PRIDE AND PREVARICATION
by perletwo
"That's the last of them," Randy announced. "We've dripped this stuff on every sodding crystal in the place. We've tried white ones, black ones, purple ones, gold ones and rainbow colored crystals, and the only 'reaction' they've had is a bad smell."
"Then we must not have found the right crystal yet," Giles said, taking off his glasses and massaging his temples as he paced. "And yet, there has to be a crystal; I refuse to believe the remnants of witchcraft Willow and Tara found are mere coincidence. And it *must* still be nearby, for the spell to keep affecting us so strongly. Perhaps we should all retrace our steps of last night, to see where we might have lost it?"
"Well, you and Anya stayed up here the whole evening, didn't you? And we've already searched the main floor," Alex said. "Willow and I and Tara and Dawn all went down the trapdoor into the tunnels, and Joan and Randy chased the other vampires out there someplace." He pointed out the plate glass window, where the rays of the full afternoon sun streamed merrily into the shop.
Joan cast a long look at Randy, who edged a little deeper back into the book stacks at the back of the store. "Tell you what, why don't Randy and I take this search? Maybe too many people around would just muddle things up. Randy, you can check the tunnels while I check the square. You weren't more than a couple feet away from me at any time, I don't think, right?"
Randy shook his head, and Joan continued. "Meanwhile, you guys can work on the 'who we are' part of the equation, just in case this lousy hunk of rock never shows up."
Dawn looked up in alarm at that, and Alex gave the girl a not-quite-just-friendly hug. Randy popped Alex open-handed on the bicep as he passed them on the way to the trapdoor, and Alex jumped. "OW!"
"Dawn, could you please check with my dad and see if there's anything you can do to help him and Anya while Joan and I are gone?" Randy asked sweetly, then flinched.
"You OK?" Dawn put a hand to Randy's temple, where he was massaging as he squinted in pain.
"Sudden headache, a sharp pain. Don't know what came over me. Sinus trouble maybe?"
"Serves you right, Tweed-Boy," Alex muttered, and Dawn glared at him in a fine imitation of her sister.
"Maybe you get migraines? I don't know, maybe being down where it's dark and quiet will help," she said gently, and he nodded.
"Thanks, li'l bit. It's better now, just a dull ache like a normal headache. Check in with me Da'?" Dawn smiled and nodded as he started down the trapdoor ladder with a little wave in her direction.
Meanwhile, Willow and Tara were poking their heads into the previously closed doors of the Magic Box's other rooms.
"Wow! There's, like, a whole little gym back here, Willow! Exercise mats and a punching bag and a big old target like for a bow and arrow..." Tara pulled her head back out of the doorway and found herself nose-to-nose with Willow, who had come up behind her to look.
"Very wow," the redhead said, her eyes never leaving the other girl's. Tara gazed down at her feet shyly, a blush creeping up from her neck, then slipped a step or two back to let Willow look. "Yup, that's a gym all right. Everything you need to train a big-time fighter...or a superhero? Maybe this whole shop is, like, a front for Joan the Wonder Woman's Headquarters?"
"And that would make us, what? Her sidekicks? Fellow superheroes? 'Cause I don't feel very super right now, Willow," Tara said, opening and closing the door to a closet full of cleaning supplies. "Or, hey! maybe we're like the kids in the Scooby-Doo cartoons, riding around in the Mystery Machine hunting ghosts!"
"Oh, I hope we're a *little* more mature than the Scooby-Doo Gang, don't you? I wonder why a superhero would need magic on her side, though...."
"Well - vampires, y'know? *Lots* of vampires, last night. I mean, who'd've thought? Vampires? In quiet, nothing-ever-happens-around-here Sunnydale? Maybe magic stuff is what Joan needs to fight that kind of monster..."
"Ohh!" Willow had found Giles and Anya's office space, and her eyes lit up as she spotted their computer setup. "Now you see? Anya can keep her silly spell books. *That's* the kinda magic I'll put my faith in every time!"
Upstairs, Dawn and Anya had settled at the table with the boxes of crystals. A bowl of fresh water and a pile of rags sat between them, and they steadily polished the magic solution off Anya's merchandise while Giles paced and leafed through books.
Alex browsed the stacks in search of more titles that might shed light on their predicament, prowling restlessly, broad shoulders bumping the stacks often in his impatience. The stuffy, dusty ambiance of the magic shop was beginning to get to him; he was starting to yearn for sunshine, fresh air and a problem he could tear into with his muscles instead of his mind.
