"Will, this is what you've been waiting months for,"
Buffy stated as she plopped down on a chair in Giles'
living room.

"I know," Willow nodded. "I've been telling myself for
weeks that Oz would come back to me, and now it's
finally happened. I just--"

"We all saw the look on your face when he suddenly
showed up at the Bronze," Xander interrupted her. "I
haven't seen you smile like that since--well, since
before he took off. He's been tagging around behind
you for the past two weeks, and you haven't exactly
been trying to shoo him away. So don't try to tell us
you don't still love him."

"I do," she agreed. "But so much has changed since he
left. I've changed. Oz has changed--"

"Your feelings haven't changed. That's all that
matters," the slayer insisted. "Come on, you have a
chance to be together again! It's what you've dreamt
of!"

"It's just that L.A. is so far away," the little
redhead continued. "I know he wants us to live there
for the band's sake and all, but I'm really liking my
classes here, and--"

"So, you'll enroll in college in L.A.," Buffy
shrugged. "Personally, I think Oz has the right idea."

"You want me to move away?" she asked.

"Of course not," Xander answered. "But it would be
good for both of you--a chance to start over in a new
place."

"That's right," Buffy nodded. "A change of location is
just what you need. No ugly reminders of what happened
here. You deserve this, Will. You deserve to be with
the man you love. You deserve the chance to be happy
together."

Willow's gaze shifted to Spike, who had been listening
in silence from his seat across the room, "You guys
are right. I know you are. It's just kind of hard, you
know?"

"I know," Buffy agreed. "You'll miss your home, and
we'll miss each other. But it isn't like we won't ever
see each other again, and you can make a new home with
Oz in L.A."

"I suppose so," she replied softly.

Buffy stood and gave her a bright smile, "I have to
patrol. I'll see you back at the dorm in an hour or
two--with your bags *packed* and ready to go in the
morning. Okay?"

Without waiting for the redhead's response, the slayer
let herself out the front door. Xander went to Willow
and pulled her into a firm hug.

"I'm meeting Anya at my place, so I have to leave,
too. I'm going to miss you, Will. But we'll keep in
touch, right? Lots of letters and phone calls," he
smiled as he pulled back to look down at her. "Call me
as soon as you're settled in."

She nodded as he placed a quick kiss on her forehead
and followed Buffy's exit. Willow sighed softly to
herself as her eyes returned to the blonde vampire.

"Seem to have made up your mind for you, haven't they,
pet?" he asked.

"They want me to be happy," she said.

"What do you want?"

She smiled over at him. Since Spike's capture and
escape from the commandos that patrolled Sunnydale
with as much determination as the slayer herself, the
vampire and the redhead had formed a tentative
friendship that had slowly developed into mutual
respect and understanding. The fact that he was more
interested in what she needed than in what everyone
else might think best for her came as no surprise, but
that didn't lessen her appreciation for his thoughts.

"I want to know what Oz and I could have," she
answered. "And I think they're probably right. We'd
stand a better chance if we got away from here."

"So, you're leaving, then," he concluded as he stood
up.

She nodded, though her eyes didn't reflect the
self-assured tone she forced into her words, "I'll
never know if I don't try. Can I write you sometimes?"

"Might be the only thing that keeps me sane while I'm
stuck here with these gits," he grinned.

Impulsively, she crossed the room and threw her arms
around the vampire, "I'll miss you, Spike."

His arms moved around her, returning the hug, as he
willed his voice to remain steady, "No, you won't.
You'll be too busy with wolfboy to miss me. If he
hurts you, though, I'll come after him and kick his
furry ass into a shallow grave. Migraine or no
migraine."

She pulled back and smiled up at him as she raised a
hand to trace his jaw line. Then, stepping away, she
quickly turned and went to the front door, closing it
quietly behind her as she stepped outside. The vampire
swallowed hard as he stared at the empty spot in which
she had just stood, and he trailed his fingers over
the path hers had made along his cheek.

