. "Should we follow it?" Giles shook his head.

"No, it’s gone deeper into the forest." he said. "Besides, I’d like to do some research so that we know what we’re up against next time." Buffy bent and scooped up the flashlight Giles had dropped when he’d thrown himself at her.

"Fine with me. Does this mean that you’re going to help me finish my love potion essay now?"

Chapter 12 – Halloween

The morning of Halloween dawned bright and sunny. Buffy groaned as the sunlight streamed in through the curtains. She’d been out patrolling with Giles for the past several nights, trying unsuccessfully to hunt down the booger shooting demon. Giles hadn’t been able to identify it yet, which concerned Buffy mostly because that meant they didn’t know how to kill it yet.

"C’mon, Buffy, we’re going to be late if you don’t get up." Willow said, shaking Buffy’s shoulder. "I want to eat breakfast before the quidditch match."

[Quidditch match.] Buffy’s eyes popped open and she flung back the covers. Within thirty minutes, she was showered, dressed and ready for breakfast. Willow waited for her in the common room.

"How’s Xander doing?" Buffy asked as they started for the Great Hall. Willow giggled as they walked down the stairs.

"He’s pretty nervous." she told Buffy. "I’m pretty sure he would’ve gone down to breakfast in his pajamas if Harry hadn’t caught him in time." Buffy snickered at the thought of Xander wandering around in his pj’s.

"Poor Xander." she laughed.

"It was pretty funny." Willow admitted as they entered the Great Hall. Buffy’s stomach twisted with hunger as the smell of the cooked food reached her nostrils. Up at the head table, Giles was already seated, eating his breakfast as he paged through a book. With a sixth sense reserved for her, he looked up as Buffy and Willow made their way between the tables. Buffy gave a soft sigh as he smiled at her. Willow giggled as Buffy gave him a little wave before sliding into a seat next to Xander. Buffy sat on Xander’s other side and began to fill her plate with food.

"How ya feeling, Xand?" Buffy asked before taking a bite of food. Xander started at the sound of her voice.

"What? Oh, hey Buffy." he said. Buffy looked over and grinned at his distraction.

"You ready for the big game?" she asked. Xander swallowed audibly.

"Game? Yeah, I’m ready." he said, not sounding ready at all. Buffy patted his shoulder comfortingly.

"It’ll be ok." she promised. "You’ll do great." Xander turned and grabbed Buffy’s robes in desperation.

"Are you insane? I’m going to get on a broom and people are going to throw things at me. Plus there are crazy insane-o balls whose only purpose is to knock me off my broom." he said, shaking Buffy with every word. Buffy gently pried his hands from her robes.

"So, it’ll be just like Sunnydale." she pointed out. "You’re used to it." Xander nodded rapidly.

"You’re right. I can do this. I’m used to people throwing things at me. It doesn’t matter that I’ll be 50 feet in the air. At least it won’t be sharp, pointy things aimed at my head."

"Xander." Willow said sharply. "Take a deep breath. You’re beginning sound like Rain Man." Eyes wild, Xander breathed deeply, filling his lungs in an attempt to calm himself down.

Just then, Giles walked down the aisle towards them. Buffy smiled up at him sunnily. He smiled back, reaching out and squeezing her shoulder.

"Xander, could I have a word with you?" Giles requested softly. Xander nodded franticly and followed Giles out of the hall. Buffy and Willow watched them go curiously.

"What do you think he wanted to talk about?" Willow wondered aloud. Buffy smiled softly.

"Pep talk." she said with certainty. "I’m willing to bet he’s getting Xander all confident about the game." Willow’s mouth grew into a fond smile.

"That’s so Gilesy." she said. Buffy nodded.

"That’s my Giles." she whispered. Buffy smiled to herself in satisfaction. [Her Giles.] Buffy liked the sound of that statement.

Xander returned a few minutes later, looking calmer and more confident. Giles walked behind him, and Buffy sighed again. Giggling, Willow leaned over across the chair Xander had been in earlier.

"You have it so bad." she whispered to Buffy. Buffy nodded, never taking her eyes off Giles. It was moments like these that made Buffy wonder why it had taken her so long to realize what a hottie her Watcher was.

Xander was about to slide back into his seat when George stood and said it was time for the team to get ready. Xander nodded, and with one last glance at Giles, trailed along with the rest of the team. Giles gave Xander an encouraging nod to send him on his way. Buffy watched this exchange between the men. She waited until Xander had left the Great Hall before tugging on Giles’ robes.

"What did you say to him?" Buffy asked Giles as he looked down curiously. Giles shook his head.

"Nothing really. Just some words of encouragement." he told her, before turning and heading for the door. Buffy mentally compared the spaz Xander was before the talk to how calm he’d been after, and knew that Giles wasn’t telling her everything. Jumping out of her seat, Buffy chased after Giles. She caught up to him in the empty hallway.

"C’mon, Watcher-mine, spill." Buffy pouted prettily, grabbing his arm. Giles smiled as he faced her.

"Well, if you must know…" Giles trailed off reluctantly. Buffy crossed her arms over her chest.

"I must." she insisted. Giles slowly leaned toward Buffy. Buffy’s breath caught in her chest.

"I merely told him…" Giles leaned even closer, so that his mouth was directly next to her ear. His hands came up to caress her shoulders. Buffy shuddered delicately at his touch. "…that I wouldn’t tell you."

With a grin, Giles released Buffy’s shoulders and moved off down the hallway before she could react. Speechless, Buffy watched him go. As he turned the corner, Buffy heard his laughter drift down the hallway. Frustrated, Buffy clenched her hands into fists.

"Giles!"

An hour later, Buffy found herself wandering an unfamiliar hallway, her frustration growing. Willow and Oz, along with Ron and Hermione had already left for the quidditch field. Buffy had been right behind them until Oz had mentioned it was too bad that Giles wasn’t coming along. Buffy had frozen in her tracks, and demanded to know why not. Oz had merely shrugged.

"Too much research." he’d said. And so, having no clue where Giles’ rooms were, Buffy had set off to find him and drag him to the game. Luckily, Buffy had run into the ghost of Sir Nicolas, and he’d been very helpful in directing her to the teacher’s quarters.

"Ok," Buffy muttered, "first left, second right, seventh portrait on the right." Buffy made the second right and began counting off the portraits. "Seven." she said, stopping in front of a picture of a very stern looking older gentleman. "Um, is this Rupert Giles’ room?" Buffy asked the portrait, hesitantly. The picture looked her up and down, clearly finding her wanting.

"Password?" it demanded in a haughty voice. Buffy blinked in surprise.

"Geez, get a little more British on me, will ya?" she mumbled. "I don’t know the password." she explained to the picture. "Is this even his room?" The portrait eyed her suspiciously.

"Password?" it demanded again. Buffy sighed. Obviously, she wasn’t going to get anywhere with this guy.

"Giles!" she yelled at the top of her lungs. "Giles!"

Inside his room, Giles stood at the window, watching the students filing towards the quidditch pitch. Smiling, he remembered many the Saturday spent the same way. Removing his glasses, Giles pinched the bridge of his nose, regretting the fact that he wouldn’t be able to see Xander’s first game. Unfortunately, until he’d identified the creature lumbering about in the Forbidden Forest, research took priority.

Sighing, Giles replaced his glasses, and moved away from the windows back towards the books sitting open on his desk. He was really quite frustrated by the lack of success in identifying the demon.

"Giles!" Giles stopped in his tracks at the sound of Buffy’s voice calling him. Confused, he strode over to the entranceway as Buffy called again. "Giles!" Giles winced at the irritation in her voice. [This does not bode well.] he thought.

"Young lady," the portrait guarding the door began to scold, "one does not stand in the middle of a hallway shouting at the top of one’s lungs. It’s just not proper." Buffy glared at the picture.

"Giles, get out here!" she called. Sighing, Giles pushed open the portrait.

"Buffy, what are you doing here?" he asked, gesturing her inside. Buffy stuck her tongue out at the picture and flounced past Giles into his rooms.

Buffy looked with avid curiosity around Giles’ living quarters. They were completely different from his apartment in Sunnydale, but yet, as Buffy looked around, it still fit him completely. Every available surface was covered in books, piles and piles of books. A teapot sat on the table, steam rising from it’s spout. Buffy searched the room, but couldn’t find a stove of any kind.

"How..?" she started to ask, placing her hand against the pot to test the heat. Giles picked up his wand and wiggled it. "Oh." Buffy said, nodding her understanding.

