27/42
Author: BmblBee
Rating: NC17
Paring: S/X
Disclaimer: I own none of the characters or products named in this
story and make no profit from it.
Summary: A mysterious carnival appears on the outskirts of Sunnydale.
Despite the sudden disappearance of townspeople and pets, Xander is
intrigued and wants a closer look. What he gets is more than he could
have imagined.
This story is based on a suggested story idea from the lovely Mystic Oblivion.
As always, thanks to the wonderful Petxnd for the banners that put the perfect
visual to my words.
Jesse was up before his alarm had the chance to wake him. He had given a lot
of thought to his situation and flip flopped several times. On one hand he couldn't
believe his best bud of a life time would turn on him this way, but on the other
hand, he knew he would do it in a heart beat for the chance to boff the Buff.
Fact was, a friend was a friend but a piece of ass for a horny teenage dick was
a critical incident that superceded all other understood rules and regulations.
Truth was, when the general stood up and reported for duty, one just had to salute.
The hardest part about today was going to be to pretend he didn't know. He
would have to go to school and act like everything was copasetic. Smile, laugh,
crack jokes and go through the motions of a normal day.
But this time things would be different. He would be watching like a hawk. He
would fire up his often unused powers of observation and he would note any
slight or subtle indication that he was right and that Xander was slipping the high
hard one to the Buffmeister.
Then, tonight, when the time was right, he would sneak off into the darkness and
follow them to their place of carnal knowledge. He would catch them in the act.
Shine his boy scout flash light on Xander's bare ass as it bobbed up and down
proving that it is indeed possible to stab one person in the pussy and another in
the back at the same time.
Jesse James couldn't wait till the sun went down.
"Willow. Willow, Sweety. Come on, Princess, time to wake up."
Willow cracked one eye open to see her mother standing in the same spot in
her bedroom door way she had stood every morning since Willow had started
kindergarten. Her mother believed an alarm clock would be too startling to her
daughter's psyche.
"Come on, Pookie, bagels and cream cheese on the table."
For once, Willow didn't have to be told twice. She wanted to wash, dress
and be out of the house at least a half hour earlier that usual today if she was
to stick to her plan of speaking to Mr. Giles.
She didn't know why but the older English gentleman just exuded an air of
patience and understanding. A fact proven by the odd amount of time Buffy
spent with him. Time that was never fully explained. Whenever Willow
asked what they talked about, Buffy would shrug her shoulders and say
"You know, just....stuff."
This morning, Willow had high hopes that 'stuff' might include magic, spells and
a book or two on witchcraft.
So, with something akin to the speed of light, Willow sped through a quick tub
bath that never gave the water time to cool, she pulled on her favorite plaid jumper
and black flats. She raced down the stairs, grabbed a bagel, kissed her mother's
cheek and dashed out the door.
Now, she sat quietly. She fussed with her skirt and she smoothed down her hair.
And she waited. Mr. Giles had said very little during her lengthy, well practiced
speech and she could only wonder what his silent, glasses cleaning meant.
When she was beginning to think he about to call the school psychiatrist, he finally
returned the wire rims to his nose and tucked the hanky back in his breast pocket.
He then picked up the clear piece of crystal she had shown him and he turned it
over in his hand.
"Very interesting. And where did you say you got this?"
Willow sat upright, slightly encouraged.
"At the magic shop across town. At first I thought it was a fake, or maybe just
didn't work. Then I realized I needed to activate it with a spell. When I did that,
it worked like a.....well, like a charm."
Giles nodded.
"Yes, of course. And did you use the standard Orthon spell?"
Willow wanted to squeal.
"I did! I found it online. There were other's but they were more general purpose
spells and I wanted a more specific location charge to activate the crystal. In
practice, I had really good results. I could track my friends better than a GPS."
Giles waited. He knew this was leading somewhere.
"And then you ran into a problem?"
Willow frowned.
"When Larry went missing, I focused the charm on his essence. I used his school
picture and I sneaked into the boys locker room and swiped a dirty sock from
his locker. Yucky, but necessary. I recited the Kr'tom and it lit up like a beacon.
All systems were go and it led me right to the carnival at the edge of town.
Unfortunately, something went wrong and it suddenly went cold."
Giles turned the stone over and over in his hand. He wasn't surprised and he
knew if it led her to the carnival, she had done nothing wrong and the answer to
the crystal's failure was something much more sinister. She was lucky to have
gotten away with her life and her neck intact.
"Have you been researching and exploring other faucets of magic? Other spells
and incantations aside from location?"
The relief was overwhelming and Willow felt the sting of tears as the knowledge
that she was not only believed, but accepted warmed her heart.
"I have, but it has been limited. Most of the web sites you find on the internet
are just bull poopoo. It would take years to wade through them all to try to find
the real thing. I need resources. Books and ingredients. But, more than anything
else, I need a teacher."
Giles rose from his chair and retrieved a large, bound book from a top shelf and
he laid it on the desk between them. He then looked her in the eye and smiled.
"Well, Miss Rosenburg, I do believe I can help you. Perhaps, we can help
each other."