William sat nervously, shifting as the unyielding wood began to numb his backside. He nibbled at his bottom lip, watching as his father paced silently in front of him. Kitchen, turn, pace, living room, turn, pace, pause and glower, pace. Back and forth.

Finally, he couldn't stand it any more. He sat up straight and tried to look as determined as possible. "Father, I understand that you're upset, but I couldn't very well leave them to fend for themselves! I think that--"

Rupert held up a hand, interrupting William's impromptu speech. Very quietly, he said, "I am not upset that you felt the need to help your friends. I am not even *too* terribly upset over the fact that the four of you decided to-to arm yourselves and venture out even when you knew what could very well happen. What I *am* upset about is that you felt the need to lie to me!"

"But I--"

"William Alastair Giles, you will sit there, and you will listen to me, is that understood?"

Eyes wide, William nodded.

"I will tell you right now that there are few things you could do that I would consider to be worse than lying to me. Now," he pulled a chair over and sat next to William. "I understand that you must have thought it would be easier not to tell me the truth. Certainly, you must have thought I wouldn't believe you anyway. But...you didn't even try, William." Rupert sighed and combed his fingers through his hair.

"With all honesty, I must admit that I would have found the truth difficult to swallow. I'm just disappointed that you didn't give me a chance." He faced his son seriously. "What the four of you did was dangerous, and poorly thought out. Someone could have been seriously hurt. *You* could have been hurt." Rupert removed his glasses, setting them carefully on the table. Head bowed, he rubbed his eyes. "I couldn�t stand it if you were hurt, William."

William swallowed. Taking a deep breath, he slid out of his chair and knelt next to his father. "I'm all right, Da. Willow's terribly smart, and she and I found out as much as we could before we went out. We weren't defenseless. And now that we know what goes on around here at night, we'll be able to stay even safer."

"That's what you thought last night, too, wasn't it?" Rupert shook his head. "Even then, with all your precautions, your friend Xander managed to get injured. Can you honestly tell me that won't happen again?"

William shrugged. "No, but--"

"William, tell me something. When you saw that Xander had been hurt, that he was bleeding and you had no idea how badly off he was...how did you feel?"

William blanched. He swallowed hard, his hands shaking as he brushed his hair out of his face. "I...I felt..." He struggled for words, finally admitting in a forlorn whisper, "It hurt."

Rupert reached out and pulled William to him. "How do you think I'd feel if anything happened to *you*?" he asked fiercely, holding William tight.

Shuddering, William wrapped his arms around his father. "I'm sorry, Da," he said miserably. "I didn't...I didn't think about..."

"Hush. I know." Rupert rocked his son tenderly. "I just want you safe, that's all."

They sat together in silence for a while, until finally William spoke up again. "Am I still in trouble?"

Rupert snorted. "Yes you are, young man."

"Oh."

Rupert gently set his son aside and reached for his glasses. He put them on and stood, arms crossed as stared at William thoughtfully.

"Are you...you're not going to thrash me...are you?"

Rupert winced at the slightly tremulous tone. "No. I'm not. However, you *are* grounded for a week." He held up a hand, ticking off each point on his fingers while he spoke. "That means no television, no phone calls, no going out with your friends. It also means that during your lunch and free period at school, you will come straight to the library to study. You will also come to the library after classes are done and wait for me to take you home. When you are home, you will either be in your room studying, in the living room studying, or at the table studying." He'd run out of fingers by now, but that didn't deter him in the least. "If you manage to run out of schoolwork, I'm sure I can find something else to keep you occupied. Do I make myself clear?"

William shut his mouth and nodded. "Yes, Da."

"I also expect you to be in bed, lights off, by 10:00. That goes for the weekend as well."

"Yes, Da."

"Once the week is over, I fully expect you to tell me *explicitly* where you and your friends intend to go. You will keep reasonable hours, and you will not, under *any* circumstances, go anywhere alone after dark. If necessary, I will come pick you up, or I will give your friends a ride home. Understood?"

"Yes, Da," William agreed.

"Good." Rupert gazed at his son, who was sitting miserably on the floor. "William, stand up." When he had done so, Rupert pulled him into a fierce hug. "I just want to keep you safe, son," he said in a suspiciously husky voice.

William hesitated a moment before burrowing into his father's embrace. "Are...are you still mad at me?"

Rupert sighed. "No, I'm not mad. But if I *ever* find out that you've lied to me again..."

William shook his head. "I won't. I promise."

