The Puppet Show

Template:Buffyepisode

"The Puppet Show" is the ninth episode of the first season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and the ninth episode overall.

Synopsis

A demon watches a ballet dancer, Emily. Cordelia is singing Whitney Houston's Greatest Love Of All off key, as part of the try outs for the talent show. Giles stops her, obviously to stop his ears from hurting. Buffy, Xander and Willow join Giles, and mock him as he complains that the new Principal (which he refers to as the Führer) made him in charge of the talent show, despite his wishes, so he could have more contact with the students. As Snyder overhears the Scoobies making fun of Giles, he punishes them by forcing them to participate in the talent show. The next try-out is Morgan and his dummy, Sid, and Buffy confesses to being freaked out by dummies. Morgan's act takes a sudden turn for the better when Sid suddenly develops a personality and starts making sarcastic comments about the act. Emily notices the demon and screams.

The talent show rehearsals continue with Marc, an unsuccessful magician. Buffy, Willow and Xander debate what to do for the talent show, and settle on a dramatic scene, since it does not require any actual talent. Sid watches, and makes rude comments as Morgan explains the voice is an imitation of his father. Snyder explains to Giles that he will run a safer, more disciplined school, only to be interrupted by the discovery of Emily's body, whose heart has been cut out with a knife. The Scoobies debate whether the killer is a demon or a human, eliciting Willow's comment that a human murderer is scarier since it could be anyone; even her.

Morgan with his puppet Sid.

The Scoobies split up and begin interviewing people from the talent show to find the killer. All of their interviews point in the direction of Morgan and his dummy, Sid. They decide to check Morgan's locker after school hours. As Buffy is busy breaking into Morgan's locker, and finding nothing, Snyder finds her almost red-handed, and admonishes her for being in the school after hours. Morgan and Sid turn out to be hiding, watching Buffy. Sid tells Morgan that Buffy is "the one", saying that her strength is evidence of it.

As Buffy goes to sleep, Sid waits until the lights are off and sneaks into her room. When she wakes up, he quickly scampers out. Naturally, Buffy has a hard time convincing the Scoobies that Sid broke into her room. Giles, on his part, suggests that the demon responsible might be needing the heart (and later, a brain) to keep a human guise, which means the demon could be anyone, once again. When a teacher confiscates Sid, Xander steals him so that Buffy can talk to Morgan alone. As Buffy searches for Morgan back-stage, Snyder is again displeased with her being where he does not think she belongs. In the library, just as Willow finds references to another possible explanation — animated dummies might harvest organs to become humans — Sid is gone when Xander stops paying any attention to him. Buffy finds Morgan's body, missing a brain, just as a chandelier falls on her. When she wakes up, Sid attacks her, and during their fight they realize they are both working for the same goal: to stop the demon.

File:Puppetshow1.jpg

"Oedipus oh Oedipus..."

Sid explains he is a demon hunter, cursed to dummy form until he kills the last of the Brotherhood of Seven, those demons which harvest a heart and a brain. Realizing the demon has what it needs, they theorize it will be moving on, and so it will be whomever is missing from the show. Sid suggests to Giles to form a "power circle" to find out who is missing, but Giles sees everyone there. When Sid is again missing, Buffy finds Morgan's brain when she looks for him. Buffy, Willow and Xander discover Morgan had brain cancer — which is probably the reason the demon did not use his brain, and is now looking for someone smart. This means that Giles and Willow are in danger.

At the talent show, Marc the magician tricks Giles into strapping himself into a guillotine, ostensibly a magic prop, so that he can take his scalp off and get his brain. Buffy, Xander and Willow rush to rescue Giles, and with Sid's help they manage to kill Marc — who was the demon all along — and save Giles just as the curtain goes up. Everyone assumes it is part of the show, though there is only minimal clapping. Buffy, Xander, and Willow then performed a scene from Oedipus Rex with remarkable lack of talent, and with Willow running away from the stage.

Continuity

• Principal Snyder now heads Sunnydale High. In the original script, was to be Principal Miller.

• Principal Snyder claims that Principal Flutie's "woolly-headed, liberal thinking,  led him to get eaten". Despite Snyder's more disciplined approach to education, he eventually gets eaten as well.

• In this episode reveal themselves some fears of the Scooby Gang, which will be featured in the next episode, Nightmares. Buffy Summmers afraid of dummies. Xander Harris is frightened by a mime with clown makeup. Willow Rosenberg is afraid to introduce herself in front of an audience.
• The idea of a demon slayer being turned into a live puppet is later repeated in season 5's Angel: "Smile Time".
• The pen that Willow used in History class, where Morgan gets Sid taken away from him, is the same pen that Buffy drops when she needs to steal hair from Amy in "Witch".
  
  

Appearances

Individuals

• Lisa Campiti Template:1st
• Cordelia Chase
• Emily Djiemanowicz Template:1st
• Rupert Giles
• Xander Harris
• Mrs. Jackson Template:1st
• Marc Template:1st
• Willow Rosenberg
• Morgan Shay Template:1st
• Sid the Dummy Template:1st
• Principal Snyder Template:1st
• Buffy Summers
• Joyce Summers
• Elliot Terhune Template:1st

Organizations and Titles

• Brotherhood of Seven
• Scooby Gang
• The Slayer
• Watcher

Species

• Demon
• Ghost
• Human
• Dummy

Locations

• Summers' residence
• Sunnydale High
  • Sunnydale High School library
  • Sunnydale High School Anphitheatre

Body Count

• Emily Djemanowicz, heart cut out by Marc
• Morgan Shay, brain removed by Marc
• Marc, beheaded on guilloutine by Xander Harris and his heart destroyed by Sid to prevent his resurrection
• Sid, passed away after slaying Marc

Behind the Scenes

Production

• Numerous ad-libs were included in the final cut. Such unscripted bits are when Willow runs off the stage terrified and when Xander cries “Redrum! Redrum!”

• This is the fourth episode of the series without any vampires. ("Witch" "The Pack" and "I Robot, You Jane" are the first three).

Broadcast

• This is the lowest-rated episode of the entire series, pulling in an audience of 1.7 million households.

• On the original airing of the episode, the closing credit sequence was split-screened with a scene in which Buffy, Willow, and Xander perform a scene from the play Oedipus Rex. This scene was excluded in repeat airings until the series left The WB Network. It is included in the DVD Collections, and in present television reruns.

Deleted Scenes

• An exchange from the original script was cut due to length:

Buffy - "And I don’t think we’ll be featuring Xander's special gift ..."

Xander - "Okay, some people are jealous that they can’t burp the alphabet."

Buffy - "... so we’re back to drama. We’ll just do it quickly. Get in, get out. Nobody gets hurt."

• Another exchange from the original script was cut due to length:

Buffy - "Pretty good. I never heard ‘Flight of the Bumblebee’ on the tuba before."

Lisa - "Most people aren’t up to it."

Pop Culture References

• Xander asked, "Does anyone else feel like they've been Keyser Soze'd?", referencing the film, The Usual Suspects.

• When Xander was goofing around with Sid, he referenced The Shining by shouting, "Redrum! Redrum!"

