Act 1
Cut To:
Ext.
Watchers Council – Parking Lot – Resume
Residual magic flew from Skye’s fingertips as she lowered her arm and ran towards Alex. Dawn was directly behind her. Liz glanced at the Jeep where Jen still lay sprawled on the windshield. Rowena looked back and forth between her children, as if not sure where to go first.
“Go to Alex,” Liz told Rowena. “I’ll check on Jen.”
Rowena simply nodded and made her way to where Alex lay on the ground, unmoving. Skye and Dawn were already there, evaluating him. Nearby, Marty and Belizet helped Liz walk so she could go see Jen, who was starting to sit up from her prone position on the hood.
“Alex,” Rowena called to him as she knelt beside him. “Aunt Dawn and Skye are here. They’ll help you, okay?” She got no reaction from him.
In her mind, she heard Willow call out, “Are the kids okay?” Rowena spared a glance to the Jeep, where Liz and company were helping Jen from the hood. She looked back over at Alex, who was still unconscious and breathing shallow. “Rowena? Are they okay?”
“You stopped Jen,” she replied out loud. “Skye and Dawn are with Alex now.”
Dawn looked over her shoulder and then seemed to realize Rowena must have been communicating with Willow telepathically. Skye was moving her hands just above Alex in various places along his body.
“I’m not sensing breakage,” she told Dawn. “Double check me. I don’t want to move him and break his neck.”
Rowena whimpered slightly. Slowly, Liz and Jen walked over, with the slayer’s bottom lip trembling. Just outside of the immediate circle, Marty, Susan, Belizet and Maddie had gathered, all of whom had various expressions of concern on their faces.
“He…He’s gonna be okay, r-right?” Jen asked. No one answered her.
Dawn’s own hands stopped moving around Alex. “I’m not feeling breakage either,” she replied to Skye, “but there’s a lot of bruising and his brain is swelling.”
The two immortal women looked at each other and said together, “Swelling first.”
Skye asked, “Where’s Matthew and Yuze? We need male energy here.”
Dawn immediately pulled out her phone. She began to text and talk out loud. “I’m calling soon, so pick up…Send.” She then immediately dialed. After a few seconds, she said, “I need you and Yuze outside the gym…Yes, I know I told you to go to the Coven Room. You and Yuze must literally run to the parking lot in front of the gym! There’s a medical emergency…Look for the busted picture window by the parking lot. Just get here, now!”
Dawn didn’t wait for a reply before hanging up.
“Can I help?” Marty asked. “I’m a male.” Belizet nodded and pointed at himself too.
“Thanks, sweetie,” Dawn replied. “But it has to be a magic wielder.”
Both young men looked at each other in disappointment at the same time.
Skye then looked at Susan. “Civilian, watcher or slayer?”
“Watcher,” she replied.
“Damn. We could use a slayer,” Skye responded.
“Let me go find some,” Susan said, already running toward the school.
Maddie began to say, “I–” but stopped when Jen begged, “I’m a slayer. Let me help him!”
“You’re the inflictor – you can’t fix this,” Skye told her angrily. “Has to be someone who didn’t do the harm. So, y’know, you’re out.”
“I have to do something,” Jen begged the witches over her unconscious brother.
“You’ve done enough,” Dawn scolded her.
Jen let out a small sob and then said, “I didn’t mean to–”
“Move. I’m a slayer,” Maddie said, cutting Jen off this time. She didn’t wait for an invitation. She pushed her way past Jen, probably a little too hard, and came to kneel between Dawn and Skye. “I’ll help. What do I do?”
Cut To:
Int.
Watchers Council – Robin’s Apartment – Same Time
The alarm blared throughout the Council. Robin had his telephone to his ear as he paced in the dining room area just off of the living room. Several feet away at the sofa, Jake and Sophie sat with Nikki in the middle. On the teenager’s lap was an untouched bowl of popcorn.
“What’s going on?” Sophie asked Nikki, who simply shook her head in a fashion to indicate she didn’t know.
“Is it Zorgy?” Jake asked. Again, Nikki shook her head.
“I have no idea,” she replied honestly. She put on a forced grin and said, “Whatever it is, it sure is noisy, huh?”
Both of the younger kids nodded nervously.
Robin hung up and waved Nikki over. She handed the bowl to Jake.
As she arrived, he said, “I need you to stay here with the kids, okay? Stay together. Don’t come out until I get back. Promise?”
“Dad, what’s going on?” Nikki asked, sounding scared. “Is what happened in DC happening here?”
“No. It’s probably a false alarm,” he told her.
She didn’t say anything. She simply looked at him in disbelief. “You said you’d always been honest with me, right?”
Robin took a steading breath. “Some students are fighting and there’s a breach in the detention area. I don’t have all the details yet, so please just stay here.”
Nikki nodded confidently. “I’ll look after the kids.”
Robin leaned down, and they kissed each other on the cheek. As he rose, he told everyone, “Don’t open the door until I get back,” before heading out.
Cut To:
Int.
Watchers Council – Outer Detention Area – Moments Later
Zorgy walked down a hallway, alarms continuing to sound accompanied by flashing lights, toward a door marked: “Exit from Detention Area: Keep Closed at All Times.”
Before she could reach it, the door opened, and Gwen, Emma and a handful of other slayers rushed through it. Gwen stopped about twenty feet from where Zorgy stood, electricity crackling over both hands as she held them at her sides.
The Empress sighed. “Haven’t we been over this already? You can’t stop me, Electra, and neither can the rest of your teenage cannon fodder.”
Gwen raised both hands and let loose with twin bolts of brightly glowing lightning. At the same time, however, Zorgy raised her hands and unleashed her own motes of deep red energy.
