Into every generation, there are Chosen Ones. A Slayer will stand against the vampires, the demons, and the forces of darkness. With each Slayer comes a Guardian. They are protectors of the innocent.
Day One
Morning - Sunnydale Mall
The low camera angle showed the legs of the people walking past the shops on the ground floor, panning up past a cowboy named Lyle and his girlfriend to the second floor and over the railing where Buffy, Brooke, Brady and Joyce were walking along. Joyce had a shopping bag in each hand.
"Come on, Mom, please," Buffy told her.
"I'm sorry, honey," Joyce told her.
"Don't you understand how important that is to Buffy?" Brady asked mockingly.
Buffy hit her brother for mocking her. "Shut up, Brady."
Brady laughed. "It's an outfit."
"An outfit that you may never buy," Joyce agreed.
"But I looked good in it," Buffy told them.
"You looked like a streetwalker," Joyce told her.
"But a thin streetwalker," Brooke told them. Joyce gave her a look. "That's probably not gonna help Buffy win the argument, is it?"
"You're just too young to wear that," Joyce told her.
"Yeah, and I'm gonna be too young to wear it until I'm too old to wear it," Buffy replied.
"That's the idea," Joyce admitted. "The stores are closing, and I still need to order the flyers for the opening." She considered, putting both bags in one hand. "Okay, I'll go to the printers and then get our food." She pulled out a slip of paper. "You three go to the tailor and pick up my outfit from Everyday Woman."
Brooke looked at the paper. "Everyday Woman?"
"Mm-hmm," Joyce answered. "There's the receipt."
"Why didn't you just go to Muu-Muus R Us?" Brady asked sarcastically.
"Do now, make fun of your mother later," Joyce told them, walking off.
The siblings reluctantly started for the tailors, walking toward the escalators, getting on to go to the ground floor, looking around idly as they descended, seeing Lyle and his girlfriend come up the other escalator.
Brooke was still looking around, noticing that Lyle's reflection was missing from the mirrors that lined the escalator corridor. "Brady, Buffy, look. Vampire."
They immediately turned, running up the escalator, weaving between the people coming down on it behind them.
∞
Walkway
Lyle and the girl walked around a corner. The siblings quickly caught up, slowly walking past a bank of payphones by the restrooms, looking around for them, continuing down the hallway, hearing a pinball machine. Reaching the rear door of an arcade, they saw that the metal gate had been bent and forced upon.
∞
Arcade
The siblings made way into arcade. The place was deserted, quiet except for the sound of the one machine. They walked around one side of a bank of game machines while the camera panned along the other.
Lyle looked at his girl. "Turn around, baby. I have something to show you."
"Wait a sec," the girl told him. "This is my high score."
The camera reached them. The girl was hammering away at the flipper controls.
Lyle took off his hat, coming up behind her, taking her hair, sweeping it away from her neck, vamped out. "Well, ain't you just got the prettiest little neck I ever did see."
Lyle moved in for the bite, but was interrupted by the Summers siblings.
"Boy, you guys really never come up with any new lines, do you?" Buffy asked.
The two of them looked at the siblings, annoyed.
"Do you mind?" the girl asked. "We were talking here."
Brooke stared down Lyle. "But you promised you'd never cheat on me again, honey."
The girl pulled her bag onto her arm. "Um, I better go."
"But I ain't done yet," Lyle told her. The girl turned to look at him, gasping in fear when she saw his face, running from the arcade. Lyle looked at the siblings. "All right, sugar lips." He put on his hat, facing off with them. "Giddy-up." He tried to punch Buffy. Buffy blocked it, punching him in the face. Brady kicked Lyle in the crotch, shoving him into another pinball machine. Lyle looked up, giving them an evil smile. "Well, you're rough ones, ain't cha? I like that." He tried to punch Brooke. Brooke readily blocked it, punching Lyle in the face, grabbing him by the arms, throwing him into a pinball machine. The plate glass on the top and back panel shattered as Lyle landed on it hard. Lyle hopped up. "You must be the Slayer, one of the Guardians and the hunter I've been hearing so much about. Lyle Gorch. Pleased to meet you."
Buffy kicked Lyle into another machine. "Pleasure's ours."
Lyle leaped off of the machine at Brady. Brady ducked, rolling out of the way, spinning to face him with stake in his hand, up and ready. Lyle rolled up to his feet, grabbing his hat in midair along the way, putting it back on.
They heard a man's voice. "Lyle!"
Buffy, Brooke and Brady turned to look in that direction, ready for another vampire.
Lyle took the distraction as an advantage to sneak out before they could kill him. "This ain't over."
The siblings turned to see Lyle gone.
"Oh, sure," Brooke told them sarcastically. "They say they'll call."
∞
Food Court
The siblings walked in, spotting Joyce at a table with their food, waiting for hem, walking closer, sitting down.
"Oh, bliss," Brady told them sarcastically. "Mall food."
"Buffy?" Joyce asked. "Brady? Brooke?" They looked up. "Where's my dress?"
Buffy was confused. "Your dr..." They remembered at the same time, wincing. "Oh, God."
"Let me guess," Joyce told them. "You were distracted by a boy and girl."
Brooke cringed. "Technically."
"Look, we can go get it right now," Buffy told her.
"They're closed," Joyce told them. "I'll just have to fit it in tomorrow."
Brady nodded. "Sorry."
Joyce gave them a stern look. "A little responsibility is all I ask. Honestly, don't you ever thing about anything besides boys or girls?"
"Saving the world from vampires," Brooke answered.
Joyce crossed her arms, shaking his head. "I swear, sometimes I don't know what goes on in your heads."
They just looked at her.
∞ Slayers and Guardians ∞
Day Two
Morning - Sunnydale High School - Utility Closet
Xander and Cordelia were making out heavily.
"Xander?" Cordelia asked between kisses. Xander shushed her between kisses. "It's just that I'm worried we're gonna miss class."
Xander reached up for the light string, pulling on it to turn it on, stepping back a little. "You know what? This would work a lot better for me if you didn't talk."
"Well, it'd work a lot better for me with the lights off," Cordelia replied, grabbing the string, yanking to turn the light off, putting her arms around him, starting to kiss him.
Xander didn't kiss back, pulling on the string to turn the light back on. "Are you saying that you can't look at me when we do, whatever it is we do?"
"No, it's not that I can't," Cordelia answered. "It's just more, I don't want to."
"That's great," Xander told her sarcastically. "That's just dandy. We're repulsed by each other, we--we hide from our friends."
"Well, I should hope so," Cordelia told him. "Please."
Xander nodded. "All in all, this is not what I'd call a big self-esteem booster."
Cordelia looked him over. "Tell me about it. Just look at you, and those clothes. Where did you get those shoes?"
"Okay, you know what?" Xander asked. "I don't need this."
"Ditto," Cordelia replied. "Like a hole in the head."
They both reached for the doorknob, their hands meeting, hesitating, wrapping their arms around each other, kissing even more passionately. Xander cradled her head in his hand as they slowly sunk to the floor, reaching up for the string, giving it a good yank to turn it off.
∞
Teen Health Class
Willow, Eric, Xander and Cordelia were sitting in class.