Goofs, Bloopers & Continuity Errors

• When Buffy is breaking into Morgan's locker, she says, "Two to the left, three to the right...", but she actually turns the dial first to the right, then to the left.

• When Xander is trying to remember his lines in the talent show scene, Nicholas Brendon briefly breaks character when he tries not to laugh.

• A few crew members can be heard laughing when Willow runs offstage.
• While Buffy is searching around in the backstage area, there is a mirror in the background of the shot. For a brief second, you can see the reflection of a crew member.
• As Giles is announcing 5 minutes until the power circle, the violin player behind him is very obviously 'playing' the violin with the bow 2 inches from the strings.
  
  

Music

• Whitney Houston - "Greatest Love of All" (Sung by Cordelia as her audition song for the talent show.)
• Walter Murphy - original score

International Titles

• French: La Marionnette (The Puppet)
• Portuguese: O Show de bonecos (The Puppet Show)
• Finnish: Kahlenukke

Other

• Sarah Michelle Gellar admitted having nightmares about puppets after filming this episode.

Quotes

PROLOGUE:

Backstage in the Sunnydale High School auditorium. Emily is doing ballet 
stretching exercises. The camera shows her from the demon's point of 
view as he observes her from low to the floor.

Demon:  (exhales) I will be whole. I will be new. (exhales)

The camera moves through the backstage area. A number of students are 
practicing their acts. Among them are Lisa playing her tuba and Marc 
rehearsing his magic act. The camera eventually reaches Morgan and his 
dummy, Sid. Morgan rubs his temples a moment and then looks around. Cut 
to the stage. Cordelia is singing "The Greatest Love of All" off key.

Cordelia:  Learning to love yourself is the greatest love of all. I 
decided long ago...

Cut to Giles in the seats. He does *not* want to be there.

Cordelia:  ...never to walk in anyone's shadow. (cut to Cordelia) If I 
fail, if I succeed, at least...

Giles:  (interrupts) Thank you, Cordelia. Tha-that's going to be lovely.

Cordelia:  But I didn't do the part with the sparklers!

Giles:  Um, w-we'll, um... save that for the dress rehearsal. (anxious 
to get rid of her) Uh, Lisa! Please!

Cordelia:  Uhhh!

She puts the microphone back on its stand and leaves the stage as Lisa 
sets up with her tuba. Cut back to Giles as Lisa begins her solo. He 
rubs his eyes. Buffy, Willow and Xander come down the center aisle.

Buffy:  (draws a breath) If it isn't the great producer!

They go into the seats and sit around Giles.

Xander:  Had to see this to believe it.

Giles:  Oh. You three.

Buffy:  The school talent show. How ever did you finagle such a primo 
assignment?

Giles:  Our new Führer, Mr. Snyder.

Willow:  I think they call 'em 'principals' now.

Giles:  Mm. He thought it would behoove me to have more contact with the 
students. I did try to explain that my vocational choice of librarian 
was a deliberate attempt to (draws a breath) minimize said contact, but, 
uh, he would have none of it.

Buffy:  Giles, unto every generation is born one who must run the annual 
talentless show. You cannot escape your destiny.

Giles:  If you had any shred of decency, you would have participated, or 
at least, um, helped.

Buffy:  Nah! I think I'll take on your traditional role... and watch!

Xander:  And mock!

Willow:  And laugh!

They all laugh.

Buffy:  O-kay. I think maybe we better leave our Mr. Giles to this 
business he calls a show.

The three of them get up and start back up the aisle. Principal Snyder 
is waiting there for them.

Buffy:  Principal Snyder!

Snyder:  So. We think school events are stupid, and we think authority 
figures are to be made fun of.

Buffy:  No! No, we don't. W-unless you do.

Snyder:  And we think our afternoon classes are optional. All three of 
you left campus yesterday.

Buffy:  Yeah, but we were fighting a demon...

Snyder:  Fighting?

Buffy:  Not fighting.

Xander:  No, we, uh, left to *avoid* fighting.

Snyder:  Real anti-social types. You need to integrate into this school, 
people. (crosses his arms) I think I just found three eager new 
participants for the talent show.

Buffy:  What?

Xander:  No!

Willow:  Please?

Snyder:  I've been watching you three. Always getting into one scrape or 
another.

Buffy:  Well, we're really, really sorry, but about the talent show, 
pleeease, you can't make us...

Snyder:  (interrupts) My predecessor, Mr. Flutie, may have gone in for 
all that touchy-feely relating nonsense, but he was eaten. You're in 
*my* world now. And Sunnydale has touched and felt for the last time.

He starts past them down toward the stage.

Xander:  Can I just mention, that detention is a time-honored form of 
punishment?

Buffy nods vigorously in agreement.

Snyder:  I know the three of you will come up with a wonderful act for 
the school to watch. And mock. And laugh. At.

He continues down to the stage. Xander can't believe this. He points up 
with both index fingers and sits down in a seat.

Xander:  No!

Buffy spaces out and moans. She goes back into Giles' row, sits next to 
him and looks to him for sympathy. He has none to give, and tries to 
hide a smirk. The tuba solo is over. Willow just stands there with a big 
frown on her face.

Giles:  (to Lisa) Thank you!

The next act sets up. It's Morgan with his dummy, Sid.

Buffy:  Ewww, dummy!

Xander:  (sees a mime and jumps in his seat) Dyow! Mime!

Willow:  (sits behind Buffy) I think dummies are cute. You don't?

Buffy:  Uuuhhh. They give me the wig. Ever since I was little.

Willow:  What happened?

Buffy:  I saw a dummy. It gave me the wig. There really wasn't a story 
there.

Morgan:  (on stage) Hi. I'm Morgan. (moves the dummy's head) And I'm 
Sid!

He is an awful ventriloquist, and Giles winces. Buffy raises her 
eyebrows and stares in disbelief.

Morgan:  (as Sid) Hey Morgan, would you like to tell some jokes? (as 
himself) Would I! (as Sid) As a matter of fact, it is! It's also a wood 
nose, and a wood mouth!

Willow can't believe his act either. Morgan laughs nervously for Sid. 
Buffy looks at Giles. He takes off his glasses.

Morgan:  (as Sid) I didn't sleep at all last night.

Sid:  Alright, time out. Let's stop this before someone gets hurt. (to 
Morgan) Kid, you are the worst. Even I can see your lips move.

Buffy starts to giggle. Giles looks up again and puts his glasses back 
on, intrigued now that he sees he may have at least one good act.

Morgan:  C'mon, Sid. You're spoiling my act. I worked on these jokes for 
weeks.

Sid:  You call those jokes? My jockey shorts are made out of better 
material.

A few students have gathered at the edge of the stage to watch Morgan's 
act and laugh.

Sid:  And they're edible!

More laughs from the students. Buffy, Willow and Xander are into it now, 
too.

Giles:  There, you see? I'm sure you three can come up with something... 
equally exciting.

Sid smiles.

Cut to the girls' locker room. Emily is changing back into her regular 
clothes. She puts her ballet outfit and shoes into her locker and closes 
it. She hears a noise.