All four turned their heads as the cowbell sounded again. "I'm afraid we're closed today, ahh, ahh, inventory -" Giles started, back to the door.
"Just me, Mr. Giles. I looked everywhere, and these were the only pieces of rock I found that even came close to fitting the bill," Joan said, holding out a handful of bits of granite-silicon mixtures. "And they're not right for what we're looking for, are they?"
"Hey Dad!" Randy's head popped up through the trapdoor. "No luck. Lotta hunks of rock an' other crap down there, but nothing that looked even a little bit like a crystal."
"Well, we had to try, son. Joan just got back and she didn't have very much luck either," Giles said. "We'll try the solution on these just to be certain, dear...but I believe your instinct is correct. None of these look pure enough to use in a magic spell."
"Ohhh-kay!" Willow cheered. "I'm into the UC-Sunnydale mainframe! Can I have your student ID, Tara? I'll see if I can get into our student records, maybe they'll tell us some of our backgrounds!"
Tara handed the card over, hovering over the redhead's shoulder, and the two found themselves gazing into each other's eyes again, fingertips just touching around the piece of plastic. "Willow?"
"Uh-huhhh..." Willow swallowed hard.
"I, umm...I'm not really sure how you feel about Alex, b-but...I...I..." Tara swallowed as well, breaking eye contact.
"I'm not sure how I feel about Alex either," Willow said softly, brushing the taller girl's hair out of her eyes. "I know when I look at him I get a sense of deep love and security and, and I don't know, commitment?" Tara started to turn her head, and Willow caught her chin and gently turned her back to face her. "But I also know the feelings I have are just as strong and deep and...intense...when I look at *you.*"
"I-I just want you to know, whatever it turns out you've got with Alex, I-I won't let my feelings be an issue. I won't try to get in between you two, or try to make trouble..." Tara felt herself getting lost in the deep blue of Willow's eyes.
"Tara, if there's trouble between Alex and me, I promise it won't be because of you, okay? It'll either be because of him...or because of me." She smiled, stroking Tara's silky hair. Then the computer beeped, and both girls turned their attention back to the screen.
"Hey, Anya?" Dawn asked. "How come you guys don't have a gay pride flag up outside?"
Anya and Giles both looked startled, and Joan shook her head. "Da-awn..."
"Don't we have? I don't know," Anya replied uneasily. "I suppose, it's because we're not the sort of business that makes an issue of it. I mean, a magic shop sort of implies that we cater to alternate lifestyles by itself, don't you think, Rupey?" Giles nodded.
"Yeah, but Randy's kind of fey, isn't he? If he's not gay, I bet some of his friends are. I'd think you'd want to make a show of support," Alex snickered.
"Yes, but that would imply I was proud of him," Giles murmured absent-mindedly. Only Joan was in a position to see genuine hurt flash across Randy's face, and when her eyes met his in understanding, he quickly turned away.
"Randy's not gay," Joan said to break the awkward silence that had fallen over the group.
"Oh? How'd you know, sis? Were you guys canoodling over there last night when I wasn't looking?" Dawn grinned.
"Dawn! 'Canoodling'?" Joan scowled.
"Hanky-panky? Rannygazzoo? Playing footsie?" Giles and Anya met each other's eyes and fought back the giggles.
"Da-awn! Of *course* not! How dare you!"
"Aw, too bad, I was hopin' at least one of us got to have some fun!" Joan grabbed a rag and popped it at her sister, muttering "brat" under her breath. "So. If nothing happened, how come you're so sure Randy's straight?"
"I don't know, just am," Joan said pensively, watching her friend move around the back of the store, pretending he wasn't watching her right back. "It's not anything he's said, or done, exactly...but last night, when we were fighting, if you could've seen him *move*..." Dawn giggled, and Joan snapped, "Look, just trust me, okay? He's not gay. It's one of those things you'll get when you're older."
"Hey, guys, we've made some progress on the 'who we are' front," Willow announced as she and Tara came in from the shop's back rooms. Everyone looked up at the redhead, who brandished a stack of printouts. "Mr. Giles, Anya, I borrowed you guys' computer, hope you don't mind."
"No no dear, it's all in a good cause," Rupert said, and Anya smiled at him.
