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Alexander "Xander" Harris hastily darted back around the corner as he listened to Principal Snyder harangue one of the school staff members.

"... deplorable lack of respect and you encourage them!" Snyder accused whoever it was.

"Hardly," the British voice of Rupert Giles, the school librarian and adult member of their little demon hunting group, responded. "You have no idea how often I need to remind them there are better ways to deal with something than finding some fool to burn the town down. They are far from stupid but harassing them when I give them less destructive options doesn't help. They are regularly harassed by the so called gangs on drugs that frequently kill many in the community. I think that it's a miracle they aren't dead yet and are actually willing to listen to any adult. The after school study group I use to keep an eye on them is working. I also refuse to censure them for defending themselves and the incidents you find most troublesome I do investigate. They are rarely the cause and in fact have stopped problems from becoming dangerous to the staff and students numerous times."

"I don't believe you!" Snyder practically screeched.

This, Xander decided, needed back up.

"What are you doing dork?" The voice of Cordelia Chase demanded, making him just slightly as he yelped in surprise while twisting around to face her.

The adult voices went quiet, obviously listening to them.

"Herr Snyder signed us up for kiddy duty," Xander answered a bit louder than he needed to. A look warned the narrow-eyed cheerleader not to comment on his volume. "I was going to complain to Giles and see if I could do a job for him so that I have money for the required costume. My parents drank away the food and rent money again so I have to scrounge."

Cordelia immediately clocked that whatever this was had to be serious for Xander to actually admit to parts of his home life so publicly.

"Like you'll make anything look good that you pick out, you dork," Cordelia shot back with a scoff. "I've got mine reserved at Party Town.

"Good for you," Xander growled. "I'm going to have to check out the new shop in town even if Giles does let me work for the costume money. Care to join us just to see what the competition is?"

"As if," Cordelia retorted. "I suppose you plan for some geeky He-man get up to not show off your abs. Pick something with decent coverage instead. Maybe try to get Rosenberg into something more daring than a sack or a lame ghost sheet."

"Look, I get that you're angry we wrecked your date last week but that guy was from out of town and had rap a sheet for rape, murder, and lots of other stuff. It was not worth walking away just to find you dead the next morning!" Xander scowled. "We didn't even know that he was going to be your date. He tried something with Willow's parents but they are out of town and found Willow at home. That's why we were out watching him. His creep factor had us scrambling to see if we needed to have a sleepover at Buffy's just so that he didn't get Willow alone. We had no idea he was anywhere near anyone else. I thought he had hired one of the hookers from down near the docks with the way he talked about his date before he picked you up."

"He... shit," Cordelia said as she put the pieces together with a scowl. "Alright, just for that I'll buy you a costume for the candy run tonight. Warn me the next time some serial killer or whatever starts hunting the students! If nothing else I can get the popular ones to start running everyone in groups and you guys can talk the losers into something similar. I get really sick of finding out only after cornering one of you dweebs once we've got the adults off our backs."

"Our cobbled together training is crappy compared to someone who deals with this stuff professionally but we can't get professionals in to handle it and when we lay things out the adults don't listen. If you can get the jocks to let us start adding to their training more of us might live to see graduation," Xander argued. "Look, we get how it looks but we're handling what we can with what we have while trying to pass school. Most people just don't see the threat. Buffy is the only one who hasn't lived in Sunnydale her whole life that's still alive after some of this stuff. It's like we are living in a special Monster Dinner or something with us being on the menu if they can catch us. We don't like it but keeping people alive trumps ignoring it to stay in anyone's good books."

"Wow, you really are upset. Just because everyone knows it doesn't mean you say it out loud!" Cordelia hissed angrily. "Why do you think some of us go for sports at all? It gives us a chance out of here and helps us to be able to run. We know, damnit! We just don't have another way to deal with it."

"Sorry," Xander apologized with a grimace. "It's been stressful lately and some idiots have been acting up since Halloween is an unofficial official day off for the monsters in the dark. Apparently the rest of us have made it too... tacky and Snyder just took away one of our only off days. We were originally going to head to Buffy's and have a movie night."

"Get your stuff from the library," Cordelia sighed. "I'll spring for some chocolate with the costume."

