Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: All things Buffy belong to Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy, WB, etc etc...I have no money...unless you want my allowance....
Summary: When Willow gets vamped, how far will her friends go to get her back? Minor violence.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Gypsies, vampires, giant bugs, werewolves, and anything else that goes bump in the night..." Willow listened nervously as the English teacher droned on and on. Their assignment was to write a science fiction story, and the entire thing was a little bit too ironic. Next to and behind her, Buffy and Xander kept cracking up. Apparently, it was too ironic for them too.
Afraid to make eye contact with either of her best friends for fear that she'd start laughing too, Willow just stared straight ahead. It had been a slow week on the Hellmouth; almost no activity. Angelus had stayed in, Oz (she smiled and blushed at the thought of his name) wasn't due to turn wolfy until next weekend, and all in all life was good. They were headed to (where else?) the Bronze tonight, after they checked with Giles for any last instructions. Willow's finger itched as she thought of the new program he had asked her to install. He was still deathly afraid of the "ghastly machine."
The bell rang, signaling the end of the class, day, and week and startling Willow out of her thoughts of techno-heaven. She glanced over at Buffy and Xander, who were getting their books. The three left and walked down the hall.
"So we're headed to the Bronze tonight right? I'm up for a dance par-tay!" Xander said, while boogying to his imaginary groove. Buffy and Willow looked at each other, wearing almost identical expressions of amusement and affection for their crazy third musketeer. (Well, maybe Willow's had a little bit more affection...but just a little...)
"Yeah, that's the plan." Buffy said. "Will, you gonna' show?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah, Oz and I will be there." Willow answered, blushing.
"Oh, Oz, huh?" Buffy said, teasing her friend mercilessly. Xander laughed while Willow blushed an ever deeper crimson.
They entered the library, chattering as usual, and found nothing they'd ever planned to find-Giles peering over the top of his glasses, punching keys on the keyboard of his computer. Granted, he was using only the tips of two fingers and was standing as far away from it as possible, but it was on and he was on it. Chattering ceased, replaced by amazed shock.
"Uh...wigged here..." Buffy said.
"Ditto." Willow added.
"I hear ya'." Xander replied.
Giles still hadn't looked up from what he was doing.
"Giles?" Willow said.
"What? Oh, hello." he replied.
"Uh, what're you doing?" Buffy asked.
"Uh, I'm, uh, swimming that blasted web." he said, frustrated.
"You mean surfing." Willow corrected.
"Well, yes, thank you."
"What are you looking for?" Xander asked him.
"Information on Spike and Drusilla. I heard someone say they had seen something on there about them, but I didn't catch their name."
"Why didn't you just ask me?" Willow asked.
"You weren't here yet, and I still had the address in my mind." he explained.
"So, G-Funk, are we free tonight for Bronze action?" Xander inquired.
"You are free to go as long as Buffy comes back for training tomorrow." Giles answered, after a withering look to Xander for the nickname.
"Ok, I'll be here. You are a truly great Watcher Guy for allowing us poor, fun-starved people a night off." Buffy said.
"Just be careful, and watch for danger." he said.
"Don't I always?" With a look from Giles, she corrected. "Nevermind, don't answer that. We will." The three left as quickly and loudly as they'd come.
End Part 1
*~Later, at the Bronze~*
He waited...watched...calculated. In the midst of dancing bodies and dim lights, live music and hot drinks, he waited. They'd be here. It was Friday night in Sunnydale, where else would they go? And he'd be ready. Tonight was the night, he was making his move, executing the plan that had been carefully forming in his warped mind. It was show time.
***
Buffy was sitting at the table they always sat at, contemplating her drink. She was the first there, having walked. Willow and Oz were coming together, of course. Buffy smiled at the thought of her painfully shy friend finally getting a honey. Xander was coming later with-Buffy made and eww face-Cordelia. In the middle of her thoughts, the hair on the back of her neck stood on end. She was being watched. Swiftly, she glanced around the crowded room, searching for whoever it was that was watching her. At the door, Willow and Oz were just coming in. Attributing her wiggins to hyped senses, she waved to them. They came over and sat down, and she soon forgot the weird feelings.