Briefly, there was total silence in the hallway, not even alarms, as the two forces met. It was as if the point where the streams met sucked in everything around it, including light and sound. Then, all of that potential energy exploded outward, and the noise was deafening.
Cut To:
Ext.
Watchers Council – Parking Lot Area – Same Time
By this time, Jen stood next to her mother and Liz. She turned to the teen watcher and reached for her arm to get her attention. “Liz, I’m so–”
She stopped as Liz pulled her arm away without sparing so much as a glance in her direction. She just continued to watch Dawn and Skye work on the still-unconscious Alex. Jen then folded her arms around herself like a cocoon and began to rock slightly as she fought back tears. A loud boom from the other side of the Council made everyone jump. But the surprise was short lived, as seconds later Matthew and Yuze, along with Ned, came to a sliding stop next to Alex.
“Matthew, over here,” Dawn pointed, so that Matthew was across from Yuze. He quickly moved into position, sitting between Dawn and Maddie. To Maddie’s right sat Skye, and to Skye’s right was Yuze, who held hands with Dawn. The five of them formed a circle around Alex. Skye moved from her location at Alex’s head and told Maddie, “Trade me spots.”
“Is this gonna hurt?” Maddie asked as she followed Skye’s instructions. She sat above Alex’s head. As she took her seat, Skye motioned Maddie to rest her hands on Alex’s shoulders. At that point, Skye and Matthew placed their hands upon Maddie’s hands.
“Would it matter?” Dawn asked.
Maddie shook her head. “Just want to know what to expect is all.”
Skye nodded toward her. “I moved you there near his head because you’ve got slayer power – that’s strong mystical energy”.
Dawn added, “You might feel tingling, but it won’t hurt by normal human standards, much less slayer ones.”
Maddie nervously nodded her understanding.
“Okay, everyone,” Dawn said, “Deep breath in…and out.”
Cut To:
Int.
Watchers Council – Outer Detention Area – Same Time
When the dust settled, Zorgy was the only person in the hallway who had managed to stay on her feet. She stalked forward through plaster dust and pieces of broken wall until she found Gwen, coughing as she tried to get to her feet and deafened by the loud ringing in her ears.
The Empress reached down and picked up the thief by her shirt, pulling her up to eye level with minimal effort. Their eyes met for only a second, Zorgy’s gleeful, Gwen’s hard, before Zorgy slammed her captive’s face into the wall.
Then she did it again. And again. On the third try, the wall broke under the impact, but Zorgy kept a hold on Gwen and pulled her back to face her. Now, streams of blood covered the thief’s face. Only one eye was fully open. It regarded the demon defiantly.
Zorgy clicked her tongue in reproach. “You think this is your heroic death scene? Oh no, I can’t kill you yet. You betrayed me. I can’t kill you until you get the chance to watch my army tear your family limb from limb and then eat their flesh in front of you. It’s the principle of the thing.”
She looked down to see electricity again starting to gather around one of Gwen’s hands.
“No more of that,” Zorgy said. With her free hand, she grabbed Gwen’s covered right arm and twisted. It bent in entirely the wrong direction at the elbow. Gwen screamed.
“Stop. Now.” Zorgy dropped Gwen to the floor, where she lay in a heap, and turned to find Emma standing behind her. The slayer punched the demon hard in the face.
Zorgy’s head shot back. Then, slowly, she brought it back to face her attacker. She smiled.
Emma’s jaw dropped.
Cut To:
Ext.
Watchers Council – Parking Lot Area – Same Time
Alex still lay unconscious in the parking lot, surrounded by the circle of witches with Maddie by his head.
“Isis,” Skye began, “we call upon you to heal this young man who has recently begun to pray at your altar of healing. See that you heal his wounds today, so he can become strong and powerful in your name.”
“Goddess, hear our prayer,” the other three members chanted along.
“Isis,” Dawn began, “borrow the power of this slayer to aid in the restoration of his mind and bring him healing. In your name, we ask.”
“Goddess, hear our prayer,” the four chanted again. Only this time, Maddie knew what to expect and also muttered, “Hear our prayer.”
A glow, an aura, began to circle the group, and Maddie looked on in a sense of wonder, but seconds later, she grimaced but tightened her hold on the hands of those around her. The circle of lights began to dance around them faster and faster, until it was just a single blur. She closed her eyes and wore a pained expression. After a few seconds, the light shot directly up into the sky and disappeared. Everyone, including Maddie, seemed to release the collective breath they had all been holding.
“Did it work?” Maddie asked as she looked around the circle.
“Still the best night ever,” they all heard a soft voice say. They looked down to see Alex with a small grin looking up at Maddie, who was still directly over him. She appeared as if she might cry, but she started to chuckle instead. She gently cupped each side of his cheeks and, from her upside-down position, she kissed him gently on the lips.
Cut To:
Ext.
Watchers Council – Exterior Lawn – Same Time
A door blew off its hinges and fell to the pavement just outside the Council’s outer walls, immediately followed by Emma flying out into the night air. A second later, Zorgy, without so much as a bruise, hopped through the opening and over the fallen door.
Waiting for her, she found an array of at least two dozen slayers, some holding large anti-magic guns, others crossbows. She blithely turned her back to the group and looked up at the upper floor window above her. There she saw Grace sitting in her wheelchair, glaring out at her, arms crossed.
Zorgy raised one arm and waved vigorously with a grin, the way one might do when seeing a friend across the room. Then she quickly clicked the heels of her red sneakers together three more times, and a portal appeared immediately behind her, between her and the slayers. She turned and walked through it. A moment later, it closed again, leaving an empty space in its wake.
As the waiting slayers looked at each other in confusion and Emma tried to pick herself up off the grass, a stone-faced Grace turned from the window and wheeled deeper into her office.
Cut To:
Int.
