New Girl in Town: Part Six
by Byn
Two days later, Eliza was en route from her classroom to the teachers' lounge when she heard a familiar voice behind her.
"Miss Wells? Oh, Miss Wells!"
Eliza repressed a shudder and turned around to face the principal of Sunnydale high school.
"Yes, Principal Snyder?"
"Might I have a word with you? In my office," he said.
"Certainly," she replied, sighing inwardly. Snyder motioned for her to precede him into his inner sanctum. Eliza felt his eyes on her and breathed deeply. Once inside, he closed the door and waved her into a chair.
"I just wanted to check in with you and see how you were getting along."
"Just fine, thank you. The faculty and staff have been most helpful. You run a fine high school," she replied glibly, watching the little man puff up with pride.
"And that is not an easy task around here. Drugs, alcohol, violence, God only knows what else. It takes a lot of effort."
"And you must be successful. I’ve not seen any evidence of such." But you do know *exactly* what else, she thought.
"That’s because I keep a close eye on the troublemakers. A very close eye," he emphasized and leaned forward. "You happen to have one of the worst offenders in your class this year. Buffy Summers." He spat out the name as if it was bitter and bad-tasting.
"Oh?" Eliza said, feigning surprise. "I find that difficult to believe. She's a very bright girl, always pleasant, never any trouble. Buffy adds a lot to our class." There, you troll, chew on that.
"Oh, she's got you snowed, make no mistake. There's a lot more you don’t know about her and her friends."
"Really?" Eliza's blue eyes were wide and innocent. "Like what?"
Well, I couldn't discuss it in here, not really. We might be overheard. We could, however, discuss it over dinner tonight, say at six at the Round Room?" The invitation hung there between them. Eliza wanted to turn him down flat, but the potential gain was important. The hook was baited and in the water. Question was, which one of them was going to end up in the frying pan?
"Sounds good," she said brightly. "At six, then."
"Great. Great. See you then. Oh, and Miss Wells? Keep up the good work."
Eliza left the office feeling desperately in need of a shower. She walked directly to the library. Giles had a hot cup of tea waiting for her, bless him. It had become a comfortable habit for them to share a cup during the afternoon and chat about their respective days, or Slayer business. Giles found her insights on the situations valuable and oftentimes amusing.
"So, the upshot is that I'm meeting him at the Round Room at six. Which reminds me, I have to leave shortly to get ready." Eliza concluded, sipping from her cup and feeling much more relaxed. "Now all I have to do is worry about keeping him from getting too interested and getting as much information as I can without tipping my hand. Thanks for the tea, Giles. I do feel better."
"You’re welcome, of course. And I know you’ll be, uh, discreet."
"Naturally. Oh, he mentioned Buffy during the meeting, too. Labeled her a troublemaker and said he kept a close eye on her. A very close eye." Her mimicry of Snyder was deadly accurate. Giles' lips twitched with amusement.
"And?"
"And I told him that she was a bright, pleasant girl who gave me no trouble at all and in fact contributed greatly to the class. I wasn’t lying, either. So, he can chew on that for a while. Hope he chokes on it." She muttered the last under her breath, but not far enough.
"Now, Eliza," Giles chided gently. Eliza grinned back at him, unrepentant.
"I do have to go, though," she said regretfully as she set her cup down and rose.
"Good luck. And, Eliza?"
"Yes?" Eliza turned to look back at him from the doorway.
"Be careful. Please." Giles looked at her from his desk. Eliza’s eyes lost their twinkle and became serious.
"Of course, Giles. I promise." With a satisfied nod, Giles turned back to his books as she left.
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