Charlie slid into the chair next to Vonnie and tried to be inconspicuous. Unfortunately, with her height it was hard to slip into a meeting of a dozen people without anyone noticing.
The tweed-clad Watcher addressing the meeting gave her a frosty glare. "So kind of you to join us, Miss Giles."
She grinned at him and waved. "I heard you were giving out cookies after. Couldn't resist."
Around the room, muttering had started as soon as the Watcher named Charlie. Apparently everyone knew the name "Giles". Charlie shrugged. They would have found out eventually - maybe if they knew now, the speculation would die down faster.
"What kept you?" Vonnie whispered. "I thought you were right behind me."
"I had a phone call," Charlie answered, just as quietly. "My parents wanted to make sure this place was still standing."
"If we could have some quiet?" the tweedy Watcher said, glaring around the room. "As I was saying, I am Alfred Smith, and I am the coordinator for first year trainees. Mr O'Connor, the head of this Institute, was due to have presented this meeting but he has been called away on an important matter."
Beside her, Charlie felt Vonnie sigh but the redheaded girl said nothing.
"Welcome to the Stuart Institute," Smith continued, referring to his notes. "Here you will be trained in the skills and knowledge you will need to be a Watcher. You have all been assessed and your class schedules have been assigned according to your level of prior knowledge. If anyone feels a need to appeal these decisions please see me after this meeting.
"What, you may be asking yourself, does a Watcher do? Put quite simply, we are the last line of defence against the demons and evil that seeks to destroy or enslave this world. When you leave this place you will possess all the knowledge you need to instruct a Slayer. In time it is hoped that you will be assigned a potential Slayer and instruct her. Some of you may have the good fortune to be given a Slayer that is Chosen. Some of you may not. But never forget that in our war against vampires we need each and every one of you."
Charlie frowned. Smith was reciting the introductory leaflet from their welcome packs. Watchers would not know original thought if it bit them on the nose.
Smith took a deep breath. "The Stewart Institute has been established to train a new breed of Watchers. In addition to arcane law and combat skills you will be instructed in how to deal with modern Slayers. You may have already noticed your behaviour and psychology classes. We intend to give you help relating to a young Slayer and the skills to provide counselling and trauma therapy should she need it. Too many Slayers have been lost to us because they could not cope with the rigours of their destiny; that is going to change."
Huh, this is new, Charlie thought. Maybe they can be original after all.
"Over the coming weeks and months we hope you will gain an understanding of why these changes have been made," Smith said, shuffling his notes. "Please remember to hand in your consent forms before you leave this meeting. Anyone who does not comply will not be able to start his or her classes tomorrow. I hope you have familiarised yourself with the rules and regulations here. Anyone contravening them will be suitably punished. Does anyone have any questions? No? Good. Then this meeting is closed."
Charlie looked to Vonnie with a raised eyebrow. "Short and sweet."
Vonnie grimaced. "Father must have left instructions otherwise it would have been about four times as long. Smithy is famous for his ability to waffle."
"Ah." Charlie stood and stretched before offering a hand to drag Vonnie up. "I was anticipating intense boredom, but I seem to have been saved. Do you fancy dinner?"
A quick look around the room had already convinced Charlie that the promised cookies were not going to appear, and she was starving. Lunch seemed like a long time ago.
"Did someone mention food?" Pat asked from behind her. "Where and who's buying?"
"Who said we were going out?" Charlie said, turning with a smile to face him.
"The fact that we only have bread, coffee and cheese in the cupboards said so," Vonnie said. "I think we need to hit the stores on the way home."
"Shopping? For groceries?" The blonde woman shuddered. "Is that a royal "we" or am I expected to help?"
"Do you want me to choose the food? Do you trust me to choose the food?"
"Well, you do make great coffee," Charlie hedged.
Vonnie grinned and rolled her eyes. "Uh-huh. So, after less than a day you think I'll have picked up all your little habits and likes? So far all I know is that you like coffee and chocolate, but hate Brussels sprouts."