"Well then." Rupert cleared his throat. Pulling away, he clapped William on the back. "Let's see about dinner then, shall we?"

~~~~~~~~~~

Jesse caught up to William in the hallway. "Hey man, how'd it go with your dad? Were you, like, in *major* trouble?"

William brushed a lock of hair aside as he shrugged. "I'm grounded," he confessed.

"How long?"

"A week."

Jesse winced in sympathy. "Well, cheer up. That's not so bad. I mean, you've still got us! You and me and Willow and Xander can all hang here at school. We'll share your pain."

"We'd have to, um, 'hang' in the library. Da says that's where I have to go during lunch and free periods. After school, too."

Jesse cringed. "Ok, *that's* harsh." He shuddered, but smiled bravely. "I can handle it. Don't worry, we'll keep you company."

William offered Jesse a small grin. "He said I have to study while I'm there," he added.

There was a choking noise, and Jesse stopped to lean against a locker. His eyes bulged in horror as he stared at William. "Are you serious?"

William nodded.

"The whole time?"

He nodded again.

Jesse swallowed. "What about at home?"

"There, too."

His mouth gaped open for a moment before Jesse let out a gasping breath. "Dude. Your dad is *evil*."

Xander came up behind Jesse, Willow in tow. "Who's evil?"

Jesse let out a loud squeak at the question, whirling around to glare at Xander. "Would you *not* do that?! Geez!"

"Do what?" Xander looked at his friend in baffled innocence. He shrugged and transferred his gaze to William. "So? How'd it go with the parental unit?"

William smiled shyly at Xander. "Grounded for a week."

"Well, it could be worse," Willow piped up cheerfully.

"Worse?" Jesse asked, aghast. "It *is* worse. He's confined to the library and his place. And he has to *study*. The *whole time*!"

"What's so bad about that?" Willow frowned slightly in confusion.

Xander sighed and slung his arm around her shoulders. "Wills, we love you. You know that, right?"

"Well, of course I know that, silly! What's that got to do with studying?"

Jesse and Xander just shook their heads.

"What? Come on, guys!" She scowled at the boys as they continued to gaze at her in pity. "Stop it!"

Just then, the bell rang for class. William sighed. "I have to go," he told the others.

"Sure." Willow fixed Xander and Jesse with a stern look. "We'll come to the library to study...and to keep you from being too lonely. Won't we, guys?"

There was a moment of hesitation before Xander nodded. "Yeah, sure we will."

"But--" Jesse grunted when Xander elbowed him. "I mean, yeah. Wouldn't miss it." He grimaced.

"Ok. Um, See you later then." With a wave, William hurried off to his class.

*****
Part 13:

"But it's math. Why are there letters in it anyway?!" Jesse scowled down at his Algebra textbook. "And my parents wonder why I'm failing this class. It's stupid! Who thought this stuff up?"

William glanced up from his own book and gave Jesse a sympathetic smile. He scooted his seat closer to the other boy and leaned over his shoulder. "Need help?"

"God, yes!" Jesse shoved the book towards him and pointed accusingly at the page of problems. "What, am I supped to be doing a word search here or something?"

William giggled softly. "Here, let me see." He studied the first problem. "All right, this is an easy one. What you're trying to do is get the numbers on one side of the equation and the letter on the other side."

"So, can't you just move 'em?"

"In a way. See, you have 4x/3+5=13. Now to get the 5 on the other side, you have to subtract it."

Jesse frowned. "Why?"

"Because five minus five is zero. That gets rid of it on the side with the letter. But you have to subtract from both sides, so thirteen minus five is..." he trailed off, looking at Jesse expectantly.

"Um...eight. So...that makes it 4x/3=8...right?"

"Exactly. Now, how do you get rid of the three?"

"Uh...it's under one of those slashy things so...you times it?"

William nodded. "Yes, you multiply both sides by three."

Jesse cocked his head and looked at the paper. "So then I'd have 4x=24. Oh! And then I divide, and have x=6. Is that what I'm supposed to have?"

William beamed. "Yes! See, the whole idea is to figure out what number the letter stands for."

Jesse blinked. "Well why didn't the teacher just say so?"

With a roll of his eyes, William directed Jesse's attention to the next problem. "Here, try another."

Xander peered up from the book he was pretending to read and watched as William guided Jesse through several more problems. A frown flitted across his face as he watched the two heads drift closer together. His leg jerked spasmodically when Jesse laughed quietly at something and reached up to brush a lock of William's hair behind his ear. //No! He's not allowed to do that! Stop it!//

Shaking his head to dispel that thought, Xander forcibly tore his eyes from the two boys. Determined not to think about why the scene upset him, he returned his attention back to not-reading his book.