Rosenberg-Allister House – Kitchen – Same Time
“Alex, can you hear me?” Willow called out, using both her mind and her voice. Buffy and Xander also paused as the three of them all sat on the floor of the kitchen.
“I’m alive,” she heard Alex reply. She released the breath she was holding. “Got two kisses tonight, too.”
“He’s alive, and quite the Casanova,” Willow said with a tiny grin to Buffy and Xander, who both sighed in relief, too. Willow began to tear up when she heard Jen’s voice pop in. She could hear her daughter crying as she spoke.
Cut To:
Ext.
Watchers Council – Parking Lot – Same Time
Rowena was holding the slayer, who was crying and shaking.
“I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry,” Jen repeated. “I don’t know what happened. I don’t…” She didn’t finish the sentence as her sobs took over.
“We’re cursed,” Willow called out from home, while Alex, Rowena and Liz said the same thing in the parking lot.
“That doesn’t matter,” Jen cried. “I shoulda–”
“Baby girl,” Willow called out, “listen to me, you’re not yourself, okay? None of us are, but we’re gonna fix it, o-okay?”
Jen didn’t seem to be consoled.
“You’re gonna be okay, Jen,” Alex told her from his prone position on the ground.
Jen sobbed, “Just stop. I’m supposed to make you feel better, not the other way around.”
“No,” he challenged her. “You’re more broken than me right now.”
Jen let out a loud sob, losing control of her tears again, and just nodded with her hands buried in her face. Rowena held on to her from the front. Liz hesitated for a moment, but then hugged Jen from behind.
“We’re gonna be all right,” Alex reassured her again.
Cut To:
Int.
Rosenberg-Allister House – Living Room – Same Time
“Stuff like this was much easier with slayer strength,” Buffy grunted as she and Xander helped Willow to the sofa. The witch had her arms draped over their shoulders. Unceremoniously, the three of them fell onto the sofa together at the same time.
After a short pause, Willow sat up first. “They cursed the kids too,” she said. “Sure, siblings don’t always get along. And that’s even true of the twins, but they were super close.”
“Cursed?” Buffy asked. Willow only nodded in response.
“Wouldn’t we know?” Xander asked. “Everything associated with us is heavily warded, right?”
Willow paused. “Zorgy handed me my ass this week. If there’s a way to get to us, I’m sure she’s found it…I have to fix this. I have to fix my family. Yeah, I never had a sibling. Xander neither. Buffy has a magically conjured sister, but she never harmed Dawn. In fact, you gave your life a-and refused to kill her to stop the world from ending. Jen and Alex are…were…like that. Maybe even closer, because they didn’t bicker as much as you and Dawn did. But now…”
“So what’s the solution?” Buffy asked.
“I can’t have my kids literally trying to kill each other.”
Xander shrugged. “Maybe it’s like mystery writing? We know the ending: cursed. Okay. So let’s chart how we got here, because maybe that will tell us how to fix it?”
“Start with the end, work our way back?” Buffy asked. Xander nodded.
“That’s one way,” Willow agreed as she rose from the sofa and started toward the bedroom.
“Should she be walking?” Buffy asked Xander. Without waiting for an answer, she looked at Willow’s retreating form and asked, “Should you be walking?”
The couple stood up to see Willow emerge from the bedroom holding the amulet.
“This is another way,” she said as she put the jewel around her neck. It immediately began to glow.
Buffy and Xander’s eyes both got wide, and they raced toward her.
“You may want to take that off,” Buffy said worriedly.
“Yeah,” Xander added. “What she said.”
“I can’t wait anymore,” Willow told them. “In the end, somebody’s got to be the guinea pig.” Willow then got a gloomier look on her face. “Animal testing is sad, isn’t it?”
“It is. Don’t be a test animal.” Buffy closed her eyes and then asked again, “Willow, I’m begging, please take that off?”
“So far, nothing else is happening. I don’t feel any different. I don’t look any different. This was pointless,” Willow said, defeated.
“Fine,” Buffy said. “Take it off. Last person I saw wearing an amulet burst into flames and got sucked into it.”
Willow reached up to pull the chain, but it wouldn’t move. She tried again. The same result. Her eyes began to widen.
“You know I love a good joke,” Xander began nervously, “but joke’s over, okay? Go ahead and take it off.”
Willow tried again and the amulet still would not move. The three of them all looked at each other and, at the same time, they all began to grab at the chain and tug. It refused to budge.
“What-do-we-do!? What-do-we-do!? What-do-we-do!?” Buffy said in a rush, so quickly that each sentence sounded like a single word.
“First, calm down!” Willow said, pushing them gently away. “Nothing bad is happening to me. I feel fine, okay?”
“Are you high right now?” Buffy accused.
“A little,” Willow confessed. “Look, I’m not bursting into flames. It probably won’t be released until I find the totem.” She opened her mouth to speak again, but she noticed that Buffy and Xander’s jaws began to slack. Next came a look of genuine fear. Willow then began to look scared, too. “What-is-it?! What-is-it?! What-is-it?!”
They said nothing at first. They began to point at her chest and her head.
“Amulet looks awake,” Buffy told her. Willow quickly looked down to see it glowing.
“…And your head is on fire,” Xander finished.
“What?!” Willow exclaimed.
Buffy and Xander stared slack-jawed at Willow. The illumination came from the back of her head as the amulet around her neck glowed. Slowly, Xander moved to the side so he could see the back of her head. His look of fear began to turn into one of curiosity.
“What is it?!” Buffy and Willow asked at the same time, impatiently.
“Your head isn’t glowing,” Xander told them. “It’s your hair clip.”
Upon hearing the news, without delay, Willow reached back and pulled the clip from her hair and tossed it across the room. It glowed as it flew through the air, but by the time it touched down across the room it was no longer illuminated.