The teacher, Mr. Whitmore, was writing 'SEX' on the board. "S-E-X. Sex." He turned to face them. "The sex drive in the human animal is intense. How many of us have lost countless productive hours plagued by unwanted sexual thoughts and feelings?"
"Yes!" Xander answered, raising his hand and nodding. "Mm-hmm."
Willow gave him a concerned look.
Eric gave him a smile, laughing silently. "Wow. There you go. Xand. Damn."
"That was a rhetorical question, Mr. Harris, not a poll," Mr. Whitmore told him.
Several students laughed.
Xander lowered his hand. "Oh."
"Of course, for teenagers such as yourselves these feelings are even more overwhelming," Mr. Whitmore told them. "With all sorts of hormones surging..." Willow was clearly nervous, and looked back and forth between Xander and giving her attention to the teacher. "...through your bodies, compelling you to action, it's often difficult to remember that there are negative consequences to, uh, having sex. Would anyone care to offer one such consequence?"
Cordelia raised her hand. Mr. Whitmore gestured to her, giving her the floor.
"Well, that depends," Cordelia told him. "Are you talking about sex in the car or out of the car?" Mr. Whitmore looked confused. "Because I have a friend, not me, that was in a Miata parked at the top of the hill, and then she kicked the gearshift, and--"
"Yeah, I--I was thinking of something a little more commonplace, Ms. Chase," Mr. Whitmore told her.
Xander raised his hand. Mr. Whitmore gestured to him. Willow looked at Xander.
"You wanna talk negative consequence?" Xander asked. "What about the heartbreak of halitosis?" Cordelia looked at him. Xander looked back. "I mean, a girl may seem spiffy, but if she ignores her flossing the bloom is definitely off the rose."
Cordelia immediately raised her hand. Mr. Whitmore exhaled and gave her permission to speak again.
"Like that compares to kissing a guy who thinks the Hoover technique is a big turn-on," Cordelia told them.
Willow and Eric looked back and forth between the two of them, very confused, exchanging a look. The exchange began to draw muffled comments from among the other students.
"What about having to feign interest in her vapid little chit-chat just so you can get some touch?" Xander asked.
Cordelia was incensed.
"Now," Mr. Whitmore said. "Another consequence of sexual activity? Anyone?" Cordelia raised her hand. "Uh, else?"
Willow raised her hand. Mr. Whitmore gestured that Willow should speak.
"How about pregnancy?" Willow asked. "That would be a major one. Right?"
"Thank you, Miss Rosenberg," Mr. Whitmore told her. Willow looked at Xander and Eric, sitting back, smiling smugly. "Among teens unwanted pregnancy is the number one negative consequence of sexual activity. So, as discussed last week, I present you with..." Mr. Whitmore took a sheet off of two trays of eggs. "...your offspring." Eric looked at him weirdly. Willow smiled. "You will split into parenting teams. You and your partner will share equally in the daily task of raising your egg." Mr. Whitmore took a tray to distribute. "Now, please choose a partner and come pick up your children."
Willow waved at Xander, but he ignored her and got up to go over to Cordelia.
Cordelia saw him coming and immediately grabbed the shirtsleeve of the boy sitting next to her to get his attention. "You wanna have a baby?"
Xander was disappointed. He saw another girl walk up to the second tray of eggs still on the teacher's desk and approached her. "Hey." He chuckled. "I know we just met, but isn't that Xander Jr. you're holding?"
The girl giggled and smiled and turned around to walk away. Xander gave Cordelia another glance, then followed the other girl.
∞
Library
The Scoobies walked into the library to see Buffy, Brooke, Zoey, Alice, Carmen, Brady and Wyatt.
"Guys," Eric told them. "Hey. How come you weren't in class?"
"Vampire issues," Carmen answered. "Did Mr. Whitmore notice we were tardy?"
"I think the word you're searching for is 'absent'," Alice told her.
"Tardy people show," Zoey told her.
"Right," Alice agreed.
"And yes," Willow answered, handing them eggs. "He did notice. So he wanted us to give you these."
Zoey rolled the egg around in her hands. "As far as punishments go this is fairly abstract."
"No, it's your babies," Willow told them, smiling as she finished.
Wyatt frowned. "Okay. I get it even less."
"Well, you know, it's the whole 'sex leads to responsibility' thing," Eric explained. "Which Xander clearly doesn't get." Xander didn't deny that. "We gotta take care of our eggs. They're babies. We gotta keep them safe."
"And teach them Christian values?" Wyatt asked in amusement.
"Eric and I are Jewish," Willow told him.
"Then teach your eggs that Dreidel song," Wyatt replied sarcastically.
Eric smirked. "Whatever. Okay."
Willow smiled.
"I can't do this," Zoey told them. "I can't take care of things. I killed by Giga Pet. Literally. I sat on it. It broke."
Zoey set the egg down on top of the catalog, moaned and quickly walked over to a book re-shelving cart.
"You'll do fine," Alice told her. "Okay? Yeah. The only thing that stresses me is? When do we tell them that they're adopted?"
"I'll just lay that one off on my partner," Carmen told them. She looked up, worried. "Wait. Who'd I get? Or Buffy? Brooke? Zoey? Alice? Brady?"
"Eric, please tell me you offered to take me in as a mother even if I didn't show up to class," Buffy told him.
"I'm sad you even had to ask, Buffy," Eric told her. "Of course I did."
Buffy smiled in relief. "Thank you."
"I suggested to Mr. Whitmore that Alice and Brady could team up," Willow added. "But, Zoey, Carmen, Brooke? There were an uneven number of students. And you didn't show. So..."
Eric looked at Zoey, Carmen and Brooke, smirking. "Looks like you're all single mothers. No man of their own."
"Do you know what this says about me?" Zoey asked. "That I am doomed to lead my mother's life. You know, before the thing with Giles. How deeply scary is that?"
"How about this?" Brooke asked. "It says nothing. It means nothing. This whole egg experiment thing is completely pointless."
Giles was in the cage. "Success." He came out with a book. "At last. Your playmate is a fellow of repute, it seems." He moved to set the book on top of Zoey's egg. Zoey inhaled in shock and quickly snatched it away. The others looked on in wide-eyed surprise, while Wyatt smirked in amusement. Giles pointed out a picture in the book. "That's, um, Lyle Gorch, and that one's his brother, Tector. They're from Abilene. They, uh, they made their reputation by massacring an entire Mexican village in 1886."
Giles took off his glasses to clean them.
"Friendly little demons," Alice told them sarcastically.
"That was before they became vampires," Wyatt explained. Brooke raised her eyebrows at Wyatt. The others exchanged a look. "But the good news is they're idiots." They smirked in amusement. "I doubt they're up to much. They're probably just drawn here by the Hellmouth's energy."
Giles put his glasses back on.
"'Nuff said," Brady told them. "I propose we all go out. And slay them. All in favor?"
They all raised their hands, smiling. "Aye."
"I don't think you should underestimate them," Giles told them. "I mean, you may need to have some help if..." He noticed the eggs. "Why do you all have eggs?"
Alice smiled. "Hey. Carmen? Maybe you can have Angel help you find the Gorches."
Wyatt knew that would not be the only reason why the girls would suggest Carmen to see Angel, giving them an amused look. "Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's not a bad idea. Strength in numbers."