"Buffy, why aren’t you on your way to the quidditch match?" Giles asked. Buffy grinned, picking up his tea and taking a sip. She made a face at the lack of sugar.

"I was actually going to ask you the same thing." she countered. Giles gestured at the books open on his desk.

"I need to research." he said defensively. Buffy shook her head.

"You’ve been researching." she said softly. "What you need is to relax for awhile, have some fun." Buffy slid her arms around his waist and rested her head against his chest. Giles held her close, resting his cheek on the top of her head.

"Buffy, with this demon on the loose…" he started. Buffy pulled away, and looked up at him.

"No, Giles. You need fun too." She smiled at him brightly. "Besides, everyone else is going with their honeys, even though Ron and Hermione don’t know it yet. But that’s not the point." Buffy said, shaking off the random thought. "You’re my honey now. I want you to go." she said. Giles sighed in exasperation.

"Buffy, I’m your Watcher." he pointed out gently. Cocking her head, Buffy smiled.

"You’re my friend, too." she said. "So what?" Buffy stood on her tiptoes and brushed her mouth over his. Closing his eyes, Giles tangled his hand in her hair as he deepened the kiss. As much as he wished otherwise, Giles just didn’t seem to have the capability to resist her. Buffy made a happy murmur as his tongue flicked against her lips. She immediately parted them to allow him access, moving her hands to his shoulders. Giles tongue slid inside, dueling with hers. After a few minutes, Giles lifted his head, breaking the kiss. Breathless, Buffy dropped her head to his chest.

"I suppose I could take a couple hours off." he murmured. Buffy smiled.

"Good, then we need to go." she said, moving out of the comfort of his embrace. "Will’s saving us seats." Giles couldn’t help but give a little laugh as he shook his head in disbelief.

"You never doubted for I second that you’d convince me, did you?" he asked. Buffy beamed up at him.

"Nope. I know you, Giles." she said, taking his hand and lacing her fingers through his. "And I know if I let you, you’d wear yourself out until you found the demon."

"But…" Giles began. Buffy put her fingers on his lips to shush him.

"Quidditch now, research later." she ordered in a no nonsense tone. Giles grinned, resisting the urge to salute smartly at his Slayer.

"Yes, Buffy." he said with mock meekness. Buffy laughed.

"Good, now get your cloak and let’s go."

The Halloween feast was a rowdy affair, the Gryffindor table the noisiest of all the tables. They were still celebrating their victory over Hufflepuff at the quidditch match.

"That was a great match!" Buffy exclaimed in excitement. Willow nodded in agreement as she buttered a roll.

"Wasn’t Xander great?" she asked excitedly. Xander blushed at the praise. "Did you see the way he caught the quaffle at the same time he knocked the bludger away with his broom?" Willow was all but jumping up and down in her seat with enthusiasm. "And then, and then, oh did you see, did you see…" Reaching out, Oz removed the butter knife and gave Willow’s hand a squeeze.

"Babe, you really need to take a deep breath and calm down." he said gently. Buffy smiled as Willow started taking deep calming breaths.

"Is Harry always that spectacular?" she asked Ron and Hermione. "That roll he made to catch the snitch was just amazing." Ron waved away Buffy’s amazement.

"You should’ve seen the catch he made his first game. He almost swallowed it." Buffy stared at Ron in disbelief then at Harry.

"You’re making that up." she insisted to Ron. Buffy looked at Harry. "He’s making that up, right?" she asked. Ron shook his head.

"Nope." he said. "That’s what happened."

Giles watched from the head table as Buffy and Ron continued their good-natured arguing with amusement.

Giles had to it admit it had been a spectacular match. Xander had performed admirably under the pressure, holding Hufflepuff scoreless for most of the game. Even Oz had stood and cheered when Xander had not only managed to catch the quaffle, preventing the Hufflepuff chaser from scoring, but had also managed to dodge the bludger flying straight for his head at the same time.

Watching Xander had filled Giles with pride. He couldn’t help but remember the awkward, self conscious boy Xander had been when they first met three years before. [He’s grown so much.] Giles thought. He looked over at Buffy, Willow and Oz, marveling at the changes all of them had gone through. [They’ve all grown so much.]

As loathe as he was to admit it, Giles was glad he’d allowed Buffy to drag him to the game. The bright sun and fresh, crisp air had gone a long way to clear out the cobwebs in his head. Once he’d gotten back to the castle, he’d been able to continue researching the mysterious demon with renewed vigor.

It was with no small amount of cursing that Giles had opened a book he’d looked at several times before, only to turn right to the demon he’d been searching for for days. Shaking his head in disgust, Giles had written down the pertinent information about the demon to share with Buffy after the feast. Giles had known she would be pleased that he’d identified what they were up against, he just hadn’t seen the point in interrupting her celebration with Xander.

Just then, Buffy looked his way. Giles smiled as her eyes met his. [She was so beautiful.] he thought. [What did I do to deserve her?]

Buffy glanced up at Giles and found him watching her. [What is he thinking?] she wondered. She wished he’d joined them in the Gryffindor common room for the after-game celebration. Buffy didn’t think any of the Gryffindors would’ve minded. Giles was a popular teacher. Buffy hated the fact that he seemed so isolated from the gang now. Especially now that she wanted nothing more than to spend every available moment with him.

The sound of deep growling roars jarred Buffy from her musings. Looking around, she realized with horror that a small army of the demon she’d fought in the Forbidden Forest was pouring into the Great Hall. Jumping out of her seat, Buffy leapt onto the table, running along it’s surface toward the suits of armor along the wall. Her Slayer agility kept her from stepping on any of the plates of food as she leapt from table to table. Giles bounded out of his chair, watching Buffy move like lightning across the room.

Screams echoed through the hall as the students realized what was happening. There was a mad rush toward the exits as people scrambled over each other in panic. The gang bolted out of their seats, also jumping on the table in order to get out of the way of the stampede. Ron, Hermione and Harry, along with Fred and George followed them.

"Stop!" Professor Dumbledore’s voice rang out through the hall. Everyone froze in their tracks. "Prefects, lead your houses back to the dormitories." he instructed. "Teachers, help them." he said, gesturing toward the students streaming from the room.

"They’re Fyarl demons." Giles yelled as he ran towards Buffy. "They can be killed with silver."

"Ginny," Ron hissed. "go with Rowan to the dormitory. You’ll be safe there." Ginny Weasley looked up at her brothers. Fred and George nodded their agreement with Ron.

"Go, Ginny." George encouraged. With one last look at them, she joined the Gryffindor group. Xander pointed at Buffy, who was furiously battling with the demons, keeping them at bay as the students made their escape.

"I think it’s time we joined in the fray." Xander said. The group took one last look at each other before running in different directions. Willow and Hermione used a banishing spell to keep the demons away from the other students. Ron used the Jelly Legs jinx on one, causing it to topple into the ones next to it. Harry, Fred and George used the full-body binding spell.

"Giles, I can’t kill it." Buffy panted as Giles skidded to a halt next to her.

"It’s a Fyarl demon." Giles said, snatching a sword of his own from the wall. "They’re killed by silver."

"Great." Buffy said. "Where am I going to find a silver sword?" Giles pulled out his wand.

"Tunica argentums." he said, tapping Buffy’s sword. A silvery coating spread out from the tip of his wand, covering the sword. Buffy stabbed the demon through the heart. It howled in pain, and dropped to the floor, dead.

"Nice." she whispered. Turning, she gave Giles a grin. "Thanks, babe." Buffy smacked a kiss on Giles’ cheek.

"Well, isn’t that sweet?" a snide voice drawled from behind them. Buffy swung around to find Draco Malfoy sneering at her. "A teacher and a student having an affair. Wait until my father hears about this."

Buffy tramped down the urge to smack the sickly smile off Malfoy’s face. Turning to Giles, Buffy opened her mouth to make a smart comment when she realized a Fyarl demon was looming behind them.

"Giles, duck." she yelled, shoving Giles away from her. Buffy dropped to the ground and covered her head, the demon making a strange snorting sound above her. Grabbing her sword from the floor, she rolled over, throwing it into the demon’s chest.

Buffy scrambled to her feet as the demon collapsed to the floor. She yanked the sword out of it’s chest and bent down to help Giles to his feet.

"Are you ok?" she asked, brushing his hair out of his face and straightening his glasses. Giles nodded.

"I’m fine. Go." he ordered. Buffy lingered a moment longer and then sprinted towards the other demons, who’d begun to circle Harry, despite the groups best efforts.

