Part Twenty-Six "Right, right," Giles remarked absently, heading for the bookshelves. "Something about the demon?" Xander asked, following him. "The local villagers near the volcano site made reference to the legend of Olvokai. Might be a bastardization of Olvikan," Giles stated as he picked up a particular volume from one of the bookshelves. "Who's Olvikan?" "I know it's a demon, a very old one. Might have a picture..." Giles told him, still unsure. "Boy, it's a good thing no one ever wanted to check any of these books out, huh?" Xander joked. "Yes, very convenient." Giles began flipping through the pages. "Come on Olvikan. Hey!" Xander noticed something strange about the page they were looking at when Giles stopped turning them. Xander slowly put his hand on the corner and opened up the page...twice. It was a three page drawing of the demon in question... "We're going to need a bigger boat..." Xander gulped. *~*~* Giles exited the inner office and sat down at the table, rubbing his stiff shoulder as Xander entered the library holding a foam dup. "Any word from Buffy?" "Not yet," Giles sighed. Xander sat the cup on the table in front of the former Watcher. "Here is your cup of coffee. Brewed from the finest Colombian lighter fluid." Xander sat down opposite Giles. "Thank you." He took a loud sip. "Horrible," he grimaced before taking yet another sip. Xander was confused. "Aren't you supposed to be drinking tea anyway?" "Tea is soothing. I wish to be tense," Giles told him. "Okay, but you are destroying a perfectly good cultural stereotype here," the boy grinned, despite the dire situation they found themselves in. "Look through the, ah, Kepler volumes," Giles directed Xander, who picked up the book. "Any reference to the demon Olvikan..." Xander takes a peek. "Powers, weaknesses, hat size, anything. There's got to be something." "Still batting zero?" Giles looked at him. "But I mean, ah in cricket?" Cordelia thundered into the library. Xander looked up from his research. "Cordy! What's up?" "I demand an explanation," Cordelia nearly yelled. "For what?" "Wesley." "Uh - inbreeding?" Xander stated seriously. "So very funny. Any minute I am sure to laugh. I just got off the phone with him. He could hardly speak he was so upset. He said there was something about a fight? And he's leaving the country!" "Should I assay remorse?" Giles raised an eyebrow. "Just tell me what's going on..." Cordelia sighed. "Buffy has quit the council. She'll not be working with Wesley from now on," Giles explained. "But he's her Watcher..." Cordelia frowned. "Buffy no longer needs a Watcher." "Well, does he have to leave the country? I mean, you got fired, and you still hang around like a big loser. Why can't he?" she whined. "Cordelia. We are trying to stop a massacre here. Want to give us a hand?" Xander interrupted. Cordelia looked at him for a second, before taking off her jacket and joining them. "Sure. This is just such a Buffy thing to do," she sighed as she sat down. "She is always thinking of herself..." *~*~* Buffy walked through Faith's apartment her arms crossed in front of her. Cardboard boxes were packed around the room. Buffy watches as a cat jumps up on Faith's bed. "Who's going to look after him?" she asked. "It's a she. And aren't these things supposed to take care of themselves?" Faith stepped closer to the bed...and Buffy. "A higher power guiding us?" the sleeping Slayer asked. "I'm pretty sure that's not what I meant." "There's something I'm supposed to be doing," Buffy frowned in concentration. Buffy grimaced as the thought escaped her. She saw the cat on the bed turn for a second into the image of...Faith...laying in a coffin as the other Faith looked out of the broken window. "They are never going to fix this, are they?" Faith murmured. "What about you?" Faith shrugged. She considered Buffy for a second. "You want to know the deal? Human weakness... never goes away. Not even his." "Is this your mind or mine?" Buffy questioned with a small smile. "Beats me." the dead Slayer shrugged with a laugh. She approached Buffy slowly. "Getting towards that time...You ready?" she asked as she placed a hand on Buffy's cheek. Buffy sat up in bed... *~*~* Snyder stood at the podium, where he would announce the Mayor. He looked