~~~~~~~~~~

Rupert groaned as he straightened up, stretching to work out the kink in his back. He looked at the clock and sighed. He hadn't intended to stay this late, but he'd found an entire section of books that had been horribly misfiled. Once he'd gotten started sorting them out, the project took on a life of its own and the hours had flown by.

His stomach rumbled, reminding him that he'd skipped lunch today. He did hope William had left him something for dinner. The few other times when he'd stayed late at the school William had -- good lord! William!

Dropping the book he held, he rushed out from the stacks, pulling up short at the sight that met him.

William and Xander sat alone at the table, pressed close together as they leafed through an oversized book. Rupert felt an indulgent smile creep across his face as he watched. He cleared his throat.

William looked up in distraction. "Oh, hello Da. Are you finished?" He tried not to notice that Xander had sprung away from him, scooting his chair away awkwardly.

"I'm afraid I lost track of time. I wasn't aware that is was so late. Where are the others?"

Xander let out a forced chuckle. "The pressure got too much for Jesse and he bailed after about an hour. Wills stuck around longer, but she had to be home by 5:30."

"Ah, I see. What about yourself? Didn't you have to get home?"

"Oh." Xander shrugged. "My parents don't care much where I am. As long as they don't get any calls from the police, I'm ok doing whatever."

"Hmm."

William bit his lip, glancing at Xander out of the corner of his eye. "Um, Da? Can Xander stay for dinner with us?" He turned to Xander fully. "That is, if you want. You don't have to or anything," he added quickly.

Xander flushed a little and stared down at the table top. 'I...I wouldn't mind," he told the other boy in a soft voice.

William beamed. "So, is that ok, Da?"

Rupert frowned and removed his glasses, giving them a quick polish. "Well, you *are* still grounded," he reminded his son gently. At the utterly desolate expression that fell over William's face, he decided to relent a bit. "However, I don't see as it will harm anyone if he comes for dinner. Have the both of you finished your schoolwork?"

Both boys assured him that they had.

"Well then, I suppose we should be going. It's already starting to get dark. Xander, I'll drive you home after dinner, all right?"

"Sure, Mr. Giles." Xander and William grinned at each other, glad they were going to be able to spend more time together.

~~~~~~~~~~

"So, how are your classes going, Xander?" Rupert asked as he delicately dissected his chicken with knife and fork.

"Well, they haven't kicked me out yet," Xander responded with a laugh. He picked up his own chicken and started nibbling on it, licking away the drips of grease that ran down his chin.

William stared at him unblinking. He finally tore his eyes away when his father cleared his throat. Looking down at his own helping of fried chicken, he smiled and looked up at Rupert with a gleam in his eyes. Forgoing the use of his own silverware, he picked up the chicken and took a large bite out of it.

Rupert rolled his eyes at this display but said nothing.

"This is really good, Mr. Giles," Xander said after hastily swallowing another bite. "Way better than take-out."

"Thank you, Xander. Cooking has always been something I enjoyed."

"Yeah, I could get used to this. I'm surprised Will's so skinny with food like this around all the time." He blinked. "Um, not that you're scrawny or anything, Will. More like...compact. I mean, you have a pretty nice...I'm just gonna shut up now." He blushed and stuffed his mouth with another large bite of chicken.

William smiled and blushed, averting his eyes from his father's knowing gaze.

~~~~~~~~~~

"Thanks for the ride, Mr. Giles." Xander grinned at the older man as he opened the car door. A loud crash from the house made him pause, hand gripping tightly to the handle of the door.

Rupert looked from Xander to the house, then back to Xander again. Raised vices could clearly be heard cursing and hurling insults, and as they got louder, Xander shrank further back into his seat.

"I-I'll see you tomorrow I g-guess," he mumbled, edging slowly out of the car.

Rupert sighed and reached out, laying a hand on Xander's arm. "Xander," he started softly, "you don't...you're welcome to come back and stay the night with William and myself if you like."

Xander offered him a weak smile. "Thanks Mr. Giles, but I'll be fine. I just--" he flinched as the front window shattered and a toaster landed on the lawn.

Rupert leaned across Xander and pulled the door firmly shut. Without another word, he started the engine and backed out of the driveway.