Willow was having a really good time. Well, besides the fact that she was hanging with Cordelia, of course. But in a weird way, Cordy made Xander happy. And Xander was her best friend, so...she would ignore the fact that Cordelia had tormented them since they were five. And with some more effort, she could even ignore the sharp pang in her heart every time Xander looked at Cordelia with the look-the one of adoration he tried so hard to hide from her and everybody else. It was getting easier, the pang. Because of Oz. She glanced over at him; he was laughing at something Xander said. He was so cute...and so caring...and so into her. <And such a good kisser.> she thought, blushing. <Even if Xander ever fell in love with me, would I still want him?> she thought. <Whoa, where'd that come from?! Maybe I'm finally getting over him.> For a minute, she let herself think without the pretenses of old feelings. She was, she really was! Part of her said "Yea, finally!" while the other felt a kind of loss. After all, she'd lived 14 years with the feelings...
"Willow? Earth to Space Girl.." Buffy interrupted her revelations.
"Huh? Oh, sorry..." she blushed again, grateful for the dim lights.
"We were saying we're gonna' leave." Buffy replied.
"We?"
"Yeah, Cordy's gonna' take me home." She made a face. "It's better than walking."
"Are you sure?" Oz asked, and his heart swelled when Willow laughed. He loved the sound of her laughter.
The Slayerettes parted ways in the Bronze parking lot. Oz and Willow were left alone.
"Do you mind if we walk? My van is in the shop...again..." Oz asked.
"No, I don't mind." Willow smiled at him. They started down the street, towards her house. Engrossed in each other, they never noticed the shadow that fell in behind them.
***
"...so I told Devon 'Uh, man, that chord is like, not in a do-able place.' and he was like 'Yeah, whatever.' while looking straight into his mirror..." Oz was finishing a story about his latest band practice, while Willow listened. She loved listening to his stories. She watched him talk, watched the moonlight play over his now-red hair. With a start, she realized she was falling in love with him. Slowly, yes, but completely and totally. The knowledge filled her with a warm and giddy feeling...giddy enough to stop Oz and lean in a little towards him, while he leaned a little towards her...their lips touched, and for a minute, everything was perfect.
Across the street, Angel decided he was done waiting. He'd been following Willow and her little boyfriend for half an hour. Their guard would be about gone now; it was the perfect time. Faster than even he could register, he was across the street and on top of Oz. All he had to do was knock him out, and his brilliant plan could go forward.
Being hit completely by surprise, Oz was knocked to the ground. He found himself staring straight into the yellow eyes of Angel.
"Willow, RUN!" he yelled. She so desperately wanted to obey, but she couldn't just leave him there. She looked around for something resembling a stake; found a pointy stick, and made a mad dash for Angel's back. He quickly slammed Oz's head on the pavement. He heard Willow behind him, and when she was close enough, he twisted around and grabbed her, pulling her hard up against him. He could smell her terror, and it thrilled him.
For just a second, she didn't fight him, couldn't fight him. She stared into his eyes, detached, studying the way they glowed in the light of the street lamp. She let her gaze wander, and saw Oz on the sidewalk knocked out. She snapped back to reality, and put up the struggle of her life. Angel laughed, and slowly bent in to her neck.
She felt the razor-sharp fangs pierce her skin, and she cried out in pain. <He just wants to weaken me...at least for now.> she thought, convinced by his slow draining of her blood. She fought harder, but where his fangs were still buried in her, the pain was almost unbearable. She felt her legs, then her arms go numb, and the edges of her vision got blurry. Finally, the darkness enveloped her completely.
End Part 2
Oz woke up several hours later, head pounding out a demanding back-beat. For a second, he looked around, not really sure why he'd been sleeping on a street, or why his head hurt. In a flash, he remembered.