"Buffy!" Xander called in desperation as the Fyarl demons drew closer.

"Watch the snot!" Buffy yelled as one of the demons bent to take aim. Willow threw up a banishing charm just as a stream of viscous green mucus flew from the Fyarl demons nose.

"Ugh!" the group said in unison as the mucus flew back and covered the demon. Buffy impaled the demon from behind, tossing Xander the sword as the demon fell. She turned toward Giles, who was holding out another sword.

"Accio sword." she said, flicking her wand in his direction. The sword flew from Giles’ hand to hers. Buffy twirled and decapitated a demon as it lunged for Harry. "Get a sword." she told Willow and Oz. Both turned and flicked their wands as Giles finished coating two more swords.

The swords flew to them, and they joined in the battle. Between the silver coated swords and the constant curses the Weasleys, Harry and Hermione were placing, the Fyarl demons were quickly defeated.

Chest heaving with exertion, Buffy surveyed the Great Hall, watching for any movement from the Fyarl demons. They appeared to be dead, but she wasn’t ready to take any chances. Buffy looked at her friends. Aside from some minor scratches, they appeared to be fine. Exhausted from the battle, but fine.

A groan from behind her caused Buffy to whirl around, sword at the ready. The entire group snapped to attention as well. Buffy quickly clamped her hand over her mouth to stifle her laughter as Draco stood, covered with the viscous green demon mucus. The Weasley twins were not so subtle. Fred and George immediately began to guffaw as Draco attempted to wipe the slime from his body.

"That is the greatest thing I’ve ever seen." Ron whispered reverently. "Even better then the ferret." Harry had silent tears of laughter running down his face as he nodded in agreement. Willow and Hermione snickered behind their hands and even Oz had a smile on his face.

"Just wait until my father hears about this." Draco yelled angrily. He pointed accusingly at Buffy, flinging green mucus as he did. "He’s going to make sure you and your mudblood friends are expelled. Especially when he finds out that you’re sleeping with a professor!"

"Mr. Malfoy!" Professor McGonagall’s voice was shocked. "How dare you say such things. Five points from Slytherin." she admonished. She looked him up and down. "Get yourself up to the infirmary." the professor ordered. "Madame Pomfrey will help you clean up." With one final glare at Buffy and Giles, Draco stomped from the room, leaving a trail of slimy footprints behind.

"Oh my." said Professor Dumbledore as he entered the hall. "Mr. Filch is not going to be pleased." Dumbledore stared at the footprints for a moment, then turned his attention to the gang. "Once again, well done." he said to Buffy. "We’ve seem to be making a habit of rewarding Gryffindors for fighting."

"Sorry about the damage." Buffy said, looking around the hall. Dumbledore smiled and waved his wand. Almost instantly, the overturned chairs and tables righted themselves. "We’ll take care of the demons in a bit." he said. He looked them all up and down. "I don’t see any injuries, so it seems Mr. Malfoy is our only somewhat injured person." Buffy swore that Dumbledore was laughing silently as he said this. There was a twinkle in his eye that she couldn’t explain. "Ten points to each of you." he said. "Now off to the dormitories."

Buffy jumped down off the table and laid down her sword.

"Works for me." she muttered. She waited until everyone had filed out of the room before she headed toward the door. Buffy paused in front of Giles. "Are you ok?" she asked in concern. Giles smiled and nodded.

"I’m fine, Buffy." he assured her. "I’ll talk to you later."

"Professor Giles, a word if I may." Professor Dumbledore called. Buffy looked over her shoulder, then back at Giles, concern on her face.

"Did he hear what Malfoy…?" Giles gave a sharp shake of his head.

"We’ll talk later." he repeated. Buffy nodded and with one final look at Dumbledore, followed the rest of the group out. Giles watched her go. Once he was sure Buffy was out of sight, he turned and walked toward Professor Dumbledore.

Buffy paced the floor of the room she and Willow shared. Willow sighed, watching her.

"Buffy, there’s nothing you can do." she said. Buffy whirled to face her.

"He’s going to get fired and it’ll be my fault." she hissed angrily. "How much does he have to give up for me? It’s not fair. To any of us." Buffy ran her hands through her blonde hair in aggravation. Willow’s eyes softened in concern. She knew that it wasn’t just Giles that Buffy was worried about it. It was all of them. If Giles was fired, they’d all be leaving Hogwarts.

"Buffy," Willow said softly. "it’ll be ok." Climbing off the bed, Willow walked over to her best friend and put her arms around Buffy. Buffy laid her head on Willow’s shoulder.

There was a soft tapping at the door, and Xander slowly poked his head in.

"You guys decent?" he asked, his eyes tightly closed. Moving away from Willow, Buffy gave a snuffly laugh.

"Yes, Xander." she said. "It safe for you to come in." Xander snapped his finger in mock disappointment as he came into the room. Oz was close on his heels. Xander sat on Buffy’s bed, Oz on Willow’s. Willow climbed next to him and snuggled close.

"So, Malfoy made a very interesting comment before he left." Xander said, getting straight to the point. Closing her eyes, Buffy shook her head in disgust.

"I’m not sleeping with Giles, if that’s what you’re wondering." she said defensively. Xander shook his head.

"I know you’re not." he said. "What I want to know is how he knew there was something going on with the two of you in the first place." Xander pointed out. Buffy shrugged.

"I kissed Giles on the cheek in the hall." she said absently. Suddenly she froze, his words sinking in. "Wait a minute." Buffy said, turning slowly. "You don’t seem the least bit wigged by what Malfoy said." Xander shrugged.

"With the way the two of have been all touchy feely lately, I figured you were more than Watcher and Slayer now." he said. Buffy gave a self-depreciative smile.

"And here I thought we were being all stealthy." she muttered. She flopped onto the bed next to Xander. "Are you ok with it?" she asked. "With me and Giles being more than just Watcher and Slayer?" Xander shrugged.

"Buffy, it’s Giles." he said. "You two are actually pretty perfect for each other." Xander grinned, a goofy grin that Buffy couldn’t help returning. "Besides, bonus points for not dating Dead-boy." Buffy blushed and grinned.

"I don’t think anyone was surprised by what Malfoy said." Oz interjected softly. "Fred and George thought he was an idiot for not realizing it sooner." Oz shrugged. "Of course, they think Malfoy’s an idiot simply on principle." he added.

Buffy jumped to her feet.

"I have to talk to Professor Dumbledore." she said, a note of desperation in her voice. "I need to make him understand that it’s not Giles’ fault." Xander clapped his hands over his ears.

"I don’t want to hear that you seduced Giles." he declared. "That’s not a mental image I need." Buffy gave a small smile, but didn’t laugh.

"I’m serious." Buffy said, a note of determination in her voice. She grabbed her robe from the back of the chair. "I’m going to go find him." Buffy stuffed her arms into her robe and stormed out of the room.

About thirty seconds later she was back, looking somewhat sheepish.

"Does anyone know where Professor Dumbledore’s office is?"

Buffy looked down at the piece of paper in her hands. Once again, she found herself wandering a previously unknown part of the castle. Luckily, Harry knew exactly where Dumbledore’s office was and had given her directions. Buffy stopped in front of the ugliest stone gargoyle she’d ever seen. Buffy sighed and looked at the list of possible passwords. [Dumbledore must really like candy.] Buffy thought.

"Lemon drop, chocolate frogs, ice mice, fizzing whizbees…" The stone gargoyle suddenly came to life and jumped out of Buffy’s way, revealing a doorway in the wall. A spiral staircase rose from the floor, twisting and turning. Buffy looked down at the list with raised eyebrows. "Wow." she muttered, walking through the door. "I wasn’t even halfway through the list." Stepping onto the staircase, Buffy looked around curiously as it lifted her upward.

At the top of the stairs, Buffy hopped from the stairs, slightly dizzy. [Very cool concept.] she thought. [Not as cool in practice.] She found herself facing a heavy oak door with a brass griffin-shaped knocker.

Gathering her courage, Buffy lifted the knocker and let it come crashing down. The noise seemed to echo loudly in her ears. The door swung open silently.

"Professor Dumbledore?" Buffy called nervously, poking her head through the door. The huge circular room was unoccupied. Cautiously, Buffy moved into the room, looking around as she did. It was filled with interesting gadgets and instruments. A large red plumed bird sat on a gold perch set behind the door. Buffy approached it cautiously. "Aren’t you a beauty?" she said to it admiringly.