After a long moment of silence, Xander spoke softly, "It's not always like that. Dad just drinks a lot sometimes."

Teeth gritted, Rupert forced himself to calmness. "Do you...that is to say...do they ever...hurt you?"

"No! They just...they yell a lot and fight. Mostly they just ignore me." He shrugged. "I have it better than a lot of kids," he said defensively.

"I see," Rupert voiced noncommittally.

The rest of the drive was finished in silence. When they arrived back at Rupert's apartment, he turned to his passenger. "Xander, if you ever need to just...get away for a bit, you're always welcome to come and visit with William. I'm sure he'd be delighted to have you over."

Xander gave him a tentative smile. "I'd like that, thanks."

~~~~~~~~~~

William looked up from his book as his father returned. "Da, I got the dishes done and--Xander?"

"Hey." Xander waved.

"Xander will be staying the night again," Rupert informed his son before making his way to the hall closet and fetching some blankets.

"Oh." He looked at Xander in concern. "Is everything alright?"

"Yeah, well, the folks were having a kind of loud...discussion, and I didn't want to interrupt. Um, it's ok that I'm staying, right?"

"Of course! If you like, you may stay in my room. I'll take the couch."

"Oh, I don't want--"

"It's no bother. I'm smaller than you. The couch couldn't have been very comfortable last time." William grinned. "Even Da complained when he had to sleep on it a few times."

"Well, if you're sure..."

"Completely."

"Everything settled?" Rupert set the blankets on the sofa.

"Xander's going to take my room. I'll sleep out here."

"Good then. I'll be heading to bed. Sleep well, boys. You can stay up and talk for a bit, but I want you both in bed by 11:00. Understood?"

"Yes, sir."

The boys watched him go, then Xander turned to William. "Your dad's pretty cool. You're lucky."

"Yeah. I know."

*****
Part 14:

"Hey."

The touch on his shoulder barely penetrated Xander's sleep. It was nice, though. He pressed a little closer to the spot of warmth. "Mmmm."

"Xander?" The hand shook a little.

Xander sniffed. "Wazzt?"

"It's time to wake up. Da's getting breakfast ready; we'll be leaving for school in less than an hour."

"Hmmmm."

There was a breathy laugh. "Xander!" came the whispered exclamation.

Xander opened his eyes and blinked sleepily. He smiled at the lovely blue-eyed angel hovering over him. He petted the hand still touching his shoulder. "Soft," he murmured.

Wil once more cursed his fair skin as he blushed faintly. Reluctantly, he withdrew his hand. "It's time to wake up," he repeated in a louder voice.

Xander yawned and levered himself up. He rubbed his eyes and stretched, twisting his neck until it popped faintly. "Wil?" He looked around, vaguely confused.

"You spent the night here, remember?"

Xander blinked some more, his eyes finally clearing. "Right. Sorry. Not too good in the morning."

Wil eyed Xander, sitting there in his rumpled t-shirt with just an inch or so of his belly showing, and bit back a comment that refuted that statement. "It's all right."

Xander sniffed the air. "Breakfast?" he asked hopefully. "Tell me that's breakfast," he pleaded with Wil.

Wil grinned. "It should be just about ready."

"Thank god. Did I tell you I really love your dad? He is deeply cool. Like, extremely."

Rupert picked that moment to walk up behind them. "Very kind of you to say so. Now get washed up. We do need to leave soon. Xander, would your friends mind staying after school today? I thought we might try and research these vampires and their 'harvest'."

"Can do. We can probably lure Jesse in with the promise of chocolate," Xander said with a chuckle.

"Wonderful."

~~~~~~~~~~

Wil nudged Xander. "I'm going to get a drink. Would you like something?"

Xander smiled. "No thanks, I'm good."

"Ok." Wil shoved his chair way from the table, nearly upsetting the stack of books balanced precariously beside him. "I'll be back in just a moment."

Xander nodded and turned his head a little, watching Wil cross the room and go out the doors.

Abruptly realizing what he had done, Xander checked quickly to see if anyone had noticed where his attention had been. When he saw that no one was watching, he forced his eyes back to the book in front of him. After a minute, he groaned and closed the heavy volume with a thud, raising a small cloud of dust. "Nothing in this one," he choked out, waving the dust away from his face.

"I'm coming up blank, too," Willow said. "How 'bout you, Jesse?"

"Hmm?" Jesse flipped a page, intent on the book he was browsing through.

