Episode 13 - The Waiting Room
THE WAITING ROOM
TEASER
EXT. SUNNYDALE STREET - DAY (DAY ONE)
CLOSE ON : GILES
as he looks with concern at something.
GILES
Oh Dear Lord.
WIDEN:
to reveal Buffy and Anya standing next to Giles, both
looking at the same thing.
ANYA
(panicked)
What are we going to do?
GILES
I'm not exactly sure. It's not
something we've ever faced before.
ANYA
That doesn't help me. Where's that
patented, calm British reassurance.
I want my Giles of Gibraltar.
GILES
There's really no need to agitate
yourself Anya. We'll face this
challenge as we have all the others,
you know, with a calm and composed
approach to..
ANYA
Oh, go clean your glasses.
(to Buffy)
We have to come up with a plan right
now. I mean, just take a look at
that!
The three all turn to take another look across the
street.
REVERSE ANGLE:
A store across the street. A sign which reads 'The
Magic Wand' and in smaller type 'a subsidiary of Box
of Tricks Proprietary Ltd.' It is a much larger store
than the Magic Box and a large crowd is gathered
outside. A banner reads 'Grand Opening.. A free charm
with every purchase'. We see a clown at the entrance,
blowing up balloons for some children.
ANGLE : ANYA
ANYA
(filled with despair,
looking at the shop)
It's the end of our world.
GILES
(less convinced)
Yes, utter oblivion.
Anya turns back to Buffy and Giles.
ANYA
(earnest)
Come on people. I want to hear some
ideas here. Let's brainstorm.
BUFFY
(to Giles, jokingly)
So you want me to take them out?
GILES
I don't think that's entirely
necessary.
ANYA
Hey! We're brainstorming here. Let's
not just dismiss ideas so casually.
(a beat; off a Giles stare)
Go away, you're disturbing the
process.
GILES
(patience wearing thin)
Anya, please go back and mind the
store.
ANYA
But..
GILES
Anya.
ANYA
(sulking)
Fine. If anyone asks for me, tell
them I'm in the store. You know, the
one that's doubling as an echo
chamber.
Anya returns to the Magic Box.
BUFFY
So, Giles. You seem to be handling.
Totally wig-free at the wig-worthy.
GILES
One doesn't wig just because a rival
store opens up and..
(a beat as he considers
what he just said)
I've been here far too long.
BUFFY
(taking a look across the
street)
But it's like this mega-magic store.
GILES
Well, yes..
BUFFY
Just across the street..
GILES
I suppose it is..
BUFFY
And they have a clown.
GILES
(slightly snappy)
Yes, alright Buffy.
Buffy turns back to Giles.
BUFFY
(apologetic)
Sorry. Just with what's happened to
Will and Tara, you can count me
officially wiggified by all this
magic bouncing about the place.
GILES
Well, I'll be thankful if this store
is the worst of our problems this
week.
BUFFY
Totally with you there. I could
definitely go a few centuries
without seeing another ugly, demony
face.
We see a figure in a large coat enter the scene. He
hides his face by turning up the collar of his coat
and by wearing an oversized hat. We TRACK him as he
walks away from Buffy and Giles and crosses the
street. He heads towards 'The Magic Wand'. He peers
into the store window.
INT. THE MAGIC WAND - DAY
ANGLE : THE FIGURE IN A COAT
from within the shop, looking out at the figure
peering in. We can see it is a hairless brown demon,
with large owl-like eyes.
EXT. SUNNYDALE STREET - OUTSIDE THE MAGIC WAND - DAY
The owl demon steps back from the window and bustles
past the clown and the kids. The demon, in hiding its
face from the humans, fails to see the clown as he
passes.
The clown takes a look at the demon as it passes him
and enters the shop. The clown finishes blowing up a
balloon and hands it to a child.
CLOWN
(to the child)
Hi Ho! Here you go. Don't forget to
ask your mother to get you something
from the store. After all, you're
never too young to start playing
with magic.