Emily:  Is anybody there?

She walks to the end of the row of lockers and peeks around the corner.

Emily:  Hello?

She walks around to the next row of lockers. No one's there. The demon 
exhales as it watches her from low to the floor.

Emily:  Hello?

She continues down the row toward the showers. The demon comes up behind 
her. Emily turns and screams. Fade to black.

Demon:  I will be flesh!

Opening credits roll. Buffy's theme plays.

PART 01:

The talent show tryouts.

Marc:  I reach into the hat, and out... comes...

He lifts the hat and looks around frantically.

Marc:  Has anybody seen a rabbit?

He begins to search along the floor. The camera follows Elliot as he 
juggles and walks past Marc toward Lisa, then it follows her for a few 
steps. The camera pulls back to Xander, Willow and Buffy practicing a 
dramatic scene. Xander poses with his right arm in the air to begin his 
line.

Xander:  I can't do this!

Buffy:  Xander, come on.

Xander:  I, I can't! I have my pride! Okay, I don't have a lot of my 
pride, but I have enough so that I can't do this!

He goes over to the steps at the side of the stage to sit. Willow 
follows him.

Willow:  A dramatic scene is the easiest way to get through the talent 
show, because it doesn't require an actual talent. (sits above him)

Xander:  But we have talent. We can do stuff. Buffy, uh...

Buffy:  (also sitting now) What am I gonna do? Slay vampires on stage?

Willow:  Maybe in a funny way!

Xander:  Willow, you can do stuff. Uh, the piano...

Buffy:  You play?

Willow:  A little.

Buffy:  Well, that's cool. You can accompany us and we can *attempt* to 
sing.

Willow:  Oh, i-in front of other people? Then, no, I don't play...

Xander:  Whatever happened to corporal punishment?

Sid whistles at the girls. Xander, Buffy and Willow look at him and 
Morgan.

Sid:  Mm, mm, mm. Look at the goodies!

Morgan looks embarrassed. Willow gets up and goes over to him.

Willow:  Morgan, you're really getting good! Where did you come up with 
that voice?

Morgan:  It's kind of an imitation of my dad.

Buffy:  Sounds real!

Sid:  It is real. I'm the one with the talent here. The kid's dead 
weight. (to Willow) How about you and I do a little rehearsin' on our 
own, honey?

Xander:  Uh, hey!

Sid:  You know what they say: once you go wood, nothin's as good!

Buffy:  Okay, Morgan. We get the joke. Horny dummy, ha, ha, it's very 
funny, but you might wanna consider getting some new schtick. Unless you 
want your prop ending up as a Duraflame log.

Morgan and Sid exchange a look.

Cut to a view of the seats from above. Principal Snyder and Giles come 
in through the doors at the back of the auditorium. The camera slowly 
pans down to them as they walk down the aisle.

Snyder:  Kids today need discipline. That's an unpopular word these 
days, 'discipline'. I know Principal Flutie would have said, 'Kids need 
understanding. Kids are human beings.' That's the kind of woolly-headed, 
liberal thinking that leads to being eaten.

Giles:  I, I think perhaps it was a little more complex than, um...

Snyder:  This place has quite a reputation. Suicide, missing persons, 
spontaneous cheerleader combustion... You can't put up with that. You've 
gotta keep an eye on the bad element.

They reach the stage and stop. The camera has closed in on them. Snyder 
nods up towards the stage.

Snyder:  Like those three.

Cut to Buffy, Willow and Xander practicing their dramatic scene. Cut to 
Snyder.

Snyder:  Kids. I don't like them. From now on you're gonna see a very 
different Sunnydale High. Tight ship, clean, orderly, (faces Giles) and 
quiet.

Cut to the girls' locker room. A girl screams loudly when she discovers 
Emily's body.

Cut to later as the paramedics prepare the body for transport. Giles 
comes out of the locker room into the hall. He ducks under the yellow 
police tape and goes over to the team.

Giles:  (clears his throat) It was Emily.

Willow:  Emily. Dancer Emily?

Xander:  Oh, man! I hate this school.

Giles:  Uh, it must have happened just after, uh, dress rehearsals. 
There was a cross-country meet at Melville. She, she, she never showed 
up for it.

Buffy:  Vampire?

Giles:  Um, I think not.

Buffy:  Giles, share! What happened?

Giles:  (exhales) Her heart was removed.

Willow:  Yikes!

Buffy:  Does that mean anything to you? Besides (shudders) ooooooo?

Giles:  Uh... (exhales) There are various demons which, which feed off 
human hearts, but...

They look back and see the knife being put into an evidence bag.

Buffy:  But demons have claws. And teeth.

Xander:  They got no use for a big old knife.

Giles:  Which more than likely makes our murderer...

Buffy:  Human.

Xander:  Did I mention that I *hate* this school?

Willow:  So Emily was killed by a regular human person.

Giles:  The evidence certainly points that way.

Buffy:  No, wait. I-I'm not buying, you guys. Remember the Hellmouth? 
Mystical activity is totally rife here. This to me says demon.

Giles:  I'd like to think you're right. A demon is a creature of evil, 
pure and very simple. A person driven to kill is, is, um, it's more 
complex.

Willow:  The creep factor is also heightened. It could be anyone. It 
could be me! (gets looks from them all) It's not, though.

Giles:  Uh, demon or no, we have some investigating to do. I suggest we 
start with your... your talent show compatriots. One of them may have 
been the last to see her alive.

Cut to the band room. Buffy is interviewing Lisa.

Lisa:  I didn't know her too well. There's that whole dancer/band 
rivalry, y'know?

Buffy:  I've heard about that.

Lisa:  But I did speak to her a little the day that... yesterday.

Buffy:  How did she seem?

Cut to outside, where Giles is interviewing Marc as he shuffles a deck 
of cards.

Marc:  She was happy. I guess. She was psyched to be doing the show. She 
was a really good dancer. Here, pick a card.

Giles:  Uh, um... (reaches for a card)

Marc:  No, wai-wai-wai-wait. Not that one. Pick this one.

Giles:  (takes the card) Do you remember the last time you saw her?

Marc:  She was talkin' to someone.

Giles:  Who?

Cut to a classroom. Willow and Elliot come in.

Elliot:  That smart guy. The one with the dummy. What's his name?

Willow:  Morgan?

Elliot:  Yeah, that's it. He was actin' kinda strange.

Willow:  Strange how?

Cut outside to cheerleader practice. Xander is talking to Cordelia.

Cordelia:  It's just such a tragedy for me. Emma was, like, my best 
friend.

Xander:  Emily.

Cut to the band room.

Lisa:  Well, Morgan's just strange. He's always rubbing his head a lot 
and moaning. Especially the other day.

Cut outside.

Marc:  He seemed kinda paranoid... Lookin' around at everyone...

Cut to the classroom.

Elliot:  And I think I saw him arguing... with his dummy.

Cut outside.

Cordelia:  All I can think is, it coulda been me!

Xander:  We can dream.

Cut to the auditorium. Buffy comes in through the front side door. She 
looks around and walks over to the stage. She sees Sid on a stool, 
facing the curtain.

