Racing With Destiny: Chapter 5
by Lisette

Legalese: See Chapter 1 for disclaimers and ratings.

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"When opportunity knocks, don't just stand there. Open the door."
-Anonymous-

Hogwarts wasn't just a school in Buffy's mind. It was more like a fairytale. She couldn't help but be enchanted by the wide, sweeping stone staircases, the bright torches that illuminated the long cold halls, the ancient draperies... and that was just the castle itself. When she caught sight of the first portrait, a young woman depicted so beautifully on canvas in a dress that flared around her rounded figure - a figure that turned and bustled around the canvas... she almost attacked the painting with the stake that Arthur Weasley had returned to her. Which was when Giles explained the funny thing about Hogwarts' paintings: the fact that they moved, talked, and interacted with the subject of each painting as well as with the people moving down the hall. At Giles' and Arthur's amusement, she had been embarrassed at first, but then that quickly faded as she watched the people and animals in the paintings move from frame to frame, conversing with each other and occasionally attempting to converse with them as well. When a young man in tight breeches and a billowing shirt turned from the young woman he had been busy courting in a lush garden to eye her appreciatively, it was all Buffy could do to keep the blush from returning to her cheeks. "Are all the paintings like this in Hogwarts?" she asked, turning her eyes back to the two men that accompanied her.

"Every one of them," Arthur confirmed, frowning at the thought of some of the more bizarre paintings that were displayed in various places. "Even those you wish weren't," he added, sharing a knowing smile with her watcher.

"Okay, but there aren't any Picasso type abstract paintings around, are there?" Buffy asked, grimacing as she pictured some of the subjects of those strange paintings running about. "Because I doubt that would be very pretty."

Smiling, Giles shook his head. Only his slayer, he realized as Arthur came to a stop before a large and imposing stone gargoyle. Taking a step back, the watcher admired the familiar statue, a rush of memories assaulting him. "Do you know the password?" he asked without turning, feeling his slayer still beside him as she looked blankly from the statue to the men that stood so expectantly before it.

"Yum Yum Sparks," Arthur replied in way of response, smiling slightly as the gargoyle slowly began to revolve, ascending as a curved stairway escalated up and out of sight. Smiling at the look of wonder on the young slayer's face, Arthur nodded once towards her watcher. "I must be off or my wife, Molly, will begin to worry. Dinner in the Great Hall?"

"Of course," Giles confirmed as Arthur shook his hand before disappearing back down the long hall, leaving him and his Slayer alone before the stair. "Well, come along then," he murmured, stepping forward and beginning up the familiar stairs, stopping only when faced with the large wooden door, thrown open and allowing a warm light to seep into the dark stairwell.

Pausing at the threshold beside her watcher, Buffy took in the large circular office that greeted them. It was cluttered and smelled of cinnamon, the soft sounds of snoring echoing in the large chamber from the many old men and women that slept in the paintings far above. The room was odd... yet it also felt comfortable and made her think of a grandfather's study - if she had ever known either of her grandfathers. Shrugging at the thought, she watched as Giles' quickly strode forward, a large smile lifting his features as an old man rose gracefully from the large desk before them. And when she said old, she meant old. So old, that it was probably a miracle that the guy was still kicking, with a long white beard and long white hair that peaked out beneath a rumpled purple hat that matched his soft velvet robes. He looked quite the character - a character that was giving her some pretty weird vibes.

"Professor Dumbledore," her watcher greeted, beaming as he gripped the older man's hand.

"Rupert Giles," Dumbledore returned, blue eyes twinkling behind small spectacles. "Welcome back, welcome back," he murmured, recognizing the bright young man even amongst the graying hair and the lines brought both with time and a hard life that had seen too much turmoil and heartache. "It's been too long," he added before slowly releasing his old student's hand. "I trust that Samuel passed on my apologies for being unable to come earlier as you requested?"

"Of course," Giles confirmed, his tired green eyes skipping around the room. Even though it had been close to thirty years since he had last stood here, it seemed as though not a thing had changed. "Besides, after talking to Samuel this morning, I understand that you have had other quite pressing matters to attend to," he added as Dumbledore looked past him. Understanding, Giles slowly stood aside and watched as Buffy continued to hesitate at the open doorway beyond. It was amusing to see his Slayer so.... well, shy was almost what he was thinking, her gaze uncertainly sweeping over the old wizard.