As Buffy and Xander looked back at Willow, they noticed that she was grasping at the door frame behind her. She struggled to keep herself upright for a few moments before a look of peace came over her and she breathed a sigh of relief. At the same time, the amulet stopped glowing. Willow looked down and then took the amulet off easily.
“What just happened here?” Xander asked.
“Are you okay?” Buffy asked Willow.
At first, Willow didn’t say anything. She silently and slowly shook her head.
“Will, what’s wrong?” Xander asked.
Willow looked at the two of them. “I really need to apologize to my wife.”
Cut To:
Int.
Watchers Council – Chairwoman’s Office – Same Time
“I understand there’s damage in the auditorium area, Robin,” Grace said into the intercom on her phone. Her voice was not raised, but it had an edge to it. It was almost all edge, in fact. “I will be there when I can be there. But I have other priorities right now besides teenagers getting into fights.”
“The Rosenberg twins almost killed each other,” Robin’s voice protested. “I’m not exaggerating. We’re still not sure about Alex. I wouldn’t call it–”
“Handle it!” she snapped, as she pressed the button to cut him off. She looked up. “Yes?” she asked in the same tone.
Shannon stood just inside her doorway, covered in sweat and disheveled, but otherwise with no further injuries.
“Madame Chairwoman,” she said evenly, “I regret to inform you that the prisoner has escaped.”
Grace looked at her for another moment, then back to her computer screen. “Yeah. I got that.”
“I should also tell you that several of the girls are receiving medical attention, including Emma Choi. And Gwen Raiden. She’s…I haven’t seen her.”
“I notice you…aren’t,” Grace said. She kept her eyes on the screen. “In the infirmary, I mean.”
“I…” Shannon closed her mouth, biting her lip in frustration. “She locked me in her own cage. I’m still not a hundred percent sure how. One of the girls just let me out. I came straight here.”
“You’re scared of her,” the Chairwoman said quietly, still not looking at the slayer.
“Ya think!?!?” Shannon suddenly yelled. That got the Chairwoman’s attention. “We should all be scared. This was her plan all along. She let herself get captured, just to fuck with us.”
“Yeah. I got that, too.” Grace took a deep breath and sat back in her chair. “She could have gotten out of that cell whenever she wanted. All of this, the trap, the fight, the dead girls, the interrogation…she planned all of it. She knew what we were going to do before we did.”
“And now,” Shannon told her, “Willow’s gone. The rest of the Coven’s not far behind her. I think she got exactly what she wanted.”
Grace stared at her office window, out into the night. “Maybe. Hell, maybe she can see the future, and just wanted to be here to get a front row seat for the big showdown.”
“Grace…I’m not sure if we could have stopped her at full strength. Now…what are we gonna do?” Shannon became very quiet. “I have a son. I know you might not get it, but…I am going to stop her, or I am going to die trying. And I’m very worried that I know which one of those it’s gonna be.”
Looking over at her, Grace asked, “How long ’til your birthday?”
“This week.”
“Zorgy’d better hurry up then.”
Cut To:
Int.
Rosenberg-Allister House – Outside Bedroom/Living Room – Later
“Apologize to your wife?” Buffy asked Willow.
The witch nodded. “I can’t explain it, but when I threw away the hair clip, a sensation washed over me. It’s almost like the veil has been lifted, and I can actually see the real world. So again, I really need to apologize to my wife.”
Willow seemed to be lost in her thoughts for a moment, but she shook her head as if to pull herself back into the conversation. Without a word, she handed Buffy the amulet.
“What do you want me to do?” the blonde asked.
“Put it on,” Willow and Xander both said.
Buffy looked offended. “When did I draw the short straw?”
“I’m sure it will help you,” Willow told her.
“It worked for you, sure, but maybe the next wearer turns to stone or jelly or something equally horrible?” Willow and Xander didn’t reply. They looked at her silently as if waiting to see if she was done. “Fine,” Buffy muttered and put it around her neck.
She stood still for a moment and then reached toward the amulet again. “See? I’m not glowing. I don’t have an enchanted belt or…” She tugged on the chain, but it stayed in place and then immediately lit up. She grumbled.
“You were saying something about not being cursed,” Willow said amicably. “Please continue.”
“Sarcasm looks ugly on you, Will,” Buffy replied. “Am I stuck with this forever?”
“No,” Willow said. “Just until we find your totem.” She motioned the two of them to follow her to the guest room.
“Why would I have one?” Buffy asked as the trio climbed the stairs.
“Xander probably has one, too,” Willow replied.
“Me?” he said.
“Yep,” she replied. “They’re amplifiers, so they take your insecurities and magnify them. Maybe even ones you didn’t realize you had…” Willow took on a look of shame. “Like being a has-been and longing for your days of youth.”
Buffy and Xander both looked at each other in surprise. “You’re not a has-been,” Buffy told her.
Xander added, “Not even close. You activated all the slayers, you astral project, you can cross dimensions–”
“And what have I done recently?” Willow asked them pointedly.
“Well, not lately,” Buffy admitted. “But the reason isn’t you. Actually, I take that back, it is you.”
“Way to cheerlead, Buff,” Xander criticized.
“I mean, it’s because of her that it’s been decades since an apocalypse.” As they made it to the landing, Buffy turned and took Willow’s hands in hers. “You and the Council that you helped build have kept it that way. You’re not a has-been. You’re…” Buffy trailed off, as if waiting for the right term to come to her. “…a gatekeeper. And you’ve kept the threats away, and now you stand ever ready at the gate.”
Willow pointed down to her hair clip on the floor. “Not well enough, obviously,” she said.