"I'll miss you, too, luv," he whispered softly.
*<>*<>*<>*<>*<>*
Angel leaned against the office door and looked over
at the desk as Spike sat down and scooted the chair
closer to the computer. The dark-haired vampire had
been surprised when Spike had been the one to phone
him and tell him that Willow had left Sunnydale with
Oz. His childe and the redhead had kept in contact via
e-mail, but Spike had wanted more physical reassurance
that she was all right.

Angel had agreed to meet with her, which he had done
after having tracked down the small apartment she and
Oz had rented. While her reception hadn't exactly been
cool, she had seemed more reserved and quiet than he
had remembered her to be. The meeting had been brief,
and because their very different lives never crossed
paths, he hadn't seen her since then.

The dark vampire hadn't really expected to hear from
his childe again after that initial contact, but Spike
had seemed eager, almost desperate, to remain in
communication with his sire. Angel realized how
difficult it had been for Spike to adjust to the
transition he had been forced to undergo. They were
more alike than they had been in decades, really.
Neither vampire was capable of taking human life. For
Angel, the mere thought was abhorrent to his soul, and
for Spike, the paralyzing pain that would accompany
any such attack prevented him from doing so.

Being in Sunnydale had gone from bad to worse for
Spike after Willow had left. Even though the vampire
had fought his fair share of demons on the hellmouth,
the others still treated him as the enemy he had
always been. Without Willow's gentle support to temper
the callous barbs from the rest of the gang, his
existence there had become nearly unbearable.

When Spike had mentioned moving to L.A. during their
last phone conversation two weeks ago, Angel, fully
aware of all his childe had endured, had readily
agreed. The tentative friendship that had formed
during the weeks prior to his arrival had quickly
solidified after Spike had moved in with his sire. The
blonde vampire was truly a skilled fighter, and he had
pulled Angel's rear end out of the proverbial fire
more than once since they had begun to fight alongside
one another.

Being physically closer to Willow than he had been in
two months had a calming affect on Spike. Although he
and the redhead had not seen each other, the first
thing he had done when he had settled into Angel's
place was to e-mail her and let her know he was there.

A soft snarl of frustration broke Angel out of his
musings, and he looked over at his childe.

"Bastard," Spike mumbled. "He isn't treating her
right. She deserves a hell of a lot better than this."

"What's going on?" Angel asked.

Spike shoved his chair back and stood up, "Damned
wolf. He's never there for her. Always out with that
bloody band, leaving her home alone night after night.
When he is there, all he ever wants to do is argue
about everything. Now, she thinks he's screwing
another woman."

Angel shifted uneasily, "Oz wouldn't do that."

"Wouldn't he?" Spike shot back angrily. "It's been
going on for weeks."

"Then why doesn't she get out? Go back to Sunnydale?"

"She's embarrassed, poor chit. She hasn't told anybody
else what's going on," he glanced back at the monitor.
"And now--this."

"What?" Angel asked.

"She was cleaning up the sod's latest mess he'd left
laying around after a gig last night. She found a
packet of white powder--"

"Cocaine?" the darker vampire's eyebrows shot up.

"Sounds like it," he nodded. "I ought to rip his head
off his shoulders."

"Yeah, well, you can't do that," his sire reminded
him.

"She's hurting, Angel," Spike stated, his voice edged
with pain. "She needs help."

"We can't help her unless she wants to be helped. At
least she's telling you what's happening. That's a
good sign."

"So why doesn't it make me feel any better?" Spike
grumbled.

"Because it isn't enough," Angel smiled sadly. "But
it's all you have, for now. Willow's smart, Spike. If
she decides she's in over her head, she knows where
you are."
 

"Oz?" Willow spoke, stirring from the sofa as the
apartment door opened and closed again.

"Yeah," he answered, dropping a duffle bag on the
floor and stumbling into the kitchen to grab a beer
from the fridge.