"See? You're learning already." Charlie smiled hopefully.
Behind them Smithy cleared his throat imperiously and they hurried from the meeting room before he could lock them in. Vonnie led the way down a corridor and into the foyer that Tubberman had brought Charlie and Pat to the night before. In the warm afternoon sunlight it looked much more cheerful and there were even a couple of chattering trainees sitting the armchairs by the fireplace. Vonnie ignored them and led the way outside, where the sunlight was filtering though the branches of the trees that surrounded the large main building. It was quiet walking through the forest back to the cabin, and Charlie sniffed curiously at the air. The scent of crushed pine came to her, mingled with a salty smell.
"Are we near the sea?" she asked Vonnie.
The redhead groaned. "Did you even look at the map of the compound?"
"Should I have?"
"The compound's southern edge is shoreline. It's rocky, and the trees go almost to the water's edge, but there's a pretty path running down there."
"Ah." Charlie took a deep breath of the clear air. "Sounds good."
"Do you like seafood?" Vonnie asked.
Charlie nodded and Pat shrugged. "Sure."
"How does fried clams sound?"
Pat exchanged glances with his tall companion. "Never had them."
Vonnie's eyes lit up. "You'll love them. I know where you can get the best fried clams around. It's on the other side of Dartmouth but I can show you the sites of Halifax as we go, if you like."
"Sounds good," Charlie agreed. "But how are we going to get there?"
At that moment they broke through the trees onto the wide dirt track that led to the girls' cabin.
"I thought we'd take the Jeep," Vonnie said with a grin, pointing to the blue car parked next to their little wooden home. "It's better than walking anytime."
***
The drive through Halifax was the first time that Charlie had seen the city. In the growing dusk she watched as they passed beautiful wooden houses, shops and numerous Tim Horton's coffee shops. Vonnie acted as their tour guide, pointing out and explaining many of the things they passed, and gave them a quick geography lesson as they went. Charlie had not realised before that Halifax actually consisted of three smaller cities, Halifax, Dartmouth and Bedford. The first two were on either side of a deep inlet that fed into a natural basin, called the Bedford Basin, which was surrounded by the city of Bedford. The inlet and basin were so deep that even the largest ships could travel up and anchor safely, which was why the area included a large navy port. Getting over to Dartmouth entailed driving over one of the two bridges, a process Charlie quickly decides she would be forgoing in high winds.
The Jeep that Vonnie was driving had been given to her by her parents, a fact that seemed to annoy her although Charlie could not work out why. She had known the redhead for less than a day and the girl was full of contradictions. Pat, on the other hand, seemed open and simple. In fact, she knew less about him than she knew about Vonnie but his sunny good nature made it hard to remember than he was a relative stranger.
Dusk was rapidly turning into twilight when Vonnie pulled off the road into a tiny car park behind another of the ubiquitous wooden buildings. There were only a couple of houses and a general store on this section of the road but, as Vonnie killed the engine, Charlie guessed that they had arrived.
She and Pat exchanged curious glances before getting out of the car and following Vonnie into the diner.
The first thing that struck Charlie was that John's Diner was tiny. The little eating area, separated from the rest of the shop by an arched doorway, only contained six booths and all but one were occupied. Country music played on a stereo somewhere, but it was almost drowned out by the sound of conversation. Charlie peeked through the archway and saw that the shop was actually larger than the eating area. A counter with glass-covered hot trays divided the shop off from the cooking area, and judging by the queue of people John's was a popular place for take-out. White boards were suspended over the counter with the menu scrawled in blue ink and just looking at the treats on offer made Charlie's mouth water. Most of it was fried seafood of varying descriptions, but there was a selection of burgers and pizza as well. For a moment she was confused by the "chips" listed next to many items, until she realised that it meant "fries".
She turned a questioning face to Vonnie.
"Well, which sounds better - fish and chips, or fish and fries," the redhead asked reasonably.