“So you’re not perfect,” Buffy replied. “Welcome to the club. None of us are. But you’re not a has-been in any area of your life. You’re still crushin’ it. Now, me on the other hand…”
“No,” Willow told her. “You’re important to the Council – both of you actually – and-and if the forces of darkness can drive a wedge or create enough distress, then it works to their advantage. In this case, it’s Zorgy who wins.”
“Then we don’t let her,” Xander said.
Cut To:
Int.
Rosenberg-Allister House – Guest Room – Continuous
“I still can’t help but think…why? Why us, though?” Buffy asked again.
Willow began to look around the room with the couple.
“You oversee one of the best slayers at the Council,” Willow pointed out. “That kid’s goin’ places, so if that relationship can be thrown off its game, all the better for Zorgy. Same with Xander. He’s the Weapons Master. If he’s distracted by his shortcomings, that can be enough so he doesn’t do his job properly. And if she can get you to fight with each other, then all the better. Point is, you both matter. That means you both are potential targets.”
“Hey Will,” Buffy called over as she looked in the box from her office. She took out the picture frame that had the image of her and Emma. It was glowing. “What now?”
Cut To:
Int.
Watchers Council – Robin’s Apartment – Same Time
“Pretzel has two moms, like us,” Sophie said happily as she pointed at the screen that was showing an episode of Bluey. On the sofa, with a bowl of popcorn, were Sophie, Nikki and Jake.
“What?” Jake asked, looking up from his tablet.
“Pretzel said ‘moms’ and not ‘mom’,” Sophie said as she continued to point at the screen. “Pretzel has two moms – that’s cool.”
“Uh huh,” Jake absently, agreed with his nose again buried in his tablet. “I’m not seeing anything online about what’s happening at the Council,” he added to Nikki, who was seated between them.
“At least the alarm stopped,” Nikki told them.
“That was annoying, huh?” Sophie said. “Like we get it. It can stop already.”
A knock at the door made everyone freeze. No one moved or spoke.
Sophie whispered, “Your dad said not to open it,” as they all looked at the door.
Nikki handed the bowl to Sophie and turned to Jake. Also whispering, she told him, “Cue up the Council emergency number and if someone comes in we don’t know, you call. No hesitation, okay?”
Jake picked up his phone and then, after hitting the screen a couple of times, he nodded to Nikki. Another knock came, this time more urgently. Nikki had begun to walk toward the door when she heard the voice on the other side.
“Jellybean? You guys in there?”
Nikki quickly closed the distance and looked out the peephole to see her mom on the other side. She quickly unlocked the door, but left the chain across the opening.
“Are you really my mom?” Nikki asked. “Not a shapeshifter?”
“Shapeshi…what?” Faith asked. “Your dad had to go downstairs about the breach, and he asked me to come over with you guys. Safety in numbers and all that.”
“How do I know it’s really you?” Nikki asked. “Dad said not let anyone in.”
Faith looked annoyed at first, and then she smiled. “Good to know you’ll listen to your dad when things get hairy.” She took out her phone and put it on speaker.
“What’s wrong?” Robin immediately asked in concern.
“Nikki ain’t got enough tinfoil. Nah, it’s cool, but she won’t let me in because you said not to let anyone in and I might be a shapeshifter. What with her history with this and, you know, mine, she’s being smart. So you gotta give her props for being on the ball.”
Robin’s chuckle could be heard from the other side. “I’m sorry, Nikki. Hold on.” There was a lull, and then Nikki watched her phone light up with a text from her dad. “Yes, she’s your real mom.” He then told her, “I just sent a text that says yes, she’s your real mom. And I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
“Okay,” Nikki said as she closed the door to unhook the chain. At the same time, Faith thanked Robin for his help and hung up. Once the door was open, Faith walked inside, and Nikki closed and locked the door behind her immediately.
“Hi, Aunt Faith,” Sophie said from the couch as she waved. “Pretzel has two moms!”
Faith looked to Nikki for clarification, and the junior watcher just grinned and said, “It’s a dog cartoon called Bluey.”
She nodded her thanks to Nikki and then walked deeper into the room. “That’s cool,” Faith said to Sophie. “That’s just like you.”
“That’s what I just said!” she replied excitedly.
Nikki and Faith looked at each other and smiled over her excitement.
“Did you want something to drink?” Nikki asked her mom.
“No thanks, I’m good,” she told her, before coming to sit beside Sophie. “It’s nice when you see someone who looks like your family on TV, huh?” The young girl just smiled and nodded quickly. “Y’know, when I was dating Nikki’s dad, we rarely saw a show or a commercial with a mixed race couple.”
“Nuh ah,” Sophie challenged.
“For real. It’s true. Now it’s hard to find a soda pop or a laundry detergent spot with a straight white couple.”
“That’s true,” Nikki considered. “I never really noticed until now.”
Faith shook her head. “Wow. And this is why I feel old. I remember something socially that you’ve never experienced…I have to say, the times they are a-changin’. That’s also a song by Bob Dylan, by the way.”
“Bob Dylan?” Jake and Sophie both said at the same time.
Faith just closed her eyes as Nikki giggled.
Cut To:
Int.
Rosenberg-Allister House – Guest Room – Same Time
“O-Okay, this is good,” Willow said as she motioned toward the glowing picture frame Buffy held. “We found your totem, so you just…throw it away.”
“Really?” the blonde asked. “It’s that simple?”
“Renounce your possession of the item,” Willow said, nodding. Buffy shrugged. She tossed the frame into a nearby waste can and it immediately stopped glowing. Buffy reached for the chain of the amulet, but then she stopped. A look of realization crossed her face. When she pulled the chain, the amulet easily moved off her neck. She handed it to Willow.
“How do you feel?” Willow asked.