"Buffy." Buffy jumped at the sound of her name. Whirling around, she found Professor Dumbledore watching her with a mixture of concern and amusement. "You, of all people, would find Fawkes history fascinating." he continued, as if he hadn’t noticed Buffy’s start. "He’s a phoenix. He dies and is reborn from his own ashes." Buffy returned her gaze to the bird.

"We’ve got a lot in common, Fawkes." she murmured, before turning back to Dumbledore.

"What brings you to my office?" he asked gesturing for her to take a seat. Buffy sat in one of the heavy chairs as Dumbledore settled behind his desk.

"It’s about Giles." Buffy said, leaning forward. "I need to know if you’re going to fire him because of me." Professor Dumbledore leaned back in his chair, steepling his fingers.

"Why would I fire Rupert?" he asked, cocking his head in puzzlement. Buffy swallowed, and waved her hands in the air as she tried to find the right words.

"Because we’re… I mean, he and I… we’re, you know…" Buffy floundered desperately, trying phase her sentence in away that didn’t make her seem slutty or Giles a dirty old man.

"Are you concerned because of what Draco Malfoy said?" Dumbledore asked, rescuing her. Buffy nodded vigorously. Professor Dumbledore smiled at Buffy gently. "Don’t be." he reassured her. "Whatever your relationship is with Rupert is between the two of you, even if the whole school does know about it." Buffy blushed at his words. She stared at the floor, unable to meet her eyes.

Professor Dumbledore leaned forward.

"Buffy." he said. Buffy looked up. Dumbledore’s normally twinkling blue eyes were serious. "There is nothing wrong with your relationship with Rupert." he told her. "You are not a student. Not officially. The two of you had a relationship before you came here. No one will be fired or thrown out." Buffy closed her eyes and heaved a sigh of relief at his words.

"Thank you, Professor Dumbledore." she said, climbing to her feet. Dumbledore shook his head.

"No, it is I who should thank you." he said, his eyes glimmering with anger. "Because we both know those demons were sent after Harry."

Chapter 14 – The Letter

Buffy groaned in protest as her pillow carefully disengaged itself from her.

"I have class." Giles whispered as Buffy reached out to pull him back into the bed.

"It’s too early." she grumbled, her eyes still closed. Smiling Giles leaned over and kissed her gently. Buffy lazily draped her arm around Giles’ neck, holding him close. Pulling away, Giles brushed his fingers over Buffy’s cheek.

"Sleep some more then." he suggested. Huffing, Buffy propped herself up on her elbows and shook her hair out of her eyes.

"It’s no fun if you’re not in bed with me." she pouted sleepily. Buffy’s gaze followed Giles around the room as he pulled his robe on over his naked frame. "Shame to cover that body up." she called as he walked to the bathroom. Buffy smiled as Giles muttered something she was sure was very British under his breath. Gathering Giles’ pillow close, Buffy rested her head on it, breathing in his scent.

The routine had been the same every morning since the first time they’d made love. Giles would ‘accidentally’ jostle her awake as he slipped out of bed. She would grumble about being woken and then watch Giles get ready for the day. Some mornings, she’d join him in the bath, but mostly, she just enjoyed the view.

Buffy smiled to herself as she rubbed her cheek against the pillow, her eyes drifting closed. She could hear Giles singing as he bathed. Buffy wished he’d sing more. He only did it when he thought she couldn’t hear him. Recognizing the song Giles was singing, Buffy hummed along.

If someone had told Buffy a year ago that she’d end up falling in love with her Watcher, she would’ve thought they were insane. But now, Buffy couldn’t imagine her life without Giles in it. Rolling onto her back, Buffy stared up at the ceiling and smiled. Having a non-evil boyfriend was definitely of the good.

Making her decision, Buffy threw off the bedcovers. She didn’t bother with her robe as she slipped into the bathroom. Giles stopped singing abruptly as he looked up from the tub at Buffy’s naked body.

"I have class this morning." he repeated as Buffy slid silently into the water. She smiled knowingly.

"I know." Buffy wrapped her body around his, nipping softly at Giles’ neck. "I won’t make you late." she promised. Water splashed as Giles moved suddenly, pulling Buffy even closer.

"Ah, to hell with it." he muttered, covering Buffy’s mouth with his own.

++++++++++++++++++

Giles studied his notes as he ate his breakfast. Since the attack of Fyarl demons on the castle, Defense of Dark Arts had become a very serious class. Buffy had not been pleased when she’d had to demonstrate the effects of various curses and hexes. Especially since it had required her to submit to the curses. She’d been the obvious choice, since her Slayer training endowed her with the strength of mind and body to throw them off.

Willow, however, had been in her element. She’d been thrilled when Giles had asked her to help with these exercises. Secretly, she’d confided to Giles that it was kind of fun to curse Buffy. Giles had chuckled and suggested that it’d probably be for the best if she didn’t say that to Buffy.

Today, Giles planned to have the student practice blocking the curses. Hermione, Harry and all the Weasley’s had already proved more than adept at cursing each other. Harry had explained that they’d practiced last year in preparation for the final task of the Tri-Wizard Tournament.

Giles looked up from his notes as Buffy streaked into the hall, her robe billowing behind her. She waved at him enthusiastically as she slid into the seat next to Willow, a smug look on her face. Giles could only assume that he had a matching look on his own. Buffy piled her plate high with food and began to eat, joining in the conversation with the other Gryffindors.

The rumble of conversation quieted as owls flooded into the hall from the windows above. Giles grinned as he saw Harry’s owl drop a package in Buffy’s lap. Buffy was always delighted when she got mail from home.

Hedwig had taken it upon herself to travel to America several times a month. Harry didn’t seem to mind. In fact, he seemed relieved that Hedwig had something to do beyond carrying notes to Hagrid’s hut. Giles had considered getting Buffy an owl of her own for Christmas, which was rapidly approaching. He’d suggested it to Buffy, but she’d grown quite attached to the snowy white bird and said she didn’t want to hurt Hedwig’s feelings. [Maybe next year.] Giles thought. [She might want one once we’re back in Sunnydale.]

Giles frowned at the thought of going back to Sunnydale. Realistically, Giles knew that at the end of this year, he and Buffy would return to the Hellmouth. He’d be lying if he didn’t admit, at least to himself, that he wondered what would happen to his relationship with Buffy once they returned to the non-magical world.

Lost in his thought, Giles didn’t notice the feathered bird flying towards him. He leaned back in surprise as a large, tawny barn owl swooped down and dropped a letter in front of him before flying away. He couldn’t imagine who was writing to him. Wesley had already sent his weekly report on the Hellmouth. Unless, of course, Buffy had told her mother about their relationship, and she’d written a blistering letter giving him a piece of her mind. [At least it’s not a howler.] Giles thought as he picked up the envelope and studied the unfamiliar handwriting. Turning it over, Giles’ breath caught in his chest as he saw the seal embossed on the back.

Standing abruptly, Giles hurried from the hall.

++++++++++++++++

Buffy squealed with glee when Hedwig dropped the package into her lap. She gave the owl a piece of bacon and patted her head before Hedwig flew away.

"Whatcha get?" Willow asked in interest as Buffy turned the package over. Quickly, she tore off the brown wrapping paper that covered the box.

"A package from my mom." Buffy answered as the box tumbled into her lap. Opening it, Buffy laughed out loud. Nestled inside was a round cookie canister that Buffy knew all too well. It was the ugliest thing Buffy had ever seen. Her mother had been trying to get rid of it for as long as Buffy could remember, filling it with cookies and giving it to various people over the years. And every single time, it had been returned. It drove her mother nuts. Snickering to herself, Buffy vowed to fill the canister with some wizarding snacks and send it back. Buffy grinned, imagining the look of horror on her mother’s face when it came back. Lifting off the lid, Buffy sighed in delight.

"Cookies." Buffy held out the canister, offering the treats to the others. Everyone but Xander shook their heads, full from breakfast. Xander, however, reached out and snatched a cookie from the can.

"Mmmm, chocolate chip." he mumbled around the cookie. "Your mom makes the best cookies." Xander complimented. Replacing the lid, Buffy glanced up at the teacher’s table, looking for Giles. She wanted to share her delight at receiving the package from home. Buffy’s smile faded a bit as she realized Giles wasn’t where she expected him to be. Confused, Buffy looked around the hall, searching for him. But Giles was nowhere to be seen. Frowning, Buffy shrugged, disappointed that he’d left without saying anything to her. At the very least, he usually caught Buffy’s eye before he left the room. They normally walked to class together. Sighing, Buffy replaced the lid on the cookie canister.