"Ah, so it's a marketing plot?" Charlie asked with a grin, her mouth watering.
Vonnie sighed and led the way to the only free booth in the little diner. She slid down the bench and Pat sat down next to her, leaving Charlie to sit opposite. Almost immediately the diner's sole waitress appeared, pen and pad poised for orders.
"Hi Susie," Vonnie greeted her with a cheerful smile. "How's school?"
The dark-haired teenager shrugged. "It's school. One week down, lots more until summer's back. I can't wait to graduate. What'll you have, ma'am?"
Vonnie found herself the object of two pairs of curious eyes.
"What do you recommend, oh great and mighty leader?" Pat asked cheekily.
"I'll have my usual," Vonnie told the young waitress.
"And that would be?" Charlie asked, rolling her eyes at her unhelpful new friend.
"Diet Coke, clams and chips," Susie said with a shrug. "No salad and mayonnaise for the chips."
Charlie did not hesitate. "Sounds good. I'll have the same."
"Make that three," Pat added.
"Ok, I'll be right back with your drinks," Susie said, making notes on her pad and smiling at Vonnie before she hurried through the archway.
Charlie raised an eyebrow curiously at Vonnie. "Come here often?"
She blushed. "About once a week when I'm in town. Now that I'm not at university anymore I may have to cut down a little, or I'll end up the size of a house."
Eyeing the slim redhead, Charlie snorted. "You? Fat? Nu-uh, never happen."
Vonnie threw a wadded napkin at the blonde. "You won't be saying that at the end of the year, when you have to wedge me through the door."
"Von, I've never known you to gain an ounce in all the years I've known you," Pat protested. "You'd have to eat here every night for a decade just to put on a pound."
Wrinkling her nose, Vonnie shook her head. "Even I would get sick of clams if I came here every night."
"I guess you must know this area well," Charlie said, trying to draw attention away from the embarrassed girl. "How long have you lived here?"
Breathing a quiet sigh of relief, Vonnie shrugged. "My parents came out here three years ago to set up the Institute. I started university at the same time, so I've only been here during break. I've explored a bit, though - anything to get away from the compound."
"Isn't there anyone back home you could have stayed with when university was out?" Charlie asked curiously.
"Contrary to the popular image of Irish families, it's always just been me and my parents. I think their parents died years ago, and they didn't have any brothers or sisters so . . . and Nova Scotia is beautiful so I didn't mind."
"So," Pat said thoughtfully, "if you know the area, you'd know where's good for Friday night, huh?"
"Friday?" Vonnie asked. "What's happening on Friday?"
Pat groaned, covering his eyes. "What did they do to you in Oxford? Friday night is the weekend! We go out, have some fun, and maybe have a few drinks . . . I didn't see a rule against that in the handbook."
Charlie frowned thoughtfully. She had never really done the partying thing, apart from the occasional night out with classmates in college, but Pat was apparently expecting both of them to join him. Unlike her mother, she had never found it particularly easy to make friends. Dragging other people into the hellish world she sometimes had to live with . . . it had never seemed fair. So most of the time she had been a loner, and Friday nights had been spent either at home, or at Willow's house, or sometimes joining Buffy on patrols of the cemeteries. But Pat and Vonnie knew what they were doing, knew the dangers of this world, so maybe . . .
"Charlie?" Pat asked, probably not for the first time. "What do you say? Want to cut loose Friday night?"
She mentally shook herself, and dragger her mind back to the conversation. "Sure, why not? Got any ideas?"
Vonnie's eyes suddenly focused behind the tall woman and her face lit up. Charlie turned to see Susie heading in their direction carrying large plates. The young waitress carefully put them down in front of the two women and smiled apologetically at Pat.
"I'll be back with the rest and drinks in a second," she said cheerfully, hurrying away.