Sid:  (to Morgan offstage) Right now you and me gotta be on the lookout. 
Figure out who's gonna be next.

Morgan:  (comes on stage) How are we supposed to... (sees Buffy) Oh, hi.

Buffy:  Hello.

Morgan:  I was just working on throwing my voice. (walks upstage)

Buffy:  Uh, Morgan, did you notice anything weird going on around here 
yesterday?

Morgan:  (gathers Sid up) Weird? What d'you mean? (goes down the steps 
from the stage)

Buffy:  With Emily. Did she say anything to you, was she arguing with 
anyone?

Morgan:  (goes over to Sid's case) No. She was dancing. (opens the case) 
Sid and I were talking.

Buffy:  Talking.

Morgan:  Rehearsing.

Buffy:  So, you didn't notice anything weird at...

He holds his hand to his forehead in pain and sits down.

Morgan:  Ohhh!

Buffy:  Morgan, are you okay?

Sid:  Look, sweetheart! He answered your question. Now leave him alone!

Morgan's pain has subsided, and he looks up at Buffy.

Buffy:  Okay, Morgan, how 'bout talking to me yourself now?

Sid:  He said all he's gonna say.

Morgan looks nervously between Buffy and Sid. He gets up.

Morgan:  It's okay, Sid. We're done. (puts Sid in his case)

Buffy:  I'm sorry. Look, I didn't mean to make you mad.

Morgan:  No! I'm... (quietly) It's him! (indicates Sid) He's... (closes 
the case) We have to go. (grabs the case and leaves)

Buffy:  (taken aback) Cute couple.

Cut to the library. Willow, Buffy and Xander come in.

Xander:  Okay, next time we split up someone else is on Cordy detail. 
Five more minutes with her and we woulda had another organ donor.

Willow:  I think I had a bit more luck. Everyone I talked to seemed to 
point their fingers at the same person.

They all come into Giles' office.

Buffy:  Morgan?

Willow:  Morgan.

Xander:  We have a winner!

Giles:  I fear I was led to the same conclusion.

Xander:  Well, what do we do? We don't slay him, right? We wanna bring 
him to justice.

Willow:  We could set up a complex sting operation where we get him to 
confess!

Xander:  Uh, I should wear a wire!

Buffy:  Whoa, hey, you guys, all we know is that Morgan is a grade A 
large weirdo. That doesn't lead directly to murderer.

Xander:  Guy talks to his puppet!

Willow:  And for his puppet.

Buffy:  Well, yeah, but what about the whole 'it's a demon' theory?

Giles:  I'm looking into that, but, uh, my investigation is somewhat... 
hampered by our life in the theater.

Buffy:  Uh, priority check, Giles? (weighs the two with her hands) 
Talent show, murder.

Xander:  Yeah, we can't do the talent show, it's unthinkable. I'm not 
able to think it!

Giles:  Principal Snyder is watching us all very closely. Now, if he 
chooses, he can make all our lives extremely difficult. A Slayer cannot 
afford that! We will find this murderer, but in the meantime... the show 
must go on.

Buffy:  This is so unfair.

Giles:  Buffy, you, uh, watch Morgan. Check his locker, see if there's 
anything there.

Willow:  Like a heart?

Giles:  Or something.

Buffy:  Alright.

Willow:  I'll pull up his locker number. (goes to the PC)

Xander:  Can I still wear a wire?

Cut to the hall after school. Buffy quietly comes through the doors from 
the stairwell, looking around to see if anyone's there. She passes a 
door. It opens, but Buffy doesn't see it, only hears the sound. Cut to a 
shot of her through the door from low to the floor. She twists around to 
look behind her toward the sound, but doesn't realize it was the door 
that's now ajar. She goes back to looking for Morgan's locker and finds 
it. She starts to work the combination.

Buffy:  Okay... Two to the left, three to the right...

She looks in both directions again, and then slams her palm into the 
lock. When she takes her hand away there's a clean hole. She reaches in 
with her fingers and undoes the latch. She looks around in the locker, 
and is about to take Sid's case out when Principal Snyder grabs her hand 
from behind, startling her.

Buffy:  Principal Snyder!

Snyder:  What are you doing?

Buffy:  Uh, looking for something.

Snyder:  School hours are over. You, therefore, should be gone.

Buffy:  And I'm going any minute now. (laughs nervously)

Snyder:  There are things I will not tolerate: students loitering on 
campus after school, horrible murders with hearts being removed. And 
also smoking.

Buffy:  Well, I don't do any of those things. Not... ever.

Snyder:  (suspicious) There's something going on with you. I'll figure 
it out sooner or later. (Buffy smiles) Do you need something here?

Buffy:  Oh! (looks into the locker) Yeah! Right! Um, a friend wanted me 
to get something... out of his case!

She pulls the case partially out of the locker, opens it and is 
surprised to find it empty. She quickly closes it and looks at Snyder.

Buffy:  He must've taken it and just forgotten to tell me.

Snyder:  Mm-hmm.

Morgan and Sid see what's going on from behind the door.

Snyder:  Get along home now. It's late.

He turns and heads down the hall. Buffy watches him go.

Cut to the stage. Sid is in the chair. Morgan paces.

Morgan:  No, I can't do it!

Sid:  It's the only way.

Morgan:  I don't want...

Sid:  She's the one.

Morgan:  But...

Sid:  You saw what she did, how strong she is.

Morgan:  I know, but...

Sid:  She's the last! Just this one more, and I'll be free.

Morgan:  I won't.

Sid:  I will!

Cut to Buffy's room at home. Her mom knocks on the door and comes in.

Joyce:  Hi, hon. How's it, uh, going with the talent show?

Buffy:  It'll be over soon.

Joyce:  (lets out a laugh) It can't be that bad! I, for one, am looking 
forward to seeing your act.

Buffy:  Seeing? I-in the sense of actually attending?

Joyce:  Of course!

Buffy:  Uh-uh! No, Mom, y-y-you can't! And, I mean, if I know you're 
out there watching, I'll freeze up, stage fright.

Joyce:  But I wanna support what you're doing!

Buffy:  Look, Mom, if you really love me, and wanna show your support, 
you'll stay away. Far away.

Joyce:  Honey, is there, uh... Is there something bothering you? I-I 
mean, besides your fabulous debut.

Buffy:  Nothing. There's just a lot going on right now.

Joyce:  Well. Get some sleep. You'll feel better in the morning.

Buffy:  Good plan.

Joyce leaves the room and closes the door behind her. Buffy gets into 
bed. The camera follows her hand as she reaches over to turn off her 
lamp in front of the window. When it goes out Sid is there looking in.


PART 02:

Buffy's room. She's sleeping. She wakes to the sound of quick, light 
footsteps and sits up. More footsteps. She sees something go under her 
bed and leans over the edge to look underneath. Nothing. She comes back 
up and sees Sid there, screams, and knocks him off of the bed. Sid runs 
away. Buffy quickly gets out of bed as her mother rushes into the room 
and turns on the light.

Joyce:  Honey, what is it?

