Chapter 29: When Worlds Collide, Part One
Author's Notes: Ta dum! At long last, the time has come to pull these two young people together. I make no promises for an easy time, but it will definitely be spuffy time. Enjoy!
Thursday Today was the big day, and Buffy was so nervous that she woke up very early and couldn't get back to sleep. Rosemary had emerged from her bedroom yesterday afternoon, feeling better than the prior day, but much quieter and tending toward crankiness. Buffy pretty much gave her a wide berth the whole day. The plan agreed upon between John, Rosemary, and Buffy was that Rosemary would drive her to the school this morning, and then Buffy would phone her to come get her when her meeting was done and she was ready to return home. Buffy was grateful for that, as she was a bundle of nerves and didn't want to walk all the way to the school before the appointment.
When she arrived downstairs, a nightgown-clad Rosemary was in the kitchen pouring coffee for herself and grabbing a muffin for breakfast. She turned when Buffy entered the area and just nodded sleepily in her direction and shuffled out again.
"Um, Rosemary?"
Rosemary stopped and looked expectantly back at Buffy.
"The meeting starts at 8:15 so should we leave here at 8 then?"
Rosemary frowned and sighed. "I can't deal with this right now. You're gonna have to walk this time." And she continued walking back to her room. "Sorry."
*Great.* Buffy rolled her eyes to no one. Annoyed and disappointed, she fixed herself some cereal and coffee and ate quickly, so she could get moving since she was now concerned about being late.
Before she left, though, she had one last thing she needed to do. She returned to her room and got out the little black velvet dress she'd hung in the closet with care and sat on her bed, holding it close to her heart.
"This is all for you, baby. Mommy's gonna do her best and get you back as fast as I can," she whispered as she laid the dress upon the bed and smoothed it out where her tears and fingers had wrinkled it. "I won't let them see my pain, or who I really am, or anything else that could make them keep us apart. You and I know that mommy's not perfect, but they can never see that, I can't give them any excuse to take you away forever. I'm gonna keep you close to my heart, Katie, and soon we'll be together again. We'll be together again. Just you and mommy." She wiped some tears from her cheeks. "I love you, baby."
She hung the little dress back up, washed the tear stains from her face, smiled prettily for the mirror, sighed deeply, and left for school.
~~~~~~
With not a minute to spare, Buffy walked into the main building of Sunnydale High School. A quick look around showed her that the Administration Office was immediately to her left. It was eight-fifteen, and except for a few straggling students everyone seemed to be in class already. With a deep breath, she entered the door marked 'Administration' and walked up to a long counter behind which were two secretaries, neither of whom acknowledged her presence. She wasn't sure how long she should stand waiting before calling their attention, since they were obviously aware of the fact that she was there for something and had not yet been helped.
Finally, a thin older woman with wispy red hair and glasses dangling from a cord around her neck entered from a further room, and approached the counter, asking with a smile what she could do for her.
"I'm Buffy Summers. I have an appointment to see Mr Snyder at eight-fifteen." she smiled at the woman.
The woman, however, stopped smiling at Buffy and gave her a long look up and down, sniffing as she pronounced, "Mr Snyder has left instructions that you are to go to the library and meet with Mr Giles there." She pulled out a xerox of the floor map, with the way to the library marked upon it, and handed it to Buffy. She then turned and without a further word sat down at a desk and began doing something else entirely. Apparently, Buffy had been dismissed. She noticed the other two women had stopped whatever they were doing, watching her carefully as she left the office. She smiled and gave them a little nod, but they did not respond in any way, just silently watched her leave.
*Okay, and the
strange behavior award goes to....*
The library was relatively easy to locate with the map, and in no time at all she was pushing her way through the double swinging doors into an old-fashioned school library. All the shelving, tables, chairs, card files, stairs and bannisters were of solid polished wood of some kind. A real throwback, and utterly unlike the modern chrome and plastic of her school library in New York. Buffy thought the wood made the room seem more real, more solid and secure. Warm, somehow. She kind of liked it. Odd that there were almost no computers, though.
No one seemed to be around, so she walked up to the counter near the entrance and rang the little bell. Almost immediately a rather tall, handsome, middle-aged man with brown hair and glasses, dressed in tweed, appeared from an inner office and approached the counter to assist her. Buffy was fascinated that the suit was tweed, having never actually seen anyone wearing tweed before in her life.
"Yes, may I help you?" Tweed Man asked politely, and she realized he was British.
*Tweed. British. And the pieces fall into place,* she thought. "I was told to come here and see Mr. Giles," she said cheerfully. "I'm Buffy Summers."