Buffy paused. “Weightless. Like you said, I had this cloud I didn’t know I had, and now…I’ve been keeping Emma at arm’s length, because that’s what Giles did with me after high school. I swore I wouldn’t do the ‘tough love’ route, but then I doubted if my advice was helping or hurting her growth, so I pushed her away and…I’m babbling.” Buffy stopped and turned to her husband with a grin. “Okay, you gotta put this thing on.”
Xander shrugged and put it around his neck. Nothing nearby was glowing, so they began to look around the room. After a few moments, Willow said, “I’m not seeing anything here.”
“Maybe I’m not affected?” Xander then tried to take the necklace off, but it wouldn’t budge. “Okay, kills that theory. Where’s my totem?”
Willow suggested, “Let’s check your possessions downstairs.”
Cut To:
Int.
Rosenberg-Allister House – Living Area – Moments Later
The trio walked around the room. Buffy looked at Xander’s shoes, while Willow held up his normal-looking cell phone.
“Whatever it is,” Willow began, “It’s not here. It’s got to be at your office at the Council, your apartment or your vehicle.” Willow began to make her way over to the foyer table. “Let’s go to your shop, where…” She trailed off, “…I can’t go, since I’m not permitted on Council grounds,” she added despondently.
“But we are,” Buffy said, trying to sound hopeful. “Look after Joyce for us?” Willow nodded. “Milk’s in the fridge. We’ll go, check on the twins and then I’ll report back. Besides, I have an idea on getting your clearance again. Be back in a flash,” she said as she dragged Xander with her toward the front door.
Cut To:
Int.
Vor – Tunnel – Same Time
Two shadows cast against the craggy tunnel flickered as they grew larger. The verdant flames from the sconces swayed as Zorgy and Krog passed by, and the peculiar veins in the rock briefly glowed as if sentient, acknowledging their presence.
“How was your vacation, Empress?” Krog asked.
Zorgy did a double take and asked, “Did you just make a joke?”
He nodded once and said, “Yes, your highness. I’m experimenting with humor.”
Zorgy grinned. “For a first effort, kudos.”
“Thank you. And I should also add, I am relieved at your return,” Krog expressed while bowing his head under an inconveniently placed stalactite for one of his height.
“Aww, I like you too.” She playfully wiggled a forefinger up to his face, “But, like, as if it was even a question.”
A gravelly “hmm” preceded his answer, “Quite.”
“Man, you should have seen it. Maybe not my best work… what am I saying, no, it totally was. It was so much fun, and you know something? Council cereal? Best cereal. Inform the hordes to absolutely not ransack their kitchen.”
“I shall and, do forgive me, my Empress, but I bear news I fear shall dampen your…”
She came to a stop, “Fun?” Her tone low, eyes narrow, and lips pursed and scrunched into the corner of her mouth.
Krog came to a halt also. His ember eyes darted to anywhere but Zorgy’s as he tried to find the correct word. “Uh, ‘fun’, yes.”
After a beat, Zorgy hastily hunched her shoulders with a smile and skipped ahead. “I think you were going for ‘elation’, but I get it, it’s been a long day, formality be damned. So, hit me with the disappointment. I’m sure I’ve 4D chess’d it out on a whiteboard somewhere.”
“Our sources suggest that the Council have come into possession of a totem detector,” he rattled off all at once.
There was a screech, more of a scuff given the rough surface beneath their feet, as Zorgy’s Chucks grated against the rocks. She blinked her eyes up to meet his and said, bleakly, “Oh…well that’s not great” before rolling her tongue around her closed mouth.
“Indeed.”
Hands on hips, her fingernails tapped her studded Grunge belt. “Source? The mage plant at the Cleveland Amazon depot? The CitiRokk Slayer?”
“Though Stacey Graham’s TikToks continue to provide a covertly invaluable insight into the Council’s dealings while she…I do believe the colloquial term is ‘throws shapes’, alas it is not her.” He reached up to a front pocket on his leather jacket, it crunched as he put his hand inside and produced an iPhone. With one very large and deliberately unsure finger he pressed the screen, hard, and a video began playing. Zorgy scooted up beside him as he added, “The watcher’s cat camera has shown the witch adorning an amulet of Brellian design which revealed her totem. The slayer and her man-thing were also present.”
“Lehane and Robin-got-Wood?”
“Ms. Summers and the carpenter. It is safe to say that it will not be long before the entire Council is cleansed.”
“Well… shit.”
Cut To:
Int.
Watchers Council – Xander’s Workshop – Later
The lights came on with the flick of the switch. Buffy and Xander didn’t see anything amiss, or aglow for that matter. Without comment, Xander motioned them to his office inside the workshop.
Cut To:
Int.
Watcher’s Council – Xander’s Office – Continuous
Xander and Buffy stood in the doorway looking at his desk.
“I’ll be…” Xander muttered.
They made their way inside and found a contractor pencil glowing on his desk. He picked it up and then tossed it in the trash. “I renounce thee, devil pencil,” he proclaimed boldly. Then he tugged on the chain around his neck, but it wouldn’t move. “What the hell?”
Buffy didn’t seem impressed. “Very funny.”
“Seriously, Buff. It’s not moving.” He motioned for her to try herself and she did, but she was also unsuccessful. “Did it run out of juice? Am I wearing this forever?”
“Let me call Willow,” Buffy said as she picked up her phone.
“Hey Buff, any luck?” Willow greeted her over the speaker. In the background, Buffy could hear Joyce crying.
“Is everything okay?” Buffy asked in concern.
“Oh yeah. She just woke up hungry,” Willow replied. “We’re warming a bottle now. What’s up?”
“Xander found his totem. A contractor pencil.”
“Great!”
“Not really. The amulet’s still not coming off after he threw it away.”
Xander held his finger up in the air. “Hold on. I bought a box of them.”