"Oh, right," Buffy told them sarcastically. "I see a lot of hunting getting done in that scenario."
"Please," Carmen told her. "Like Angel and I are just helpless slaves to passion. Grow up."
∞
Night - Park
Carmen and Angel were locked in a passionate kiss.
Carmen broke it off. "I really..."
Angel smiled. "I know."
They continued to kiss for a few seconds more.
"You know, this isn't hunting in the classical sense," Carmen pointed out. "We should..."
Angel chuckled. "You're right." They continued to kiss for a moment longer. "Okay. Okay." Another kiss. "Okay."
They walked side by side for a few paces.
"You see anything?" Carmen asked.
"No," Angel answered.
"Well, hunting's not really my job, anyway," Carmen told him. "Technically I just do it for extra credit."
With that, they began their passionate kissing with renewed vigor.
∞
Elsewhere
Buffy, Brooke, Zoey, Alice, Brady and Wyatt were actually hunting, keeping a lookout.
Unknown to them, across the street on building rooftop, the Gorch brothers were watching them, Carmen and Angel.
"That the Slayer and Guardians?" Tector asked. "Along with a hunter, witches, a gypsy."
"Yep," Lyle answered.
"Ain't the warlock Wyatt Pratt?" Tector asked.
"Yep," Lyle answered.
"Ain't that Angelus with the girl witch?" Tector asked.
"Yep," Lyle answered.
"Well, how come she ain't slaying?" Tector asked. "And how come he's about to make me blush?"
"Well, I don't know, Tector," Lyle told him. "And how come you's always asking me so many stupid questions?"
"So, you wanna take them, or, uh, you want me to, Lyle?" Tector asked.
"I say we leave it," Lyle answered. "Pick them off one by one. Wait till they're each alone."
"Why?" Tector asked. "You scared?"
"Nope," Lyle answered. "I'm just not stupid. I got me a plan. I'm the one that does the thinking, remember?"
"Yeah, you do the thinking, Lyle," Tector told him. "That is definitely your department. So why don't you tell me again why we can't kill them now?"
∞
Summers House - Zoey's Room
Zoey walked in, over to her bed, sitting at her desk, opening her egg diary. "Okay, little egg dude."
Layla walked up to the door, checking on her. "Hey. Zoey." Zoey looked up. "What's that?"
"An egg diary for which I have to write in to pass this experiment," Zoey answered. "It is so lame. I'm in it alone, which is why this sucks so bad."
Layla smirked in amusement, walking closer. "Let's see. I can help. Feeding?"
"Check," Zoey answered.
"Burping?" Layla asked weirdly, amused. "Wow."
Zoey nodded. "Check."
Layla read. "Diapers?" She looked at the egg's basket. "Sort of. In theory. I guess." Zoey chuckled, marking all the boxes, putting the pen in the binder coil. "Okay." Zoey stood to hug her mother goodnight. Layla kissed her head. "Goodnight, Zoey."
Zoey smiled. "Night, Mom."
"Get some sleep," Layla told her. "I'll see you in the morning.
Layla left the room. Zoey tapped her egg gently, crawling into bed, reaching up to turn off the light, pulling up the covers, settling in to sleep. The camera panned across her and over to the egg. The egg was rocking back and forth. The camera closed in on it. A small hole had almost been chipped out. The plug broke open, and a long, thin tentacle began to make its way out. It angled over toward Zoey, branching out into several fingers as it made its way over to her.
∞∞
The tentacle continued over to Zoey. One of its fingers went into her ear. Another laid itself across her left eye. A third one covered her right eye. Another went around her neck, presumably into her other ear. The tentacles were now just lying on her face. The focus of the camera went off of Zoey and onto the egg in its basket.
∞
Day Three
Morning - Tunnels
The Gorch brothers were relaxing and waiting out the sunlight that was visible at the end of the tunnel. Tector was having breakfast, feeding on a rat. Lyle was laying back with his feet up and had his face covered with his hat.
"I'm tired of rat," Tector told him. "How come we can't stay in a nice place?" He put the dead rat down. "A motel or something? Maybe, uh, maybe one with an ice machine."
"'Cause we got to keep a low profile till we get the Slayer/Guardian and friends business taken care of," Lyle answered.
"Well, how come Angelus is getting all cuddly with one, Lyle?" Tector asked. "I mean, does the man have no code? And what about Wyatt Pratt? I mean, his brother is a vampire, and he's with the people that hunt vampires."
Lyle sighed in annoyance, sitting up, leaning up on his elbow. "Tector, you gonna be pestering me with these questions all damn day?"
"I just don't like it here," Tector admitted. "Ain't a decent whore in the whole city limits."
"So this is the thanks I get?" Lyle asked, standing. "Well, don't I take care of you? Didn't I near raise ya myself? Hmm? Burden that you were, maybe I should've left you on that doorstep when Mamma blew town."
"Don't say that, Lyle," Tector told him.
"Now I'm taking care of this," Lyle told him.
"You afraid of those people?" Tector asked.
"I'm just playing it safe," Lyle answered. "We're just gonna follow them around a little while, find our time. 'Cause this ain't over."
Tector smiled. "I think you are afraid of them."
Lyle nodded. "All right, I'm gonna beat you like a redheaded stepchild. Throw your ass out in that sunlight. Come on."
"You think you can?" Tector taunted.
Lyle goaded him on. "Giddy-up, son."
Lyle adjusted his hat and coat, waiting for his brother to stand up. Tector adjusted his hat, smiling, rearing back, taking the first swing, hitting Lyle squarely in the jaw. Lyle looked at his brother, nodding, punching him hard in the face.
Tector had to take a couple steps back to keep from losing his balance, laughing. "Oh, man."
Tector came back to punch Lyle in the gut, making him double over.
Lyle straightened up, giving Tector a wide smile. "Yippi-ki-yay, matey!"
Lyle threw another punch.
∞
Francis House - Zoey's Room
The camera panned across the bed to Zoey. The egg's tentacles were gone.
Layla walked in, knocking on the door to get her to wake up. "Rise and shine, Zo. Zoey. Zoey!" Zoey woke up, looking at her mother tiredly. "Time for school. I gotta head for work. Get up."
Layla left for work. Zoey sat up, running a hand through her hair, moaning, getting out of bed. The hole in the eggshell had sealed itself.
∞
Summers House - Kitchen
Joyce was drinking coffee, setting the cup down, going over to the toaster. Buffy, Brooke and Brady walked in, setting their eggs down on the island. Buffy took a sip of their mother's coffee.
Joyce brought toast over on a plate. "At least eat something if you're gonna drink that."
"Not that hungry," Buffy told her.
Joyce broke off a piece of toast, munching it, indicating the eggs. "How's the parenting going?"
Brooke shrugged. "Fine."
"Are you sure your eggs are secure in those?" Joyce asked.
Brady looked up at her. "Did we ask for backseat mommying?"
Joyce gave him a look. "Are we a little touchy this morning?"
Buffy sighed. "No, we just feel all funky."
Joyce felt their heads. "Hmm, you don't have fevers."
"Oh, no, it's not that," Brooke told her. "It's just that none of us slept well."