Whereupon Tweed Man's entire countenance changed from 'stick-up-my-butt-but-I'm-here-to-be-helpful-to-confused-students-like-you' to 'ginormous-stick-up-my-butt-and-my-true-purpose-here-is-to-shoot-you-down-like-the-insignificant-bug-that-you-are'.
The change was startling in it's swiftness, and Buffy's face fell for a moment before she caught herself and plastered the fake smile back on again.
"Yes. I've been expecting you. Please have a seat at the table over there," he nodded in a chilly manner and went back inside his office without another word.
*Huh.* she frowned as she sat herself down at the far side of the long wooden table in the middle of the room. She sat waiting for about five minutes and still Tweed Man had not returned.
*I guess I gave the 'strange behavior' award out too soon.*
Buffy started fidgeting with the hem of her skirt, adjusting her top, twisting the strap of her purse, crossing and re-crossing her legs, anything at all to occupy herself while she gazed about the room waiting for the man to come and tell her what to do next. *I thought British people were supposed to be all polite and stuff.* She sighed heavily, and continued to wait. The morning was off to a
great start.
Giles watched the young girl from his office window as she fiddled with her skirt and looked around the room from her seat at the table. She was wearing a tan skirt that fell to mid-thigh, brown leather boots that came up to her knee, and a short-sleeved scoop-neck white cotton blouse that showed just a hint of cleavage. She had long blonde hair clipped on either side with simple barrettes, wispy strands of hair loosely framing her face. She was trim and toned and her skin glowed with just a hint of golden tan, in sync with the December season in California. He wanted to say she looked slutty, but really she just looked very young and pretty and aware of how to dress to her best advantage. And he had to admit, she was stunning.
But she was a stripper. And had a baby. And was a drug dealer. And exposed her innocent child to the unfathomable danger of drugs and weapons, hidden among the toys in her home, no doubt to thwart anyone looking for them, as absolutely no one would ever think that a mother would hide such dangerous things where her baby would have easy access to them. No, she was not just a pretty young girl who needed extra tutoring. She was a dreadful young woman who should rightly be locked in a jail cell somewhere, and not sitting in his library expecting his assistance in any way.
Wasn't she? Then why did she not seem more hardened, more world-weary, in her manner? She can't have come to do the things she did and be untouched by the tawdry evil of it all. Evil? Yes, he would go so far as to say that her world, her life, had been evil. He wished he could reconcile this girl with that tawdriness, but it was difficult.
Aware that he had left her alone for longer than he had intended, Giles picked up the test material and school schedule that he had prepared and walked to the table to start the process of preparing this questionable young woman for entry into Sunnydale High School.
As she had suspected, Tweed Man was indeed Mr. Rupert Giles, the school librarian. As he laid out the testing and tutoring plan for Buffy, she was saddened to note that his tone toward her had not changed in the slightest. She couldn't understand why she was being treated so coldly by the adults she'd met so far. She wracked her brain, searching for something she might have done, to cause this attitude in these people. She was at a loss, though, and decided that either they'd learn to like her and ease up over time, or they would not. Either way, she was not going to let any adult with a nasty attitude keep her from her purpose of fulfilling her probation plan perfectly and getting Judge Holtz to reunite her with her daughter. She had to just toughen up and take whatever they gave out, with the sole thought of Katie in her mind. These people and their hatefulness were for a little while. Katie was forever. It was all for Katie.
Mr. Giles explained that she would be taking five tests that morning, all tests on subjects that were required studies for sophomore students and in line with work she had already started studying when she was in New York. If she passed a test, she would be permitted to 'pass' that particular course and move on to junior year level work. If she failed a test, she would receive special tutoring tailored to assist her to pass the test again in mid-January. A junior had been assigned to tutor her, a very good student named Willow Rosenberg. Buffy would meet Willow today and they would plan the where and when of the tutoring sessions. Before Buffy left today, she would know what subjects she needed tutoring in, and have been assigned textbooks to read and workbooks to study with. She would not return to the campus again until mid-January when she would take her final tests to determine what grade she was properly in and what subjects she would need to take from spring semester until graduation. Did she understand this?
The entire thing was a little overwhelming, but Buffy smiled and nodded and assured Mr. Giles that all was good. And then she took her tests. The first group decided upon were World literature/Composition, Algebra, Biology, World History, and second year French. Since Buffy had done a lot of work in those already as a freshman and at the maternity home, she actually did quite well on these tenth grade tests. She didn't like school all that much usually, but between her strict parents and the no-nonsense attitude of the staff at the excellent private school she'd attended when home, the tests weren't really all that difficult for the most part. She didn't ace them, but she passed them with a good margin to spare.