over the empty scene in front of him. Everything was set. The seats were out, the banner was up. All that was needed now was for the Mayor and the other guests to show up. Principal Snyder tapped a diploma against his hand. And the students...he mentally sneered in disgust. Part Twenty-Seven Not far away in the library, the gang was listening to Buffy, who had just finished relaying her plan to destroy the Mayor. Willow and Oz sat on the stairs, while the other, minus Cordelia, who was standing, were seated around the table. "So, am I crazy?" Buffy asked. "Well, 'crazy' is such a strong word," Willow hedged. "Let's not rule it out, though," Giles murmured. "You don't think it can be done?" "I didn't say that. I might, but not yet," Giles informed her. "I personally don't think it's impossible to come up with a crazier plan..." Cordelia let her opinion be known. "We attack the Mayor with humus," Oz stated. Everyone looked at him. "I stand corrected," Cordelia raised her eyebrows at the mental image. "Just trying to keep things in perspective," Oz explained in his usual aloof manner. Cordelia replied sarcastically, "Thank you." She turned to the rest of the group. "My point however is, crazy or not, it's pretty much the only plan. Besides, it's Buffy's, and she's slay gal, you know, Little Miss Likes-To-Fight. So.." "I think there was a 'yea' vote buried in there somewhere," Xander interpreted. "Well, I'm going to need every single one of you on board. Especially you, Xander, and of course, Angel. You're sort of the key figures here," Buffy smiled as Xander nearly hyperventilated. "Key? Me?" He took a deep breath as Angelus rolled his eyes. "Okay, pride, humility...and here's the mind numbing fear...what do I have to do?" "Do you remember any of your military training from when you became soldier guy?" she asked. "Oooh, rocket launcher?" he pointed in answer. "Rocket launcher not going to get it done. I mean, it took a volcano to kill one of these things last time," she replied sadly. Giles stood from his seat and approached her. "Um, Buffy, all of this is rather depended on your being able to control the Mayor." "Faith told me to play on his human weakness..." "Faith told you? Was that before or after she died?" "After." "Oh." Willow looked confused, then turned to her boyfriend in support. "His weakness..." Giles remarked thoughtfully. "Right." "Which is?" her former Watcher asked to be enlightened. "You know I do all this planing. I'm in charge here, even though I am really not at my best..." she complained in defense, referring to her distress at the Mayor trying to kill her boyfriend. "Well, let's-let's...ah, let's think," Giles said. "Well, Angel, you hung with him the most. Is there something that he's afraid of?" "Well, he's not crazy about germs..." the vampire informed them. He really couldn't think of anything else. "Of course, that's it. We attack him with germs!" Cordelia enthused. "Great! We'll corner him and then you can sneeze on him..." Buffy told her. Cordelia waved her hands in excitement. "No! No, we'll get a box with the Ebola virus and...and...Or it doesn't even have to be real, we can just get a box that says Ebola on it and umm...chase him...with the box..." she finished lamely. "I'm starting to lean towards the humus offensive..." Xander glanced at his ex-girlfriend strangely. "He'll never see it coming," Oz commented. "Faith..." Buffy murmured as she thought it all through. "Faith?" Angelus frowned. Yeah, he could picture that. "Can you work that?" Buffy nodded confidently. "You haven't an enormous amount of time..." Wesley entered the room, addressing the gang confidently. "Hey it's Mr. States-the-Obvious!" Xander replied sarcastically. "The council is not welcome here. I have no time for orders. If I need someone to scream like a woman I'll give you a call," Buffy stated without turning around to look at him. Wesley moved around so that he was in her line of sight. "I'm not here for the Council. Just tell me how I can help." Buffy considered his offer silently. "That is so classy! Isn't he just so classy?" Cordelia grinned as she turned to each of the people she had once considered friends. "It's a start," Buffy nodded, still wary. "So there is something I can do besides scream like