+++++++++++++++++

Giles paced the floor of Dumbledore’s office in agitation. He’d come directly to the headmaster’s office from the Great Hall and shown him the letter.

"They can’t do this." Giles declared, pointing at the letter on Dumbledore’s desk. Adjusting his half-moon glasses, Dumbledore picked up the offending paper and scanned it, his eyes flat and cold. "I won’t allow them to do this. I won’t!" Giles ranted angrily.

"I received something similar this morning." Dumbledore told him, holding the letter out to Giles. Giles snatched the paper, crumpling it in his hand. "Rupert, sit. Please." Dumbledore requested wearily, gesturing at a heavy chair. He waited as Giles paced a few more steps before finally sitting in the chair. "Rupert," Dumbledore said softly. "I will do everything in my power to prevent this." Dumbledore gestured at the crumpled letter in Giles’ hand. "They have no authority here." Giles opened his mouth to reply, but was interrupted by a knock at the door.

Exchanging a glance with the professor, Giles stood, his spine stiff, as Dumbledore spoke.

"Come in."

++++++++++++++++

Buffy scurried down the hall to class, late because she’d taken the canister of cookies up to her room. Sliding around a corner, Buffy dodged some first year students and burst into Giles’ classroom, an apology on the tip of her tongue.

The apology died, unspoken, as she stared at the waiting class. Everyone was seated quietly at their desks, but Giles wasn’t in the room. Buffy stared at his empty desk for a moment, before searching out Willow’s confused gaze. The two girls stared at each other, neither having an explanation for the other.

Buffy whirled as the door opened behind her. Professor McGonagall bustled into the room, giving Buffy a sympathetic look as she passed by.

"Ladies and Gentlemen," Professor McGonagall said, raising her voice above those of the students. "due to unforeseen circumstances, Defense of Dark Arts will be cancelled for the day."

There was a rumble of disappointed voices as the class began to gather up their books. Harry, Ron and Hermione exchanged concerned glances as they walked toward Buffy. Willow, Xander and Oz had already gathered around the Slayer, their voices a low murmur. Buffy shook her head in response to whatever Xander had asked her.

"No, he didn’t say anything about canceling class." Buffy murmured. Harry caught movement out of the corner of his eye, turning as Professor McGonagall strode toward the group.

"Buffy," she said shortly, ignoring the rest of the group. "I need you to come with me." The professor fixed the rest of the group with a glare. "I’m sure the rest of you have other places to be." The group nodded, surprised by the professor’s harsh tone, and moved away. Professor McGonagall took Buffy by the arm, leading her down the hallway.

"Professor, is Giles ok?" Buffy asked in concern as they hurried down the corridor. As far as Buffy was concerned, the only times Giles hadn’t shown up for his classes were when something was very wrong. "He didn’t eat any chocolate or anything, did he?" Professor McGonagall’s mouth thinned into a grim line.

"Professor Giles is fine." she said shortly, but offered no further explanations. They came to a halt in front of the gargoyle that guarded Professor Dumbledore’s office. Buffy turned to look at the professor. "Ice mice." McGonagall said, before Buffy could say anything. She gave Buffy a look of sympathy. "Just remember to keep your temper." McGonagall advised, nudging Buffy toward the rotating staircase.

Buffy stepped on to the stairs, glancing at Professor McGonagall’s face as she rose. The professor’s face was a mixture of concern and anger, which heightened Buffy’s sense of anxiety. Buffy couldn’t help but feel that she was woefully unprepared for what awaited her.

At the top of the stairs, Buffy hopped off the moving stairwell, and walked toward Dumbledore’s office. Taking a deep breath, Buffy knocked loudly.

"Enter." Dumbledore’s voice was loud and strong. Unsure what to expect, Buffy pushed the door open and strode into the office.

Professor Dumbledore sat at his desk, his face grim. The twinkle that normally shone from his eyes was gone. Instead, they met hers seriously. Even Fawkes the phoenix seemed to be regarding her somberly. Giles sat in a heavy chair next to Dumbledore’s desk, his hands gripping the arms of his chair. Buffy tore her gaze away from his white knuckles to his face. Giles’ normally expressive face was cold and set. Buffy could read the anger in his expression. It reminded her of the day that he’d discovered that Angel had come back from hell.

Fervently, Buffy hoped that she hadn’t once again done something to earn Giles’ wrath. His eyes were green and sharp, but softened as they met hers. Buffy gave a soft sigh of relief. Whatever had made Giles angry hadn’t been done by her.

"Buffy." Professor Dumbledore’s voice brought Buffy’s attention back to him. He opened his mouth to continue, but he was interrupted.

"Miss Summers. It’s a pleasure to see you again." Buffy froze at the arrogant, yet familiar voice. She saw the rage flit across Giles’ face, quickly tamped down. Slowly, Buffy turned to face the men sitting in a row of chairs behind her. She took one look at the man who had spoken to her and shook her head.

"Oh, hell no!" Buffy declared angrily. She’d taken two steps toward the door when Giles’ stopped her. Rising from the chair with incredible swiftness, he’d caught her by the arm.

"Buffy." he said softly. "Please sit down." Buffy spun and stared at him in disbelief and anger. She started to snarl at him, but stopped when she saw his clenched jaw. It was clear that he was just as angry about their visitors as she was. Closing her eyes, Buffy took a deep breath in a bid for self-control. "I need you to stay." Giles whispered softly.

Buffy nodded, her eyes bright with angry tears. She didn’t want to be here. She certainly didn’t want to be in the same room as these people. But Buffy understood that if ever she needed to act like an adult, now was the time. Very deliberately, Buffy walked over to the chair Giles had vacated and sat down. Giles stood behind her, his hand resting on her shoulder. Dumbledore quickly magicked a third chair, bringing it to rest next to Buffy’s. Giles sat silently, lifting his chin defiantly as Buffy reached out to lace her fingers through his.

Buffy glared at the three men seated across from her. She only recognized one of them, but that was enough for her to dislike the others just on principle. She barely gave the other two men a glance before bringing her gaze back to the man sitting directly across from her.

He’d grown a goatee in the year since she’d last seen him, which, in her opinion, only made him look even more evil. He watched her with satisfaction, as if he had her right where he wanted her.

"Well, now that we’re all settled, we can begin." he said, smiling a smug smile. Buffy’s eyes narrowed in disgust.

"What exactly do you want, Quentin?"

Chapter 15 - The Council

Quentin Travers steepled his fingers as he studied the girl sitting across from him. She’d changed in the time since he’d last seen her, grown harder, somehow more mature. There was a world-weariness in her eyes that hadn’t been there before. The Slayer stared back at him defiantly, as she held her ex-Watcher’s hand tightly.

"Buffy, I believe you know Quentin Travers, head of the Watcher’s Council." Professor Dumbledore said dryly. Buffy nodded stiffly. Dumbledore gestured at a portly man sitting next to Travers. "This is Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic and next to him is Lucius Malfoy." Buffy had nodded politely at the Minister by way of a greeting. Once Professor Dumbledore had introduced the Minister, Buffy remembered him from the article she’d read in Sunnydale. However, at hearing the name of the third person, her grip on Giles’ hand tightened.

He could only be Draco Malfoy’s father. Buffy glared at the pale pinched face, his cold gray eyes glowering back at her with disgust. [So that’s what Draco will look like when he grows up.] Buffy thought, taking in the long white hair. [I’m not impressed.] Buffy stiffened her spine. [God, this is not going to be of the good.] Buffy realized.

Lucius Malfoy studied the Slayer. The sneer on his face told Buffy that he was as unimpressed with her as she was with him. Lucius’ gaze moved to the clasped hands of Buffy and Giles and then stared at Giles, with a sneer of contempt. Giles stared back, unflinchingly, his face stone.

"I think we’d best get on with this." Lucius suggested coldly. Quentin nodded in agreement.

"Yes indeed." Quentin shuffled some papers on his lap. "I’ve gotten several disturbing reports about the Slayer’s activities." Travers said finally after several moments of silence. Buffy glared at him.

"Then shouldn’t you be in Sunnydale lecturing Faith about her behavior?" she asked snidely. Quentin frowned at Buffy, annoyed by her flippant attitude. Buffy met his stare evenly. Inside, she was seething. She desperately wished she could pummel him. Giles squeezed her hand reassuringly. Buffy squeezed his hand back, careful not to hurt him with her Slayer strength in her anger.

"Unfortunately, Faith isn’t the one showing inappropriate behavior." Quentin said. Buffy feigned surprise.

