The Undiscovered Country

Phoenixheart70 aka Carl/theblondiebear

Author; Phoenixheart79 aka Carl/theblondiebear
Rating; PG, but may get higher (Features m/m relationship)
Disclaimer; I do not own BtVS, that privilige goes to Joss Whedon and M.E. I guess I own Sebastian, but the rest I'm just borrowing. I promise to put them back in the toy box when I'm done!
Continuity; Starts ten days after the events of "Chosen"
Distribution; Please ask unless I post it somewhere where you archive it (like some of the yahoo groups I'm on), in which case I bow to that authority.
Feedback; Please! I write for me, but it's a boost to know what people think of my work.
Authors Note; This fic is the sequel to my last story, "A Childe Awakens". If you haven't read that, you should, as portions of this story just won't make sense.

Day 3

The following day, they gathered in the library after breakfast, having spent the previous evening going over Giles’ books once again on the off chance that there might have been some nugget of information that they had missed. But they had found nothing. They had retired to their rooms exhausted and demoralised by the days events. Now, refreshed, they were starting over.

"So, where do we go from here?" Buffy asked.

"Hey Buff, would you mind not using that line, it gives me flashbacks to our whole singing and dancing extravaganza." Xander quipped, a slight smile on his face.

Buffy returned his smile, "Sorry Xand. Where do we start then?" she asked, rephrasing her question to a small smile of gratitude from Xander. Then she looked to Willow, "Is there any chance of getting one of the other copies of this book?"

Willow shook her head, "Not a chance. One is in an unlisted private collection that, try as I might, I’ve been unable to track down and the other is in New Zealand. There’s no way we could barter for it and get it here in time to help us."

Distantly, the doorbell chimed. They faintly heard the door open and the indecipherable soft buzz of voices, followed by the sound of soft footfalls on the stairs. The large door to the library opened and Olivia stood there, silhouetted by the light pouring into the darker library from the hallway.

"Rupert, we have a guest. Says he’s a friend." She stepped to one side and a young man with spiked hair coloured a bright orange stepped into the room. Willow stopped what she was doing and stood up, stepping slightly towards the doorway, her face pale with shock.

"Hey guys." The young man said, his voice quiet and a hand moving in a half wave.

"Oz." Willow said, her voice soft, "What’s wrong? Why...." she trailed off, not wanting to sound harsh or rude.

"Am I here?" Willow nodded, "Mainly ‘cause it’s easier than visiting the man in the moon." Willow couldn’t help but smile, his humour was still as wacky as ever. "That and I heard Slayers were around."

"You heard Slayers were here?" Giles asked.

Oz nodded, "The preternatural underground has great communication skills. It’s highly under-rated."

At the doorway, Olivia cleared her throat, "Rupert, I’m going over to Susan’s for a few hours, okay? I’ll see you in a while."

Giles smiled warmly, "Of course, I’ll see you later. Take care."

"Always." Olivia replied, smiling warmly. As she turned to leave, she pulled the door shut behind her.

Bastian gently tapped Xanders elbow and leaned in close, whispering in his ear, "Who’s this guy?"

Xander returned the favour, speaking softly into Bastian’s ear, "Oz, Willow’s ex. He’s the werewolf that we talked about yesterday."

"Okay." Bastian said, returning his attention to the room.

Kennedy leaned in closer on Xander’s other side and hissed in his ear, "He’s her ex?" putting more than a little emphasis on ‘he’.

He sighed and nodded, whispering back, "I’ll give you the long story later, suffice to say they split up, Willow met Tara then she met you."

Turning back to the new arrival, he raised his voice and took a few steps forward, smiling warmly, "Oz!" he called out, his voice cheerful, "How’s things? Say, you haven’t been slashing open doors and terrorising widows in your wolf-state have you?"

"Hey Xander." Oz said, turning his attention to the young man, then raising an eyebrow questioningly, "A guy? New territory for you man."