Buffy:  (comes over to her mom, frightened) In the bed, in the covers 
there's something!

Joyce:  Where?

They go to the bed to investigate.

Buffy:  There's something there.

Joyce grabs the covers and goes through them.

Joyce:  Well, well, there, there's nothing there now. Are, are you sure 
you didn't have a nightmare?

Buffy:  No! There's some... There is... (exhales and puts her hands on 
her head) Yeah... You're probably right. (exhales and drops her hands) 
I'm sorry I got you up.

Joyce:  Don't worry about it. I was dreaming about bills. (kisses 
Buffy's forehead) Sweetheart, you shouldn't (points) go to sleep with 
the window open.

She touches her daughter's cheek, then leaves the room. Buffy looks at 
her window.

Buffy:  (confused) I didn't.

Cut to Sunnydale High School.

Marc:  And my lovely assistant steps into the box...

Cut to the stage in the auditorium. Marc's assistant steps into the box. 
He closes the door and turns it around.

Marc:  And... behold!

He opens the box, but his assistant is still there.

Marc:  You were supposed to leave!

Xander and Willow are in the seats watching and laughing. Marc closes 
the door to the box and butts his head against it. Giles comes out from 
backstage with Cordelia close behind.

Cordelia:  I don't understand why I... why I have to follow Brett and 
his stupid band.

Giles:  Because we have to clear their equipment before the finale. I 
told you.

Cordelia:  But the mood! It'll be all wrong! (gets in front of him and 
stops him) My song is about dignity and human feelings and personal... 
hygiene or something. Anyway, it's sappy, and no one is gonna be feeling 
sappy after all that Rock and Roll.

Giles doesn't want to hear it. He gives Cordelia a look like something's 
wrong.

Cordelia:  Uhhh, what?

Giles:  Oh! I'm sorry. Um, your hair, uh...

Cordelia:  There's something wrong with my hair? (pulls it behind her 
ears)

Giles remains silent, but continues to stare.

Cordelia:  Ohmigod! (quickly leaves)

Giles:  (to himself) Xander was right. It worked like a charm.

He sees Buffy come down the aisle and goes over to her.

Giles:  Hello. You look a bit worse for, uh...

Buffy heads into the seats to Willow and Xander. Giles follows.

Giles:  What exactly are you the worse for?

Buffy:  Where's Morgan? (sits)

Giles:  Uh, I, I... haven't seen him.

Xander:  Did he do something to you?

Buffy:  No, it was his... Sid, the dummy.

She suddenly has Giles' full attention.

Buffy:  Okay, everyone look at me like I'm in a bunny suit, 'cause 
that's how stupid I feel saying this... I think Sid was in my room last 
night.

Willow:  With Morgan?

Buffy:  No. He was alone. And alive.

Xander:  Did you see him?

Buffy:  Well, I saw something. I-it ran across my floor, under my bed 
and then it attacked me.

Giles:  Attacked you? How?

Buffy:  It was like it pounced on my face.

Xander:  Like a cat.

Buffy:  Yeah, exactly! But when I turned the lights on it was already 
gone. I-I think it went out my window.

Xander:  Like a cat.

Buffy:  Yeah! No! It was Sid, the dummy.

Giles:  Or possibly the nightmare of somebody who had... dummies on her 
mind.

Willow:  You did say they creep you out.

Buffy:  Excuse me? Can I have a *little* support here, please? I'm not 
just some crazy person, I'm the Slayer.

Xander:  The dummy Slayer? (gets a look from Buffy) There's nothing 
funny about that.

Willow:  Well, on the side of the 'Morgan's just crazy' theory there is, 
(sees Morgan go by carrying Sid) well, Morgan.

Morgan opens Sid's case.

Buffy:  I'd like to see Morgan without his better half for a few 
minutes. Bet he could tell me something.

Morgan sits down with Sid on his lap.

Giles:  Oh, uh, i-if it's any consolation, I... I may have found a 
possible demon culprit. (holds up a book) The-there's a reference in 
here to a brotherhood of seven demons who take, uh, the form of young 
humans. Every seven years these demons need human organs, a-a-a brain 
and a heart, to maintain their humanity. Otherwise they, they, they 
revert back to their original form, which is, uh, uh, slightly less 
appealing.

He hands Xander the book open to a sketch of one of the demons.

Willow:  So Morgan could still be the guy, only demon Morgan instead of 
crazy Morgan.

Morgan fusses with Sid's shoes.

Giles:  It's said that these demons are, are, are preternaturally 
strong, and, and, and... Morgan is, is... Well, he seems to be getting 
weaker every day.

Morgan puts his hand on his head. Buffy observes him.

Cut to history class. Mrs. Jackson lectures as she walks around the 
room.

Mrs. Jackson:  It was as a result of this that President Monroe put 
forth the eponymous, meaning named after one's self, Monroe Doctrine, 
which in one sense established the U.S. as a local peacekeeper.

She walks behind Buffy, who is intently watching Sid. Sid turns his head 
back to look at her and lowers his brows. Buffy is creeped out and looks 
down at her desk. A moment later she looks back up at him. Sid just 
stares back. Cordelia notices and leans over to comment.

Cordelia:  Looks like someone digs you. That's adorable. You and the 
dummy could tour in the freak show!

She smiles smugly as she leans back into her chair. Buffy says nothing. 
She just looks back at Sid, then down at her desk again.

Mrs. Jackson:  Okay, who can tell me how Spain responded to this policy?

Sid is whispering to Morgan. Mrs. Jackson notices.

Mrs. Jackson:  Morgan? Morgan?

Morgan:  (looks at Sid, then up) What?

Sid:  Morgan has other things on his mind.

The students laugh. Mrs. Jackson approaches Morgan.

Mrs. Jackson:  Give me your puppet.

Morgan:  I'll put him away.

Mrs. Jackson:  (takes Sid) You'll get it back after school.

She opens a cupboard, puts Sid in and closes it.

Mrs. Jackson:  Okay, then. In the first part of the nineteenth 
century...

Sid:  (from inside the cupboard) I'm still watchin' you.

Buffy looks at the cupboard.

Mrs. Jackson:  Morgan, that is enough!

Xander and Buffy look at Morgan. He looks back at Buffy, then at Mrs. 
Jackson.

Cut to after school. Morgan comes back into the classroom to retrieve 
Sid.

Morgan:  Mrs. Jackson.

Mrs. Jackson:  Morgan.

Morgan:  You said you'd give me...

Mrs. Jackson:  Oh, of course.

She gets up and goes over to the cupboard. Morgan follows her 
expectantly. Before she gets Sid out she stops and faces Morgan.

Mrs. Jackson:  Y'know, I wanted to ask you, is everything okay? At home, 
here at school?

Morgan:  Yeah, it's great.

Mrs. Jackson:  I feel like you've become... a little detached.

Morgan:  Mm! (rubs his head in pain)

Mrs. Jackson:  You're one of the brightest kids I've seen in a long 
time, but lately it seems like you're not all there.

Morgan has both his hands on his head now, rubbing.

Mrs. Jackson:  Try not to let other things get in the way.