Immediately, Vonnie pounced on her plate. It was piled high, mostly with fried clams, and Charlie wondered briefly where the slender girl was going to put all the food. Then she shrugged as the delicious scent wafted towards her. She snagged a clam from her plate and popped it in her mouth, chewing carefully. A slow smile spread across her face. Mentally she added fried clams to chocolate, coffee and ice cream on her favoured foods list.
***
Tina staggered out of the bar, giggling. The world was spinning gently around her and she could feel the effects of several large tequilas coursing through her body. It gave her a pleasant buzz and she straightened carefully before moving further into the alley. She knew there was a reason why she was out here, and in the bar it had seemed like a darn good one, but right now she was a little hazy. Maybe that last tequila had been one too many.
Behind her she heard Sheila totter drunkenly into the alley. She was a firm believer in safety in numbers. Something moved ahead of her and Tina peered down the alley.
"Hello?" she called. "Is anyone out there?"
A figure loomed suddenly appeared out of the darkness, followed quickly by another. Of course, they had come out here to meet the cute guys. And up close, they were really, really cute. Tina smiled seductively at them.
"Hey," she purred.
The two men grinned eagerly. Tina giggled and lurched forward unsteadily. Immediately one of them, the one she had tagged as 'hers', moved forwards and held her arm to steady her.
"Thanks," she said breathlessly, looking up into his face.
Before her eyes it changed into a hideous, fanged parody of a human face. In a tiny corner of her mind Tina screamed and tried to run away. But the rest of her mind simply stood there staring bemusedly up at the creature. She could not turn away or move a muscle, even as he bent towards her with a horrible hunger in his eyes.
***
Charlie stood on the raised porch of the cabin drinking in the fresh, early morning air. Sunlight was just beginning to peek through the branches of the trees overhead and set the dewy grass glittering. It was cooler than she was used to in California but the crisp air woke her up and chased away the last cobwebs of sleep. Her long blonde hair was, unusually, tied back but when she was exercising she hated it getting in her way. Somewhere in the trees she could hear birds singing their dawn chorus but otherwise the forest was still.
Slowly Charlie stretched out, feeling her muscles pull slightly after two days of relative inactivity. She wore light cotton shorts with a sweatshirt over her sports-bra against the early morning chill. When her muscles felt sufficiently loose she slipped on her wrist weights and trotted down the steps from the porch. Charlie began slowly jogging up the wide track by the cabin until she came to a narrower path into the forest and turned down it. After a few minutes she picked up the pace until she was jogging comfortably down the sun-dappled trail.
According to the map of the compound, the entire area was interlaced with paths and wider dirt tracks. Charlie had already worked out a route that would take her around most of the compound, enabling her to combine exercise and exploration. It was only six miles but part of it would be fairly steep so she was confident that it would make up in difficulty what it slightly lacked in length.
Nobody was out on the paths and she could almost imagine she was the only person in the area. Just watching the Watchers and trainees over the past day, Charlie had already concluded that none of them were the early morning, jogging types. Sometimes she was frankly amazed that any Watchers outlasted their Slayers.
The path began to slope down slightly and the pine-scent in the air became tinged with salt. Charlie slowed to a fast walk as the path grew steeper. It levelled off a couple of hundred feet down and she sucked in a breath as she broke out of the trees.
The view was stunning. Blue sea lapped at a rocky shoreline and sunlight sparkled and reflected off the wavelets. Overhead a gull cried harshly and Charlie stood at the base of the slope and absorbed the beautiful site. The forest continued almost to the shoreline, halted only by the grey rocks that had been scoured clean by centuries of beating surf. It was a different soft of coast to her home in California: majestic and untamed rather than dully commercial.
Charlie spent a moment more admiring the view before she stripped off her sweatshirt, tied it around her waist and resumed her jogging. The trail wound between the trees and she could hear the waves as they gently struck the rocks below her.
After half a mile, though, the path reached the steps back up the slope that had now become almost steep enough to call a cliff. Regretfully she took one last, long look at the sea before jogging up.