"Jesse?" Willow craned her neck to see what Jesse was studying so intently. "Did you find something?"

"Yeah, sure. Be with you in a sec," came the absent reply. Another page was turned, then flipped back as Jesse seemed to compare the pages.

Willow managed to catch a glimpse of what Jesse was looking at, and she turned pink. "Jesse!"

Jesse slammed his book shut and bolted up in his chair. "What?! I wasn't doing anything!"

"I saw those pictures, mister! What do you think you're doing?" Hands on hips, Willow fixed her friend with a very stern glare.

"He gave me the book!" Jesse protested, pointing an accusing finger at Rupert. "I was just looking like he said!"

"There were naked people in that book!"

"Naked? What?" Xander leaned forward in his seat. "Who's naked?"

"I was *researching*! It's not *my* fault!"

Rupert cleared his throat. "Perhaps I should take charge of that particular book. I'm sure there are more...suitable volumes for you to study." He turned away from the computer he was trying to do research on and held out his hand.

Still giving Jesse a frosty look, Willow grabbed the book away from him and took it to Rupert. "We'll have no more of that sort of thing, understand?" She narrowed her eyes further.

Jesse sighed and slumped down in his seat. "Yeah," he agreed sullenly. Once Willow's attention was off him, he glanced at Xander. "Just when I found a book I could enjoy," he said with a half-grin playing about his lips.

Xander snickered. "Only you could manage to find nudie pictures while doing boring research in a musty library."

Jesse shrugged, his grin turning into a full-fledged smirk. "Yeah, well, it's a talent." He folded his hands behind his head and tipped his chair back on its hind legs, stretching out in what was supposed to be a suave manner.

After a moment of suitably appreciative silence, Xander asked, "Was there anything good?"

"Eh, not bad. Half-naked chicks, mostly-naked guys. Orgies. That sort of thing." He eyed his friend carefully.

At the mention of the mostly-naked guys, Xander flushed a little and glanced away. "Oh, really?" He was proud that the squeak in his voice was barely detectable.

"Not to interrupt what I'm sure is a fascinating conversation, but I did manage to find a short piece on this 'Harvest' affair," Rupert interjected drolly.

Both boys immediately pasted on attentive expressions.

"Enlighten us, oh wise one," Xander intoned formally.

Rupert raised an eyebrow, but went on, "It seems to be some preordained massacre; rivers of blood, hell on earth. Quite...charmless, really."

"Oh." Willow swallowed weakly, her eyes huge. "Ummm...was there anything about how to stop it? Maybe?"

"Unfortunately, it was a bit fuzzy on the details." Rupert scowled at the computer as it beeped loudly at him. "Infernal machine," he muttered, tapping a few keys. Nothing happened, and he glared harder. "Could any one of you possibly manage to wrest some information from this contraption?" he finally asked when his glare provoked no response from the computer.

He glanced up when no one answered, finding himself the subject of three confused stares. His lips quirked. "Can someone get on the Net?" he clarified.

Willow beamed, bouncing in her seat. "Oooh! Me! I can do that!" She took Rupert's place at the computer and began typing quickly.

Wil returned just then and took his seat at the table. He looked at Jesse, then at Xander. "Did I miss something?" he asked.

"Nah," Jesse replied flippantly. "Orgies, harvest, massacres, bloodbath, the usual."

"I...see. How fascinating." He resolved never to leave the room during a research session again. It was too confusing.