"Huh?" Xander responded, puzzled. The young wolf tapped his nose, a small half smile on his lips and the usual twinkle in his eyes. "Ah. That scent thing is kinda disturbing you know."

Oz smiled, "I’m good thanks." he said, answering Xander’s initial question. "You get strangely used to it." he continued, addressing the scent comment.

"At the risk of sounding rude, why are you looking for a Slayer?" Giles asked, removing his glasses and standing from the oak desk where dozens of books were laid before him. Gently cleaning his glasses, he turned to look directly at Oz.

Oz stepped further into the room, looking around at the thousands of books lining the walls. "I hear you’re looking for the Barghest."

"Indeed. Do you know anything?" Giles responded, putting his glasses back on.

Oz shook his head, "I don’t, but Seldon might."

"Who’s Seldon?" Kennedy asked, walking over and standing beside Willow, wrapping an arm protectively around the red head’s waist. Oz cocked his head to one side before glancing to Willow.

"New girlfriend?"

Willow nodded slightly in acknowledgment, "Are you..." she paused for a moment, "...calm?"

He returned the nod, "Surprisingly cool." He paused for a moment, his face showing more than his words, how he had obviously spent months thinking, rethinking and thinking again about their situation. Willow read the fleeting look in an instant. She knew, she would always be able to do that, read his face. She doubted whether anyone else in this room could do that, understand what he told no one. "I’ve had a lot of time to think. You’re happy. I’m happy. It’s corny, but true."

Willow smiled and released a small sigh of relief. "Okay. That’s good. Anyway, like Kennedy asked, who’s Seldon?" She and Kennedy moved toward an armchair and the others followed their lead, settling down. Oz sat opposite Willow.

"Seldon is the head of the local Werewolf pack."

Giles leaned forward and interrupted, "I thought Miccal was the pack’s Alpha male?"

Oz nodded, "He was." He paused again, thinking, "I’d better give some back story first. After I left Sunnydale the second time." he offered a soft look to Willow, then continued, "I travelled back to the monks, to see if they could help. Told me I had to help myself. So I roamed again, meeting as many wise men, visionaries and other gifted people as I could. Eventually, the person who helped the most was a palm-reader at a carnival. She suggested I ask someone who had experienced it."

"So you started looking for more wolves?" Buffy asked.

Oz nodded, "Pretty much. I roamed across Europe, but the language gap was too big."

"You came to the United Kingdom looking for Werewolves?" Giles asked leaning forward, his interest piqued..

The young man nodded. "I finally found Miccal’s pack. They weren’t like any of the others I’d come across, who’d been like a whole gang of Verruca’s, doing pretty much what they wanted. Miccal’s group was different, they were more like a support group. They took me in and with their help I accepted the wolf."

"This is all very nice," Kennedy interrupted, her voice hot with impatience and, Willow noticed, the slightest hint of jealousy, "but what’s it got to do with the Barghest?" She stared hard at the young man, but backed down when Willow lay a hand on her arm and looked up at her, her soft eyes begging the young Slayer to stay calm.

Oz ignored her outburst and carried on, "In return, I taught them to control their wolves. The pack was grateful, it was a huge step forward." He looked around the room, "You have to understand guys, the pack was more about being there and helping each other, providing reasons why the members had to be away three nights a month. About helping each other to not kill humans."

"It sounds very noble. And your gift would have been a big step towards achieving their goal." Giles said, "I knew Miccal had been hoping for something, anything like that to help, but I haven’t spoken to him for a long time. What happened?"

"Seldon killed him." Oz said flatly, but the features of his face twitched with barely controlled anger. "Seldon’s a vicious man, but he kept it hidden until he was ready. Then he took the pack from Miccal. He’s not bothered about who gets hurt, he just wants to expand the pack and his power. He’s already turned four people deliberately in the last two weeks."

Buffy stepped forward, "You want me to stop him?"