Her legs were burning by the time she reached the top but she forced herself to carry on and complete her circuit. Long, tanned legs pumped steadily as she ran through the forest, occasionally catching glimpses of other cabins but never encountering another soul.
She was panting and her skin was slick with sweat by the time she arrived back at the cabin. Charlie slowed and walked around it a couple of times to cool down before stealthily going inside. It was silent inside and she smiled wryly as she realised that despite her jogging time, Vonnie was still in bed.
No Vonnie - no coffee. Guess I'll have to make my own. It won't taste the same though. Charlie mentally slapped herself. Her coffee may not be up to Vonnie's standards, but with enough cream and sugar it was drinkable.
She hummed quietly as she set up the coffee pot. There was just time for her to shower and dress before it finished.
***
Vonnie struggled out of sleep, a vague feeling of restlessness tugging at her. Something felt strange. She opened one blue eye and peeked around the room. Huh. She was in her cabin. There was nothing odd about that.
Slowly she became aware of a noise, somewhere outside the room. It took her a moment to place it before she realised it was the shower. She sat up, pushing her red hair out of her face and scrubbing at her face to push away the last of her sleepiness. There was something else odd. For some reason she could smell coffee.
This was probably a hint that she should get up, so Vonnie reluctantly complied. She pulled her slippers on, glanced down and decided that her green tartan pyjamas were perfectly decent for pottering around in. Vonnie padded across the hallway to the tiny kitchen, just in time for the coffeepot to signal it was ready. The scent of coffee was strong in the air so Vonnie pulled out a mug and carefully poured herself some. She sniffed cautiously, and frowned. The coffee-fairy needed some tips.
The redhead rummaged in the fridge, now filled with food thanks to the late-night raid on Sobeys, and pulled out a carton of milk.
"How's the coffee?" a low, amused voice asked.
Vonnie jumped and whirled to face Charlie, her heart thundering her chest.
"Don't do that!" she ordered grumpily.
Charlie shrugged. "Sorry. Turnabout's fair play."
The tall woman's blonde hair was still damp from the shower but she was dressed in faded blue jeans and a white T-shirt. Vonnie was quickly coming to realise that although the colour and logo may vary, the jeans and shirt were almost a uniform for her friend.
She turned back to the counter and concentrated on pouring a generous amount of milk into the coffee. "So, how long have you been up?"
"A while."
"I didn't think you were a morning person," Vonnie commented, taking a cautious sip. She reached for the sugar bowl.
"I jog. It wakes me up and gives me time to think. I'm not really a human until I've had my shower, though."
Charlie poured herself a mug of coffee and sauntered towards her room.
"Aren't you going to have any breakfast?" Vonnie asked, pulling a loaf of bread out of the cupboard.
"Breakfast?" Charlie paused and looked down at her mug. "What does this look like?"
"It looks like coffee. You have to chew breakfast."
"Hey, I can make chewy coffee," the blonde woman protested.
"I can believe that," Vonnie muttered.
She sighed as Charlie shut her bedroom door behind her, cutting off any further discussion. The taller woman's moods changed so fast, Vonnie was had trouble keeping up. Sometimes she was cheerful, almost happy, but within seconds she could turn pensive and dark. Charlie was turning out to be more complex than any of the stories about her had painted.
The entire situation was turning out to be more complex than Vonnie had been prepared for. Until this morning she had not realised how much she was dreading the start of her training. It was insane; she had prepared for this her entire life. But now, all she really wanted was to run away and pretend none of it was happening. But she was quickly realising that life doesn't always give you what you want.
***
How is it possible to make a lecture on demonology so damn boring? Charlie wondered with amazement. The Watcher lecturing had the sort of voice that managed to drone even when he was excited, and she kept finding her eyes drooping as she was lulled into a half-trance.
It was her third class of the morning, which meant there was only one more before lunch. So far, this one was hitting rock bottom for sheer mind-numbing dullness. There were fifteen other fellow trainees trapped in the stuffy room, and not one of them looked awake. Pat sat to her right and she sneaked a glance at him. He was propping his head up on his fist but his eyes were closed and his breathing was slow and even.
