Darkness (Book Two, Buffy the Vampire Slayer)

chapter 7 - Lie to Me

Buffy had seen Angel talking to a girl in the park last night. Both of them seemed like they had a past.

In class, Buffy and I were passing a note back and forth.

I wrote: Do you know who she was? And passed it to Buffy.

"Well, it seems like Louis XVI was just sort of a weak king," a boy said.

Buffy and I glanced at each other.

Buffy started to write an answer to the note.

"That's fair enough," the teacher said. "Uh, any other impressions?"

Willow sat behind me. Xander sat in front of me. Cordelia sat in front of Buffy, next to Xander.

Xander looked over at Cordelia with his head propped up on his fist.

"I just don't see why everyone's always picking on Marie Antoinette," Cordelia told us. "I can so relate to her. She worked really hard to look that good, and people just don't appreciate that kind of effort."

Buffy had finished her answer to my note, handing it back to me.

I held it subtly over my shoulder to let Willow see.

No. Dark hair. Old dress. Pretty

"And I know the peasants were all depressed..." Cordelia trailed off.

"I think you mean 'oppressed'," I told her.

"Whatever," Cordelia told me. "They were cranky. So they're, like, 'Let's lose some heads'. Uhhh! That's fair. And, and Marie Antoinette cared about them. She was gonna let them have cake."

I wrote: Vampire? And handed it to Buffy.

"Yes, well, that's a very interesting perspective," the teacher told us  "Um, would anyone else like to comment?"

Buffy opened the note.

The bell rang.

Buffy, Willow, Xander and I walked out of class.

"I don't know," Buffy told us. "I don't think so. They seemed pretty friendly."

"Who's friendly?" Xander asked.

"No one," I told him.

"Angel and a girl," Willow told him.

"Willow, do we have to be in total share mode?" Buffy asked.

"Hey, it's me," Xander told us. "If Angel's doing something wrong, I wanna know. 'Cause it gives me a happy."

We walked into the lounge.

"Mm, I'm glad someone has a happy," Buffy told him.

"Aw, you just need cheering up," I told her. "And I know just the thing." I pretended to dance. "Crazed dance party at the Bronze."

"I don't know," Buffy told me, crossing her arms over her chest, depressed.

"Very calm dance party at the Bronze?" I asked. Buffy gave him a glum look. "Moping at the Bronze."

I sat on a couch next to Willow.

A guy walked up the steps behind Buffy. "I'd suggest a box of Oreos dunked in apple juice, but maybe she's over that phase."

Buffy uncrossed her arms and turned around. "Ford?"

"Hey, Summers," Ford told her, wrapping his arms around her. "How you been?"

"Oh, my God!" Buffy told him. "What are you doing here?"

They let go and held both hands.

"Uh, matriculating," Ford told her.