"Willow!" he yelled. Frantically, he looked around him. She was gone. He got to his feet, and the world tilted. <whoa...maybe sit...can't...Willow...> Ok, so maybe his thoughts were less than coherent, but one image kept invading his spinning mind-Willow, definetely NOT listening to him, coming at Angel with the stick. With all of his strength, he pushed himself back up, slowly, and headed for Buffy's house as fast as he could on his shaky legs.
***
She was floating. It was warm, and comfortable, and she was floating easily and without effort. Through the black of her float, a blinding red invaded. Dimly, she recognized it as pain. It was enough to knock her off balance, and send her crashing back to reality. Wary, she opened her eyes. Slowly, she looked left...right...trying to place where she was. <Lying down...red covers...alcove...big room...> She carefully thought out all of her impressions, searching her memories for where she might be. She had no clue. About to go back to sleep, she caught a figure moving out of the corner of her eye. It walked over to her, and gently brushed her hair out of her face. She had a strange feeling that she should be frightened, but he seemed so sweet...he lifted a glass up to her mouth. It was filled with a dark liquid that held a strange appeal to her. And she was so thirsty...she accepted the glass, and began to drink...and drink and drink. She felt herself fall-back towards the floating place, and faster than the stars even could. Oddly satisfied, she heard words fall from the figure's lips.
"Goodnight, sweet Willow."
***
Buffy was awaked from an incredible dream by an insistent tapping on her window. She turned her head, to see...Oz? What did he want? And why did he wear the terrified face?! Quickly, she ran to the window to let him in.
"Oz, what's wrong? What happened to you?" She took in his glassy eyes and bloodied head. She reached to make sure nothing was broken, and he impatiently brushed her hand away.
"It's not me. I'm fine." he objected.
"Oh, yeah, you look great." she replied sarcastically.
"It's Willow. She's-" he began to shake. "gone."
"What? Gone? Where?" Buffy was beginning to get frantic.
"Angel." he said, looking her dead in the eye.
Feeling sick, she sat down. Bit by bit, she got the entire story out of him, up until the present. She got up and paced, thinking. <Giles. We need Giles...wait, why? I know where he'd take her if he didn't...NO! Stop that! She's NOT dead...she can't be.> She stopped. And resumed her pacing. <He'd take her to his house. Or the factory...no, Spike and Drusilla wouldn't go for that...so his house...now what?>
Oz watched her pace, then lost himself in his thoughts. <I should've
stopped him. I was with her...I'm a werewolf for God's sake. Why'd I let
my guard down?> One of his other sides piped up. <Because she looked
at you with that look...the one you've been waiting to see...the one with
love in it.> The thought warmed him. <Yeah, she did, didn't she..? But
I still should've protected her.> His self-berating was interrupted by
and irate and terrified slayer. She had a plan.
***
"Buffy, that's the stupidest thing I've ever heard!" Normally, Oz would be smarter than to insult a girl who could kick his ass blindfolded, but desperate times...
"No, it's not! It's simple. Come on." she demanded, leaving no room for argument. He opened his mouth to argue anyway, but shrugged and followed instead.
They reached their destination in just under twenty minutes. Rounding the corner, Buffy threw herself against the door, which gave easily. They found themselves in a sparcely decorated room; Angel's room. It wasn't yet sunrise, but they would still have to hurry. Quickly, they searched his apartment. It was empty of human (or inhuman) life, and there were no signs of recent occupancy. Oz stopped near the neatly-made bed. A glint there had caught his eye. He bent down, and on the bed was Willow's necklace. He sank down on the bed, hung his head and began to cry. Buffy found him that way ten minutes later, after searching the rest of the apartment. Her heart broke a little at the sight of him, hunched over on Angel's bed, clutching something like a lifeline. She sat down next to him, and he wordlessly handed it to her. <Willow's necklace.> she thought, heart sinking. <So they were here. But now where were they?> Lost in thought, she didn't notice that Oz had quietly regained his composure.