Oz shook his head, "I created him, I taught him to control his wolf. I have to stop him." He looked up, "It’s a pride thing. But first he can help you. I heard about what happened with the Barghest. Seldon knows a lot about them, he’s the pack’s Jahgoth."

"Jahgoth?" Giles asked.

"Like a priest." Oz furnished. "The Wolves around here worship the Barghest, it’s means an awful lot to them. If anyone can help you, he can."

Buffy sighed, "Great. First we have a demon dog," she paused and glanced at Oz, "No offense."

He shook his head slightly, "None taken."

"Anyway, first a demon dog causing deaths, now a bunch of Werewolves who worship the thing and can control their wolf selves. Is there anything else that could go wrong?"

"Jar Jar could be real." Oz commented.

Xander glanced up from where he was sat, pressed up against Bastians’ side, fixing the young werewolf with a look of complete horror, "Don’t joke about that, it’s not even half funny."

"You’re right. Sorry."

"Okay, so I gotta see this head wolf guy." Kennedy said, idly stroking Willow’s hair, "Where is he?"

"He’ll probably be in the woods, Seldon has really embraced the wolf, he has a cabin there."

Kennedy stood up at this and started to head for the doorway. She stopped as Willow grabbed her arm and spun her around, concern on her face, "Where are you going?"

"To the woods." Kennedy answered, her face set in stone, "This guy has answers, I’m gonna get them."

Willow looked at her girlfriend in shock, "From a Werewolf, who can change his form at will? Kennedy, he’ll see you as a midday snack!"

"I’m a Slayer, Red!" her girlfriend proclaimed, "I’ll be fine."

"No, you won’t." Oz said softly. Kennedy turned to face him, her face going red with anger and she opened her mouth to protest his assessment of her abilities, but he continued. "Seldon is a powerful man and an even more powerful wolf. He’d shred you, even with your Slayer strength and speed."

"Fine." Buffy said, standing up. "We go together then." Bastian stood up, shrugging Xanders’ arm from his shoulder. He stepped forward, standing beside Buffy and nodding his agreement.

Willow took Kennedy’s other hand and got up from her chair, staring deep into her girlfriends eyes. "See, you’ve got backup. And I’m going with you, no arguing." Her eyes twinkled, "And this guy sounds like a good start for investigating."

"You have an idea?" Giles asked her, curious.

"Yeah." Willow said, nodding. "Oz said Seldon is a bit of an expert on the Barghest. And we all saw the state of Edwards’ house."

"You think that he may have had something to do with it?" Xander asked.

"He might have. While they talk to him, I’ll have a look around. Even if he wasn’t responsible for ransacking Edward’s home, there’s a good chance he’ll have some useful information."

"Are you sure he won’t just tell us what he knows?" Giles inquired.

Oz stepped forward again, shaking his head. "I doubt it, he plays everything close to the chest and to his advantage, he’ll only tell you everything if it suits his purpose. But asking him is the best start you’ve got."

"No way." Kennedy responded firmly, shaking her head. "No way are you wandering round his place on your own. What if he senses you’re there?"

Willow smiled reassuringly, pulling a hand from Kennedy’s and stroking her face, "I’ll be fine. Super witch, remember? Besides, he’ll never even realise I’m there."

"How?" Kennedy asked.

Smiling slightly Willow turned her head towards her ex, "Oz knows."

Kennedy looked puzzled, "He does?"

"Yup." Willow replied, nodding her head and smiling gently at the confusion on Kennedy’s face. Lovingly, she patted her partner’s hand. "Don’t worry about it baby, I’ll be perfectly safe because of you."

"Because of me?"

"Absolutely. So come on, lets get going." A murmur of consent rippled through the room and Buffy turned to Xander. She gestured him over to one side, placing a hand gently on his arm. As the others left the room, Willow pulled Kennedy into a corner and began whispering to her as Buffy addressed Xander.

"I want you to stay here with Dawn, okay? Keep her company."

He smiled back at her, "Sure Buffy. Just promise me one thing, be careful? Don’t make this guy mad. Oz doesn’t exaggerate, if he says the guy is dangerous, believe him."