So really, it was the junior-level course work she'd need to test for now and perhaps study. She passed mid-term level Algebra 2, mid-term level American literature, and mid-term level Art history. She'd need to study Geography, Biology 2, and American history and re-test for those in order to be permitted to enter those classes at the junior level when she started school in a month. If she did that, she'd be right on track. If she didn't, then they would have to consider what coursework to permit her to take second semester. Mr. Giles sternly emphasized that it was in her best interests to pass those three tests in January. She assured him she understood what was at stake.
*More than you know, mean British man.* Buffy groused to herself.
It was discouraging, but it could have been so much worse. She was actually grateful that there were only three subjects that she'd have to really focus on. It made the studying that much easier when only a semester's worth of three studies was going to be crammed into one month. She hoped her tutor was a good one. She was going to need the help.
Tests complete, it was now lunch time. Buffy thought it might be a good idea to have lunch off campus since she wasn't sure if she wanted to sit alone in a roomful of curious students today. She'd pretty much had enough of being the object of curiosity and general meanness. She wanted a break.
Giles would not permit her to leave yet, though. He had decided that it was best for her to eat in the library, but he himself would get her a tray from the cafeteria. He didn't want her interacting with the other students yet. That seemed very odd to Buffy, but he was calling the shots today and she didn't want to get him any more annoyed than he already seemed to be, so she smiled and told him that his plan sounded good.
Giles left to get her lunch.
Spike had managed to get out of class early on a fake hall pass, and unobtrusively made his way over to the library to see if he could spy on the new girl from the round windows in the swinging doors. And there she was!
He was stunned. She was truly beautiful, and she looked fantastic in that little skirt. That little skirt that rode up her thigh tantalizingly when she crossed her legs. She was writing something down in a notebook, pausing to think with a little wrinkle of a frown, chewing her pencil thoughtfully, moving it in her mouth. Then out again. Then back in. Then out. Then in. He thought it was the most erotic thing he'd seen in a long time. Oh, he
had to meet this girl.
He'd seen Giles leave a few moments before, so he decided that now was as good a time as any to introduce himself and feel her out for a date. He wasn't letting anyone get hold of this one before he'd had a chance at her, that's for sure.
Buffy sat writing some notes in the notebook Giles had given to her to use in planning her study work for the next month. She heard the double doors swinging in and assumed it was Giles come back in with her lunch. She was starv---
*Oh. My. God. It's Great Coat Guy.* Her heart slammed in her chest as her lips parted slightly. *He's even more gorgeous now than he was at the mall.* She just stared with wide eyes as he came over to the table. *Here. He's coming here.* She took a breath and put the pencil down.
Great Coat Guy sauntered over to Buffy with a smirk in place, his impossibly blue eyes glittering, and his duster billowing out behind him reminding her very much of some superhero walking in to save the fair maiden from the terrible villain.
Or... like the villain coming to
possess the fair maiden. She had no idea which fantasy excited her more.
"Hello, cutie." Great Coat Guy stopped a couple of feet away with his hands in his coat pockets and a tilt of his head. That amazing sense of being unequivocally, unrepentantly
alive that she had noted in the mall almost a year ago, was very much in evidence today, even more so now that his attention was focused on Buffy.
She let his greeting roll through her like molten liquid. She had gone all gooey just seeing him again. But the British accent pushed her way over the edge. She was mush. She was a puddle of goo and if this amazing boy so much as crooked his finger at her she would follow him without further thought.
"Um, hi," she whispered, then cleared her throat and started again with more control. "I'm Buffy Summers."
"Spike," he said simply as a grin started to spread across his face. "Spike Rayne. Ol' Rupert here is m' uncle."
Buffy just stared at Spike a moment, then thought about what he'd just said. He was Mr. Giles' nephew. The Mr. Giles that apparently hated her for some unknown reason.
*Please God, don't let Mr. Giles mess me up with this boy. This beautiful, sexy, amazing boy.*
Outwardly calm, Buffy smiled sweetly, stood and leaned against the table in what she hoped was a pretty and mildly seductive pose. She hadn't really done the 'pretty and vaguely seductive young thing' pose since that long ago party that had changed her life forever. The manner came easy to her again, and she forced all negative thoughts about it out of her head. She wanted to impress this boy and get his attention. Assuming he didn't already have a girlfriend....
*Oh God. Of
course he has a girlfriend.*
How could he not? It was probably that dark-haired girl she saw him kissing the first of the year. Still. He was looking at her like he'd devour her completely if permitted. And something deep inside of her wanted him to do just that.
"William? What are you doing here?" Giles walked through the doors carrying a tray with some indefinable school cafeteria lunch upon it, and placed it on the table behind where Buffy was leaning. He quirked his eyebrow and waited for his nephew's answer with apparent impatience.