Buffy followed him and he opened his supply closet to see the box of pencils glowing. He brought them out and tossed them into the trash. Nearly immediately, the glow of both the amulet and the box stopped. Xander gripped the cabinet, and Buffy held on to his hips, as if ready to catch him as needed.
“Did that work?” Willow asked.
“Yeah, it worked,” Xander said. “Holy shit.” He looked over at Buffy and his look of realization turned into one of apology. “You know I think the world of Emma, right?” Buffy nodded and grinned. “Let’s revisit this at a later date. For now, we need to find more Council members.”
“We will,” Buffy said firmly. She paused. She motioned her head toward the discarded pencils and asked Xander, “Did the Council get those or did you?”
“I bought them,” he replied.
“Do you remember where?”
“Amazon,” he answered after a brief pause. “Why?”
Buffy held her phone closer, even though it was still on speaker. “Where did you get your hair clip, Will? Do you know?”
“Amazon,” Willow replied. “Your frame?”
“Amazon,” Buffy said. “I’m seeing a pattern.”
“Jesus, Bezos is really really evil?” Xander offered.
Cut To:
Int.
Watchers Council – Hallway – Later That Night
Buffy and Xander walked through the hallway leading toward the gymnasium. They saw Robin and Grace by the busted window and made their way over.
“Great God Almighty,” Buffy said. “Jen threw Alex through a window?”
“No,” Grace replied. “Alex threw Jen through the window and, thanks to slayer strength, she was able to stand back up. Skye and Dawn did triage on Alex, who was in far worse shape from the fight. They took him up to the infirmary. He’s there now and expected to recover soon.”
“They did a lot of damage…to each other and the window,” Robin added sadly.
Xander shrugged and then motioned to Buffy. “I’m sure the kids will be okay. I mean, they are, aren’t they?”
“Medics took Alex, and he was conscious,” Robin offered. “Jen walked away on her own feet.”
“Okay, very promising,” Xander told him. “As for the window, I can’t tell you how many of them I replaced for this one here over the years.”
“It’s kind of our cute-meet story,” Buffy teased. “Things were constantly being broken around me, so I figured, hey, I’ll marry my contractor.”
Buffy and Xander grinned, but when Grace didn’t seem amused, they both pursed their lips at the same time.
“We’re trying to find a company to come out tonight,” Grace supplied.
“You don’t need that,” Xander said as he walked over closer to the window where Robin was standing. “Get some plywood…five eighths of an inch or three quarters inch will do. Have the slayers bring some down from the shop. I’ll help. We’ll secure it here…here and here,” he added, pointing. “Someone doing emergency glass repairs at this hour will cost us an arm and a leg over normal price.”
“No shit,” Grace replied. “While it’s not as much as burning down a museum, it’s not cheap. Those Rosenberg kids are costing us a lot of money.”
“Well,” Buffy began, “what if I told you, it wasn’t their fault.”
“I have an auditorium full of witnesses who say otherwise.”
Buffy grinned and then pulled the amulet from her purse. She didn’t wait for an invitation. She put it over Grace’s head, causing the Chairwoman to back away in surprise. It was too late, though. Buffy had it on her. The former slayer looked over her shoulder at Robin and said, “You and your ex are on my list, too, along with your watcher extraordinaire daughter.”
“This is the unknown amulet!” Grace said. She reached up and pulled on the chain, but it wouldn’t move. “It’s stuck! It’s stuck!” she panicked.
“Calm down. You’re fine.” Buffy told her, gripping her upper arms. “Willow figured out the amulet. Long story short? You’re cursed.”
Grace took a breath, as if realizing she was okay with the amulet around her neck. Almost as an afterthought, she said, “Liz mentioned something about tonight’s drama being curse related. So did Alex, as Jen was trying to beat him to death. She wouldn’t listen, though, from what I’ve been told.”
“You didn’t see it happen?”
“No, I was too busy watching Zorgy escape and Emma getting thrown through a door.” Immediately, Buffy looked concerned, her eyes going wide. “She’s okay. Everyone survived. But Zorgy is gone.”
Buffy frowned. “Did you put Jen in the stockade for the fight?”
“No,” Grace sighed. “Rowena begged me not to, because Jen is devastated. I saw her; she looked catatonic. And yes, I know it’s against protocol, and yes, I know I’m playing favorites. But even Alex said he’s not pressing charges. So that leaves the property destruction, which I could hold her on, but…” As Grace was talking, Buffy was walking around her, looking at her body from head to toe. Finally, Grace asked. “What on earth are you doing?”
“Office or apartment?” Buffy wondered out loud to herself, not even looking at Grace. “Office,” she said with certainty, and motioned Grace to follow her. When Grace didn’t move immediately, Buffy kept in motion, while looking back and waving for the Chairwoman to follow her. “Come on. Let’s roll…literally.” When Grace still didn’t move, Buffy walked back and then pushed her wheelchair back toward the Council building. “Fine. Make me do all the work.”
Cut To:
Int.
Watchers Council – Waiting Room Outside Grace’s Office – Moments Later
The pair rounded the corner and immediately could see a green glow coming from under the crack of Grace’s office door.
Grace turned to Buffy as they got closer. “Why is my office glowing? Did the other totems glow like that?” she asked in concern.
They were now in front of the door. Grace had her keys in her hand, but still didn’t put them in the lock.
“They glowed, but not that much,” Buffy said softly as she looked at the light shining at their feet. “Well, except Will’s head that was kinda on fire.”
“What does that mean?” Grace asked with growing concern.
Buffy shrugged. “Umm. Must be pretty big.” She shrugged again. “Guess we have to open door number one to find out what we’ve won.”
“That’s not reassuring.”