"What's the matter?" Joyce asked. "Your eggs keep you up all night."
Brady gave her a sarcastic look. "You're killing me."
"Parenting's a pain," Buffy told them.
Joyce smiled smugly. "Wait till they start dating."
Buffy, Brooke and Brady gave her a look, picking up their eggs, leaving.
∞
Sunnydale High School - Library
The Scoobies were in the library.
Giles was returning some books to the shelves. He walked out from behind the stacks to see them looking up at him from the bottom of the steps. "Oh! Why are you hanging about? Don't you have classes to go to?"
"Teen health got canceled," Willow told him.
"Mr. Whitmore's out," Alice told him. "Couldn't find an egg sitter. Or something."
They walked up a few steps.
"Well, then," Wyatt told them. "Can you give us a hand?"
Buffy, Brooke, Willow, Zoey, Carmen and Brady (the ones that had their eggs the night before besides Xander) answered together, sitting down. "No."
Eric hopped up the steps to the mezzanine level. 'Sure."
Since Buffy and Brady had taken care of their eggs the night before, Eric and Alice took the eggs so they could split the parenting. Eric started to shelve some books.
"How did the, um... hunt go last night?" Giles asked.
"No go," Wyatt answered.
"Uh, 'no', no you didn't go, or, you were unsuccessfully?" Giles asked.
"No Gorches," Wyatt answered.
"Apparently Carmen had decided the problem with the English language is all those pesky words," Eric told them. He looked at Carmen. "You. Angel. Big... smoochies?"
"Shut... up... Eric," Carmen told him in the same way.
Alice frowned. "It's true, Carmen. You, Buffy, Brooke, Brady, Zoey and Willow do seem a little sluggish. Are you sure everything's all right?"
Buffy, Brooke, Willow, Zoey, Carmen and Brady exchanged a look.
"Maybe something we ate," Willow told them.
"Or perhaps it's the burden of parenthood," Wyatt told them sarcastically. "Notice how seriously you all have taken this egg thing."
They clutched their egg baskets, proving his point.
Xander chuckled. "While I, in turn, have, uh, well, chosen a..." He took his egg out of his shirt pocket. "More balanced approach."
Xander started tossing it around.
Willow was concerned. "Xander. Maybe you shouldn't--"
"That's exactly what I'm talking about," Xander told her, tossing the egg. "You can't stress over every little thing." He tossed the egg. "A child picks up on that, which is a one-way ticket to neurotic city."
Xander caught and tossed the egg again, but missed the next catch. The girls gasped as the egg hit the floor. Brady, Eric and Wyatt raised their eyebrows. Giles let out a yelp, too, but then stared at the egg curiously. It just wobbled to a stop, unbroken.
Willow was surprised. "It didn't break." She turned suspicious. "How come it didn't break?"
Xander realized he had been found out. "Which is another secret to conscientious egg care: pot of scalding water and about eight minutes."
"You boiled your young?" Brooke asked.
"Yeah," Xander answered. "I know it sounds cruel, but sometimes you gotta be cruel to be kind. I mean, you can bet that little Xander here is thick skinned now."
Xander reached down for the egg and picked it up.
"Technically that would be cheating, yes?" Giles asked, reaching up to put a book on a high shelf.
"No," Brady told him sarcastically. "No. It's like a short cut. You know, when you run a race."
"That would also be cheating," Buffy told him.
"That's why Brady was being sarcastic," Eric told them.
Buffy, Brooke and Alice nodded. "Yeah."
They all looked at Xander.
Willow shook her head. "You should be ashamed."
"I suppose there is a sort of... Machiavellian ingenuity to your transgression," Giles told him.
"I resent that," Xander told him. Giles gave him a look. "Or possibly thank you."
Cordelia walked into the library. "Figures you would all be hanging in the dungeon while something major's going on at Sunnydale High."
"And what would that be, Cordelia?" Zoey asked. "Barrette Appreciation Day?"
"Mr. Whitmore didn't show today," Cordelia told them.
"That news is of the past," Buffy told her.
"He's missing," Cordelia told them. They looked at Giles. "Presumed dead."
"Presumed by whom?" Giles asked.
"Well, me," Cordelia answered, crossing her arms over her chest.
"I think we should give him a few hours before we give up on him completely," Wyatt told them.
"Well, I think we should look around, don't you, Xander?" Cordelia asked.
Xander looked at her and shook his head. "It can wait."
"Well, his body could fall out of a closet somewhere," Cordelia told him. Xander looked at them nervously. "So we should check some closets to see if he's in a closet?"
Xander pointed at her. "You're right, there could be a closet, so let's go." He pointed at the others as he walked down the stairs. "You guys look for more clues, and we'll meet back here."
Xander took Cordelia by the arm and guided her out of the library.
"We'll get right on it," Brooke said unenthusiastically.
Eric looked after them. "Are they getting weirder? Have you noticed the weirdness of them?"
"They're weird," Willow told them.
Buffy looked at Giles. "Should we have guilt about not looking for Mr. Whitmore?"
"I-I'd rather you conserve your strength for hunting the Gorches," Giles told them.
"We'll be fine by tonight," Alice told them. "Maybe we'll sweep the cemetery."
Giles was concerned. "Well, be careful, i-i-if you're still feeling a little sluggish."
"No worries," Brooke told them.
"And Angel's helping you guys, right?" Eric asked.
Wyatt gave Carmen an amused look. "He does what he can."
∞
Night - Cemetery
Carmen and Angel were engaged in a passionate kissing session once again.
Carmen pulled away. "As much as I hate saying this, we should really go kill bad guys."
Angel chuckled. "It's late. You should really get home. Hmm?" He kissed her. "Don't worry about the Gorches. Like you said last night. It's not really your job, Carmen. But you do it anyway. I'll hunt. Not like I have an early day tomorrow."
Carmen smiled, kissing him. "Mm, true, and I still have to go home and fill out my egg diary."
"Your what?" Angel asked.
"Oh, I told you, that faux parenting gig we're doing at school," Carmen explained. "Like I'm really planning to have kids anytime soon, but maybe someday, in the future, when I'm done having a life, but right now, kids would be just a little too much to deal with."
Angel looked at her as they walked. "I wouldn't know. I don't... well, you know, I--I can't."
Carmen realized he meant he couldn't have kids, nodding understandingly. "Oh, that's okay, um, I figured were were all sorts of things vampires couldn't do. You know, like work for the telephone company or volunteer for the red cross or have little vampires."
"So you don't think about the future?" Angel asked
"Not really," Carmen answered.
"Never?" Angel asked.
"No," Carmen answered.
Angel swallowed. "You really don't care what happens a year from now? Five years from now?"
Carmen turned to face him. "Angel, when I look into the future, all I see is you, and all I want is you."
Angel managed a smile. "I know the feeling."
They kissed for a moment longer, more and more passionately.
∞
Sunnydale High School - Hallway
The night watchman came walking along, checking a door, finding it properly locked, continuing on, stopping at the hall intersection, looking each way, looking to his right, seeing the door to the basement standing ajar, going over to it, opening it wider, looking in, walking in.
∞
Basement
The watchman walked down the steps, making no attempt to be quiet, seeing that the doors to the boiler room were open, stepping inside, trying the light switch, but it didn't work. "Hello? Is anybody in here?"