"Thanks, Cordelia," Xander said gratefully. He fetched his stuff and pointedly ignored Snyder and Giles standing where they could hear every word before leaving with the cheerleader.

~~~

Ethan's Costume shop was packed with students drafted for the trick or treating that night. Xander had no qualms about elbowing his way through the crowd and hunting down appropriate costumes for his group. It had taken a little convincing but Cordelia was willing to spring for costumes for most of their group in exchange for veto rights. Willow was back at the school helping the computer teacher, Miss. Calendar, and Buffy had split from them once they got to the shop.

"Excuse me, but I couldn't help overhearing your conversation when you entered my shop," a man said approaching the pair of them. "Was the Giles you spoke of Rupert Giles?"

"Yeah. He's the school librarian, why?" Xander asked warily.

"I knew him when we were younger. My name is Ethan and I am the owner of the shop. You wouldn't happen to be willing to deliver something from me when you see him next?" Ethan explained with a slimy smile.

"Dweeb hangs out with him after school in their little club. I seriously don't see what is so interesting about old monk records or the Spanish Inquisition stuff they have in the back," Cordelia scoffed, both complaining and trying to throw the creep off.

"I sit through the chant stuff so that I can look at the gear they worked with," Xander corrected. "Price of admission to see how they made the swords and armor."

"Ah, that does make more sense for a young man," Ethan said with a sagely nod. "Perhaps I can help you find the costume you must be after?"

"It has to be kid friendly," Xander explained mournfully. "We got drafted to escort the rug rats from the elementary school. Giles is playing chaperone if you really want to talk to him."

"Well that explains why a fair number of the normally less popular selections were picked up," Ethan said thoughtfully. "How many people?"

"Let's see Buffy is getting her own and she seems to be stuck on that stupid victorian dress you have over there," Xander noted.

"No ghost costume for Willow," Cordelia reminded him sternly. "If Larry is going to pick a fight with you again I don't want the costume wrecked so pick something that might actually survive him shoving you into a locker... again. I'm not buying you a second one."

Xander winced but saw the look of understanding and the sympathetic wince pass over Ethan's face before being quickly hidden behind the professional smile.

"If I throw in one for Giles for free will you consider something I suggest?" Ethan asked cheerfully. "Think of it as a prank on an old friend."

"We get veto rights because something too embarrassing is going to get us in trouble," Cordelia bargained.

"Of course, of course, of course," Ethan waved the concern away. "I won't even pull something out of storage or that isn't something he might not pick up somewhere else entirely in a pinch."

"What did you have in mind then?" Xander asked, intrigued.

"A character that might be a bit too on the nose from what I remember of him. Giles is obviously reformed from our wild youth running around London together but once he makes the connection I think he will either scowl or be amused," Ethan explained as he led them toward the popular fiction section of costumes.

"What is it?" Xander asked again.

"Well you look like you might make a good Harry Potter and having Giles dressed up as Professor Snape would just be amusing from my view point," Ethan laughed, pulling the costumes off of the rack and presenting it to the teenagers.

"No cost for Giles' costume?" Cordelia checked again.

"None," Ethan confirmed.

"Alright, we can deliver that," Cordelia agreed before Xander could ask a few more questions.

"One second," Xander said before darting over to Buffy and dragging her over.

"What Xander?" Buffy demanded, her eyes still glued to the victorian dress.

"I bet your Mom would be less upset with the dress to impress dead boy if you got something for her and your sister," Xander pointed out. We found some Harry Potter stuff and Dawn us obsessed with those books right now."

That got Buffy's attention as she turned to examine the costumes.

"Dweeb gave me veto rights in trade for help with the costumes," Cordelia warned.

"Gotcha," Buffy said, distracted. She quickly found a Gryffindor costume in Dawn's size and when she looked at the adult ones she clearly got stuck.

"There aren't a lot of specific ones for adults," Xander conceded. "Wouldn't she work with a young McGonagall? Or a Professor Sprout? I might even go for a Professor Flitwick if the guy wasn't so short from being part goblin. He's not bad."

"I still believe that you would make an excellent Harry Potter," Ethan assured Xander. "I will also bundle everything for you."

"We should put you in a Hufflepuff costume," Buffy teased.

Xander huffed and rolled his eyes but didn't exactly object. There was nothing wrong with hard working Hufflepuff after all.