Morgan:  (takes his hands down) Okay! Can I get Sid now?

Mrs. Jackson:  Sure.

She goes over to the cupboard and opens it, but Sid is gone. She turns 
back to Morgan.

Mrs. Jackson:  It's gone!

Morgan:  Gone? Whadaya mean, gone? Where could he have gone?

Mrs. Jackson:  I put it right here.

Morgan:  He knew to wait for me. He knew I'd be back.

Mrs. Jackson:  What do you mean 'he'?

Morgan:  What did you do with him? Where is he?

Cut to the library. Xander has Sid and is playing with him. Buffy, 
Willow and Giles come in. Willow and Giles have their arms full of 
costumes. Buffy sees Xander holding Sid.

Buffy:  Where did you get that?

Xander:  Oh, I, uh, took it out of Mrs. Jackson's cupboard. I thought 
you said you wanted to be able to speak to Morgan alone, and uh... well, 
Morgan's alone, and, uh... Sid's with me.

Buffy stares at Sid uncomfortably.

Xander:  (manipulating Sid) Hi, Buffy! Hi, Willow! Would you like to 
hear some off-color jokes?

Buffy:  I really don't think you should be doing that.

Xander:  What? C'mon... (as Sid) I'm not real!

Buffy:  (wigged) Xander, quit it!

She turns and walks a few steps away. She stops and looks back when she 
hears Xander pounding Sid's head into the table.

Xander:  He's... not... real! (picks Sid back up) I think our 
demonstration proves that, uh, Sid (knocks on Sid's head several times) 
is wood. Now, why don't you go and find Morgan and prove he's... 
whatever he is?

Giles:  I imagine he's looking for his puppet.

Buffy:  I'll go find Morgan. (starts to leave, but stops and gives 
Xander a look) You watch the dummy.

Xander:  (as Sid) Bye-bye, now. I'm completely inanimate.

Buffy gives Xander another look and goes out the door.

Xander:  (as Sid) Redrum! Redruuum!

Willow:  What do we do with him?

Xander:  Eh, I'll keep him company.

Giles:  Willow, we have some hunting of our own to do.

Willow:  Once again I'm banished to the demon section of the card 
catalog.

Xander looks at Sid and goes over to the table with him. Giles and 
Willow go up into the stacks.

Giles:  You concentrate on re-animation theory. I'll peck about in organ 
harvesting. Unless, of course, you prefer...

Willow:  That's okay, you can have the organs.

Xander puts Sid in the chair at the end of the table.

Xander:  So, I guess it's just... you and me, huh? (turns Sid's head 
away and pats him) That looks more comfortable.

He leaves Sid there, and the camera closes in on him.

Buffy:  Morgan?

Cut to the auditorium. Buffy walks along the front and then up the 
stairs to the stage.

Buffy:  Morgan?

Cut backstage. Buffy draws a curtain aside, but no one's there. She 
takes the steps down to the makeup area and tries a door. It's locked. 
She hears another door close and turns toward the sound. A gust blows 
through another curtain. Slowly she walks toward it. She quickly turns 
her head when she senses something behind her, and sees Principal Snyder 
at the top of the steps to the stage.

Buffy:  Principal Snyder!

Snyder:  Looking for something?

Buffy:  Have you seen Morgan Shay?

Snyder:  (comes down the steps) You know, with everything that's been 
going on recently, I'm not sure how safe it is for a girl like yourself 
to be here... alone.

Buffy:  Well, I was just leaving. And I know how to take care of myself.

They stare at each other a moment.

Snyder:  Alright, then.

He goes back up the stairs and leaves.

Cut to the library. Xander looks over at Sid in his chair, then turns 
back to his homework. Cut to the stacks.

Willow:  (to Giles) Look what I found in the section on toys and magic: 
(reads) 'On rare occasions inanimate objects of human quality, such as 
dolls and mannequins, already mystically possessed of consciousness, 
have acted upon their desire to become human by harvesting organs.'

Giles:  Emily's heart.

Willow:  Morgan's dummy.

Giles:  Mm.

Cut to Xander. He gets up to get a reference book. When he gets back to 
the table Sid is gone, but Xander doesn't notice. He slams the book on 
the table, sits down again and begins to read. After a moment he glances 
at Sid's chair and jumps up frightened when he sees it empty.

Xander:  Whoa!

He climbs onto the table. Giles and Willow come running out of the 
stacks.

Giles:  What is it?

Xander:  He's gone! (indicates the chair) Sid's gone!

Giles:  What? Oh!

Willow:  Uhhh!

They're both frightened and look around themselves.

Cut backstage. Buffy continues to look around. She hears some creaking.

Buffy:  Morgan?

She backtracks a bit and goes toward the noise. She pushes some clothes 
on a rack aside, but sees nothing. She continues and eventually stumbles 
on something. She looks down and sees Morgan's body lying there.

Buffy:  (whispers) Morgan! (slowly backs away) Demon's got himself a 
brain.

She keeps backing through a bead curtain and hears a snapping noise 
above. She looks up and sees a wrought iron chandelier falling on her.


PART 03:

Backstage. Buffy is unconscious under the chandelier. She wakes and 
moans. Her vision is a bit blurred. She hears quick little footsteps and 
immediately becomes alert. She sees Sid run across the catwalk above 
her. She tries to lift the chandelier off of herself, but it's very 
heavy. Sid has come down now, and Buffy sees him in the shadows.

Buffy:  Who's ever out there, I'm gonna hurt you! Badly! If you'll just 
gimme a minute...

She tries lifting again, but to no avail. She looks back to where she 
saw Sid and sees his knife poised above her. She turns her head just in 
time to avoid being stabbed in the face. Sid lifts the knife and tries 
again, but misses. Buffy flails out with her left arm and knocks him 
away. She tries lifting again, and this time she shifts the chandelier 
enough to get out from underneath it. Sid attacks her from behind as she 
slides out, but she knocks him away and into a wall. His knife goes 
sliding across the floor. Buffy gets out and jumps over on top of Sid, 
pinning him against the wall with her arm.

Sid:  You win. Now you can take your heart and your brain and move on.

Buffy:  I'm sure they would have made great trophies for your case.

Sid:  That woulda been justice.

Buffy:  Yeah, except for one thing: you lost, and now you'll never be 
human.

Sid:  Yeah, well, neither will you.

They are both confused.

Buffy and Sid:  What?

Cut to the library. Giles and Xander stare at Sid in wide-eyed and open-
mouthed amazement. Willow and Buffy just stare and listen.

Sid:  This is what I do. I hunt demons. Yeah, you wouldn't know it to 
look at me. Let's just say there was me, there was a really mean demon, 
there was a curse, and the next thing I know I'm not me anymore. I'm 
sitting on some guy's knee, with his hand up my shirt.

Willow:  And ever since then you've been a living dummy?

Sid:  The kid here was right all along. I shoulda picked you to team up 
with. But I didn't because...

Buffy:  Because you thought *I* was the demon.