“Look,” Buffy relented. “I don’t think it’ll be bad. I think it will be large. But again, no to the bad. However, we won’t know until…” Buffy motioned her hand toward the doorknob for Grace to unlock it. She did, and when they opened the door, both women recoiled slightly as green light poured out into the hallway.
Yet again, Buffy shrugged and knelt down beside Grace. “That’s a lot of green.”
“Now what do I do?” Grace asked, both women remaining rooted to the spot.
They both kept looking at the glowing green chair behind Grace’s desk illuminating the room and the hallway in a soft green glow.
Buffy snorted. “The chair of the Chair. On some level, you have to admire Zorgy’s sense of comedic irony.”
“Yeah, she’s a real John Oliver. Can we get back to what I have to do to fix this?”
“Sure. Renounce it. Say that chair is no longer your possession, and actually mean it.”
“Trust me. It’s gone. I’m not sitting in that ever again. Or anyone else, for that matter. It’s getting destroyed. You know what…” She motioned to Buffy, waving her hand a couple of times to get her attention. She slapped her hand into Buffy’s and pulled herself up out of the wheelchair. “I’m done with sitting. Crutch me until I get ’em.”
Almost as soon as the final words were out of Grace’s mouth, the chair stopped glowing, as well as the center of the amulet. Simultaneously, she appeared a little woozy and fell against Buffy’s shoulder as the former slayer scrambled to prop her up.
“Oh my God,” Grace said quietly. Immediately after, she repeated the statement, but this time with a sense of panic in her voice. “Oh my God!”
“Yeah, that seems to be the consensus-slash-normal reaction so far,” Buffy said, “and I’ll bet you twenty bucks where you got that chair.” Grace held her hand out to take the bet. “Say it in three, two, one.”
“Amazon,” they both said at the same time. “Pay up,” Buffy added, holding out her hand again. “Oh, and I need that back now,” she said, nodding to the amulet.
As if not sure what would happen when she touched it, Grace gingerly reached up and removed it quite easily. A look of surprise washed over her face. She handed it to Buffy.
“Are you still living with Willow?” she asked.
Buffy nodded. “Yeah.”
“Can you deliver her a message, please?”
Buffy shook her head. “No.”
Grace looked concerned.
Buffy continued, “Not until I deliver her message to you.”
Grace cocked her head in curiosity.
Cut To:
Int.
Watchers Council – Infirmary Hallway – Later
Brell, Giles and Becca rounded the corner to see Rowena waiting with Dawn and Skye. Jen, now with her hair tied up in a ponytail, Marty, Belizet and Liz, with a wrapped ankle, were also waiting. Marty rushed up to greet his parents, while Liz waved from her seated position. Jen continued to stare blankly at the wall in front of her.
“Any news?” Becca asked.
Marty rubbed the back of his neck. “Liz has a twisted ankle. As for Alex, nothing yet. But he was conscious when they took him back, so that’s good, right?”
“Absolutely,” Giles said optimistically.
“His date Maddie went home,” Marty continued, “but she asked me to text her when he’s allowed to have visitors.”
Wordless, Rowena walked up to the newcomers, and Becca opened her arms wide to receive her. The watcher took the invitation and began to sniffle. Becca ran her palm over the back of Rowena’s head.
“It’s gonna be okay,” she told the distraught mother.
Upon seeing his dad, Belizet waved towards him and turned to Liz. “Looks like my ride’s here.”
“I’m sorry things got so crazy,” she apologized.
“Please,” he told her. “I’m sorry I didn’t help more. And I feel like I should say that I did have fun tonight…before…” He didn’t complete the thought.
Jen continued to sit next to Liz, not engaging in the conversation and continuing to stare catatonically at the wall in front of her, where her brother was a few feet on the other side.
“I’ll text any news about Alex,” she answered.
Belizet gave her a nod of thanks and had begun to stand up when she reached for him, making him stop. She grabbed his tie and playfully brought him toward her, then softly kissed him on the lips. “Thank you for accepting my invitation tonight.”
“Thank you for asking,” he said with a smile.
She released his tie and he rose, making his way to his dad with a smile.
As Becca consoled Rowena, Giles made his way over to Liz, taking Belizet’s vacated spot.
“How are you?” he asked.
Liz didn’t say anything at first. She rested her temple on his shoulder and said, “Tired.”
He grinned sympathetically and put his arm around her shoulder, pulling her closer as Jen continued to stare ahead. A few seconds later, Dr. Miller turned the corner and began to walk toward everyone waiting. With the exception of Giles, Liz and Jen, everyone stood upon his arrival or moved closer.
“The tests and scans look great,” the doctor began. Everyone released a collective sigh.
“The swelling?” Dawn asked.
“Gone. I would be remiss if I didn’t thank you and your fellow Coven members for giving him the immediate care he needed. It may have been a much different situation had you not. He’s going to be sore. He’s going to be tired. But he is healing, rather quickly, I should add. I think with continued help from the Coven he’ll heal at an even quicker rate. However, I’m basing that on my prior experiences with injuries and the Coven. Every case is different, though, but I think his prognosis is very promising. If he is eating, drinking and having normal bodily functions tomorrow morning, I would feel safe releasing him. But I want to keep him overnight for the time being.”
“Can we see him?” Rowena asked.
“Absolutely. All we ask is that we keep noise levels down for the other patients.”
“Certainly. Thank you, Dr. Miller. We appreciate you coming in this evening.”
Dr. Miller took Rowena’s extended hand with a smile. “And if you have any other questions, let me know.”
As the doctor went away, the circle began to talk amongst themselves in little groups, until Rowena said, “Let’s go see him.”
The group began to walk toward the door to the infirmary, with the exception of Jen, who continued to stare.
“Wait.”
Everyone who was moving paused and turned to look at Jen who spoke the single word.
Fade Out
End of Act One