"Really? Then I don’t know what you’re talking about, as you don’t have any other Slayers." she said, hatred coloring her every word. Buffy hadn’t forgotten the hell Travers had put her through, that he’d nearly gotten her mother killed or how he’d refused to help when Angel had been poisoned. Never mind the fact that he’d fired Giles as her Watcher. Travers gaze moved to Buffy and Giles’ joined hands.

"You can not quit the Council." Quentin informed Buffy haughtily. Buffy raised her eyebrows.

"I can and I did." Buffy informed him. "So I suggest that you go to California and bother Faith, as she’s the only Slayer you’ve got. I’m sure she’d love to see you." Travers bristled at the sarcasm in Buffy’s voice. He wasn’t used to being spoken to with anything less than respect and reverence.

"It seems that you have developed an inappropriate relationship with your former Watcher." Travers said, pointedly.

"Our relationship is none of the Council’s business." Giles said coldly. "Especially since neither of us works for the Council." he pointed out.

"On the contrary, every thing about the Slayer is our business." Travers countered.

"I quit the Council." Buffy repeated slowly, enunciating every word carefully. "Which word of that didn’t you get?" Standing, Buffy strode over to where Travers sat, leaning over him. "There’s not a single thing about my life that’s your business now."

"On the contrary, Miss Summers," Travers said, his words clipped. "Every thing about you is Council business."

"A dangerous weapon like the Slayer shouldn’t be allowed to go wherever it pleases." Lucius Malfoy’s voice was snide. Buffy swung around to glare at him.

"The Slayer is a person, not an object." Giles informed him coldly. "Buffy has the right to make choices and do whatever she feels is right."

"Such as sleeping with her Watcher?" Lucius sneered. Giles raised his eyebrow.

"I’m not her Watcher. I was fired from the Council." he replied evenly. There was no denial or guilt in Giles’ voice. Just a statement of fact. Smirking, Buffy returned to her chair. Travers cleared his throat.

"Be that as it may, it is still unacceptable." he said firmly. The Minister of Magic leaned forward.

"Mr. Travers has requested that the Slayer be removed from Hogwarts, as she poses a danger to the other students. That coupled with the complaints that Lucius has made on behalf of his son, assures me that Mr. Travers’ concerns are valid." Fudge said, somewhat nervously. His eyes moved constantly from Lucius to Travers. Both Buffy and Giles opened their mouths to protest, but never had a chance to speak.

"No." Dumbledore’s voice was quiet but firm. "Buffy will not leave Hogwarts unless she wishes too." He stared at Quentin until the Watcher began to squirm uneasily in his chair. Dumbledore’s gaze returned to Fudge. "Have there been any other complaints against Buffy?" he asked mildly. "Other than those lodged by Mr. Malfoy?"

Stuttering, Fudge didn’t answer right away, his face filling with color.

"Well, none as such." he said finally. Dumbledore smiled knowingly, an almost gleeful gleam in his eyes.

"And how many parents are delighted that the Slayer is currently at Hogwarts." he asked, pouncing on the flustered man. Buffy could tell by the way Fudge looked everywhere but at them that Dumbledore had found a chink in the armor of Lucius’ argument.

"Quite a few." Fudge blustered finally. "But that’s not the point." he said quickly. "One complaint is more than enough." Dumbledore nodded knowingly.

"Especially when it comes from someone as prestigious as Lucius Malfoy." he said. Buffy suppressed a snort of laughter. Professor Dumbledore had made the statement sound like an insult. Giles gave Buffy a warning glance.

"Mr. Malfoy is a valued member of wizarding society." Fudge began, interrupted by Malfoy shifting in his seat.

"What does it matter who filed the complaints?" Malfoy demanded. "This girl has harassed my son since even before her arrival." he pointed out. Buffy opened her mouth to speak, but this time it was Dumbledore who sent her the warning look. Reaching down into a drawer of his desk, Dumbledore pulled out a couple of folders and dropped them onto his desk. One was relatively thin, the other quite thick.

"Did you know that every student at Hogwarts has a file?" he asked the men conversationally. "It chronicles the student’s activities, " Dumbledore stressed the word ‘activities’ in a way that made it clear he meant ‘trouble’. "throughout the year." Dumbledore picked up the thin file and showed it to them. "This is Buffy’s file." Dumbledore set her file aside and picked up the thick one. "This is Draco’s."

"Yes, well, Draco has been here for five years." Lucius pointed out uncomfortably. Dumbledore smiled.

"It’s this year’s file."

There was a momentary silence as the men took this in. Buffy grinned happily, until Lucius spoke.

"It doesn’t change the fact that as the Slayer, this girl," Malfoy pointed accusingly at Buffy. "is a danger to the students here." Dumbledore turned his hard gaze toward Lucius Malfoy.

"Buffy only poses a danger to the dark forces that are at work in our world. One would be wise not to provoke her." Lucius bristled at the warning inherent in Dumbledore’s words.

Dumbledore stood and walked around his desk. He gave each of the men a hard look.

"As long as Buffy wishes, she and her friends will be welcome here. Anyone trying to change that will not be." Dumbledore’s blue eyes were sharp as diamonds as he stared at Quentin Travers. "Thank you for coming gentlemen. I’m sure you can find your own way out. If not, I’m sure Hagrid would be pleased to help you." Buffy grinned happily at the thought of Hagrid "escorting" Travers from the castle.

The three men stood stiffly, nodding at Dumbledore as they left. Malfoy and Fudge filed out first. Buffy could hear Malfoy haranguing Fudge outside the door. Travers paused at the doorway, giving Buffy and Giles a hard look.

"This isn’t over." he told them, before turning and walking out. Buffy waited impatiently until the door had closed behind them before turning to Giles.

"Did you know about this?" she demanded. Silently, Giles handed her a crumpled piece of parchment. Buffy smoothed it out to read it.

Buffy looked up from the letter in horror. Giles reached out and caressed her cheek.

"I won’t let you go." he said. Buffy knew the words were meant to comfort her, but they didn’t. She turned to look at Professor Dumbledore.

"They came to take me." she said. Fear began to creep into her voice. "They were going to force me to leave." Buffy looked back at Giles. "Just because we’ve become romantically involved?" she asked him. Giles shook his head.

"I doubt that’s the only reason." he said. "I would think that our relationship was the final straw."

"Buffy, you must be vigilant." Dumbledore advised. "You will be safe on the Hogwarts grounds." he assured her. "But I can’t guarantee your safety elsewhere." Dumbledore’s face was a mask of seriousness. Buffy nodded seriously as she stood.

"Head back to my quarters." Giles said softly. "I need to talk to Professor Dumbledore." Turning, Buffy saw the angry glint in his eyes.

"Ok." she said softly. She squeezed Giles’ hand and gave Dumbledore a quick smile before slipping out of the room.

Giles turned to Dumbledore, his anger barely restrained.

"I won’t let them take her." he said harshly. Bursting with angry energy, Giles began to pace the room. Dumbledore waved his wand at a shelf on the wall. A teapot hopped down from the shelf onto his desk. Another wave of the wand and a pitcher was pouring water into the pot. A tap on the pot brought the water inside to a quick boil.

"Sit down, Rupert." Dumbledore said quietly. Because it wasn’t an actual order, Giles sat. The two men were silent as Dumbledore fussed with the tea. After a few minutes, he handed Giles a steaming cup. Giles held the cup, but didn’t drink. Still silent, Dumbledore returned to the chair behind his desk. He studied Giles for a moment.

"You won’t do her any good like this." Dumbledore said over his teacup. Giles looked at him questioningly.

"Like what?" Giles asked in confusion.

"Angry. Enraged. Emotional." Dumbledore clarified. "Buffy needs you calm and detached about this." Dumbledore saw Giles struggling with his anger, to control and contain it. "Buffy makes you emotional, understandably so, considering your relationship. But it will hinder you here." Giles placed his untouched tea on the desk and surged out of his chair.

"I should have expected this." Giles said, berating himself that he hadn’t. "When they didn’t come after her after the Ascension, I thought her safe." Giles paused in the middle of the room, his gaze falling on the phoenix preening itself in the corner. "I thought bringing her to Hogwarts would make her safer." he admitted softly.

"She is safe here." Dumbledore promised softly. "But it will be take some time to thwart the Council’s efforts. Buffy will need to stay on the school grounds for a time." he pointed out. Giles nodded.

"She won’t be pleased." he muttered. Dumbledore leaned back in his chair, smiling.

"No, she won’t. Which is why I’m delighted that it’s your chore to tell her, not mine."