"I will and I know." She answered, a flicker of emotion on her face showing just how touched she was by his concern. Silently, she turned and followed the others from the room as Xander led Dawn over to the computer.

Forty minutes later, they had left the Land Rover at the edge of the trees and were walking through the woods in silence, Oz leading them. The woods around them grew steadily thicker, thorns on the underbrush scratching at their legs. With a raised hand, Oz came to a halt and turned to address them, his voice low.

"He knows we’re here."

"How." Bastian asked, his voice equally low.

"Blood." Buffy answered softly, glancing at Giles and Willow. Although scratched by the thorns, Kennedy, Bastian and herself hadn’t bled, their Slayer healing working too fast. Softly, Giles swore and pulled the right leg of his trousers up, revealing his skin, covered in tiny scratches. He let the material fall back down and sighed.

"It’s not far, about seventy metres ahead." Oz spoke softly, pointing through the trees. Willow stepped away from Kennedy and smiled, leaning in and planting a soft kiss on the Slayer’s lips. As she broke the kiss, she grinned.

"See you soon." She turned and started off, heading into the trees to the left of the group. After a few metres she stopped and turned. She waved a hand. "Sorry Giles, the damage is probably done, but hopefully that will help." She turned away again and started moving swiftly. Not a single thorn or branch touched her. They parted like water, letting her through unharmed and returning to their original positions silently. Reaching down, Giles pulled up his trouser leg again. His skin was healed, not a scratch on it. Letting the material fall again, he took a few tentative steps forwards. The branches parted for him just as they had done for Willow.

"I do hope she isn’t over doing the magic." He said softly. He felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to see Buffy, looking at him with affection.

"She’ll be fine, Giles. She only uses magic when it’s needed. But if you’re that worried, speak to her when we get back."

"I think I will, I don’t want to see her go through that again." He looked at Buffy, concern for Willow filling his face. The Slayer squeezed his shoulder, a wisp of an affectionate smile flashing over her lips.

"None of us do, Giles. Maybe you should ask the Coven to come visit us."

"Yes. Yes, that’s an excellent idea, Buffy."

Just ahead of them, Oz turned and looked back. "Guys?"

Buffy looked towards him. "Lets go." They resumed their journey through the woods. Soon, the underbrush became less wild, more downtrodden. A clearing was becoming visible, a small house coming into view through the trees. They entered the clearing, a small stone house in the centre. Around them were various items, indicating that someone did live here. Buckets, a small well. A large pile of logs, cut short for firewood. Some garden tools. All in all, it was a small, self-sufficient home. Buffy cocked her head. She couldn’t hear anything. No wildlife at all. No birds, no scurrying animals. Nothing. She put a hand out to stop the others and was looking around when a voice came from the right, slightly behind her. Whirling to face it, she saw a large man, over six feet tall, emerging from the trees like they were a pair of curtains parting to reveal him. She must have passed within four feet of him, how had she not known he was there?

"Oz." His voice was soft, but seemed to hold violence within it, as if it alone could break bones. "Who are these interlopers you bring? New recruits?" The word recruits sounded almost dirty as he spoke. Buffy would have had no doubt, even if Oz hadn’t told her, that this man didn’t believe in recruiting, he believed in taking.

"Seldon." Oz replied in simple greeting, although there was no warmth or pleasure in his voice. It was a cold, stark greeting.

Stepping up beside Oz, Buffy stared into Seldons’ eyes and almost shivered. With most people, there was something in the eyes that said ‘human’. In his dark eyes, Buffy saw only animal. Oz was right, she thought, he’s really embraced the inner beast. Pulling herself from her thoughts, she glanced up at him.

"We’ve come to ask you a few questions."

He stared at her for a moment, then laughed. A low, soft laugh that seemed to roll over them all and held promises of violence, pain unimaginable. "You’ve come to ask me questions." He said. It wasn’t a question, Buffy knew. "What makes you think that I will answer them?"