The watchman pulled out his Maglite, turning it on, continuing into the room. The lights on the boiler controls were active, and the fires were burning. When he walked past the boilers, he saw a huge hole in the concrete wall behind a bunch of staked up barrels and boxes. He slowly walked over to the stack with his flashlight held over his shoulder like a bat, lighting the way but ready to swing if need be. Finding no one there, he put the flashlight down, pushing aside a stack of boxes blocking the way, seeing the hole clearly now, and a tunnel continued on beyond it. He picked up his flashlight, holding it ready like before, stepping up to look through the hole. Behind him, Mr. Whitmore appeared, holding a pick, slamming him across the back with it, making him fall through the hole, knocking him out, climbing in through the hole.
∞
Summers House - Living Room
Buffy, Brooke, Zoey, Alice, Brady and Wyatt were coming here after the hunting.
"Hell of a hunt still with no shows for Gorch brothers," Buffy told them sarcastically.
They saw Brady/Alice and Zoey's eggs on the table rocking back and forth.
"Why's there only two eggs here?" Wyatt asked.
"Buffy and Eric's egg is with Eric," Alice answered.
They looked at the eggs in confusion, walking closer. Buffy leaned down to look at it closely, curious about it, getting closer and closer, staring at it intently. The top half of the shells cracked into thirds. The pieces flew away, falling down. They saw purplish-gray creatures with tentacles curled up inside the two broken eggs. The creatures jumped out at them. They reacted instantly, moving quickly to make the creatures miss. The creatures landed on the floor, quickly crawling into hiding. They were all stunned but quickly regaining composure.
"What the hell?" Brooke asked.
They slowly made their way around the room, looking around for the creatures, scanning around. The creatures fell onto Brooke and Alice's shoulders, making them jump as they tried to crawl down their backs. Zoey and Wyatt used their magic to fling the creatures off of Brooke and Alice, making the creatures fall to the floor, which quickly crawled into hiding again. Buffy and Brady looked around for weapons, grabbing a knife and scissors. Brooke, Alice, Wyatt and Zoey prepared their power as they looked around. Hearing something scratching its way up the wall, they turned around, ready. Buffy and Brady tried to stab the creatures, but they crawled quickly away. Brooke and Alice used Guardian energy to grab the creatures the same time Wyatt and Zoey attacked them with magic, their power combined easily killing the creatures. Satisfied with the creatures dead, everyone relaxed, but their first thought was that their friends had eggs too and that they were also in danger.
"Eric," Buffy told them. "Willow. Xander. Carmen."
"Carmen's out with Angel," Brady told them. "She should be fine. But Eric, Willow and Xander? Not so much."
"Call them," Wyatt told them. "Now. Whoever picks up first, Eric, Willow or Xander, just call them."
Zoey walked toward the phone to call. "Come on. Pick up."
Willow and Eric were in their house, answering after the first ring. "Hello?"
Alice was relieved to hear from them. "Willow? Eric? Are you okay?"
"Why shouldn't we be?" Willow asked.
"Your eggs," Brooke answered. "Are they doing anything?"
"Doing what?" Eric asked.
"Break them," Wyatt told them. "Right now."
"We need you to smash them with something heavy," Brooke told them.
Willow frowned. "Guys? What--"
"Zoey's egg," Buffy told them.
"Brady and Alice's, too," Zoey added.
"They went postal on us," Brady explained.
"Zoey, Brady and Alice's eggs hatched and it--it sprung these creepy crawly things," Brooke went on.
"They attacked us," Alice told them.
"Are you okay?" Eric asked.
"Yeah, no, we're fine," Wyatt answered.
"But your eggs," Zoey told them worriedly.
"Are totally normal," Eric told them. "Uh, we put them in in the fridge."
The others started to calm down, sighing.
Buffy closed her eyes. "Oh. Yeah."
"Maybe it's a trap," Eric told them. "Something the Gorch brothers planted for you."
"Maybe," Willow told them. "Yeah."
"Uh..." Brady trailed off. "I'm sorry."
"Yeah," Alice agreed. "We shouldn't have woken you."
"Uh, we're okay," Brooke told them. "Just go back to sleep."
"You sure?" Willow asked.
"Yeah," Zoey answered. "Yeah, we're better."
"We're fine," Wyatt told them. "We'll see you."
Willow and Eric nodded. "Okay."
"We'll see you tomorrow," Willow told them.
"See ya," Eric agreed.
They hung up. Two broken eggshells were in front of Willow and Eric, covered on the inside with a grayish blue slime. The camera pulled in for a close up of the two siblings. They stared blankly off into space.
∞∞
Summers House - Living Room
Brooke, Buffy and Brady were making sure Alice, Zoey and Wyatt were gone before their mom walked into the room.
"What's going on in here?" Joyce asked. Thinking quickly, Buffy and Brady grabbed the cloths from the two former eggs' basket, laying them over the dead creatures. "Who are you talking to at this hour? Who did you have over here this late at night? Why are you dressed? Where exactly do you think you're going?"
"Nowhere," Brady answered.
"Who did you have over?" Joyce asked.
"Uh, Zoey, Alice and Wyatt," Buffy answered. "They were helping us with our projects."
Joyce crossed her arms. "You're gonna have to do much better than that."
"We had stuff to do," Brooke told her.
"What you're going to do is have things I wanted you to," Joyce told them. "You're going to be grounded for the rest of your natural lives."
∞
Day Four
Morning - Sunnydale High School - Outside
Joyce pulled her car up to the school to drop her kids off. "Which means, no after school socializing, no Bronze, no nothing. Not until I say so. Do you understand?"
Buffy nodded. "Yeah, but I think you're--"
Joyce shushed her. "Now, school ends at 2:30. I want you to go to the library at 2:33 and study until I pick you up there at 5:30. Understood?"
"Yeah," Brooke answered.
"Good," Joyce told them. "Have a nice day."
They grabbed their bags, getting out of the car, walking up with Zoey, Alice and Wyatt up to Carmen and Cordelia. Cordy was wearing a teddy bear backpack.
Zoey smirked. "Nice bear. Listen is your--"
"Hey, I'll have you know that my father brought this bear back from Gstaad years ago," Cordelia cut her off. "Then all of a sudden these trendoids everywhere started sporting them. So I'm totally not wearing it. Then I thought, hey, I'm the one who started this nationwide craze. What am I ashamed of?"
"Okay, Soliloquy Girl," Alice told her. "We just wanted to ask about your eggs."
"Our eggs?" Cordelia repeated.
"Yeah," Wyatt answered. "Your eggs. The ones Mr. Whitmore gave you."
"Mine got broken during slayage," Carmen told them.
"Mine's in my bear," Cordelia told them.
"So, your egg isn't acting odd or anything?" Zoey asked.
"It isn't acting anything," Cordelia told her. "It's an egg, Zoey, it doesn't emote." She saw another friend. "Shanisse!" She walked away. "Is that your real hair?"
They watched her go.
Willow and Eric walked up to them. "Hey."
Buffy smiled. "Hi."
They walked across the grass toward Xander. Behind them, Cordelia caught up as she looked through a book.