"Buffy Summers," Dumbledore greeted as his eyes seemed to peer right through her. "It does seem as though my spell worked rather well, did it not?" he added as he held a hand out towards her.

Risking a quick glance at her watcher, Buffy slowly shrugged and abandoned her post at the door, finishing the distance between herself and the old man, both of his soft, warm hands wrapping around her own. "And I guess that makes you the guy who invited us," Buffy returned, eyeing the man through narrowed eyes, trying to place the strange energy she felt radiating off his form. It took her a moment, but soon she was able to place at least some of it. Power, plain and simple. And a lot of it. "Thanks for helping me get my brain back," she added, almost as an afterthought as she finally grinned, deciding that while she sensed some pretty odd stuff from the guy, he sure didn't feel evil. He was definitely old and kind of quirky, but not evil.

Chuckling softly, Dumbledore released her hand before turning crinkled eyes to her watcher. "Rupert, she is absolutely delightful!" he stated before turning and bustling back towards his desk, settling his creaking bones back into his large chair. "Care for a lemon drop?"

"Ooh, did you hear that Giles?" Buffy asked as she accepted one of the yellow surgared candies, not missing her watcher's grimace - whether it be the thought of actually trying one of the offered candies or the thought of her on the aforementioned sugared candy. Beaming, she fell into one of the seats before the desk, throwing her watcher a bright grin. "He thinks I'm delightful! Why don't you ever call me delightful?"

"Because I know you too well," Giles returned evenly, politely refusing the dish.

Chuckling at the girl's scowl, Dumbledore clasped his hands before him, his eyes turning from one of his guests to the other. "I want to thank you again for coming, and I trust that Samuel informed you of the precarious state our world has found itself in?" he asked, arching a fine, bushy brow as his eyes locked on his old student.

"We were told of the ongoing war against Voldemort and his Death Eaters, yes," Giles assured, noting with a small measure of satisfaction that at least Dumbledore didn't flinch at his use of the dark wizard's name.

"I'm not really sure how I can help exactly, but I'd be glad to try," Buffy added, shrugging her small shoulders as she absently slid her feet out of her white tennies and curled her legs beneath her, purposely ignoring Giles' glare at her actions.

Smiling knowingly, Dumbledore slowly leaned back in his chair, his hands forming a teepee before him on his desk. As his eyes swept over the small girl that sat curled before him, a part of him couldn't help but be amazed at the thought that this tiny being contained so much strength and power. So much will. Then again, it was easy for him to sense the power and strength that radiated from her small form. He doubted that anyone else, save perhaps Lord Voldemort himself, could sense such a different type of magic that came from deep within her, yet it caused the air around her to crackle for him. "From what I've heard," he said, his eyes crinkling behind the half-moon spectacles he wore, "you, my dear, have already proven yourself to be a worthy opponent against an armed wizard."

Starting, Buffy nearly fell out of her chair as she sent her watcher a panicked gaze. "But.. how did you hear about that? Already?" she squeaked, feeling her face begin to grow hot. Okay, so not exactly her most stunning moment ever - especially when it came to introductions to new allies. But once more in her defense, the Sirius guy did try to zap her first.

Smiling benignly, Dumbledore lifted a weathered hand and began tugging at the ends of his long beard. "There is little that goes on in Hogwarts that I am unaware of," he stated before staring pointedly at Giles, who had the good graces to flush to much the same color as his ward.

"Y-yes, well," Giles stammered, ducking his head as he set about the task of furiously polishing his already immaculate glasses, "is there anything in particular that you had in mind?"

Amused, the aging wizard watched as Buffy arched a slim brow at her watcher, knowing without a doubt that she would be hounding him later for the many stories he could tell of his own time at Hogwarts so many years before. However, those stories would indeed have to wait for later. Sighing softly, Dumbledore felt his merriment disappear under the heavy weight of the state of the wizarding world. Under the threat of Voldemort. "Hogwarts," he began slowly, his eyes dimming slightly beneath the seriousness of the threat they faced before sparkling once more with fondness, "has been fortunate in recent years to have a worthy grounds keeper and professor for the Care of Magical Creatures class in the form of one Rubeus Hagrid."