"Well, I've got student transcripts printed out here for 'Willow' and 'Tara' from UC-S. Turns out my family's around here, maybe they can help," she said.
"I don't know why, but somehow that feels like a big 'no' to me," Alex mused, and Willow looked at him as if he'd gone mad.
"Tara's family's not from around here, and we didn't get any answer at the phone number we've got listed for them," she continued.
"Somehow I get the same feeling about them you get about Willow's family, Alex," Tara said, craning her long neck to look at him over her shoulder. Alex nodded.
"Alex, I didn't find any listing at all for you in the UC-S files, so I guess you're not a student."
"Of course not. Obviously, he's a laborer," Anya said, and Alex glared at her. "Your hands, dear," she explained, and he looked down sheepishly at the telltale calluses on them.
"We did a cross-search for the Revello Drive address, and it's also listed as the address for an Elizabeth Anne Summers," Willow said. "She enrolled last year full time, took a couple semesters and then didn't re-register this year. Maybe she's a former roomie? We seem to be living in some kind of rooming-house, don't you think?" Tara nodded.
"We didn't find any references to Randy Giles in the student files or to Rupert Giles in the staff files, so I'm guessing neither of you are connected with the university either," she concluded.
Giles and Anya looked at each other worriedly, and Randy moved around them to take the boxes of crystal back to their places behind the counter.
"Mr. Giles?" Joan edged up to Giles' side, speaking softly, and turned him away from Dawn.
"Rupert, please, dear. What can I do for you?" He looked down into her worried gray eyes.
"Hey Dawnie! Wanna help me go through some of these books?" The teen brightened and skipped over to Alex's side. Only Randy noticed her snag an amethyst-crystal pendant from a pile of loose crystals on the table and tuck it in her pocket as she went.
"Thanks. I'm worried about Dawn, Rupert. I don't know what day this is, but -"
"- Saturday," Anya supplied, holding up a newspaper as she passed on her way to the counter.
"- okay, that gives us a little time, but I mean, pretty soon Dawn's going to have to go home, go to school, do normal kid things, right?" Giles nodded, pensive. "What if we don't have our memories back by then? What am I going to do with her? I don't want her to go truant or - or get into any trouble in her real life because of all this, you know?"
"Well, Willow and Tara seem fairly certain she lives at the Revello Drive house. If they're right, all we'll have to do is find out what school district the house is in and have Willow use her magic touch on that computer to find out if Dawn's registered there," he replied, pleased to have the answer to something at last.
"Unless she's in private school. See? There's so much we don't know! And what am I supposed to say - 'Dawn didn't do her homework this weekend 'cause we came down with a case of mass amnesia'?"
"Hey, Dawn? Could you bring that stack of leaflets up here to me, please?" Randy called. Dawn smiled at Alex and scampered over to the counter, leaflets in hand. Randy came around the counter and caught her wrist as he took them from her. Leaning down to shield her from the others' sight, he whispered in her ear, "Pendant. Left jean pocket. *Now.*"
"I - I don't -" Randy tightened his grip on Dawn's wrist a little firmer, not quite enough to hurt, and she produced it with a pout. "Gonna bust me?"
Giles put a comforting hand on Joan's shoulder. "It'll be all right, dear. We can figure out enough to get Dawn back into the swim of things before Monday, I'm sure, and Anya and I will back you up with the school if need be. And whatever we can't figure out, we'll work around. You'll see; the important thing is, you don't have to do it all alone."
Randy glanced uncertainly at Joan, who caught the look and took in the situation with a shrewd glance at the pendant half-hidden in Dawn's fingers. "You get off just this once, li'l bit," he whispered. "Hey Anya! Dawn found this in the book stacks. OK with you if I buy it for her?" Randy waggled his eyebrows at his stepmother-to-be. "Employee discount? Family discount? Hmmm?"
Anya looked him up and down with equal parts exasperation and affection. "Okaaay, bring it on up here and we'll haggle, sonny." He shot a triumphant look to Dawn, who rolled her eyes. Anya checked the price tag and wrote a new figure on an invoice slip. Frowning, Randy checked his pockets, then plucked the pen from her fingers and wrote a second figure beneath it. Anya shook her head and wrote a third figure; Randy nodded and produced a handful of bills. Smiling, Anya rang up the sale.
