3rd Person's POV

Buffy enters the gym with Willow and Xander in tow.

"Giles didn't approve, huh?"

Buffy huffs as she glances at Willow, "He totally lost his water. We haven't even seen a vampire in a week. I'd say he should get a girlfriend if he wasn't so old."

"Well, we're behind you."

"People scoff at things like school spirit-- but when you see these young women giving their all like this..." Xander stares as all the girls in short skirts twirl and warm up.

Across the gym, Laney has her feet on two chairs. She slides down into an extra low split.

Xander looks mesmerized, "Oooh, stretchy... Where was I?"

"You were pretending that seeing scantily-clad girls in revealing postures was a spiritual experience." Willow frowns as Xander looks at her sister.

"What do you mean, pretending?"

Xander pulls out an I.D. bracelet then turns to Buffy, "Oh, hey. Here's a little good luck thing for the tryouts..."

Buffy looks at him charmed, "What is this?"

Willow frowns at him looking less charmed, "What is that?"

Buffy takes the bracelet, puts it on.

"This is so sweet! Yours always..."

Buffy looks up in confusion as Xander chuckles nervously.

"That was on there when I got it. Really. They all said that."

Cordelia, in cheerleader outfit, moves up as she watches Amber stand on one leg and hold the other straight up in the air.

"Just look at Amber. Who does she think she is, a Laker Girl?"

Willow smiles, "I heard she turned them down."

Cordelia frowns at her then rolls her eyes and walks over to Laney.

A senior cheerleader moves to the judge's table with two other senior cheerleaders.

"Let's begin with... Amber Grove. If you're not
auditioning move off the floor."

Xander, Willow, Buffy, Laney, and Cordelia move back. Willow spots Amy Madison.

"Hi Amy."

"Hi." Amy smiles sheepishly.

"I didn't know you wanted to be a cheerleader. You lost a lot of weight."

Amy nods, "Had to."

"Do you know Buffy?"

"Hi." She looks at Buffy then at Amber doing her routine, "Oh how I hate this, let me count the ways."

Buffy smiles, warming to Amy's honesty.

"She trained with Benson-- he's the best coach money can buy."

"They have cheerleading coaches?" Buffy asks in surprise.

"Oh yeah. You don't have one...? I train with my mom, three hours in the morning, three at night."

"That kind of quality time with my mom would probably lead to some quality matricide."

Amy smiles, "I know it's kinda hokey... but she's really great."

Cordelia, standing nearby, feigns boredom with Amber's performance and turns her back. Everyone else watches Amber as smoke begins to emanate from her pom-poms.

Buffy frowns, "What the..."

Willows eyes widen, "That girl's on fire."

"Enough with the hyperbole." Cordelia says with her back still turned.

Laney frowns, "No she's really in fire!"

Amber stops, drops the pom-poms. The smoke is coming from her. Her hands and forearms suddenly burst into flames. Amber screams. Buffy vaults to the large Razorbacks banner then rips it down and tackles Amber. She wraps her tightly in it and smothers the flames.

"It's okay, you're gonna be okay..."

"I've been slaying Vampires for more than a year now. I've seen some pretty cringeworthy stuff, but
nobody's hands ever got toasted."

Laney snorts a little as she laughs then stops when Giles looks at her.

"I imagine not."

"So this is not a vampire problem."

Giles shakes his head at Buffy, "No."

"But it is funky, right? Not of the norm?" Laney asks as she picks at her nail polish.

"Quite. Spontaneous human combustion is rare, and
scientifically unexplainable. But there've been cases reported for hundreds of years. Usually all that's left is a pile of ashes."

Willow frowns, "That's all that would have been left of Amber if it hadn't been for Buffy."

Xander groans, "So we have no idea what caused this? That's a comfort."

"Well, that is the thrill of living on a hellmouth-- one has a veritable cornucopia of fiends, devils and ghouls to engage-"

The teens look at Giles with blank stares.

"Pardon me for finding the glass half full."

"Any common denominator in cases of spontaneous combustion?"

Giles shrugs, "Rage. In most cases the person who
combusted was terribly angry or upset."

"So maybe Amber's got this power. To make herself be on fire. Like the Human Torch, only it hurts."
Xander says nodding to himself.

"So I should get the skinny on Amber. See if she's had any colorful episodes before."

Willow smiles jumping up, "That means hacking illegally into the school's computer system-- at last something I can do since Laney got to last time."

She moves to a computer.

Xander stands up from his seat, "I'll ask around about her."

Buffy looks at them in surprise, "Guys, you don't have to get involved."

"What do you mean? We're a team! Aren't we a team?"

Willow nods agreeing with Xander, "Yeah, you're the Slayer and we're like the slayerettes."

Buffy frowns, "I don't want you putting yourselves in danger."

"I laugh in the face of danger. Then I hide till it goes away." Xander jokes making Buffy smile.

"Okay, well, I'm psyched for the help."

Buffy looks over at Laney who is sitting with her feet on the table. Laney looks up noticing Buffy staring at her.

"Oh no, I'm not here to help. I'm just here so I don't have to listen Cordelia talk about how many guys she's gonna get with her cheerleading outfit."

Buffy rolls her eyes with a small smile as see turns to Giles.

"And what if we find out Amber didn't cause this herself?"

"Then we will have to determine who or what did. And deal with it accordingly."

"Hey, we've fought vampires! Anything else'll be a walk in the park."

Buffy nods with a grimace looking at Xander, "I hope so..."

The two walk out the library leaving Willow to the computer and Giles to his books. Laney looks around bored then gets up to leave until Giles falls her over.

She walks over to his office, "What's up Doc?"

"What? Oh well I just needed to inform you of some news."

"Oh cool. Should I sit?"

Giles nods. Laney sits in the chair across his desk waiting for him to continue.

"It appears that you are a potential."

"I'm a potential what? Oh did I possibly win something? Was it hair products?!"

Giles takes off his glasses and wrings his hands together in his lap, "A potential slayer. There is one slayer and many potentials. When that one slayer dies or is killed then a potential slayer is chosen and that potential is then the slayer officially."

Laney looks at him with an open mouth and wide eyes.

"I don't want it."

Giles could laugh at the expression on her face but he knows it's not an appropriate time.

"I know how hard this must be. But it's not up to you. For some reason, you were chosen. Whether it be for your strength, smarts, or both but like Buffy when the time comes you will need to take action and rid Sunnydale of demons."

Giles waits for her to speak but she doesn't say anything. She just stares in pure shock. She doesn't even blink. Giles waves a hand in front of her face and she doesn't flinch.

"And she's gone into shock."

JUST FOR FUN
Laney's Outfit