The Beginning

The campus was deserted. Blissfully so. The summer session had ended and the
fall onslaught wouldn't begin for some time yet. Rupert Giles was grateful
for the respite. It would allow him time to organize his collection and
prepare for the arrival of his Slayer.

The Council approved moving company had assured him his books had been
delivered late last night. Regardless, he was anxious to see for himself.

It was barely seven in the morning as he made his way down the empty hall to
the Sunnydale High School library. He fumbled with his keys when he noticed
through the small porthole window that a light was on inside.

Tentatively, he pushed on the double door. It swung open easily, unlocked.
That didn't bode well. He gripped the stake he had in his jacket pocket and
prepared himself for whatever the Hellmouth had in store.

He saw his crates piled near the interior office door. The lid of one had
been pried open with a crowbar. A thief or Vampire.. or both. Wonderful.

He heard a sound coming from the stacks. With a stealth borne of years of
training, he maneuvered up the stairs silently. He stopped and listened
carefully for a hint of the intruder.

There it was again, a soft shuffling sound. Giles carefully rounded the end
of a bookshelf. He took a deep breath, steeled himself and leapt to confront
the vandal.

"Arghhhh!!!" They both screamed in unison.

He wasn't sure what to expect, but this surely wasn't it. A small redheaded
girl stood before him, her mouth agape, eyes popping and book flying.

Giles froze, his stake raised to strike. "Good Lord!" he cried.

"Wh… wh…" The poor girl was so frightened she couldn't speak. She swallowed
in hopes of keeping her heart from leaping out of her throat. Her terrified
expression went from the man's wild eyes to the big pointy stick he had aimed
at her chest.

Giles followed her gaze and lowered his arm. His eyes darted to the ground.
He'd nearly staked the poor child. He stumbled through his embarrassment and
found his voice. "Who.. who are you?"

"I'm…" She frowned, as if unable to remember her own name.

"I'm sorry," Giles said. "I thought you were… What are you doing here? How
did you get in?" he demanded. His anger covering his own pounding heart.

"I…" She eyed him suspiciously. "I could ask you the same thing."

He started to take umbrage, but shook his head and chuckled. The girl had
courage. She was frightened, and reasonably so, but had regained herself
quickly.

The sound of his laughter was smooth and comforting. She looked at his face
and found it was kind. She instantly relaxed, instinctively trusting him.

He nervously pocketed his stake and offered his hand. "I… I'm Mr. Giles, the
new librarian."

"Oh!" The girl's face brightened. Her eyes seemed to light up. He found it
utterly charming. "I'm Willow. Willow Rosenberg." She extended her tiny hand.
He took it in his and held it for a moment too long. She blushed and pulled
away.

He smiled tenderly. "Well, Willow. How did you get in? I was told that the
library was kept locked."

"Oh, it is!" she assured him. "I have a key." His eyebrows shot up in
surprise. This complicated matters to no end. "After the old, not that he was
old, but he was the librarian before you so in that way he was old and when
he disappeared, which was kind of strange, but then there are a lot of
strange things around here and so Principal Flutie asked me keep an eye on
things until the new librarian arrived and I guess that's you."

Giles barely suppressed a chuckle. He was sure she hadn't taken a breath.
"Thank you. I think I can handle things from here."

Her face fell and he instantly regretted his words. With one fell swoop he'd
managed to dampen that bright light. He knew he shouldn't, but he wanted to
see those eyes sparkle as they had. "I… what I mean to say is… Perhaps you
could show me the ropes?"

Like magic, her face transformed. He was rewarded with her beautiful smile
and those green eyes shown brightly again. He grinned in satisfaction.

"I'd love to. I mean, whatever I can do to help. I love libraries. I saw some
of the books you brought. I hope you don't mind. I was just starting to
shelve them when…"

He frowned, but quickly checked himself. There were things he definitely
didn't want this girl to see. And yet… She was delightful. Perhaps he could
explain away some of the more peculiar volumes and enjoy her company until
the Slayer arrived.

"You have some, uhm, interesting books," she finished tentatively.

"Yes, ah, well, I was curator at the British Museum before moving here." He
moved downs the stairs to check on his collection.

She bit her lip. "Wow. The British Museum. That is so cool."

He chuckled again. He hadn't laughed this much in ages. "I've never heard it
described quite that way. It was a fascinating place to work."

She bounded down the stairs. "I bet you have great stories."

"I doubt that you'd find them very interesting," he said ruefully.

"Oh, but I would. I love history, and artifacts and mummies and all that
stuff." She lowered her eyes shyly. "I'm kind of a knowledge junkie, hence my
sterling social life."

He found himself so moved by this lovely girl and her simple confession. He
related to her in so many ways and felt the unfamiliar urge to comfort and
soothe. He'd always managed to keep a distance from the people he worked
with. But there was something in this girl. An honesty, an innocence and
vulnerability that brought out long dormant feelings.

He gazed at her fondly. "I understand. I'm much better with books than with
people I'm afraid." Good lord, where had that come from? Not that it wasn't
true, but…

She reached out and touched his arm gently. "Some of my best friends are
books," she said sincerely.

Their eyes met in a deeper understanding than should have been allowed in
such a brief meeting. He blushed and she pulled her hand back.

"Can I help you organize your collection?" she asked hurriedly.

And there it was. He knew he should tell her to leave. Tell her to move away
from this town, this Hellmouth. But he didn't. He merely nodded and watched
her dive into her new task with unbridled enthusiasm. It was a scene he would
see replayed countless times and each time it would make him smile.

He watched her for a moment and wondered what he'd done. He couldn't help but
feel he had done something terribly selfish. He knew there was no way to
protect her from the horrors that filled the night. And perhaps, somehow, by
letting her, however peripherally, into his world, he'd introduced the Evil
to her.

He sighed, knowing there was no turning back. She was here now and even
through his regrets, he couldn't help but feel a strange sort of hope. She
was so alive. He knew from that moment on, he would dedicate his life to
making sure she stayed that way.

The End