Sid:  Who can blame me for thinking? Look at you! You're strong, 
athletic, limber... (goes off into his own world) nubile... (shakes his 
head) I'm back! In any case, now that this demon's got the heart and 
brain, he gets to keep the human form he's in for another seven years.

The tea kettle is whistling. Giles gets up to tend to it.

Giles:  I must say, it's a welcome change to have someone else explain 
all these things.

Sid:  There were seven of these guys. I've killed six. If I can get the 
last one, the curse will be lifted and I'll be free. I'm sure it's 
someone in that stupid talent show.

Buffy:  Yeah, but now that demon has what he wants. He'll be moving on.

Sid:  So, once we know who's missing from the show...

Buffy:  We'll know who our demon is!

Giles:  (remembering) The show!

Buffy:  What?

Giles:  It's gonna start! I'm supposed to be there!

Buffy:  (to Willow) Okay, um, start pulling everyone's addresses in the 
talent show. I-if they're not there, maybe we can catch them at home.

Sid:  (to Giles) And you, get 'em all on stage, form the power circle. 
Then we can see who's a no-show.

Giles:  Um, uh, the what?

Sid:  The power circle. You get everyone together, you get 'em, you 
know, revved up.

Giles:  Right. (still confused, but goes)

Sid:  How'd *he* ever get that gig?

Cut backstage.

Giles:  Fifteen minutes to curtain, everyone! Uh, fifteen minutes!

He turns to go back out. Cordelia chases him down.

Cordelia:  I, I can't go out there. All those people staring at me and 
judging me like I'm some kind of... Buffy! What if I mess up?

Giles:  Cordelia, there, uh, there-there's, uh, uh, an adage, uh, that, 
uh, if you're feeling nervous then, uh, you should imagine the entire 
audience are in their underwear.

Cordelia:  Eww! Even Mrs. Franklin? Uhhh!

Giles:  Perhaps not.

Cordelia:  Yeah.

Giles:  (to everyone) Um, alright, um, we'll assemble on the stage in 
five minutes for the, um, uh, power thing.

Cut to the catwalk. Sid and Buffy are sitting and waiting to see who's 
missing from the circle.

Sid:  So, what's your deal, kid? I don't figure you for a demon hunter.

Buffy:  I'm a Vampire Slayer.

Sid:  (surprised) You?! You're the Slayer? (Buffy nods) Damn! I knew a 
Slayer in the 30's. Korean chick. Very hot. We're talking *muscle* tone. 
Man, we had some times. (gets a look from Buffy) Hey, that was pre-
dummy, alright? Now, I was a guy!

Buffy:  So, you kill the demon and the curse is lifted, right?

Sid:  That's the drill.

Buffy:  You don't actually turn into a prince, do you? I-I mean, your 
body...

Sid:  Is dust and bones. When I say free...

Buffy:  You mean dead.

Sid:  Don't get sniffly on me, sis. I've lived a lot longer than most 
demon hunters. Or Slayers, for that matter.

Buffy looks down, depressed about her lot in life.

Sid:  (puts his hand on her knee) Of course, if you want to snuggle up 
and comfort me...

Buffy:  (takes his hand off of her knee) So, that horny dummy thing 
really *isn't* an act, is it?

Sid:  Nope!

Buffy:  Yuk!

Sid and Buffy look down onto the stage.

Giles:  I-is everybody here?

The talent gathers on the stage.

Sid:  Okay, here comes our line-up.

Giles:  Quickly, everyone! Uh... um, power circle.

The students arrange themselves in a circle and hold hands. Sid and 
Buffy scan the group for any missing members. Giles looks around as 
well. The camera follows his gaze.

Giles:  Well, that's that, then. Um, everybody, uh, get ready!

Some of the students don't get it, but the circle breaks up quickly as 
they scramble to get ready. Giles scratches his head, confused. Buffy 
bends down and slips underneath the catwalk railing.

Buffy:  (to Sid) Hold on.

She drops to the stage below. Sid watches her fall. She lands squarely 
on her feet and goes over to Giles.

Giles:  No one's missing.

Buffy:  So the demon isn't in the show.

Giles:  It seems not. Uh, tell the others. Look, it's nearly curtain. I 
must get the show rolling.

Buffy:  Right.

Giles:  Right.

She looks for Sid up on the catwalk, but he's gone.

Buffy:  Sid?

Cut to Principal Snyder nosing around backstage. Giles sees him, and 
Snyder faces him. Giles isn't sure why he's there. Snyder puts his fist 
into his palm and walks away. Giles follows him.

Cut to Buffy, still looking for Sid.

Buffy:  Sid?

She stops next to a workbench. Something drips onto her arm from above. 
She shakes it off and looks up. She reaches up to a shelf to see what's 
dripping, and Morgan's brain falls down and into her hands. She lets out 
a startled yelp and drops the brain. It jiggles when it hits the floor.


PART 04:

The library. Willow is at the PC. Buffy walks up to her staring at her 
hands.

Buffy:  I'm never gonna stop washing my hands.

Xander:  So, the dummy tells us that he's a demon hunter. And we're, 
like, fine, la la la la. He takes off, and now there's a brain. Does 
anybody else feel like they've been Keyser Soze'd?

Buffy:  Sid's on the level, I'm sure of it. But why would the demon have 
rejected the brain? I-I mean, I thought Morgan was the smartest kid in 
school.

Willow:  He was, look at his grades: all A's. He was even taking college 
classes. Wait a second.

Buffy:  What?

Willow:  All these sick days.

Xander:  He was off for, like, half the year!

Buffy:  Check the school nurse's file.

Willow:  (types) Look at this! 'In case of emergency, contact Dr. Dale 
Leggett, California Institute of Neurosurgery, Cancer Ward.'

Xander:  Brain cancer?

Willow:  That's why he had all the headaches.

Buffy:  This means that whatever's out there still needs a healthy, 
intelligent brain.

Xander:  In other words, I'm safe! (smiles)

Buffy:  And it's gonna be looking for the smartest person around.

She and Xander look at Willow. She looks back and forth between them.

Willow:  What?

Cut backstage. Giles is helping Marc set up, and has a pair of weights 
in his hands.

Giles:  Yes, if you, you calibrated the units of weight then you could 
calculate the, uh, specific maximum velocity achieved before the point 
of impact.

Marc:  Gee, Mr. Giles, you're really... smart! Could you do me a favor?

Cut to the library.

Willow:  What could a demon possibly want from me?

Xander:  What's the square root of 841?

Willow:  29. Oh, yeah.

Buffy:  Don't worry, Willow. As long as you're with us there's 
absolutely no way that demon is gonna get what he wants.

Cut backstage. Marc tests his guillotine on a honeydew melon. Giles 
picks up a half melon.

Giles:  Oh, my!

Marc:  Pretty cool, huh?

Giles:  Are you sure there's no one else who could help you out?

Marc:  My assistant got sick. You won't have to say anything. I'll, I'll 
show you. Lie down.

Giles:  (inspects the guillotine) Uh, uh, how, how exactly does it work?

Marc pulls the blade back up by its rope and ties it down.

Marc:  A good magician never tells his secrets.