"Buffy." he said.
"Yeah?" she asked, after her initial surprise at hearing his voice.
"We're not going to find her, are we?" he asked softly.
"Yes, we are! We *will* find her." she demanded.
"How?" he silenced her with a word. She thought, desperately searching for a plan.
"I don't know." she admitted with a sigh.
***
Giles woke to the sound of pounding on his door at 4:00 a.m.
"Just a minute!" he yelled. He fumbled for a light and his robe and stumbled down the stairs. Yanking open the door, he was greeted by the site of a frazzled slayer and a dejected Oz. "Oh dear. Wh-what on earth has happened?" he asked. He was filled in by Buffy and Oz working in tandem, each telling their part of the story.
"...and on the way over here, we stopped at the factory, and we..uh.."spoke" to Willie the Snitch. Factory was empty, and Willie wasn't talking. Even after I-" Buffy finished.
"Stop. I don't want to know what you did." Giles interrupted her. "Has anyone contacted Mr. and Mrs. Rosenberg?" he inquired. Buffy and Oz looked at each other.
"No." he said. "I'll do it." He slowly walked to the phone and dialed the number he knew by heart. Buffy took Giles aside.
"Giles, what do we do?" she asked.
"Buffy, at this time, I think the only thing we can do is go through proper authorities and treat this like a kidnapping....and, uh, wait." he said slowly.
"WAIT?!" she exploded. "Wait? My best friend is gone, possibly dead, possibly *worse*, and you want me to say 'Oh, here Incompetent Police, go battle vampires and find her.'? Are you nuts?"
"Well what do you suggest?"
"I-I don't know. I'm out of ideas. That's why I came to you." she admitted. Oz hung up the phone and made his way over to them. The conversation had been long and tiring, ending in the Rosenbergs asking him to the police station to make an official report. Of course, he'd agreed. He grabbed his coat and left. By now, it was almost 6:00 and Buffy went to Giles' phone to call everyone. They were all to meet at the school in half an hour. It was Saturday and probably one of the only days the school would be deserted.
End Part 3
Willow opened her eyes again, this time much stronger. Her location had changed, but it still wasn't a place she recognized. This one...it was beautiful. High, arched ceilings, intricate carvings, along with antique paintings and furniture. Warm, passionate colors adorned the couches, chairs, and huge bay windows. Her glance traveled, and with a snap returned to the windows. She moved closer to them, and saw the ocean; perfectly reflecting the black of the clear night sky. She raised a hand, touching the glass.
"Beautiful, isn't it?" A voice startled her. She quickly turned to see a figure emerge from the shadows. As soon as she recognized the figure, she ran terrified to the other end of the house, searching for an exit. Knowing there wasn't one she'd find in her present state of mind, Angel slowly walked to where she stood, cowering. When he saw her, he smiled. It had worked! <Long time since I've tried it, but I haven't lost my touch...> he preened.
Gently, he took her hand and led her to a mirror. Confused, she lifted her head and gazed into it. Hands shaking, she lifted them to her face, felt the ridges and valleys...moved her hands to her mouth, felt a stab of pain when she touched a tooth. She screamed and fell to the floor, shaking. Angel began to laugh. Terror quickly turned to fury, and she got up to face him.
"You bastard, you son of a bitch. You-I'm-How-" Delighted at hearing her swear, he kept laughing. Fury overwhelmed her, and she flew at him with enough force to knock him through a wall. "Change me back."
"I can't." he said, pleasantly surprised at her strength. For a new vampire, she had remarkable skills.
"You will."
"I can't." he repeated.
"You CAN and you WILL, or I *will* kill you." she threatened. His manner turned menacing.
"You think you can, little girl?" he asked. "Try it." She walked slowly towards him. He stood where he was, torn between amusement, admiration, and a small amount of apprehension. She held an odd appeal, as a vampire. Her yellow eyes glowed with a light he had never before seen from her.