"Human kindness?" Buffy offered. Fast as lightning, his hand shot out. Buffy sensed it more than saw it, he was so fast. She leaned back, his hand passing over her. As he stumbled, caught unaware by her speed, Buffy continued her backwards lean, her outstretched hands touching the ground and she flipped herself back, landing directly in front of the others, watching as Seldon recovered himself and looked at her, respect and realization dawning in his eyes.

"You’re a Slayer then, I wondered if I’d meet one."

Buffy smiled, "Congratulations."

Kennedy stepped up to Buffy’s left right flank, picking up were she had left off, "You’ve met."

Finally, Bastian stepped forward, flanking Buffy on her left and finishing the sentence, "Three."

Seldon watched them and smiled, turning his gaze on Bastian "Ah yes, the freak. I’ve heard about you. So, Slayers, what brings you into the woods today. It’s dangerous out here, I hear there’s a big bad wolf in these woods."

Buffy returned his smile, "I’ll bet. We need some information, about a..." she paused and cast a glance to Giles. He smiled warmly at her and stepped up beside the Slayers.

"A Barghest. One of our acquaintances saw one recently and we heard that you were something of an expert. We were hoping that you might be able to help us."

"Ah." Seldon took a breath before continuing, turning his gaze on Giles. "And you are?"

"Rupert Giles, Watcher."

Seldon nodded, taking in this information, "Well, Rupert Giles, Watcher to the Slayer, I’m sorry but I don’t think I have any information that will prove pertinent. Once someone has seen the Barghest, there is no hope. They will die soon. It would be best if they put their effects in order." Silently, he started around them, heading towards the cabin. In six strides he had reached the door and opened it.

Kennedy stepped away from the others. "That’s it? No hope? Some expert you turned out to be, we knew that from books already."

Seldon stopped and turned in his tracks, taking two strides towards her. His eyes narrowed and his voice low, menacing, he addressed her. "You presume much, Slayer. I am indeed an expert on the Barghest, but on this it is simple. There is no cure." He stopped and looked into Kennedy’s eyes, seeing the flicker of pain there. He smiled, a thin dangerous smile. "Ah, so you’re the unfortunate soul who saw the Barghest?" He took a few, small, steps towards her, still smiling. "I lied. There is one cure, broadly speaking." He circled her and Kennedy backed up until she bumped into the house, leaning a hand on the frame of the open door. She could feel a gentle breeze blowing on her skin. The hairs on her arm stood up as it flowed over her and into the house.

"Broadly speaking?" Bastian asked, moving slowly towards Seldon. "How broad?"

"It is simple, the curse of the Barghest affects humans. If you are not human, the curse will not affect you." He spoke slowly, carefully and looked at Oz.

Giles rubbed his forehead, "Of course."

"What?" Buffy looked to Giles. "What does he mean, not human." She paused and looked at Oz. "Oh."

"Yes, Slayer." Seldon spoke again, his voice still low and slow. He turned back to Kennedy. "You have two choices Slayer, if you wish to survive. Become a vampire."

"Or become a Werewolf." Kennedy finished, to which the towering man before them smiled in acknowledgment.

"One would wonder," Giles said, drawing Seldon’s attention, "Why you did not reveal this information sooner."

"It is quite simple, Watcher. I seek to expand my pack and it’s power, only the very best will do. It is of no concern to me if the local populace or tourists are stupid enough to venture out onto the Barghest’s hunting grounds. However, a Werewolf with the powers of a Slayer would be a tremendous advantage to my pack. That is why I told you."

Kennedy strode away from the doorway, brushing past Seldon and heading into the trees. "Screw that, I’m not going furry three nights a month."

Behind her, Seldon laughed. "You’ll reconsider Slayer, as the deadline draws near, you’ll reconsider." With that, the mountain of a man turned, entering his home and shutting the door behind him. The small party began retracing their path, hurrying to catch up with Kennedy.