Willow sighed and rubbed her hand over the darkening
bruise on her cheek, a physical manifestation of their
argument the previous afternoon. It had been the first
time he had ever struck her, and she had convinced
herself, after he'd stormed out of the apartment, that
he would never do it again.

"It's almost five o'clock. Where have you been all
night?" she asked as she leaned against the kitchen
doorway.

"You know where I've been," he snapped.

"I thought the gig ended at midnight. That was hours
ago. Where have you been all this time?"

Oz slammed the beer down on the counter and shoved his
way around her to return to the living room, "What the
hell is this? You're not my keeper; you're my lover."

"Barely," she murmured sadly.

He whirled around to face her, "What's that supposed
to mean? If you've got a complaint, let's hear it."

"I miss you, Oz," she answered. "You're never home.
You're either off with the band or--"

"Or?" he scowled over at her.

"With her," she said softly. "I know there's someone
else, Oz. You're gone every night. We never do
anything together. I don't know why you wanted me to
move here with you."

"Because you belong to me."

"You don't even *want* me!" she protested. "I'm tired
of being left all alone. I'm tired of you coming home
reeking of her perfume. I'm--I'm moving out."

Oz snorted derisively, "You're not going anywhere."

"I can't live like this! What difference will it make
if I'm here or not? You obviously don't want to be
with me."

"Don't tell me what I want," he snarled. "You're mine,
Willow. If I say you'll stay, you'll stay."

She shook her head, "No. Except for smacking me when I
said something you didn't like, you haven't even
touched me in weeks."

"Is that what you need? A good fuck?" he sneered.
"Well, I can fix that."

She backed away from him as he stepped toward her,
"No, Oz. I don't want anything from you. Stay away
from me."

"I don't think so," he grinned cruelly.

Suddenly, he grabbed her arm and flung her onto the
sofa.

"Oz, stop! I'm sorry! Please!" she pleaded as he moved
over her.

He reached for her, and she swung out to slap him. He
growled and caught her wrist in a bruising grip.
Willow cried out as he backhanded her, then curled his
fingers into a fist and slammed it into her face.
Blood poured from her nose, and she gasped as he
pinned her body under his and tore open her
nightshirt.

"Goddess, no! Please, don't do this! Please, stop!"
Willow begged and writhed underneath him, trying to
force him off of her.

Oz wrapped his hand around her throat, holding her
down as she fought to breathe around his steely
fingers. With his free hand, he unbuckled his belt and
unzipped his pants before dragging them down over his
hips. He grabbed both of her wrists and and pinned
them at her sides in a hard grip that caused her to
cry out in pain once again.

Oz released one of her hands to slap her again as she
tried to kick him. His shaft hardened in response to
the small redhead's struggles, and he pried her legs
apart with his knee. Ripping away the thin fabric of
her panties, he rammed the full length of his shaft
into her dry, unwilling passage.

Willow screamed, and tears spilled from her eyes as Oz
ravaged her channel with hard, merciless thrusts. Her
body went limp, and she squeezed her eyes shut in an
attempt to disassociate her mind from his cold and
brutal assault. He lowered his mouth to her breast,
and Willow shrieked in pain as he bit into the soft
rounded flesh above her left nipple. His body
stiffened, and he grunted loudly as he climaxed,
spurting his seed deep within her. Rolling off of her,
Oz glared down with contempt at the battered and
crying redhead.

"Clean yourself up, bitch," he ordered, his voice icy
and hard. "You're disgusting."

He fastened his pants, then turned and stomped toward
the door that led into the bedroom, slamming it shut
behind him. Willow curled into a ball and clutched at
the tattered remains of her nightshirt as her body
shook with hard, painful sobs.
*<>*<>*<>*<>*<>*
"Your taste in women is definitely questionable,"
Spike smirked as he followed Angel through the front
door and quickly closed it behind him as the first
rays of sunrise lightened the sky. "I mean, I'm as
open-minded as the next vampire, but tentacles? Never
knew you turned that way, Dad."