++++++++++

Buffy strode angrily down the corridors, heading for the teacher’s hallway. [They had no right!] she fumed, stomping her feet as she walked. She couldn’t believe the Council had shown up. [No,} Buffy thought, coming to a halt. [I can totally believe it.]

"Buffy!" Buffy turned as her name was called from down the corridor. Turning, she saw Harry hurrying toward her. Buffy took a deep calming breath as he drew close. "What happened? Are you ok?" Buffy smiled. His concern was sweet.

"Oh, it was a laugh a minute." she told him, shrugging her shoulders. "The Watcher’s Council showed up and announced it was going to drag me off by the hair."

Harry stared at Buffy for a moment, not sure if she was serious or not.

"They wanted to take you away?" he asked. Buffy nodded, walking once more. She was much too angry to stay still for very long. Harry kept pace, matching his stride to hers.

"Malfoy ratted me out." Buffy spat. She grumbled something none to flattering about the entire Malfoy lineage. Harry grinned.

"I’ve always thought that about them myself." he said, pushing his glasses higher on his nose. "Look, Buffy," he said, halting her by putting his hand on her arm. "there’s no way we’d let them take you away. No matter what Malfoy said." Harry shrugged and grinned sheepishly. "Well, mostly because of what Malfoy said." Buffy couldn’t help but grin back at Harry.

"Thanks."

"You’re our friend." he said, shrugging. "Before I came to Hogwarts, I didn’t have any friends." he confided. "Now that I have some, I’m not willing to let them go without a fight."

Buffy felt tears of gratitude prick behind her eyes.

"Thank you, Harry." Buffy repeated, her words heartfelt. "I can’t tell you how much that means to me." Harry simply nodded, having caught sight of Professor Giles’ figure at the end of the hallway.

"I’ll talk to you at dinner." he said to Buffy, giving a polite nod over her shoulder. Buffy nodded, surprised at his abrupt departure and confused by his nod. Turning, she found Giles striding down the hall toward her, and Harry’s actions became clear.

"You scared Harry off." she said accusingly as Giles stopped in front of her. To take the edge off her words, Buffy stepped forward, wrapping her arms around Giles’ waist and resting her cheek against his chest.

"He doesn’t know me like you lot do." he said, holding her close. "Probably for the best that he doesn’t know me like you do." Giles said dryly. He was rewarded with a muffled laugh against his sweater.

"Probably." she agreed. Giles pulled away and took Buffy by the hand.

"Come on." he encouraged. "We need to talk, and I’d prefer not to be in the corridor when you yell at me."

++++++++++

Buffy grumbled as she shifted in the overstuffed chair. The Gryffindor common room was empty except for her. Everyone, including Willow, Oz and Xander had gone to Hogsmeade for the day. Willow had offered to stay behind and keep Buffy company, but Buffy had urged her to go and have fun. There was no reason for anyone else to suffer from the specter of the Watchers Council.

Buffy had wanted to go, assuring Giles that she’d be safe with the gang. She had pointed out that it had been weeks since Travers had made his visit to Hogwarts, and there hadn’t been a peep from the Council since. Giles had fixed her with a stare that instantly stifled that argument.

That was usually the way their arguments about the Council went after the short, vicious one the day Travers had been at the school. The second Giles had told her that she had to remain on school grounds at all times, she’d launched into an angry tirade against Lucius and Draco Malfoy, Travers and the Council in general. Giles had let Buffy rant until she’d begun to run out of steam, then he’d taken her into his arms, pulled her close and whispered one word in her ear.

"Please."

Buffy studied the picture of a rat being turned into a teacup as she grumbled at the memory. [Just like Giles to play dirty.] she thought. He’d known that ordering her to stay on the grounds would only make her more determined to leave them. But she was helpless against a request.

Buffy harrumphed as she turned the page of her Transformation book. [I’m perfectly capable of taking care of myself.] she thought. Sighing, Buffy turned another page, not really seeing the print there. She was bored. No one was around, and even Giles had had a meeting with Professor Dumbledore, leaving her to find her own entertainment.

Frustrated, Buffy slammed the book shut. Tossing it to the side, Buffy got out of the chair and began prowling around the room, restless with energy. She was just about to head to her training room when a silver puff of smoke, that looked a lot like a hummingbird, shot into the room and hovered in front of her face. With a poof, the smoke arranged itself into a string of words.

Buffy, come quick! it read. We need your help! We’re trapped in the Shrieking Shack. Come quickly. Please. Willow.

Adrenaline surged through Buffy’s body after she read the smoky message. It dissipated with another poof, leaving no trace of ever having been there. Snatching up her heavy cloak and a stake, Buffy rushed from the room, pulling on the cloak as she ran through the castle.

Buffy was overwhelmed with a sense of panic at the thought that her friends were in trouble. It only took a few minutes for Buffy to navigate the empty halls. She burst out of the castle and kept running, following the path that had been tramped down through the snow.

It didn’t take Buffy long to reach the magical town. Buffy skidded to a halt, narrowly avoiding a collision with several Hufflepuffs. All around her, Hogwarts students were milling around, moving into and out of the stores. Frantically, Buffy looked around for Willow and her friends, but they were nowhere to be seen.

Harry and Ron emerged from Honeydukes, munching on huge blocks of chocolate.

"Hey, isn’t that Buffy over there?" Ron said around a mouthful of chocolate. Harry looked over to where Ron was pointing, surprised to see Buffy at the end of the street, apparently look for someone. "I thought she was confined to the grounds." Harry shrugged. In his experience, Buffy was least likely to do what she was supposed to.

"Buffy!" Ron called out, waving to get the Slayer’s attention. Buffy rushed over gratefully.

"Have you seen the others?" she asked in a rush. She grabbed Ron’s arm, causing him to wince as she squeezed it painfully.

"Bloody hell." he said through gritted teeth, trying to pull free.

"Oh, sorry." Buffy said, releasing her death grip. "Have you seen Willow?" Ron nodded silently, alarmed by the urgency in her voice. "She sent me this wispy messagey thing that they’re in trouble. I have to find them. They’re at the Shrieking Shack."

"The Shrieking Shack is over there." he said, gesturing in the direction Buffy had come from Hogwarts. Buffy whipped around to look.

"It’s on an off-road." Harry added. "It’s on the outskirts of town." Buffy nodded, remembering the path she’d passed as she’d run towards Hogsmeade. Taking two steps, Buffy spun back to the two boys.

"I need you to do something…" Buffy said urgently. "I need you to go back to the castle and get Giles." she said. "Tell him the gang’s in trouble." Harry and Ron only had time to nod before Buffy ran off in the direction of the Shrieking Shack.

"Come on." Ron said, tugging on Harry’s robes. "We better get Professor Giles." Ron moved quickly down the road towards Hogwarts. Frowning, Harry followed, unable to shake the feeling that something was wrong.

"Ron! Harry!" The boys skidded to a halt as Hermione called their names. Turning, they were stunned to see her coming toward them, Willow, Xander, Katie Bell on his arm, and Oz in tow. "We’ve been looking all over for you." Hermione said, slightly out of breath. Harry and Ron started at the other, who were anything but in trouble.

Willow and Katie had obviously been shopping, several bags in their arms. Xander and Oz were also similarly burdened. Willow grinned at the boys gaze.

"I’ve been shopping." she admitted, blushing.

"You’re not in trouble." Ron said suddenly, looking back and forth between them. Willow looked at him, puzzled.

"No." she said, looking from Ron to Harry in confusion. "Why would you think I was?" Ron turned to look at Harry as Harry turned to face Ron.

"Bloody hell." they said in unison, the blood draining from their faces.

"It’s a trap." Harry said. Ron nodded.

"It has to be." he agreed. As one, the two boys twisted and looked in the direction of the Shrieking Shack.

"What on earth are you two talking about?" Hermione inquired sharply.

"Buffy." Harry said simply. Willow straightened at the sound of her friend’s name.

"What about Buffy?" she demanded.

"She got a message that you lot were in trouble." Harry explained. "She’s at the Shrieking Shack."

+++++++++++

Buffy crept closer to the infamous Shrieking Shack. Harry had told her that the rumors of it being haunted were untrue, that in fact, it had been used to house a werewolf years ago. Idly, Buffy wondered if this was where Oz was taken every month.

Buffy moved quickly, but silently around the perimeter of the shack, looking for a way in. She was frustrated to find that all the windows were boarded up as was the single door. Carefully, Buffy began to move around a second time, test the boards looking for a loose one. Three windows and one broken nail later, Buffy managed to pull a board off. The resulting gap was wide enough for Buffy to squeeze her slight frame through.

