Disclaimer: I don’t own any of the gentle souls in this fic, though god knows I wish I knew them….Mutant Enemy and that wanker Joss Whedon get credit for their creation. I’m just fantasizing a little.

Rating: Hmmm…good question…let’s be safe and say PG-13, though no TRUE smut will ever be involved here. I would never in good conscience inflict my smut ineptness on good Kittens

Spoilers: Well, none that I know of. This is just my little world. Very AU.

Summary: The Scoobie gang are in prep school in Sunnydale. Xander is attending Wicklow Boys School, a rather strict place where his aunt sent to him to keep him from being abused by his parents. Willow, Buffy, Cordelia and Anya are attending Dal Riata Prep, a college prep school if there ever was one. Things start to get a little dicey with the arrival of a new girl, Tara Maclay as the Scoobies get pulled into a mystery surrounding a mystical artifact called The Amulet of St. James which was in shared custody by both schools but was lost sometime in the early 1800s.

Many thanks to Sassette and choice others who opined a challenge to put the Scoobies in a prep school setting (as well as voiced a wish to see Willow and Tara in a school uniform ) This is just a test fic mostly. Hopefully you'll like it.

Fall settled around Sunnydale like a comforting cloak as girls of varying ages filtered through the gates of the Dal Riata Preparatory School for Girls on the outskirts of town. Amber and red leaves carpeted the walkways, muting their steps and the sounds of youthful exuberance. The school grounds were spacious and well-kept with a beautiful mix of valley oak, redwood and pacific dogwood trees; the buildings made of stone that was old, refined and spoke of old money. While it was meant to be a boarding school, local residents had the option of either living on campus or catching the gleaming black school van to class.

Willow Rosenberg always loved this time of year with the beginning of school and the slow dissipation of summer's heat. Dressed in a navy blue weskit with the school's Celtic-themed crest on the left side of her chest, matching skirt, blue oxford shirt and navy/burgundy striped tie, she looked every inch a scholar. Her best friend, Xander Harris, used to give her such a hard time about being academically inclined. "Geez, Will, what're ya tryin' to do? Make us all look bad? Now you've got my aunt actually expecting me to get good grades and stuff. What do I know about the Spanish Intuition? Who cares?" She had rolled her eyes at his mangling of historical facts and didn't bother to
further the argument. She loved him dearly but sometimes he drove her completely nuts.

"Hey Wills!" A rather perky blonde wearing a similar school uniform bounced up to give Willow a huge hug. "Ready for school? Doh! Stupid question. I'm talking to the girl who started outlining all of her notebooks in different colored pens a whole month ahead of time!"

"Aw c'mon, Buffy give me a break. Xander's already been making my life miserable as it is. His aunt is clamping down on him and he's blaming me. Just because I happened to mention, in front of said aunt, that he should really pay more attention to his math class since he really is good at it, does not make me responsible," Willow muttered, her forehead creased in a frown. "Does it?"

"Nah, don't worry about it. Xander needs a little kick in the tush every now and again. That's what friends are for. At least that's what I keep telling him every time I kick his butt in arm wrestling."

Willow snickered and was about to reply when she and Buffy nearly collided with a tall, haughty brunette. "Hey, Rosenweird, watch where you're going!" the girl shouted. The group of girls hovering near her, that were surreptitiously called the Chasettes by those not fortunate enough to be part of the "In Crowd", cackled on cue.

"Geez, Cordelia could you take up any more of the sidewalk?" Buffy groaned. "Oh, I'm sorry, I forgot that your daddy paid for a new head transplant to contain your already overinflated ego."

"Watch it, Summers. You're already at the top of the list of the Most Likely To Live in A Trailer Park. Don't get on my bad side because I am definitely NOT going to deal with you and your little freakshow this year."

"Ooooh, Cordy…I think you've been brushing up on your threats over the summer. You might actually have me worried. NOT! What the hell does Xander see in you?" the blonde shook her head in mock wonder.

"Hmph, I'm doing him a favor just being seen with him otherwise he'd have absolutely zero chance of redemption. Now piss off, Summers. We've got better things to do than mark time with the morons. " With a toss of her head,Cordelia Chase marched off with airheaded minions in tow.

Willow glared after her, wondering how anyone in their right minds would bother fawning over Cordelia Chase much less date her. "I really have to talk to Xander about his taste in women. He should stop playing the "hard up"card."

"Amen to that," Buffy echoed. "We'd better get to homeroom. I heard Mrs. Killian's husband got caught cheating and she's been moody ever since, " she sighed deeply. "Looks like we in for a totally rough semester."

Willow nodded in sympathy as both girls entered the antiquated cobblestone building in the center of campus. They were completely unaware of a pair of ice-blue eyes watching them fearfully from the shelter of the pruned garden alcove to the right of the building. The young blonde to whom they belonged stepped from the safety of the alcove once she was sure all of the students had gone inside.

"Well, it's now or never, kiddo. Time for a fresh start," she mused and silently entered the building.