He sees his hand and arm begin to revert to demon form, and shakes his 
sleeve to get it to cover up better.

Marc:  C'mon. We haven't got much time.

Cut to the library. Buffy is pacing nervously.

Buffy:  This is ridiculous. We can't just sit here and wait for him to 
come to us. We have to figure out who we're dealing with.

Xander:  I still vote dummy.

Buffy:  No. Okay, so we ruled out all the people in the talent show...

Willow:  That's because they were all there. But that's before we found 
the brain.

Buffy:  Right. So it probably *is* one of them. And, and Giles doesn't 
know! He's with them all right now!

Xander:  Uch! Giles can handle himself. I mean, he *is* really... 
(clicks in his mind) smart!

Cut to the hall outside the library. Buffy slams the door open and runs 
out and down the hall.

Buffy:  GILES!

Xander and Willow are hot on her trail.

Cut backstage. Giles is strapped down to the guillotine bench.

Giles:  Sh-sh-shouldn't it be aimed at my neck?

Marc:  No. No, this way your scalp gets sliced off and your brains 
just... come pouring out.

He slides the head restraint down onto Giles' forehead. He reaches over 
and locks it down with a padlock.

Giles:  What exactly is the trick?

Marc:  Trick? (pulls the chest restraint tighter)

Giles:  Marc?

Marc goes over to the block where the rope holding the guillotine blade 
is tied down. He grabs his hatchet and takes a swing at the rope. Giles 
is terrified. Marc takes another swing. The rope is half cut now.

Giles:  M-Marc?

A third swing, and the rope is almost cut through. The blade slips a 
bit. Giles looks up at it in terror. Another swing, and the rope hangs 
by a thread. Marc raises the hatchet for the final cut. Buffy lunges at 
him and tackles him to the floor. She leg sweeps Marc, kicking his legs 
out from under him as he tries to get up. She stands up and adopts a 
fighting stance. As Marc tries to get up again, she throws an inverted 
crescent kick to his face, and he goes down again. Marc growls as he 
starts to get up, and Buffy sees that the skin on his face is beginning 
to turn back into its demon state.

Buffy:  Ewww!

Marc takes advantage of her distraction and jumps up and punches her, 
then follows up with a backhand fist to her face. She spins around and 
falls to the floor. The rope stretches and snaps, and the blade begins 
to fall. Giles yells out and clamps his eyes shut. At the last instant 
Xander grabs the rope from midair and stops the blade. Giles hears it 
stop and opens his eyes. He sees it go back up as Xander pulls on the 
rope. Buffy gets up, but is punched by the demon and falls again. Willow 
goes to Giles and begins to undo the restraints.

Willow:  Where are the keys?

Giles:  Marc's got it!

Xander:  Willow!

He kicks the hatchet over to her. She picks it up and begins to hack at 
the lock.

Giles:  Hurry!

Buffy gets up again and runs over to Marc. She grabs him and falls 
backward, pulling him down with her and flipping him over onto his back. 
She flips up to her feet and turns to face him in a front stance. When 
he gets up she punches him in the face and kicks him in the stomach with 
a hopping front snap kick. He staggers backward and stumbles into his 
disappearing-act box, and the door closes on him. Willow keeps hacking 
at the lock on the guillotine.

Buffy:  How do you lock this thing?

That wouldn't have made any difference because Marc just punches through 
the box and reaches for her. She quickly backs away as he kicks and 
shoves his way out of the box. He has completely reverted to his demon 
form now. He comes at her, grabs her by the neck, and lifts her from the 
floor.

Giles:  (yells) What's happening?

Willow keeps hacking. The demon slams Buffy up against a wall with his 
hand around her throat. He pulls her away and slams her into the wall 
again. Xander can only watch as he holds on to the rope. Willow gets the 
lock to break and quickly pulls it off. She and Giles push the head 
restraint up, and he gets out as fast as he can. He reaches down to undo 
the restraint at his feet. Sid finally shows up, jumps onto the demon's 
back and begins stabbing with his knife.

Sid:  I found you!

The demon ignores Sid and continues slamming Buffy into the wall. Giles 
gets himself loose. Sid has forced the demon to let go of Buffy and has 
jumped off. She hits the demon in the face with an open hand punch 
followed by a backhand punch. Giles gets off of the bench as Buffy does 
a full spinning side kick to the demon's gut, making him stagger back 
onto the bench and land with his neck in the guillotine.

Buffy:  (to Xander) Let go!

Xander lets go, and the blade falls, chopping off the demon's head. Its 
body slumps lifeless on the bench. Willow cringes at the sight. They all 
stare at what's left of the demon.

Giles:  Uh... I must say, all of you... Your t-timing is impeccable.

Sid:  And now for the big finish.

He has positioned himself over the demon's chest with his knife.

Buffy:  What are you doing?

Sid:  It's not enough. He'll come back. You have to get the heart. Then 
all of this'll be over.

She holds out her hand for the knife.

Buffy:  Let me.

Sid:  I got it. Thanks.

He wields back with the knife and plunges it into the demon's heart. He 
pulls back to do it again, but his aim was true the first time, and he 
just slumps over onto the demon with the knife still in his hands, now a 
lifeless puppet. Buffy looks at Sid sadly and lets out a deep breath. 
Giles takes off his glasses. Buffy gently lifts Sid from the demon and 
holds him in her arms. She starts to walk off stage.

Buffy:  (to Sid) It's over.

She stops as the curtain is drawn and looks out at the audience. Giles 
puts his glasses back on and stares out as well. Willow is still holding 
the hatchet as she stands there looking out at the audience with a 
nervous look on her face. Buffy and Xander look out, too. Principal 
Snyder doesn't understand what he is seeing.

Snyder:  I don't get it. What is it? Avant-garde?

Cut to initial credits roll, but back to new epilogue.


EPILOGUE:

The stage. Xander, Willow and Buffy are doing their act from "Oedipus Rex".

Willow:  (stiff with fear) Oh, ruler of my country, Oedipus, you see our 
company around the Altar, and I, the priest of Zeus!

Xander:  (nervous) Ha, ha! They prophesize that I should kill my father. 
But he is dead. (kneels down and gestures like he's grabbing a handful 
of dirt) And hidden deep in the soil. But surely I must fear my mother's 
bed.

Buffy:  (bored) (walks around Willow to Xander) Oh, Oedipus, Oedipus, 
unhappy Oedipus, (briefly puts her hand on his head) that is all I can 
call you, (goes back to her place) and all that I ever shall call you. 
(faces away from the audience)

Xander:  (gets back up) Darkness! And horror of darkness. Unfolding, 
restless, visitant, sped by an ill wind in haste.

Roll continuos credits in side split the screen.

Willow is frozen in fright. Buffy has turned back around and rolls her 
eyes at Xander's fumbling of his lines.

Xander:  Madness, and... Madness a-and stabbing pain, and, a-and, uh... 
oh... oh... memory of, uh, i-ill deeds I have done.

Buffy nudges Willow to cue her. She is too terrified to say her next 
line and runs from the stage. Xander and Buffy step together to fill the 
gap left between them.

End credits
End the show.