Spike squeezed his eyes shut a moment, then turned an annoyed eye upon his uncle. Not only had Giles interrupted what was proving to be the high point of his day - of his week! - he had also referred to him as 'William' which was not a name he really wanted this gorgeous girl to know yet. 'Spike' held the promise of life and love and sexual exploration. All the name 'William' promised was that he'd do your English homework for you if you just agreed not to pummel him into the ground at lunch. Although this distinction existed only in Spike's head, he believed it with his entire being. Nobody called him William if he had anything to say about it. It was as though he'd exorcised the ghost of little 'William' long ago and did not wish the shy skinny kid he represented to take corporeal form ever again.
Buffy thought that 'William' was a great name, and thought that although he obviously had decided that the moniker 'Spike' was the one he preferred, she'd very much like to get to know who 'William' was, too. Two sides to this beautiful boy. And she also enjoyed the look of annoyance Spike showed when his uncle asked him why he was there. Apparently, this was an unscheduled visit. Could he have come in to meet her specifically? She could dream, anyway.
Giles didn't know why he was surprised that his nephew had managed to show up at just the right time to catch the beautiful young girl alone. He was not unaware of his nephew's reputation among the students. A part of Giles - the neanderthal part that lay deep within all men - was proud of his nephew's sexual prowess and conquests. He buried that part deep down inside as ruthlessly as possible most days. The more civilized part of Giles was appalled that his nephew seemed to have lost his moral compass, his compassion, and his sense of fair play with the opposite sex. As terrible as this behavior was for the girls involved, Giles was more alarmed presently with its effects upon Spike in general, and upon the man he was growing to become. He wanted more for his nephew.
But with this girl there was an entirely new worry. She was clearly not the kind of girl he wished Spike to have anything at all to do with. His primary concern was that she could, with her dreadful background and lack of any moral compass of her own, drag Spike down to new lows that he had not yet achieved. That Buffy possessed both the knowledge and the desire to corrupt his nephew beyond anything he'd achieved thus far he did not doubt for a moment.
Giles was torn. As an educator, he was privy to confidential information about this girl that made her completely unacceptable as a companion for his nephew. But as an uncle, he wanted to shout from the rooftops all that he knew of her and prevent any relationship from forming, not with only Spike, but with any of the children he had grown fond of over the last few years. For a brief moment he considered the girl herself, and how this all might affect her, but tamped down those concerns immediately. She had made her choices before he ever met her, and become something he felt was unredeemable in the process. He needed to worry about his children, not this wanton girl before him now.
With a gruff clearing of his throat and a pointed glare, Giles ordered his nephew out of the library immediately. Buffy noticed he did the same head-tilt thing Spike did, although it wasn't nearly so cute on Giles senior.
Spike smirked and did his own head-tilt, and nodded without taking his eyes off this Buffy Summers girl that had so captivated him. With a grin and a promise to see her around, he sauntered back out of the room, coat billowing.
Giles turned his stare on Buffy, and for the first time she noticed the severe scowl he was directing her way. She straightened with a confused frown and shook her head gently, questioningly. She didn't know why this man seemed so hostile, but it was beginning to really upset her.
"Is something wrong?" she asked tentatively. "I mean, I'm getting the impression that you don't like me or something, and I don't know why."
Giles contemplated the girl before him now, and suddenly saw a very young girl who was perhaps not as certain of herself as she let on, and who seemed hurt that she was being treated rather harshly today. He saw for the first time that she really seemed confused by his attitude. Previously, he had assumed she knew exactly what his issues were and dealt with them by smiling and ignoring them. She wasn't smiling or ignoring them now.
"No, nothing is wrong," he lied easily with a very slight smile. "But your lunch is getting cold as we stand here. Please eat. I expect the young woman assigned to tutor you will arrive in less than twenty minutes, and it were better that you were finished and went home soon after. You have a great deal of material to study, and you have no time to be mooning about over boys, Miss Summers." He nodded briskly at her and returned to his office without another word. He could not allow any latent sympathy for this girl change his opinion of who she was and what she had done. He wouldn't let her get to him.
Buffy didn't know what to think about him any more, but she decided to give up on Giles for now. She needed to find out more about this Spike guy. Perhaps her tutor would be able to give her some information.
Spike had burrowed into her brain a year ago and stayed there. Seeing him today just made his presence inside her psyche all the more real and imperative. She needed to see him again. She wanted to get to know Spike. She
needed to know him.
~~~~~~
Okay, this is divided into two parts because I'm not finished yet. So, part two will post soon, hopefully tomorrow.
Thank you for your patience. This story is just beginning. Please leave a review if you would. Thanks again.
Sara