"Isn't it though?"

~~~~~~~~~~

Willow walked down the hallway, flanked by Xander and Wil. She consulted the checklist she carried. "Ok, murder, death, disaster. What else?"

Wil thought a moment. "Paranormal, unexplained, did you get natural disasters?"

Willow nodded. "Earthquake, flood." She made a notation next to them on her list.

"Rain of Toads," Xander offered.

"Right."

Xander grinned "Rain of Toads! Do you think they'd have that on the Internet somewhere?"

Willow grinned at him. "I'll put it on the search engine. If there's something online, it'll turn up. Anything that'll lead us to vampires."

"Do I want to know how a rain of toad leads to thoughts of vampires?" Wil questioned hesitantly.

"You'll understand when you've lived here for a while," Xander told him. "Trust me, a rain of toads is *not* a fun thing. Very squishy. Lots of 'splat'."

Wil shuddered. "I have no desire to know."

"Good plan."

The three of them stopped walking outside of their classroom.

"This is seriously weird. A couple weeks ago, our lives were like, 'Uh-oh, pop quiz.' Now it's 'Rain of Toads'." Xander shook his head in bemusement.

Wil looked around at the crowded hallway. "Everyone else thinks it's just a normal day."

"Exactly! Nobody knows what's going on right under their noses. It's like we've got this big secret."

Willow blinked and cocked her head as she looked at Xander. "We do. That's what a secret is, when you know something other guys don't."

"Heh. Um, right."

Willow giggled. "We should get to class. Oh! Jesse has a lunch detention with Mr. Gerard, and I'm helping Ms. Watson tutor some of her Science students. You two gonna be ok for lunch?"

"Sure thing, Wills. We can hang in the library together." Xander draped his arm over Wil's shoulder and tugged him close. "We'll do some male bondage. *Bonding*! Male *bonding*!" He coughed, flustered, and very carefully pulled his arm away from Wil.

"Um. Right." Willow eyed him with concern. "Ok. Well then. Class." She nodded firmly and walked into the classroom.

*****
Part 15:

"Man, what is taking her so long! We were supposed to meet William back at the school ten minutes ago!" Xander tapped his foot impatiently as he and Jesse waited on Willow's front porch.

Jesse grinned. "Anxious to get back, huh?"

"What? I mean, no, just...you know. Research." He gave a weak chuckle, not meeting Jesse's eyes.

"Uh-huh." Jesse narrowed his eyes, adding mischievously, "So, William's pretty nice. It's hard not to like him, know what I mean?"

"Um...I..." Xander let out a nervous chuckle. "Yeah, he seems ok."

"Hmm. Kinda cute, too. I wonder if he's seeing anyone yet." He leaned casually against the porch railing, surreptitiously watching Xander out of the corner of his eye.

Xander blinked. "C-cute?" he squeaked. "You think he's *cute*?" For some reason, his heart started racing.

Whatever Jesse was intending to say in response was lost when Willow finally bounded out her door.

"Sorry," she gasped out breathlessly, "I was finishing up this report, and kinda lost track of time. I'm good now. Are we late?"

"A little," Xander replied weakly, still trying to recover from Jesse's little revelation. "The sun's going down soon."

"Oh." Willow stared out to where the sun was hovering just a little above the horizon. "Um, sorry," she apologized again. "We can still make it though, right?"

"If we hurry." Jesse took hold of Willow's hand and pulled her along. "Come on, Xander!" he called. "Don't want to keep William waiting!"

The trio hurried down the streets, nervously watching the lengthening shadows around them. They were only a few blocks from the school when it happened.

The sun was nothing more than an orange glow sinking completely below the horizon, and they were just passing one of the many cemeteries scattered throughout Sunnydale when a pair of grubby hands reached out and snatched Jesse.

Jesse let out a shocked yell and began struggling. His cry of alarm immediately drew the attention of Xander and Willow, who fumbled for the stakes they had taken to carrying with them.

"Let him go!" Xander shouted, leaping forward.

The vampire struck Jesse heavily on the temple, dazing him. He ducked Xander's uncoordinated attack, and shoved Willow away when she came after him as well. With a growl, he hoisted his stunned victim over his shoulder and sprinted off.

"Xander! He's getting away!" Willow struggled to her feet and raced after them, Xander close behind.

Through the deepening twilight they followed the vampire. "Man," Xander panted heavily, "how fast can these suckers run?" He dodged a low-hanging branch, nearly tripping over an exposed root.

Finally, they came to a halt just inside the crypt the vampire had vanished into, still carrying Jesse. Gasping for breath, they frantically scanned the gloomy tomb.

"Where are they?" Willow stepped further inside, squinting. "Xander! They not here!"

"They have to be here," Xander insisted. "There's no other way out!"

It was no use. They spent several terrifying minutes searching the crypt, but it was empty. And getting darker.

A rustling outside caught their attention, and they both wheeled around, clutching at each other. "W-we should go for help," Willow stammered.

"We can't just leave him!" Xander protested.

The rustling came again, louder this time. "We'll come back," Willow promised. "We'll get William and Giles and come back. We *will* find him, Xander."

After a moment's hesitation, Xander nodded reluctantly. "Right. Let's go."

~~~~~~~~~~

Rupert sighed as he pored over the text. "'For they will gather and be gathered'," he read aloud softly, "for the Vessel pours life."

