A dangerous sorcerer named Felix Faust has come to Sunnydale, intent on raising an ancient demon to subjugate all of humankind. To succeed, he must perform a powerful curse to displace his enemies, transporting them from one time and place and exch...
The walk to Willy's Bar was quiet and unsettling. The open night air made Cordelia keep looking over her shoulder for an attacking vampire, while the shining half-moon made Oz keep checking his arm for sprouting werewolf hairs. Giles watched their surroundings, keenly aware of both dangers as they marched forward. There would be no full moon until the following night, but the compounding dangers of their situation made him fear yet another unexpected problem.
Meanwhile, Ethan kept glancing back at the grinning Simonet, who followed the group from behind with his three flanking werewolves, while Marceau and the Leónes kept a close eye on them, more out of vigilance than fear. Under Simonet's direction, the Lycanthru had assisted them all to escape the cloud of fear gas surrounding the school, but Giles knew the wolves would turn on them as soon as they no longer needed their help.
Marceau and the Leónes began to spread among the group, while continuing to glance back at the Lycanthru. Marceau hurried to catch up with Giles, as the Leóne family fell in behind him, noting that the Lycanthru continued to follow them all from a safe distance. "So this tavern we're visiting is frequented by demons?" Marceau asked. "Such as the Lycanthru?"
"Similar, yes," Giles said. "There are various sorts of monsters there. But unlike the Lycanthru, several of these demons were born as monsters, not including the vampires who started out as corpses. This bar is their usual haunt, so we'll need to be careful."
"Yes, about that," Marceau said. "Do we intend to blend in?"
"That's the intention, yes."
Oz furrowed his brow. "Not trying to argue, but ... how are we planning to blend in with demons?" he asked.
"Can demons look like us?" Marceau asked.
"Some can," Giles said. "It's a common disguise, actually."
"Then we're halfway there," Marceau said. "We just have to convince them we're demons in disguise."
"Exactly," Giles said.
Oz slid his eyes sideways at Marceau. "Why would they buy that?"
Marceau squinted at him, confused. "'Buy?'"
"Yeah," Cordelia broke in. "As in 'swallow,' 'fall for.' Believe?"
"Ah," Marceau said. "Because we'll believe it. If we act like we're bloodthirsty demons and commit to that story, they'll believe it soon enough."
"Great," Cordelia said. "And what if they don't?"
Marceau shrugged. "Then I expect we'll probably die."
"That would be a reasonable expectation," Ethan chimed in.
"I gotta say," Oz added. "I've got a bad feeling about this."
Marceau threw an arm around him. "Look, what matters is that you believe what you're telling them. Understand? Don't doubt your story, even for a second. If you believe it fully, they will. If you don't, they'll kill us."
Oz met his eyes with a dull expression. "So. Put on my poker face."
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