Xander sat on a wall, bunching on a candy bar. "Mm, cardboardy." He discared the rest of the candy bar, opening his satchel, digging through it for his egg, pulling it out. "Sorry, Junior, but a man's gotta eat."
Xander tapped the egg a few times on the wall next to him, rolling it back and forth under his hand.
"So, was there any more hatchling activity last night?" Willow asked.
"No," Brooke answered. She gestured to Cordelia. "Everyone else's egg seemed perfectly normal."
"You were probably right," Alice told them. "It was just a trap from them set for us."
"True," Brady told them. "But how would they know that Wyatt would be with us?"
They knew he had a point.
"Did you bring the things that attacked you?" Eric asked.
"Yeah," Wyatt answered. "Giles wants to see them. He's in full research mode."
"Okay," Willow told them. "Well, bring it to the science lab, and I'll get Giles, and we and Alice will analyze it."
The camera panned around them, focusing on Willow and Eric's lower backs.
"Great," Zoey told them sarcastically. "You know, I always say that a day without an autopsy... is like a day without sunshine."
The camera showed hatchlings attached to Willow and Eric's backs under their shirts. Xander smiled, nodding at the girls, holding up the egg, ready to take a bite. There was a purplish-gray creature still inside, dead from being boiled.
"Xander!" Buffy told him just as he was about to bite into it.
Xander looked at it and freaked out. He screamed as he tossed the egg away from him.
∞
Science Lab
They went to the science lab. The hatchling was laid out in a dissection tray.
Xander tapped his fingers on the table as they looked at it. "Can I just say Gyughhh!"
"I see your 'Gyughhh!'," Zoey told him. "And raise you a Nyaghhh!"
"What is it?" Cordelia asked.
"We don't know what it is, Cordelia," Carmen told her. "That's why we're here. Capisce?"
"'Capisce'?" Cordelia repeated. "What are you, world traveler now?"
Willow and Alice walked into the lab.
"Hey, where's Giles?" Brooke asked. "I know he won't wanna miss this."
"He said to get started," Alice told them. "He'll be by as soon as possible."
"So, okay," Eric told them. "Get started, Buffy. Dissect it or something."
Eric handed her a scalpel.
Buffy took the blade. "Me? Why do I have to dissect it?"
"Uh, because you're the Slayer?" Eric suggested.
"Brooke, Brady, Zoey, Alice, Wyatt and I already slayed," Buffy told them.
"Yeah, our work here is done," Brooke told them.
"Oh, no, I almost ate one of those things," Xander told them. "I think I've fulfilled by gross out quota for the decade."
Wyatt gave them a look. "Guys. Pathetic much?"
Wyatt sighed, taking the scalpel and starting the dissection. The camera panned around Cordelia to her bear.
"Do we even know what to look for?" Brady asked. "I mean, how are we supposed to figure out what this thing is?"
The bear's right eye popped out and a tentacle emerged.
"Turn it over," Willow told them. "Maybe we missed its ID bracelet."
The bear's left eye popped out and another tentacle emerged.
"So, now I guess, uh, we know what happened to Mr. Whitmore," Alice told them.
"He saw this and ran away?" Carmen asked.
"Try best case scenario," Zoey told her.
"It's possible that Mr. Whitmore wasn't harmed," Willow told them. "Maybe the offspring simply used him to return to the mother bezoar."
Willow, Eric and Cordelia leaned over to pick something up.
"Yeah," Buffy told them. "Maybe he..."
Zoey and Buffy turned to Willow. "What?"
"What?" Brooke asked. "What the hell is a bez--"
Willow, Eric and Cordelia used crowbars, two in either hand, to knock out Alice, Wyatt, Zoey, Buffy, Brooke, Brady and Carmen out before they could figure out what was going on, making them fall unconscious.
"Eric!" Xander said in shock. "Willow! Cordelia! What--"
Cordelia knocked Xander out. They left them lying on the floor unconscious, leaving enough eggs next to them for hatchlings to try and take control of them as well.
∞
Groundkeeper's Shed
Willow opened the double doors, walking in. Cordelia and Eric followed. A line of students and teachers were right behind. They walked up to a post where a couple dozen of picks, axes, hoes and shovels were kept, grabbing one, walking out the door.
∞
Hallway
Everyone headed to the basement door, opening the door, walking inside.
∞
Basement
Everyone walked downstairs, heading into the boiler room, one by one, stepping through the hole in the wall, following the tunnel down. Mr. Whitmore was standing by the hole, keeping guard.
∞
Night - Library
Joyce walked in, looking around. "Buffy? Brady? Brooke?"
Giles walked out of the cage. "Hello?"
Joyce turned to face him. "Oh, Mr. Giles, hi. Uh, I was looking for Brady, Brooke and Buffy. They were supposed to wait for me here."
"Well, they haven't been in," Giles told her. "I've been waiting to talk to them myself about, uh, history texts."
Joyce leaned on the card catalog. "That is just the last straw."
"I'm sure they didn't mean to, uh..." Giles trailed off.
"They never mean to, but somehow they always manage to anyway," Joyce replied. "Should I be whispering?"
"No," Giles answered.
Joyce sighed. "Children can be such a... Oh, uh, I don't want to say burden, but, uh. Uh, actually, I kind of do want to say burden."
Giles smirked. "Feel free."
Joyce sighed. "Oh, they're just so irresponsible."
"Sometimes," Giles agreed.
Joyce noticed the books lying on the catalog. "'Bristow's Demon Index', 'Hell's Offspring'?"
Giles took the books. "A hobby of mine, uh, but, uh, having nothing to do with Brooke, Buffy or Brooke in anyway." He took the books into the cage, stowing them on a shelf, coming back out. "Um, you say they told you that they'd be here all afternoon?"
"Well, yes," Joyce answered. "Is something?"
Giles shook his head. "Oh, I'm sure it's nothing." He pulled open a drawer, hearing a noise in the hall. "What was that?"
Joyce faced the door to look. "Mm, probably the janitor."
Giles took a hatchling out of the card catalog drawer, setting it on Joyce's back, who screamed as she tried to reach around her back, falling to the floor. Giles stared blankly off into space.
∞∞
Hallway
Giles and Joyce walked down into the hall, staring blankly ahead, joining the line of students and teachers, heading for the basement.
∞
Science Lab
The others were waking up on the floor.
"Brady," Alice told him. "Buffy. Brooke. Zoey. Carmen. Wyatt."
"Hey," Brady told them. "You all right?"
Xander woke, looking around. "Last time Cordy hit me, it was a lot nicer."
"What?" Wyatt asked.
"Uh, nothing," Xander told them.
Wyatt nodded sarcastically. "Uh-huh. Crazy talk. Head trauma."
"Tell me about it," Brooke told him, feeling her head. "I'm gonna have a big bump."
"Uh, I'm gonna have a peninsula," Zoey told them. They stood. "Hey, what--what the hell's going on?"
"Yeah," Carmen agreed. "Cordy. Eric. Willow."
They looked around the room.
"Something to do with the hatchlings," Buffy answered. "I'm sure of it."
"What?" Brady asked. "Are they possessed?"
"I don't know," Brooke told them. "But they sure wanted us out of the way."