He frowned. "Pours life," he mused, carefully turning yet another yellowed page in the ancient book. His heart skipped a beat at the picture he found; a demon, surrounded by dozens of human corpses, transferring power to a weakened creature.

With growing concern, Rupert read on. "'On the night of the crescent moon, the first past the solstice, it will come...' Of course." He glanced up, eyes growing wide with horror. "That's tomorrow night!"

The squeak of door hinges made him look up. "Hello?"

William stepped forward, smiling gently. "It's just me." He looked around the library. "Where are the others? They were supposed to meet me here."

Rupert frowned. "They were coming back here? From home? It's getting close to sunset."

"I know. I-I'm worried. But I'm sure they're fine." He smiled weakly.

"Of course." He motioned his son closer. "Did you find anything of interest?"

"Perhaps. I pulled some old newspapers regarding a rather large earthquake in 1937. It seems that during the months preceding it, there were several inexplicable murders. See here..." he flipped through some of the printouts he'd brought with him.

"It's all coming together." Rupert sighed, rubbing his forehead wearily. "I rather wish it weren't."

There was a loud clamoring outside the library, then Willow and Xander, gasping for breath and rather disheveled, burst in. "J-Jesse," Xander managed to wheeze out between breaths.

Rupert jumped up. "Where is Jesse," he asked, growing alarmed.

"Vamp...jumped out...snatched...vanished..." Willow collapsed into a chair, hand to her chest as she tried to cal her breathing.

William hurried over to Xander. "Are you alright?" he asked in concern.

Xander nodded. "But...one of 'em grabbed Jesse."

"Good lord." Rupert hovered over Willow. "Are you sure you two aren't injured in any way?"

"We're fine," Xander insisted. "But we have to go back. I won't leave Jesse with one of those...*things*!"

"Tell me exactly what happened," Rupert urged.

Willow gave him a summary of the incident. With a look of shame, she finished, "I said we should go for help. I left him there."

Awkwardly, Rupert patted her shoulder. "There's nothing you could have done. You were right to go for help."

"How will we find him?" William asked. "We don't know where he might have been taken."

"Underground. It's the safest place for vampires. No sun during the day, and with the sewer system and other tunnels, they'd be able to get around almost anywhere."

"Yeah but...oh! Willow? Can you pull up the city plans and give us a map of the underground tunnels?"

Willow jumped up. "Yes!" She hurried to the computer. In just a few minutes, she had the required plans on display. Scanning through them quickly, she stopped and pointed. "There. I think that's it. It runs directly under the graveyard where Jesse was snatched."

Xander shook his head. "I don't see any access."

Rupert frowned. "Do I really want to know how legal this is?"

"No," Xander and Willow answered simultaneously.

"Ah. Right."

"Wait. Wait wait wait!" She pushed away from the desk excitedly. "That vampire dragged Jesse into the crypt, but never came out. And there was only one entrance, we would have seen him leave. It's there! The access to the tunnels must be in the crypt!"

"So what's the plan? We saddle up, right? Go get Jesse back?"

The three teenagers looked at Rupert, who sighed and nodded. "*But*," he added, "We go in prepared. Take whatever weapons you can carry. We have no idea what we'll find down there."

~~~~~~~~~~

Jesse hissed in pain as the vampire jerked him carelessly along. He tried yet again to free his arm, but the vampire easily held it in his crushing grip. They rounded yet another corner, and Jesse stared in shock at the woman...*vampire* that had bitten him only a handful of days previously.

"Move," the vampire growled, shoving him forward into the cavern.

Stumbling, Jesse barely managed to keep from falling as the vampire led him a few more steps, then pulled him to a stop. He looked up in horror at the creature that stepped out from the shadows.

"Is this for me?" The Master grinned and licked his lips.

Jesse shuddered as a clawed finger pointed at him. This was by far the ugliest vampire he had seen to date. He had a very bad feeling about this.

His captor released him and spoke. "An offering, Master."

Darla stepped forward eagerly. "He's a good one. His blood is pure." She glared at the vampire who had captured the prey that had managed to escape her.

The Master eyed the healing wounds on Jesse's neck. "You've tasted it," he remarked, giving Darla a very disappointed look. "Why did you let him go free?"

"I-I didn't mean--"

"I have waited. For three score year I have been trapped here while you come and go as you please, toying with these scraps of food." He fixed her with an angry glare. "My ascension is almost at hand," the Master snarled. "Pray that when it comes, I'm in a better mood." He wrenched Darla's head back and hissed these last words in her ear.

Darla cowered. "Master, forgive me," she whimpered. "I was going to bring him to you before, but he escaped! There were others with him. I think one was the Slayer!" She swallowed hard.

"A Slayer?" The Master considered this. "She must not be allowed to interfere with the Harvest," he finally said.

Luke stepped forward, speaking at last. "I would never let that happen."

He waved a hand. "Don't worry about it. I believe she'll come to us." He turned a cruel gaze upon Jesse. "We have something she'll want. If she *is* a Slayer, and this boy lives, she'll try to save him."

Luke grinned and stalked over to Jesse, taking hold of him by the back of the neck. "Congratulations, boy. You've just been upgraded from snack...to bait."