Suddenly, she forgot to be afraid. He didn't look like a "bad guy" to her. Within seconds, she was right in front of him. Putting her hands on his shoulders for balance, she lifted herself and kissed him firmly on his lips. After his initial surprise, he lifted her and kissed her back passionately, his tongue dancing with hers between pairs of fangs. She melted into his arms as he lifted her higher. She lifted one leg and kicked him decisively between the legs. He dropped her and doubled over in pain. With a smirk, Willow stepped back.
"I win." she said.
Once he regained his composure, he quickly got up, and, delighted with her, swung her around the room. She laughed and held on for the ride.
***
The slayer and friends had spent an exhausting day with police, official
reports, and Willow's parents. It was dark now, and Buffy had to go hunt.
Xander had been quiet all day, not even going for the easiest of wisecracks.
He looked like he'd lost part of his soul. Cordelia was doing her best
to comfort Xander and for once was just being helpful. Oz was in the hospital,
being treated for a minor concussion, at the insistence of Mrs. Rosenberg.
Buffy...well, Buffy was doing her best to hold everyone else together.
And she had to go hunt, apparently by herself. She quietly told Giles she
was leaving, and grabbed her supplies from his office.
***
Graveyard duty. It was a slow night. She'd been here for three hours, and killed only one vampire. She missed the days when Angel had hunted with her...now he just hunted her friends.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw dark figures running towards her. <Oh, goodie.> she thought, and jumped off the tombstone she'd been sitting on, body poised for a fight. There were two this time. She pulled a stake out and was somewhat surprised to see Angel. The other one looked familiar, but Buffy couldn't place her face.
"Where is she?" Buffy asked, hitting Angel.
"Who?" he teased, dodging and giving out a hit of his own. Tired of being antagonized, she floored (well, grounded) him with a punch and kick, and held the stake poised above his heart.
"You know who."
"Buffy." The other vampire piped up, in a chillingly unmistakable voice. Buffy turned her head, lowered her guard, and was floored herself.
"Willow?!" Angel hit her, just enough to slow her down, and ran into the night with Willow, laughing. She knew she should go after them, but she needed to go back to the school and figure out what next to do.
End Part 4
Angel and Willow flew gleefully through the night. They had both fed, Willow with a passion Angel had only caught glimpses of in her human form. It was exhilarating to both of them. He took her back to his ocean house, sure Buffy wouldn't find them there. Willow went out to the beach and stared up at the stars. With her new eyes, they were even more beautiful. <The look on her face was priceless!> she thought, thinking of Buffy. <Let's see..who could I kill of "the gang"? Giles? Then they'd have to rely on Buffy only, and she's an idiot, so...hmm, maybe Xander or Cordelia? Nahh, waaayyyy too easy...> She couldn't go after Oz, she still loved him too much, and she was smart enough to know she couldn't face the slayer...at least not yet. <So, Giles it is.> Decision made, she sat down on the beach to absorb the waves, sand, and stars.
***
"She's a WHAT?!" Xander exploded. It was the first reaction he's had to anything all day. "This never would've happened if you would've killed him." he said to Buffy.
"Do you think I don't know that?!" she yelled, advancing towards him. Giles came out of his office.
"Stop it!" he said sharply. "Now is NOT the time to get at each other's throats. What we need is a plan. Now I have found something in one of these-"
"Can we change her back?" Cordelia interrupted.
"Maybe." he said.
"How?" Xander and Buffy said in unison.
"There is an ancient ritual that hints at "Death to Life." It's un-clear, but it seems to involve draining her blood and replacing it with new, human blood, as well as the reciting of the, uh, magic words." he explained.
"Could it kill her?" Xander asked, terrified.
"Well, technically, she's...already dead, but yes." he said. "First, we need to find a way to capture her."
"She'll come after one of us." Buffy said.