Brady was holding his head. "Well, why not kill us?" He let go of his head. "Why, uh, why drag us in here?"
Zoey saw seven eggs on the floor, one for each of them. "Oh." They followed her gaze, everyone taking a step back. "Bad now."
When they noticed the eggs started to rock, Brooke, Wyatt, Alice, Zoey and Carmen used their power to destroy the eggs before they could hatch, killing the creatures inside. A dark blue slime squirted out on the floor.
Xander held his head. "Thank you."
Buffy kicked the door open.
∞
Library
They ran into the library.
"Giles!" Buffy called.
"Giles!" Carmen repeated.
They looked around, but found the place deserted.
"He must be out somewhere," Wyatt told them.
"Well, he picked a hell of a time to get a life," Zoey told them.
"What are we gonna do?" Xander asked.
"We can't fight these things until we know something about 'em," Brooke told them.
"All right, Willow said something," Wyatt told them. "Uh, a name. What was it?"
"A bozo," Buffy told them. "Not a bozo."
Alice snapped her fingers. "A bezoar."
"That's it," Carmen answered. "Okay, so now... we look it up?"
"In what?" Xander asked.
"A book?" Brady suggested sarcastically, gesturing to the counter where there were several books lying open and walked over to them.
They followed.
"Dad said he was gonna try to find something..." Alice trailed off, taking the book on top that was open to a picture and turned it around to look at it. The sketch was of a disk-shaped, tentacled monster. "And I'd say he found something."
They walked over to them, having a look, noticing broken eggshells on the floor.
Brooke sighed. "I'd say something found Giles."
∞
Basement
Giles and Joyce led a line of students to the hole, stepping through, heading down the tunnel, coming out into another room deeper underground. Giles headed to the side ramp that led to a slightly lower level, taking a crowbar handed to him by Willow, who had a box of new bezoar eggs in her other arm. The camera panned across the room, past Cordelia wiping off eggs being handed to her from below by another student, to Eric pounding on the concrete floor with a sledgehammer. Joyce went down the other side, taking a hoe held out to her by Mr. Whitmore, banging it on the floor. Cut to a close up of the floor. A large chunk had broken off, appearing to be floating on something. Eric kept pounding on it to break it up into smaller pieces. Willow was pulling an egg out from between some larger gaps in the floor, handing it up to Cordelia, who wiped it off in a towel, handing it to Mr. Whitmore, who placed it in a wooden box filled with wood shavings and more eggs. The camera panned over to a large hole in the floor where the concrete had already been removed, showing the pink-fleshed mother bezoar's body as it moved and throbbed.
∞
Library
The others were researching.
Zoey read from the book out loud. "'Pre-pre-historic parasite. The mother hibernates underground, laying eggs. The offspring then attach themselves to a host, taking control of their motor functions through neural clamping.'"
"'Neural clamping,'" Brady repeated. "That sounds skippable."
"So, our people are taking orders from the mama bezoar," Brooke summarized. "Which begs the question..."
"What does mama want?" Alice finished.
They heard a student screaming out in the hall, Jonathon's voice. "Somebody help me!" They ran out to investigate. "Get this thing off me! Get this... Somebody help me! Help!"
∞
Hallway
The others came running out the door to see Jonathon get back up.
"Are you okay?" Alice asked.
"I'm fine," Jonathon told them emotionlessly. "I slipped."
Jonathon turned and walked down the hall. The others exchanged a look.
"I think I hear mommy calling," Carmen told them.
"Uh-huh," Xander agreed.
"Loud and clear," Brady agreed.
They followed Jonathon.
∞
Basement
They followed Jonathon to the whole in the wall.
"Do we really wanna go in there?" Xander asked.
"We really don't," Zoey answered.
"But we really have to," Wyatt told them, climbing in, looking back at them before continuing down the tunnel.
"Careful," Carmen told them.
They climbed through, following Wyatt. Xander started to climb through but didn't lift his foot high enough, tripping, falling into the tunnel. They followed Jonathon into the chambers below. The digging and egg gathering activity continued.
"What are they digging up?" Brady asked.
They saw the pink-fleshed mother monster bezoar in the pit.
"Oh, boy," Buffy told them. She saw Cordelia handing Mr. Whitmore an egg. "We can't let them spread those eggs."
"I'll handle it," Xander told them. "Um, can you guys, uh, hold down the fort?"
"I don't think our powers are gonna be enough this time," Alice told them. "Or witch and gypsy powers."
"We're gonna need a weapon," Brooke told them. "We're gonna need a big weapon."
"Uh-huh," Zoey agreed. "Oh, yeah."
Xander started walking toward the possessed people, acting like them. Giles handed him a chunk of concrete to carry away. Xander took it, dropping it to the side. Cordelia and another student started into a utility tunnel with a box of eggs. Xander followed them.
The others walked back up the tunnel to see what they could find in the way of a weapon, up into the boiler room, stepping through the hole, looking around for anything that might be of use. Zoey saw a barrel with several scrap pieces of pipe and grabbed the largest one.
Carmen looked behind them. "Uh? Guys."
They turned to see Lyle and Tector there.
Lyle looked at Buffy, Brooke and Brady. "I told you this wasn't over."
"She's so cute," Tector told them. "And little. Think we can keep her?"
"We're gonna kill the Slayer and Guardians, dumbass," Lyle told them.
"Not them or the witch," Tector told him, nodding to Zoey. "The gypsy."
Zoey raised her eyebrows.
Wyatt sighed. "Not gonna happen. Guys, this really isn't a great time."
Lyle smiled. "Oh, it's gonna be." Zoey jammed the pipe into both Lyle and Tector's faces and again into Lyle's gut. Tector punched Zoey, making her stumble toward the hole a bit. Zoey turned around, shooting purple power to hit him in the chest, sending him back into some metal shelves. "All right! That's my brother!" Lyle and Tector charged at everyone, grabbing them, making them fall back through the hole into the tunnel, into the room below. Everyone stood. Lyle stood, but was distracted by all the activity. "What the hell is this?"
Buffy, Brooke and Brady saw Joyce digging next to Willow and Eric. "Mom?"
Willow sounded emotionless. "Kill them."
Several students started to advance on Lyle, Tector, Wyatt, Brooke, Buffy, Brady, Alice, Zoey and Carmen.
"They're possessed," Brady told them. "We can't hurt them."
"Meaning no powers against the possessed," Wyatt told them. "No problem."
"Zoey?" Carmen asked. Zoey looked at her. "Go ninja."
Zoey smiled. "Gladly."
Buffy, Brady and Zoey punched possessed people back. Alice, Brooke and Wyatt kicked more back. Carmen was trying not to hurt them.
Lyle ducked a swing with a shovel from another and hit him in the back, knocking him to the floor.
Zoey followed up her kick with two more.
Alice sidestepped Giles as he swung his crowbar at her, making him stumble past her into the wall behind her. "Oops. Sorry, Dad."
Tector backhand punched another one and picked the one up from the floor and threw him back.
Buffy pushed a boy with a pick away from her and followed up with a kick to his head, making him flip over backward.
A man came at Brady from behind. Brady grabbed him, shoving him into his next attacker, kicking and punching them both down.