"Hagrid?" Giles asked, surprise evident in his voice. "I remember Hagrid - a half-giant, if I'm not mistaken," he murmured, thinking back to the young man, who even during Giles' time at Hogwarts, had been present on the grounds, the old Ground Keeper's assistant.

"Yes, yes," Dumbledore acknowledged, "a fact that has been keeping the lad rather busy, acting as my emissary between the wizarding world and the giants," he explained with a shrug before turning his eyes on the young Miss Summers. "Thus, there has been no one to truly keep an eye on the Forbidden Forest."

"A forest, huh?" Buffy asked noncommittally. "Why's it forbidden?"

"The forest surrounding Hogwarts has always contained many dangerous and mythical creatures," Dumbledore explained, smiling as he thought of how Hagrid considered many of the most dangerous of creatures to be his friends. "Many of these creatures would not hesitate to attack even a full-grown wizard, thus ensuring certain danger to any student who was foolish enough to venture into her depths. However, in the last few years, most likely thanks to Voldemort himself, Hagrid has found that beings even stranger and more dangerous have entered the wood, prowling off the innocents found within and trying to find a way past the barrier that guards Hogwarts. I fear that they are merely biding their time there, right on Hogwart's borders, until Voldemort himself is ready to attack the school," he finished, his tone heavy and his face grim.

"So you want me to patrol the forest and get rid of the baddies?" Buffy summarized with a bright grin, itching to get out there and do what she did best. In the months since her return to Sunnydale Buffy had quickly found that fighting the Hellmouth's evil was one of the few things that she could do that would make her forget. It made her forget about her mom, about Lyle, about the Centre, about Raines, about the drugs - about everything. For a short time, she could even forget about herself and imagine that nothing had come to pass to irrevocably change her life forever. In those moments, she was nothing more than the Slayer, doing her chosen duty and ridding the world of evil. It was a simple life, a good life... but one that quickly began to wane in the ongoing months in Sunnydale. Too soon the demons and undead began to dwindle under her and Faith's prowess until the memories began to haunt her once more. Drowned her. For the first time ever, Buffy found herself wishing for an apocalypse as she realized that the hunt wasn't enough to consume her - and too soon she found herself becoming lost within herself and the memories. But now, Dumbledore was offering the best gift of all: a forest just teeming with the bad stuff she was born to destroy. In her mind, it couldn't get any better than this.

Smiling at the girl's odd speech, Dumbledore nodded his agreement. "Your efforts in the Forbidden Forest would be of the greatest help to us at this point. If luck is with us, Lord Voldemort will not even be aware of your presence until it is too late. However," he added, his expression turning uncharacteristically serious, "it will not be easy."

Waving away his concern, Buffy leaned back in her chair and propped her small feet on the corner of Dumbledore's desk, only to have Giles quickly swat them back down. Pouting for a moment, she sighed and settled her feet under her once again. "Listen, it's no big," she assured nonchalantly. "I've been doing the nightly patrol bit since I turned fifteen and I haven't met a baddie yet that I couldn't dust, maim, grind with a sledge hammer, blow up, or kill in some fashion..." she trailed off, her eyes growing clouded.

"I-I promised, long ago," she rasped as though her voice had been unused for too long... or used too much, staggering forward until she fell against Lyle, "that I would make an exception for you," she finished as she buried the knife to the hilt in him, her arm wrapped around his neck and bringing them nose to nose. "I.. I keep my promises," she murmured as she used the last of her strength to twist the knife, the light going out of Lyle's eyes as he staggered back and then fell to the ground, she falling on top of him.

Pushing past the memory, Buffy looked away from the two men, eyes fixing on nothing as her own screams of agony echoed in her ears. "Well, almost ever night," she amended with a small frown, soon becoming snared in the memories of the endless tortures that she had endured at the hands of the Centre.

Sensing the darkness to which his Slayer was becoming lost, Giles turned his heavy eyes to the aging Headmaster, noting that the old man's sparkle seemed to be completely absent as he eyed his ward with an ageless sadness. It didn't take a wizard to see the pain that still marked his slayer - the pain that may never truly heal. Try as she might, the experience had nearly shattered her - nearly destroyed her, leaving her as half a person. Oh, she would try and put up the old familiar front, and for a time she did it so convincingly that he believed she even fooled herself... but in the end, it would only take a reminder of the horrors that she had endured and it would be like she was catapulted back into that pain. Sighing softly, Giles realized that the worst part about it was the realization that he was powerless to help.