a woman." "There's plenty. There is chores for everyone." Buffy rose from her chair. "Okay, this is.." *~*~* In City Hall, the Mayor was addressing the vampires under his control. "...how it's going to lay out. The transformation should begin at exactly 3:28. I'll just be finishing my speech...you know, it's too bad you fellows have to miss that, because I think it speaks to everyone of us. I mean, heck, I've been working on it for a hundred years. It better be good," he chuckled at his own words, then sobered before continuing. "They'll try to run, of course, and this is when I'll need you boys in flanking position." "But Sir, the sun!" one vampire complained. "Not a problem." *~*~* "Darkness will follow and day becomes night..." Wesley read from the text. "An eclipse," Buffy concluded. "Standard procedure for an ascension?" Wesley raised an eyebrow. Angelus spoke up. "That puts the vampires of Sunnydale back into the game." "Yea, it does." Buffy was about to continue when Cordelia broke in. "And you..." she addressed Angel. Angelus looked at her strangely. "I'm already in the game." He flashed her the ring. "We'll tell you later," Buffy told Cordelia when the brunette just stood there, confused. The Slayer turned to Angelus and Xander. "You and Xander are going to have to work together now. Can you guys handle that?" "But I'm still key-guy, right?" Xander asked. "You both are, remember???" Buffy nodded her ascent. Both males scowled with petulance. Buffy threw up her hands. "Oh, that's good! That's going to look great for us. You guys are like little old ladies!" *~*~* Back at City Hall, the Mayor was showing the vampires their route. "You come up through the sewers here. The important thing is containment. I'll need to feed. It's crucial in the first few minutes to sustain the change. What does that mean? No snacking." He waggled his finger at them, as if scolding a small child. "I see blood on your lips, it's a visit to the wood shed for you boys. Kill. Don't feed." *~*~* "So, how are we coming on volcano detail?" Buffy stopped in at Willow and Oz's research station at the table in the library. "I think we can work it out," Oz told the Slayer with confidence. "Fun with chemistry!" Willow grinned. "Xander said he should be able to get the materials," Buffy told them. "It's still only plan B, but at least we have a plan B. The couple nodded. "Who's going to stoke it up?" Oz questioned. "You feel up to it?" Buffy turned to an approaching Giles. The former Watcher removed his glasses with a sigh. "Ah, I suppose it should be I. It's strangely fitting in a grotesque fashion." Buffy clapped the Englishman on the back. "Don't worry, Giles, it's still only a backup plan." Giles sighed again. "That's oddly comforting." Buffy smiled. "Okay guys, start reaching out. Giles, weapons, weapons, weapons..." The group nodded and went about their duties... *~*~* "Remember...fast and brutal. It's going to be a whole new world come nightfall, don't want to weaken now," the Mayor instructed. He added one last thing as the group left. "And boys? Let's watch the swearing." Part Twenty-Eight Harmony was busy chatting with acquaintances when that loser, Xander Harris, took her by the arm and actually spoke to her as if she were his friend! "Harmony, listen, I need to talk to you for a second." She stared at him in disbelief. "You mean in front of other people?" She watched in horror as she felt him tug on her arm and lead her out into the hall. *~*~* Percy looked down at the attire he had been assigned. Ugh! "Are they serious? I'm going to look stupid in this!" "Percy!" He turned at the sound of Willow Rosenberg calling out to him. Finally, a level-headed female... "Do I look stupid in this? Be honest." He watched as her eyes flicker to the graduation uniform, then back up to his face. "You look great. You got a sec?" *~*~* Cordelia and Wesley were busy packing books into boxes back in the library. When they each thought the other wasn't looking, they would cast eyes upon the other. Finally, Wesley mustered up enough courage to straighten and address the brunette. "Cordelia." "Yes." "You know that when this is over..." the Watcher began. "Yes..." she encouraged. "Umm, well, should we prevail, I'll be going back to England." "I