~~~~~~~~~~

"Go inside." Rupert waited until the three teens had entered the crypt, then turned and laid a row of crosses in the entrance. He took out a bottle of holy water and sprinkle it over the threshold and along the walls. Finally, a string of garlic bulbs were draped from a protruding stone. It might not keep vampires out, but it would certainly serve to warn them of any arrivals.

Meanwhile, Willow, Xander and William clustered around a sarcophagus in the center of the crypt. William eyed it distastefully. "Do you suppose there's actually a...?"

The others shuddered. "Don't *even* want to know," Xander stated firmly. He glanced around, snapping on the flashlight he'd pulled from his jacket pocket. "Come on, let's see if we can find the entrance."

They split up, each now weilding a flashlight. They had only been searching for a few minutes when William called them over. There was a recess in one of the dark corners, and a set of doors chained shut and padlocked.

Xander sighed. "I don't suppose either of you has a key for this?"

"They really don't like people dropping in," came a voice from behind, and the three whirled around.

"You!" Willow exclaimed. "It's the creepy guy who was following me and Jesse," she explained to Xander and William. "He's the one who was talking about mouths of hell and harvests."

Xander glared as he shifted in front of Willow, conveniently placing William behind him as well. "And I bet you don't have a key either, do you?"

The man chuckled bitterly. "They really don't like me dropping in on them, either."

"Oh? Why not?"

"They really don't like *me*."

William snorted. "*How* could that possibly be?" he muttered sarcastically.

The man eyed Xander. "Are you trying to protect her? Do you really think she needs it?"

"Hey, back off mister. I don't know who you are, I don't *care*. But you don't mess with my friends."

"Fine." With a shrug, the man looked around the crypt. "I knew you'd figure out this entryway sooner or later," he said, obviously speaking to Willow as he dismissed the two boys. "Actually, I thought it was going to be a *little* sooner."

"Sorry you had to wait." Rupert finally made his way inside and crossed his arms, studying the man intently. "And who might you be?"

After a pause, "Angel." Angel cocked his head as he looked at Rupert, then back at the three teens. "This is different."

Xander snickered. "Angel. Kind of a girly name, isn't it?"

"Xander." Rupert gave the boy an admonishing look and shook his head, then shouldered his way past Angel.

"Don't...don't go down there." He had a worried expression on his face.

"Deal with our going," Xander snapped back.

"You shouldn't be putting yourself at risk. The Harvest is soon. Unless you can prevent it, the Master walks."

"You seem to have some knowledge of this affair," Rupert remarked. "Why don't *you* stop it?"

"Because I'm afraid," Angel admitted.

William glowered. "And you think perhaps we're not? But we're trying to do something anyway. That just make you a coward."

Rupert examined the lock, then pulled out his wallet and leafed through it, extracting a thin piece of metal. He inserted it in the lock and, with a few deft movements, managed to open it.

Xander watched with awe. "*Way* cool. Hey, can you teach me how to do that?"

William merely smirked. "Why Father," he murmured. "Wherever did you manage to pick up such a fascinating talent?"

Rupert flushed slightly and cleared his throat. "Never mind that," he said briskly as he removed the chain and pushed the doors open.

"They'll be expecting you," Angel interjected as the group began to file inside.

Willow paused and looked back. "A friend of ours is down there. Do you know what it's like to have a friend?"

Angel lowered his eyes, an expression of unfathomable sadness washing over his face.

Willow bit her lip. "That wasn't supposed to be a stumper," she whispered. She turned back and walked past Rupert.

Angel watched them go. "When you hit the tunnels, head east towards the school," he called after them. "That's where you're likely to find them."

Rupert gazed back at him levelly for a moment, then nodded. The door closed behind them.

"Good luck," Angel finished softly.

*****
tbc