In an obvious effort to bring the two out of their despair, Dumbledore clapped his hands loudly, his eyes sparkling as the girl nearly fell out of her chair for a second time. "And here I am, an old fool blathering about such matters that can surely wait till another time, when you both must be famished from your long travels!"

Looking at the headmaster as though he had grown an additional head, Buffy briefly entertained the thought of pointing out that the portkey had transported them to England in seconds, making it only an hour or so since she had said her goodbyes. But after a confused glance to her Watcher, who merely watched Dumbledore with an amused air, Buffy simply shrugged her shoulders. "Right," she confirmed. "Absolutely starved. I could eat a horse."

Standing from his desk, Giles and Buffy following his cue towards the door, Dumbledore paused briefly, as though considering her words. "While I don't believe that the house elves generally serve horse, I can ask if they can obtain such a meal for you for tomorrow night."

Paling slightly at his words, Buffy shook her head. "Oh no, that's really not necessary," she quickly protested, shooting her watcher a panicked glance. She just couldn't get a read on this guy - couldn't decide if he was just pulling her leg or really that odd that he was being serious. "I actually just recently gave up horse," she deadpanned, shrugging slightly. "You know us American girls - so consumed by our body image. The horse just wasn't cutting it for me or my thighs so it had to go. Gotta keep that girlish image!"

"Well, if you're sure," Dumbledore returned, winking at Giles' as they neared his open door. With a great sigh, he nodded once. "Well, in any case, you and Miss Summers have been given a set of adjoining rooms on the fourth floor. I'll see that someone shows you to your rooms later, and if you need anything at any time, please don't hesitate to ask."

"Of course, thank you," Giles replied, shaking the man's hand once more.

"No, thank you," Dumbledore countered, smiling warmly as he shook Buffy's hand as well. "And if you see Sirius Black at dinner, would you please ask him to see me later? I'm afraid that he's been gone on an errand, of sorts, for me for the last few weeks. I would like to speak with him at his earliest convenience... although I imagine that between his visit with Madam Pomfrey and the prospect of seeing his godson once again, I most likely won't see him until morning."

"We'll be sure to pass along the message," Giles assured before he and Buffy disappeared from sight.

"The girl has been through a lot, has she not?"

Smiling softly, Dumbledore turned away from the door and watched as a tall, older witch entered his office from a door behind his desk, her hair pulled back severely from her face. A face that was unable to hide the concern that only he could recognize shining from her small dark eyes. "Minerva," he greeted, shuffling back towards his desk. "What a surprise."

Snorting at the headmaster's words, Professor McGonagall glided around the room until she was standing just within the doorway to his office, listening to the clatter of descending feet before her hands pushed the heavy wood shut. "Hardly," she retorted. "You knew I was there from the moment that I arrived," she accused lightly.

"Then why didn't you join us? I'm sure that Mr. Giles would delight in seeing the woman that his young Transfiguration professor turned into."

"I didn't want to interrupt," McGonagall said, waving away his words as she moved until she was seated in one of his recently vacated chairs. "And Albus, you're avoiding my question, albeit quite skillfully," she added with a wry smile. "The girl, your slayer... she brings a haunted past with her."

"Don't we all?" Dumbledore countered, his smile turning enigmatic.

"But are you sure that her past won't distract her? Or worse, get her or someone close to her killed? If You-Know-Who learns of this Slayer, you know that he will learn of her weaknesses and use them against her."

"Then perhaps young Miss Summers will have to learn to turn her weaknesses into her strengths," Dumbledore suggested quietly. "There are certainly enough of us here at Hogwarts for her to learn this lesson from."

"Such as Mister Harry Potter?"

"They do both have a lot in common, do they not?" Dumbledore asked before slowly leaning back in his chair. "Both racing against a destiny that neither asked for. A destiny that is both uncertain and which promises great strife - one that neither can avoid. Yet one that I have great hope that they will both overcome in the end."

Continue to Chapter 6