"Well, that was productive." Buffy spoke after they had moved in silence for some minutes, her voice thick with sarcasm. They were approaching the edge of the trees and the Land Rover was coming into sight. She jumped slightly as a soft voice came from behind her. Twice in one day she thought, maybe she was losing her touch?

"Actually, it was." She turned as Willow slipped from the trees a few metres away, smiling. She was about to continue when Oz raised a hand to stop her.

"Let’s go, Seldon’s coming back, I can smell him."

No one questioned Oz, swiftly entering the Land Rover and driving off. As they pulled away, Buffy twisted herself around in the front seat so she could see Willow, who sat with Kennedy on one of the bench seats again.

"What did you find out Will? Seldon told us Kennedy’s only chance was to not be human anymore, you know, become a Werewolf or Vampire."

"He lied." Willow said simply.

"Now, why doesn’t that surprise me." Bastian commented, looking around the back of the Land Rover. Idly, he pulled a relatively large case from under the bench seat he was sat on and opened the lid. "Wow Giles, nice arsenal you keep in here."

"What?" Giles glanced into the mirror and looked at Bastian, "Oh yes, I keep it reasonably well stocked, just in case. Anyway, Willow, what did your legally questionable investigation uncover."

Willow had to smile. Despite his more casual demeanor and approach, some elements of the Giles she had known in high school remained. "Well, he had the book we wanted, but I thought it best to leave it where it was. I figure he doesn’t get that many visitors and if the book just up and vanished, he’d put two and two together and get..."

"Us?" Kennedy finished. Willow smiled and squeezed the Slayer’s hand.

"Yep. So," She rummaged in a jacket pocket and pulled out some crumpled sheets of paper and handing them to Buffy in the front seat, "I took those. I’ve only read a bit of it, ‘cause you know, not much time. The short version is that there is another cure." She paused and looked at Kennedy as the Land Rover lurched along a country lane. "But you’re not gonna like it."

Kennedy’s brow furrowed in a frown. "What do you mean, I won’t like it."

"Well, I’m not sure of all the specifics yet, we’ll have to read those pages in more detail before we know for sure. But it looks like you have to hunt and kill the Barghest before the sixth night."

"Is that all?" Kennedy asked, "We’ll contact Faith and have her ship the Scythe over from Chicago, I’ll make mincemeat of that over grown puppy." She smiled reassuringly at Willow. Her bravado faltered as she saw the look of concern on Willow’s face. "What is it?"

"You can’t use a weapon. You have to kill it barehanded." She answered softly.

From the front they heard Giles voice, very soft. "Good lord."

Kennedy stared at her for a moment. "Kill something that big without a weapon at all? No rocks, clubs, nothing?"

Willow shook her head and was about to continue when Bastian spoke. "Willow, just one question. How did you get all this?"

She had to smile. "Scent." She answered simply.

"Scent?"

Willow nodded, "Oz, how do Kennedy and I smell?"

In front, Oz turned to look at them. "You have each other’s scents all over each other. Sat here? I can tell you apart, but if you entered separate rooms, then left and I was asked to tell which one of you had been in which room, it’d be almost impossible, the scents on you are that strong."

Kennedy picked the conversation up, "That’s why I stood in his doorway, the wind blew my scent into his house." She smiled. "That was Willow’s idea, it should make it very hard for him to tell if anyone was in there or not."

"Oh." Bastian responded, clearly bewildered. "That’s, um, clever."

"Quite." Giles added.

"Oh." Buffy said softly, the pages that Willow had taken in her hands. "Kennedy, you really aren’t going to like this."

"What is it?" Kennedy asked.

Buffy turned to look back at them, "Willow was only partially right. You have to hunt and kill the thing bare handed, then you have to eat it’s heart." She pulled a face as she continued, "Raw."

The younger Slayers’ face paled, "Eat it’s heart? Raw?" She repeated softly, "God, this gets worse by the minute." They looked up as they heard gravel pinging against the Rover, Giles parked and they got out, his house seeming to loom in the twilight, shadows playing across it’s surface and making it appear dark and foreboding.