Noiselessly, Buffy dropped to the floor, barely disturbing the dust. Prowling through the deserted room, Buffy began to look for any sign of her friends. Finding nothing, Buffy moved into the next room. Immediately, she knew she’d made a mistake.

"Ah hell." she muttered.

+++++++++++

Giles stood in the entranceway of the Gryffindor common room. He’d already been to up to the room she shared with Willow, his quarters and the training room. Buffy was nowhere to be found.

Buffy’s absence bothered Giles. It could be something as simple as she was off getting something to eat, or she was out on the grounds. Yet, the fact that he couldn’t find her still worried him.

Dumbledore had received information that the Council was planning something for the near future. None of Dumbledore’s sources had been able to narrow it down beyond that. However, the warning alone was enough to set Giles on edge and want to keep Buffy close.

Moving into the common room, Giles turned in a slow circle. Leaning over, he picked up a stray Transfiguration text. Opening it, Giles smiled. [Most definitely Buffy’s book.] he thought, staring at the doodles of ‘Buffy -n- Giles 4eva’ in the front. Giles closed the book and tossed it onto a chair. Giles froze suddenly, sensing outside magic in the room. Pulling his wand from his robes, Giles waved it in the air.

"Repeto." Giles was horrified as the smoky message rematerialized before eyes. "Damn it, damn it, damn it." he muttered, rushing from the room.

++++++++++

Harry and Ron had to waste precious time explaining to the others how they had met Buffy and that she had told them she’d received a message from Willow claiming to be in trouble.

"I didn’t send any message." Willow said defensively.

"Nobody thinks you did, Will." Xander said, stepping forward. He focused his attention on Harry. "You’re sure she went to the Shrieking Shack?" he asked. Harry nodded.

"She asked us to go get Professor Giles." Harry explained. Xander and Oz exchanged glances and without another word, unburdened themselves, dumping their bags in Katie’s arms. Taking off at a dead run, they tore off towards the castle. Willow watched them go for a moment before turning her attention back to Ron and Harry.

"Take me to the shack." she demanded, handing her packages to Katie as well.

"Right, I’ll stay here and hold the packages." Katie muttered under her breath as Ron and Harry led Willow away, Hermione trailing behind them. Sighing, Katie was about to plop herself down on a free bench, prepared for a long wait when she spotted Angelina Johnson across the busy path. Waving, Katie walked over to her. The two girls were chatting animatedly when a conversation to her side caught her attention.

"Father assured me that the Slayer won’t be a problem after today." a cold voice was saying. Gesturing for Angelina to be quiet, Katie turned toward the speaker. Draco Malfoy was walking by, the ever present Crabbe and Goyle following behind. "It was laughably simple. All I had to do was send her a message that her friends were in trouble." Draco cackled with laughter, and Crabbe and Goyle laughed in response. "I don’t imagine the Council takes kindly to a Slayer that doesn’t follow orders. I hope they torture her."

+++++++++++

Giles had just left the castle ground when he heard feet pounding up the path from Hogsmeade. Wand at the ready, he moved forward until the runners came into sight.

"Xander. Oz." he said in surprise. Xander stopped in front of him, bent over as he tried to catch is breath.

"Buffy… Shack… Danger." he managed to gasp out. Giles nodded.

"I know. It’s probably the Council. We have to hurry." Turning, Xander and Oz started back up the path, Giles close behind them.

+++++++++++

Willow surveyed the wooden shack, searching for an entrance.

"How did she get in?" Hermione asked. Harry came from around the side of the building.

"I found it." he said, "Buffy managed to pull a board off. It’s pretty small, but I think I can get through."

+++++++++++

Buffy was getting tired. No matter how many Watchers she knocked out or down, there seemed to be two more to take their place. Buffy wasn’t sure how much longer she could hold them off.

As soon as she’d been far enough in the abandoned room, the door had been slammed shut behind her and she’d known it was a trap. Watchers had come from all sides in the initial attack, attempting to overpower her. They’d soon learned that a Slayer was not easily overpowered.

[If only I could get to my wand.] Buffy thought wearily. The slim piece of wood was tucked safely in her robes. Unfortunately, Buffy couldn’t pause long enough in her battle to pull it out without being overwhelmed by attacking Watchers.

Grabbing a broken chair from the corner, Buffy caught a Watcher in the face, knocking him to the ground. She smiled in grim satisfaction. She was going to cause as much damage as possible before they captured her.

++++++++++++

Harry grunted as he climbed through the small opening. His small Seeker’s form had managed to get through about halfway, before it had gotten stuck.

"Push!" he hissed at Ron. Ron shoved at Harry’s backside with his shoulder.

"I’m pushing." Ron hissed back. Ron leaned back and gave one more mighty shove. Harry popped into the dusty shack, none the worse for wear, with the exception of some scratches. Ron’s face peeked up through the opening. "Are you ok?"

Harry stood, brushing himself off.

"I’m fine." he called back softly. "I don’t think Buffy is though." Harry hissed. The sounds of fighting were coming from a room to Harry’s left. Harry crept forward to the door. He could hear flesh meeting flesh and grunts of pain. Taking a step back, Harry raised his wand.

"Diffindo!" he shouted, pointing his wand at the door. Harry covered his face to protect it from the shards of wood that went flying through the air. Harry jumped to the side as a body was thrown through the now open doorway. The man landed at his feet, groaning.

+++++++++

Katie and Angelina were waiting for Xander and the others at the fork that led to the Shrieking Shack. Katie used her robe to wipe the sweat from Xander’s forehead as she turned towards Giles.

"It was Draco." she told him breathlessly. "Draco sent Buffy a message that the others were in trouble." Gathering his breath, Giles nodded. He would deal with Draco Malfoy later.

Dashing up the path, Giles found Ron, Hermione and Willow outside the shack.

"Where’s Harry?" Giles asked, looking around.

"Inside." Ron said.

"He was the only one small enough to fit through the opening Buffy made." Hermione added by way of explanation. She pointed to the side of the building, to the opening entirely too small for him to fit through.

"Damn it." Giles cursed heatedly.

++++++++++

The sounds of fighting were louder now, and Harry dashed though the door, ready to come to Buffy’s aid. He had to duck to avoid being knocked out with the remains of a table. [Or a chair. It could’ve been a chair.] he thought. Looking around quickly, it didn’t take Harry long to realize that Buffy was completely surrounded, with more ready to fight.

"Stupefy!" he shouted, pointing his wand at several men moving toward Buffy. They flew backwards, knocking into others. Harry began cursing the attackers as fast as he could speak.

Slowly, Buffy and Harry got the upper hand. Realizing that they were now on the losing end of the battle, the Watchers began scrambling away. Those that could walk grabbed those that couldn’t as they made their escape.

Soon, Buffy and Harry stood alone in the shack, gasping for breath. Buffy swiped at her sweaty hair with the back of her arm.

"Thanks Harry." she said, when she’d gotten her breath back. Harry nodded, pushing his glasses back up his sweaty nose.

"No problem, Buffy." he panted. Slowly, Buffy began limping towards the door. Harry reached out a hand to support her, which she took gratefully.

"I think I need to step up my training." Buffy muttered. She looked balefully at the small opening that she’d gotten in through. "There’s gotta be another way out." Harry guided her toward the boarded up door.

"Diffindo." Harry said, blowing out the door. Sunlight streamed in, followed immediately by their friends. Ron and Hermione rushed to Harry’s side.

"Are you all right?" Hermione asked in concern. Meanwhile, Ron was looking around the shack.

"Bloody hell, Harry. Did you do all this?" he asked, looking at the destruction that surrounded them.

"Buffy!" Willow’s hands were gentle as she checked for injuries. "Buffy, are you ok?"

"Wow! The Buffster, 1, Watcher’s Council, zip." Xander said. Oz looked around the shack.

"Where did they go?" he asked suddenly. "They didn’t come past us. Yet, they’re not here." Struck by this question, Xander looked around in confusion.

"Good question."

The world had begun to swim in front of Buffy’s eyes. Several Watchers had gotten in blows that would’ve taken out anyone who wasn’t a Slayer. Now that she wasn’t running on pure adrenalin, Buffy could feel every one of those blows. Pushing Willow’s hands away, Buffy stumbled towards Giles, who seemed to tower over her.

"Giles…" Buffy mumbled, just before she collapsed in Giles’ arms.

TBC…