Brooke punched a girl, making her spin away, kicking another one in the gut.
Tector picked another one up off of the floor, tossing him aside. "What the hell is going on?"
Lyle punched another student.
Wyatt kicked another, punching him in the face, flipping him to the floor.
Zoey shrugged. "Long story."
Lyle hit a boy over the head with a chunk of concrete. The students started coming again. They each punched one. Carmen gathered enough of her power to freeze the students in the room.
"There," Brooke told them.
"Carmen's power won't keep them frozen for long, though," Buffy told them.
Lyle smirked. "Then we might as well make the most of it."
Lyle and Tector turned their attentions to fight Buffy, Brooke, Zoey, Alice, Carmen, Brady and Wyatt, trying to punch and kick all of them. They each ducked, punching and kicking them. Wyatt used his power to spin the brothers around, to where they were now facing away from them. Buffy and Brady kicked them in the backs, making them fall.
∞
Utility Tunnel
Cordelia and the other student turned a corner, walking down a side tunnel. Xander followed them at a short distance behind. The far end of the tunnel appeared to exit onto a body of water. Xander came up behind the student, shoving him into the wall, knocking him out. Cordelia turned to see, setting the box down, trying to punch Xander.
Xander ducked, getting around her, blocking her way to the water, holding his hands out in front of him. "Cordelia, I don't wanna hurt you, some of the time." When she didn't make a move against him, Xander leaned down to pick up the box. Cordelia punched him in the head. Xander stood, yelling out in pain and frustration, trying to restrain himself. "That's my bump!"
Xander couldn't hold back any longer, punching Cordelia, making her spin around and fall unconscious to the floor, raising his hands in disbelief and regret.
∞
Underground Room
The fight went on as students kept coming at them. Brady kicked Lyle, punching him in the face, making him stagger back into the wall. Buffy threw Tector into the wall. They were trying to distract the brothers so Brooke, Alice, Zoey, Carmen and Wyatt could focus their power on trying to destroy the bezoar instead of the vampires.
Tector looked around, kicking into a standing position. "Well, all right!"
Tector smiled at Buffy and took a swing. Buffy ducked it and punched him in the gut and face. He swung again and she ducked again. Tector focused on Zoey while she was trying to use her power to destroy the pit, grabbing her from behind. Zoey grabbed him angry, burning him with her gypsy power, flipping him over her head into the mama pink pool. He started to sink like quick sand.
"Tector!" Lyle yelled. Tector's boots disappeared into the pit. "Tector?" The mama bezoar let out a deep, loud belch. Lyle looked at the others. "This is all your fault!"
While Brooke, Zoey, Alice, Carmen and Wyatt were distracted, Giles, Joyce, Eric, Willow and Jonathan came up from behind them, hitting them over the heads while they were trying to destroy the bezoar's pit, making them fall into it. Mama wrapped tentacles around them, pulling them under.
Brady and Buffy ran closer. "No!"
Lyle watched in amazement, wrapping an arm around Brady's neck to stop him and Buffy from fighting. "They kill my brother, I kill both of you."
"You sure they're dead or not?" Brady asked.
While inside mother bezoar, Brooke, Alice, Zoey, Carmen and Wyatt were using their power to destroy her from the inside out, visible through the colors of red, purple and blue powers exploding out of the pit. The digging activity in the room came to a stop. Everyone gathered around the pit and watched. The bezoar let out a dying scream as its eye closed. The hatchlings all fell from their hosts, and the students and adults all collapsed to the floor unconscious. Lyle, Brady and Buffy were suddenly the only people awake in the room. Brady took the distraction to grip Lyle's arm around his throat, using all the strength he had to flip him over his head toward the pit. Lyle scrambled away from the pit, sliding past them.
Brooke and Alice used their red energy to fly out of the pit. Carmen and Wyatt used their power to levitate out. Zoey was discovering the gypsy power to float into the air, more like floating than levitating. They landed soundly on their feet. All of them were covered with slime. Buffy and Brady looked at them in relief. They all looked at Lyle.
Lyle, who was in complete disbelief, nodded. "All right." He tipped his hat. "It's over."
Lyle turned around and took off.
∞
Outside
Several students came walking out, dirty and dazed. Giles tried to calm several others with an explanation, but was himself confused as he made his way over to the others. Fire trucks and police could be heard arriving.
"Yes, yes, uh, i-i-it was a-a, a gas leak, everyone," Giles told them. "Uh, well, just, uh, get some air, and a... good night's rest, you know, uh, you'll be fine. These gas things... will happen." He looked at the others. "W-w-what was it really?"
"Stick with the gas thing," Alice told him. "We'll fill you in tomorrow."
"Right," Giles said.
Zoey looked at Giles, Eric, Willow and Cordelia. "How you guys doing?"
"Did I really hit you?" Willow asked.
Carmen raised her hand. "You hit me. You knocked me out."
"Did I hit you?" Cordelia asked.
Zoey nodded. "Yes, everyone hit us."
"Good," Cordelia told her. "Well, I don't mean 'good' because I hit you, but I didn't wanna be left out."
Buffy, Brooke and Brady walked up to them, looking toward their mother.
"How is she?" Brooke asked.
"She's a bit confused," Wyatt answered. "But it's going around."
The Summers siblings walked toward their mother, meeting her halfway.
"Are you okay?" Brooke asked.
"I was worried you'd gotten caught in the building," Joyce told them. "There--there was a gas leak."
They walked along.
"Uh, yeah, we just heard," Brady told her. "We were in the gym."
"I went looking for you in the library," Joyce told them.
"Oh, well, we were on our way there when we..." Brooke trailed off.
Joyce shook her head. "I thought I made it pretty clear that you weren't to leave the library till I came."
"The other side of that is there was a gas leak, and--" Buffy started.
Joyce cut her off. "Well, I'm not really interested in the other side right now. You have to learn some responsibility, okay? Once and for all."
"We're grounded?" Brady asked.
"You're already grounded," Joyce reminded them.
Brooke nodded in remembrance. "Oh, yeah."
Joyce stopped walking. "Until further notice, you are confined to your rooms. You will not leave your rooms at any time except to go to school or the bathroom. Am I making myself clear?"
Buffy nodded. "You're clear. We won't leave our rooms."
"You're damn right you won't," Joyce told them, walking off.
The siblings exchanged a look, following.
∞
Summers House - Buffy's Room
Buffy was inside her room at her window, with Eric sitting on the roof outside the window, as they were making out passionately, pulling away.
Eric sighed. "I'm really sorry about what happened."
"You were possessed, Eric," Buffy told him. "You don't get to be sorry. It's okay."
"Okay, well, are you sure you're not gonna get in trouble?" Eric asked.
"Hey, I earned this," Buffy replied, kissing him. "Besides, I'm not breaking any rules."
They smiled, continuing to kiss.
∞
Brooke's Room
Brooke was sitting at her window, looking outside as Wyatt magically levitated himself up to the roof, smiling, kissing him through the open window. "Next time we have to defeat a creature like that pink pit, can we please not have to do it from the inside?"
Wyatt smirked, chuckling. "Yeah, that was a little too weird, even for me. But at least we're all good. Once again we defeated the monsters together."
They smiled, kissing passionately through the open window.