"Most likely yes, but we need to figure out who."
"You." Xander said to Giles. Everyone looked at him. "She won't go after Buffy, she's too smart for that. There'd be no point in going after me or Cordelia. Too easy. And she's in love with Oz. Plus, if she kills you, all of our sources of information will be gone." he recited. He of all people knew how her mind worked. He'd had access to it for long enough.
"Ok. We'll set her up here." Buffy said.
"Here?" Cordelia asked.
"This is where she'd look first. That, and she can't get into his apartment." she added. "Come on, let's go. She'll be here tonight."
***
It was sun-down on Sunday night. Willow woke as soon as it was safe. She'd always been an early riser...She'd woken up that first evening-was that only yesterday?-with terror at being the very thing she'd been fighting for two years. Once she thought about it, she discovered she...well, she liked it. It was exciting and different, and she had power. Oh, she had power. It was incredible, like nothing she could even put into words, to know that when someone looked at you, they saw death. And to know that she had cheated death. She never wanted to go back. Ever. Feeling a presence behind her, she spoke up.
"Are we going hunting?" she asked him.
"Yeah. I thought we'd head up the coast and try out a new town, I heard-" Angel said.
"No." she said. "We're going to Sunnydale."
Slightly surprised, he said "Who put you in charge?"
"I did." she replied and walked out the door. Knowing she would walk if she had to, he followed her.
***
The two arrived in Sunnydale about two hours after the sun had gone down. Angel went to visit Spike and Dru at their new home, and Willow headed to Sunnydale High, in search of her prey. He was exactly where she'd hoped he would be. <He needs to get a life.> she thought, and almost laughed at the irony of it. He was at the table, surrounded by books. She quietly advanced on him, and was about to reach out and grab him by the hair of his head when several movements around the cavernous library made her stop and look around the stacks. Up on the main area, Buffy stood with a cross-bow aimed directly at Willow's heart. Willow turned to run, and was greeted by a serious Cordelia and a heartbroken Xander, each sporting a stake. <They won't be able to kill me if I have my "Willow the Human" face on...> she thought frantically and changed back.
"Hi guys." she said. Xander felt his heart break a little more at the sound of her voice. Silently he asked Willow, *his* Willow, to forgive him for what he had to do.
Within seconds, Willow was surrounded. Buffy hit her *hard* on the head with a cringe, and the world darkened yet again.
End Part 5
When she woke up, it was considerably worse than the last time she'd passed out. She was in the school's...Biology room, she figured out after looking around. And she was tied down...and there were needles sticking out of her...and Giles was reading something on Latin. Something that roughly translated to "Death to Life." In a flash, she understood, and she started struggling against her ropes.
Buffy caught her movement and managed to hold her down until both Giles and the blood transfusion were finished. It ended, and Willow promptly passed out again.
Two hours passed, and Willow woke with a start, a look of terrified confusion on her face.
"Wh...where?...how?...Oz?!" she asked.
"Willow?" Xander asked.
"Xander what's going on? Why am I..." she started to cry. "Please, somebody? Did Angel kill him?"
"Who?" Buffy asked carefully.
"Oz! We were..uh.." she blushed furiously, "and then Angel attacked us out of nowhere! Please, is he ok?"
"He's fine. He's in the hospital." Xander assured her, as he helped Buffy un-tie her ropes. As far as any of them knew, vampires didn't blush *or* cry. Willow leapt up and hugged first Xander, then Buffy. Everyone surrounded her with a strong hug, fueled by bouth terror and relief.
So grateful were they that she was alive, none of them noticed as she smiled over their shoulders, and her face gradually shifted into a ridge of mountains, and her eyes began to glow with an eerie yellow light...
"And I suddenly feel
like a different person.
From the root of my soul
comes a gentle coercion.
And I ran my hand
over a strange inversion.
A vacancy that just did not
belong....
The Child is Gone."
-Fiona Apple
The End