INT. THE MAGIC WAND - DAY
We see the owl demon sidle up to the counter where
there is a shop assistant, also dressed as a clown.
OWL DEMON
(under his breath)
I need to speak to Eddie.
We see the clown from outside come up from behind the
demon and grab it by its arm. He pulls the demon
around the counter and into a back room.
INT. THE MAGIC WAND / A BACK ROOM - DAY
A dark storeroom of sorts. The clown pulls the demon
to an area where a mini-office has been set up. A
table, a chair, some ledgers and a cash box.
EDDIE POGGS
How many times have I told you not
to come in through the front? You'll
scare away my customers.
Eddie smells something rank emanating from the demon.
He makes a disgusted face.
EDDIE POGGS
Hi Ho! If only I had a cold. What
exactly is that smell?
OWL DEMON
I told you. It's a natural
secretion.. to keep my skin moist.
EDDIE POGGS
Well, just don't secret anything
around me. Now, what do you have?
The demon digs in to his pocket and pulls out
something wrapped in a piece of cloth. He places it on
the table.
OWL DEMON
It's a good batch Eddie, the
jackpot.
The demon unwraps the cloth to reveal five red
gemstones. Eddie inspects the gemstones under a
magnifying glass.
OWL DEMON
I lifted them from a Chatzi demon
while he was trying to chat up a
blue-ringed ogress from the Wiczak
dimension.
(little nervous, watching
Eddie appraise the
gemstones)
Don't know why he bothered.. lack of
compatible parts and all. Talk about
a relationship that isn't going
anywhere.
Eddie puts away his magnifying glass, looks up at the
demon.
EDDIE POGGS
(ominously)
Do you know what you have? What
you've brought me?
OWL DEMON
(hopeful)
What?
EDDIE POGGS
Trinkets. Useless trinkets. There's
nothing magical here.
OWL DEMON
No.. No.. They're supposed to be
this important religious artificat
to the Chatzis. They value them with
their lives.
EDDIE POGGS
Hi Ho! You're not touching my dough.
It may be important to them, but to
me, it's junk. Junk almost as
useless as the foul creature who
delivered them. Get out of my
sight.. and take your rocks and your
odour with you.
OWL DEMON
Please, Eddie. Give me something for
them. It's been a rough hibernation
and scarce is the food. I need to
buy some hamsters from the pet
store.
Eddie gives the demon a disgusted look and takes a
second look down at the merchandise.
EDDIE POGGS
I suppose they're pretty enough.
Maybe I can give them away to some
customers.. promote some goodwill.
OWL DEMON
Yes.. yes. Goodwill. Goodwill will
be good.. for business.
Eddie opens his cashbox and hands a bill over to the
demon.
EDDIE POGGS
Ten bucks for the lot. Maybe you can
get yourself a gerbil.
OWL DEMON
(snatching the note)
Oh thank you Eddie! You won't regret
it.
EDDIE POGGS
Leave.
The demon bows and begins to leave, heading to the
front of the store.
EDDIE POGGS
(calling out)
Hi Ho!
The demon turns to look.
EDDIE POGGS
(slowly, menacingly)
Out the back you go.
The demon nods apolegetically. He heads out the back
door. Eddie shakes his head and grabs the gemstones.
He heads to the front of the store.
INT. THE MAGIC WAND - DAY
He stands behind the counter, opens a drawer and
throws the gemstones into it. We see there are other
various gemstones and crystals littered around the
drawer.
A customer comes up to the counter holding an item to
purchase.
EDDIE POGGS
(looking up, big smily
clown face to the
customer)
Hi Ho! What do you know?
ANGLE ON : THE FIVE GEMSTONES IN THE DRAWER
as Eddie talks to the customer. We see the gemstones
pulsate from red to blue and then back to red. We see
a barely perceptible tremor as the drawer shakes,
rattling the crystals and gems in the drawer. The
tremor stops, the gemstones return to its natural
state. We see Eddie's hands enter the frame as he
closes the drawer.
BLACKOUT
END OF TEASER
CONTINUE TO ACT ONE