know," Cordelia acknowledged as she turned back to resume the book packing. He continued awkwardly. "With Buffy no longer working for the council, there really is no place for me here." "I guess not." Cordelia turned and faced him, slowly closing in on him, stepping around the boxes. "No reason to stay." He also moved forward, just as slowly. "No." The couple are inches apart... "No. No cause to hope that I might be needed?" He removed his glasses. "Needed?" Cordelia glanced up at him. "Or wanted..." Wesley murmured. "Wanted..." she repeated. The couple attempt a passionate kiss, failed miserably as their noses get in the way. They pull back for a second, then tried again, this time, Cordy attempted to pull the Watcher closer, still no luck. Less than a minute and several unsuccessful encounters later, they break apart, Cordelia wiping her mouth. Cordelia took a deep breath, then told him, "Good look in England." "Yes, umm, I'll drop you a line some time," Wesley told her as h e put his glasses back on. "That'll be neat," she smiled less than politely. "Yes, hmm..." Wesley also wipes his mouth as they go back to packing. *~*~* Oz and Willow handed out the bags from the van to Larry and Jonathan, who stacked them into a shopping trolley, keeping a lookout for anything suspicious at the same time. They didn't take into account that they were the ones acting suspiciously... "Okay, put these with the others. Don't touch anything," Oz instructed. "Uh, wha-what do we do then?" Jonathan asked nervously. "Nothing." Willow smiled gently. "Just relax. Have a good time." "O-Okay." "Okay, it's clear. Lets move," Larry told Jonathan. Larry pushed the trolley forward as Jonathan shut the van door. "I guess that's it. Won't be long now," Willow murmured to Oz, both of whom were still sitting in the van. "You nervous?" "Only in a terrified way," Willow gulped. "We'll make it through this." "Are you sure?" "I sound pretty sure, don't I?" he acknowledged. "Yeah," Willow grinned. "Then I must be sure." "Is that just a comforting way of not answering the question?" his girlfriend frowned. Oz lent forward and gently kissed her. Willow pulled back with a small smile on her face. "How long till graduation?" "A little while..." She smiled... *~*~* Buffy entered the inner office of the library where Angelus stood, sorting through some weapons. "This isn't going to be enough," Buffy frowned as she took a quick inventory of the pile. "Giles is on it. How are you?" he murmured huskily, although, concern was in his voice. Buffy grimaced. "I'm a little unsure about this whole thing. I don't want them to find out what's really going on...but another part of me is thrilled with the prospect of finally getting the Hell off the Hellmouth...no pun intended..." Angelus held out his arms. Buffy eagerly stepped in. She moved her hands to the buttons of his top. Angelus chuckled. "Isn't Giles out there?" She shook her head. "He said he'd be back in about half an hour..." The vampire growled. "Just enough time..." he groaned as the couple fell to their knees, undoing their pants... Buffy's hands moved to the button holding her lover's slacks together, quickly unfastening it and shoving the material out of her way... Angelus grabbed the waistband of Buffy's spandex hipsters and yanked them down her firm thighs, glad to see that his Slayer was wearing nothing underneath... Buffy moaned as she felt Angelus' cock spring free of it's confinement. She held him in her hands, stroking his velvety hardness until Angelus had gotten her hipsters out of the way enough for her to wrap her legs around his waist. The couple groaned in pleasure as Angelus plunged into her waiting heat, her walls slick with the anticipation of his homecoming, for that was what she was to him...home. Buffy met her lover's hard, almost frantic thrusts, straining for release, the knowledge that they could be caught, lingering in the very edges of her mind, serving only to heighten their pleasure... Angelus came with roar as Buffy's inner muscles clamped around his cock as she climaxed... The couple lay still for a time, as the reality of it seeped into their brains. They looked to the door, listening for voices. Hearing none, they glanced back to each other and began to laugh... Continue 