Hmm. Well, if she had to be awake to endure this torture, then so did he. Charlie reached out a long arm and poked his side. Pat jumped, opening his eyes and blinking blearily. The blonde woman grinned evilly and gave him a tiny wave. He glared back and straightened up, attempting to concentrate. After a moment Pat glanced back at her, so she crossed her eyes and discretely mimed a hangman's noose. Pat poked his tongue out and she laughed softly.
"Is there something you'd like to share with the class, Miss Giles?" the lecturer asked.
Uh-oh, busted.
"No, no," Charlie quickly denied. "I was just, uh . . . remarking on how fascinating the . . . er, lifecycle of a Fyaral demon is."
The Watcher glared at her suspiciously, but her face was a picture of innocence. After a minute he resumed his pontificating on demons.
***
The small cafeteria was filled with hungry trainees eating lunch, but Charlie was surprised at how quiet it was. She almost felt as though she had walked into a library. Immediately spotting Vonnie, she wandered over to her friend's table in the corner.
"Do you mind if I . . ?" she asked, indicating the chair.
Vonnie shook her head and gestured for her to take a seat. The redhead was already munching her sandwich so, rather than wait for Pat to work through the line for cooked food, Charlie unwrapped hers and took a careful bite.
"Guess when they say cheese, they actually mean cheese-scented plastic," Charlie said, swallowing awkwardly. "Now I understand why the food here is so cheap."
Vonnie shrugged. "It's not that bad. You get used to it. Although, eating in the cabin has advantages."
"Oh, yeah," Charlie agreed. "Like food that tastes of food."
"Do you mind if I join you?" a brunette woman asked, dumping her tray on their table. She did not wait for the answer and sat down.
Charlie surveyed her carefully, noting the smart skirt and jacket and perfectly coiffed hair. There were very few women training as Watchers, and this was one was almost a clone of her more traditional male counterparts. She even had the annoying sneer.
"So, you're Charlotte Giles," the newcomer stated with a smirk. "I'm honoured, really. It's not often I get to meet a legend."
The taller woman decided to play nice, for now. "I'm nothing special."
"Oh, I beg to differ. Your very existence changed everything here." The woman frowned, the expression marring her pretty face. "I'm Cynthia James. My father was Alison Sweeney's Watcher."
"Ah." The names meant nothing to Charlie. "That's nice."
Cynthia's face twisted unpleasantly and hate shone from her brown eyes, but the expression was gone so quickly Charlie almost imagined she saw it. Almost.
"You know, there are a lot of people around here who don't like you," she commented casually. "You caused a lot of us problems. Your parents twisted what it is to be a Watcher. If I were you, I'd be very careful."
Charlie raised eyebrow, her cool grey eyes impassive. "Is that a threat?"
"More of a warning, really," Cynthia said just as coolly. "You can take it however you want."
"I don't like threats," Charlie stated. "I think I'm allergic."
Cynthia's smile was saccharine sweet, but there was poison mixed with the sugar. "If you're sensible, you won't have to worry about it."
"And what's that supposed to mean?"
Shrugging, Cynthia stood. "Whatever you want it to mean. Just remember that you have a lot of enemies out there. I don't stab people in the back."
"Meaning you'd do it face to face." Charlie's expression was grim.
Cynthia neither confirmed nor denied it. "If I were you, I'd be very afraid."
"Good thing I'm not you, then."
For a long moment the two women paused, their wills doing silent battle. Finally Cynthia gave an almost imperceptible nod, picked up her tray and left. Charlie took a neat bite of her sandwich and chewed with moody introspection.
"What was that about?" Vonnie asked curiously when she couldn't stand the silence anymore.
"Huh?" Charlie roused herself out of her thoughts. "That? Oh, that was just a cat sharpening her claws. Nothing to worry about."
"Are you sure?"
"Of course I'm sure. What could she do to me?"
*finis*