Angel rolled his eyes at his childe's good-natured
taunting, "She didn't look that way when I saw her in
the bar, you know. She was all brown eyes and long
legs."

"Yeah, but you knew what she was before you cornered
her in that booth," Spike reminded him as they headed
for the elevator. "Didn't stop you from coming on to
her."

He shrugged, "I had to get her out of there somehow.
She'd have killed half the people in that place if--"

He stopped and turned around at the soft thud that
sounded against the door behind him. He shot Spike a
look, and the blonde vampire moved behind him as Angel
went back to the door. Stepping aside to avoid the
early morning sun, he swung the door open and breathed
in an unconscious gasp of surprise as Willow stumbled
over the threshold and collapsed to her knees.

"Bloody hell," Spike murmured, kneeling down in front
of her as Angel slammed the door shut.

He brushed the tangled locks of hair away from her
face and raised her head to look at her. His mouth
dropped open as he took in the bruises on her face and
the blood that had dried around her nose.

"Willow, luv, what happened?" he asked softly,
reaching for her hands and tensing as she whimpered
and drew away.

Carefully, he ran his hands down her arms and pushed
up the sleeves of the baggy, hooded sweatshirt. He
snarled softly at the purple bruises that encircled
her wrists. She whimpered again as his hands pressed
against her sore flesh, and he quickly softened his
hold.

"It's all right, baby," he hushed her quietly. "You're
safe now."

"Let's get her downstairs," Angel suggested, his eyes
filled with concern for the trembling redhead.

Spike scooped her up into his arms and followed his
sire, whispering soft assurances to Willow as they
rode to the lower level. He carried her to the sofa
and sat down, cradling her in his lap as Angel went to
the bathroom to wet a cloth. Spike smoothed her hair
away from her face and shuddered at the glassy stare
in her dull green eyes. Angel returned and knelt down
to hand her a couple of aspirin, then held a glass of
water to her lips as she washed the tablets down.
Setting the glass aside, he picked up the wet cloth he
had brought with him and gently dabbed at the blood
around her swelling nose.

"Baby," Spike spoke softly. "Can you tell me what
happened?"

A silent sob shook her shoulders as she looked back at
him with unseeing eyes. He kissed her head and rubbed
her arm comfortingly as Angel held the cold cloth
against the angry bruises on her cheek.

"She's in shock," his sire said. "Keep talking to her,
Spike."

He nodded and rubbed his thumb along her cheek near
her ear, "You're safe now, Willow. I promise; you're
safe. Let us help you, luv. Tell me what happened. Was
it Oz? Did he do this to you?"

Slowly, her body was beginning to relax against his,
and he pressed his lips to her forehead and rocked her
softly.

"Was it Oz, Willow?" Angel asked, his voice low and
calming.

She nodded her head, once, and lowered her gaze.

"What did he do to you?"

Willow closed her eyes as hot tears slipped down her
cheeks, and Spike moaned softly and brushed them away
as they fell.

"We'll help you, luv. Whatever it takes, we'll help
you. But we need to know what happened."

"He--" she whispered around a shuddering breath.
"He--raped me."

"Oh, gods," Angel murmured, hearing his fears
confirmed.

"I'm sorry, baby," Spike whispered against her ear as
she cried against his chest.

"He was late getting home. So late getting..." her
voice shook as her body wearied under the strain of
her ordeal. "We fought, and he hit me. I begged him
not to, but he...I couldn't make him stop. I couldn't
make him..."

"I know, pet," Spike murmured. "It isn't your fault,
Willow. None of this is your fault."

"It hurt. It hurt so much, and I was crying, but he
didn't--he wouldn't--" she paused. "I wanted him off
of me. I wanted him to stop touching me, stop hurting
me. I didn't matter. It didn't matter. And he bit me,
and--"

Angel's eyes darkened, "He bit you? Willow, he bit
you?"