As the cash register chimed its tune, Randy turned back to Dawn and fastened the clasp of the gold chain around her neck. Leaning over her shoulder, he whispered, "Keep this on all the time as a reminder, little one - I'm watching you..."
Dawn gave him a perfunctory scowl before skipping away to rejoin Alex, but her hand drifted up to the pendant, and she found the weight of it oddly comforting. Randy went back around the counter with the stack of leaflets and realized Joan had been watching the whole transaction.
"Wow," Randy breathed as Giles brought a stack of books to the counter. Giles made an enquiring grunt in response, and Randy explained, "Joan just smiled at me. I mean, *really* smiled."
Giles glanced up at Joan, who was admiring Dawn's new necklace and glancing their way as subtly as she could, then back at his son, who was lit up with pride. "And that's a 'wow'?"
"That's, ahhh...*very* wow," the younger man said softly.
"Well then, I'd say you're definitely not gay," he replied, looking at his son with something close to affection.
"That's one of the signs, then?" Randy tore his eyes away from Joan long enough to make sure his father wasn't mocking him.
"Well, it's not the only one. But if a pretty girl smiles at you and it's very wow, it's certainly a big giveaway," Giles said solemnly.
"Yeah, but Joan's not just pretty, Dad. She's...she's..." his voice trailed off into a sigh.
"She is indeed." Rupert smiled. "Congratulations, sonny - you're not a poofter."
"Neither are you, it seems," Randy said softly, with a glance at his father's fiancee. Giles followed his eyes, and a tiny worm of doubt began moving in the pit of his stomach when Anya looked up from her ledger and smiled. "Yes, it does seem, doesn't it?" he replied, looking back at the boy.
"So if we're not poofs, how come we dress like this?" Randy asked, looking both their tweed suits over.
Giles sighed. "We're British, son."
"Oh yerse. Right. I was hopin' I dreamt that bit." Randy grinned and headed out into the store as Joan beckoned to him.
Watching his son chat animatedly with Joan and Dawn, Rupert tried to settle the uneasy feeling in his stomach.
"Mr. Giles? Randy and I are going to have one more look down in the tunnels, okay? Even if we can't find the crystal, maybe there's a clue. Or god forbid, more bad guys lurking around down there," Joan called, and he waved as they left.
He was happy for the boy; Joan seemed a sensible, steady girl, and he felt sure she'd be a good influence on him.
So why didn't he feel so 'very wow' when his Anya smiled at him?
'Because you're twice his age and not raddled by hormones, you git!' he told himself firmly. 'Anya is a lovely, sweet, generous young woman who's shown you nothing but devotion since we woke up in this dreadful situation, and you're damn' lucky she'd even look twice at you!'
Smiling at Anya, who'd just noticed his stare, he stepped heavily on the worm of doubt. And, hands under the counter and out of sight of the others, tore up his ticket to Heathrow.
"Okay. So what are we actually doing down here, ma'am?" Randy said, giving her a mock bow as she dropped off the last rung of the ladder.
"Looking for a safe place for you to wait it out 'til sunset," she replied. "I thought it was better for us to leave through the tunnels this way than have to explain why you weren't using the door like a normal person."
"Oh." He walked alongside her, a little closer in to her side than he really ought. But she didn't object, he noticed..."Thanks."
"No big. And thank *you.* For putting Dawn in her place so neatly." Joan glanced up at him, then back at the tunnel. "Maybe we should've brought a flashlight..."
"I can see down here pretty well, actually, didn't realize you couldn't," he said. "And you're welcome. But I meant, thank you for not telling my Dad...about me."
Joan stopped, turned to face him. "I wouldn't do that to you. You know that, don't you?" He nodded, absorbed in studying the stitching on his shoes. "But I do think you should tell him. He and Anya seem to know an awful lot about this supernatural kinda stuff, y'know? Maybe they can help you."
Randy shook his bowed head. "No! They - he wouldn't understand...You saw him, up there. He's already...I make him ashamed, somehow. Don't mean to, exactly, but I - I just do. If he knew this..."
"What? He'd blame you? For going out and letting yourself get bit? I don't think you're giving him enough credit, pal, or yourself." She sighed. "But you're right, it's not my family, I don't really know what goes on with you guys." They walked on in silence a few yards. "I do know it's gonna be awful hard to keep this secret, though. And it'd be a lot easier to manage your - your condition - if they knew."
Randy shook his head sadly, and she let it drop, hooking an arm through his as they walked on.