Bastian looked up, "Wow, the place definitely looks better in daylight, Giles." They passed through the hall and started up the stairs, heading towards the library. Buffy opened the door and was greeted by laughter. Everyone stopped as Buffy stood in the doorway, staring. After what seemed like an eternity, her face broke into a massive grin and she doubled up, laughing. As she backed away, still laughing, the others pressed forwards, trying to catch a glimpse of what had caused such a reaction.

Willow put a hand to her mouth and stifled a laugh. The central table had been moved to one side, leaving a large clear space in the centre of the library. A twister mat lay crumpled to one side, discarded. In the centre of the room, Xander and Dawn sat facing each other, cards in hand. Dawn had a large pile of chips at her side. Xander had no chips. He also had very little clothes on. His shirt, pants, shoes and socks all lay in a heap to one side.

Dawn looked up and grinned. "Xander was showing me how to lose at Twister and then Poker. He ran out of chips."

Slowly, almost cautiously, the others entered the library as Xander scrambled to get dressed. Bastian leant against the doorframe and laughed softly. Oz walked past him and raised an eyebrow quizzically at Xander, then shook his head softly in amusement.

"Don’t bother making yourself neat, those are coming off again soon." He grinned and Buffy shook her head.

"Thanks Bastian, I really wanted Dawn to get those images in her head."

Dawn looked up from where she was sat cross-legged on the floor, grinning, "It’s okay Buffy, I’m not stupid. I’ll be eighteen soon."

"Yes, which means you aren’t eighteen yet and don’t need to be hearing that stuff." She shot a mock glare at Bastian who raised his hands plaintively.

"Sorry, sorry." He smiled and stepped into the room, closing the door behind him. He moved over to where Xander had sat in a chair. Smiling, Xander shuffled over and Bastian squeezed in next to him. Idly, he started rubbing the back of Xander’s neck as Giles read the pages for himself, then, having confirmed what Buffy had said earlier, he gave Xander and Dawn a brief synopsis.

"Oh, that’s just gross." Dawn interrupted, going a little green, as he reached the part about Kennedy needing to eat the Barghest’s heart raw. "Why don’t we ever meet a creature that just needs chocolate to banish it?"

Next to her, Buffy tried and failed to stifle a large yawn. Looking round sheepishly, she shrugged. "Sorry guys. I think that’s a good hint though, how about go to bed and work out how Kennedy’s going to best the creature in the morning?"

Giles smiled gently, "That sounds like an excellent plan, Buffy." He got up from his seat at the main table and, wandering over to a shelf, he pulled a book back. A small panel to his left slid up, revealing a safe. Quickly, he locked the pages away, then turned back to the assembled group. "Well then, I’m going to retire. See you all in the morning." He left the room to a chorus of "night Giles" and "see you in the morning".

Standing, Buffy stretched and yawned again. She smiled. "Yeah, what he said." With that, she too slipped from the room, followed by Dawn, leaving the two couples and Oz alone. Slowly, he glanced from one couple to the other, then stood.

"I’ll see you guys in the morning." He said warmly. Before anyone could say anything, he was gone, swift and silent. Momentarily, they heard the front door open and close.

Kennedy climbed from the armchair where she had settled with Willow, pulling the young witch to her feet. "Come on, if I’m eating raw dog tomorrow I’m gonna have some real fun first." Willow laughed and let herself be pulled from the room.

Xander and Bastian watched them leave. "We should go to bed as well." Xander said, his voice husky.

"Why? We could use the table." Bastian answered, grinning.

Xander slapped his arm, smiling. "Don’t be gross." He pushed himself up from the chair. "Tell you what, you catch me without Slayer strength or speed and you can do what you want."

"Anything?" Bastian’s eyes widened slightly.

"Yep." Xander nodded, before racing from the library in the direction of their room.

Back to Chapter Five