The alarm in his voice brought Spike's eyes to his
sire's as Willow nodded weakly, "And then he--when he
was--finished, he walked away like it was nothing. It
didn't matter. None of it mattered. All I could think
of was getting out of there, away from him. But I hurt
so much...everything hurt, and I couldn't...I was
afraid he'd wake up before I could..get away...and
I--"

"Where did he bite you?" Angel asked softly.

Her trembling fingers moved to the zipper on the
sweatshirt, and she pulled it down just enough to show
the beginning of the deep bite on her breast.

"Damn it," the dark vampire swore softly.

Spike shook his head, not understanding his sire's
anxiety. Angel looked him in the eye and mouthed the
word, "werewolf." Spike's jaw clenched as the
implication hit him.

"What?" Willow asked. "What is it? He bit me,
and--oh!"

Spike's arms tightened around her as what little color
remained her in her face quickly bled away.

"Oh, no," she whispered, abject fear flooding her
mind. "No. No. It can't be. It can't--"

"Hush, Willow," Angel buried his fingers in her hair
and leaned in close to her, enveloping her body
between himself and his childe. "We don't know that it
means anything--"

"Oz is a werewolf," she said as fresh tears welled up
in her eyes. "He bit me. I'll--"

"No," Spike spoke. "We don't know that, Willow."

She looked up at him, "Yes, we do. We know what
happens when--"

"We don't know for sure," Angel told her. "You're
exhausted, Willow. You need sleep and time to heal.
You're safe now. That's what matters."

"You don't understand," she whispered. "He says I
belong to him. He'll come after me. He'll find me,
and--"

"He won't, baby. We won't let him get to you," Spike
said.

"But he will. He hurt me. He bit me, and now--"

"Sweetheart, do you trust me to take care of you?" he
asked.

She looked up at him and nodded.

He nuzzled his cheek against her hair, "You're not
alone, Willow. We'll keep you safe. We'll call Giles,
later. We'll research this together. But you need to
get some sleep first."

"O-okay," she agreed, exhaustion quickly overtaking
her.

Angel stood and moved back as Spike lifted her
carefully and carried her to his bed. He sat her down
and took off her shoes before helping her under the
covers and pulling them over her. He sat down beside
her, taking her hand and gently stroking the red hair
that fanned out on the pillow as she quickly succumbed
to sleep.
 

Angel handed Spike a mug of warmed blood and sat down
across from him at the kitchen table.

"You okay?" the dark vampire asked, looking into his
childe's pained eyes.

Spike shook his head and raised the mug to his lips,
"I want to kill that bastard."

"I know. We'll deal with Oz later. Right now, Willow
has bigger problems. She's going to need you, Spike.
Aside from the physical and mental trauma, there's
that damned bite to worry about."

"You don't really think she--"

"I don't know," Angel said. "I'll call Giles in a
couple of hours. When Cordelia gets here, I'll have
her start researching. We'll find a way to help her,
Spike."

The younger vampire drained the mug and set it down to
scrub his fingers through his blonde hair, "We have
to, Angel. I don't know how Willow will survive it if
she--"

He stopped at the soft cry that drifted from the
bedroom in which the redhead was sleeping. Rising to
his feet, Spike hurried out of the room, stopping just
inside the bedroom door as Willow whimpered in her
sleep. He went to her and sat down, brushing his hand
over her damp forehead. Her eyes opened with a flash
of sheer panic. Spike took her hand, squeezing it
gently.

"Spike," she whispered, her voice strained as tears
seeped from the corners of her eyes.

"It's all right, pet. Just a dream," he spoke softly.

"Don't leave me. Please, don't--"

"I'm right here. You're all right, now. You're safe."

She clutched the cold hand that was wrapped around
hers, and he pulled her up and put his arms around
her. Angel watched from the doorway as his childe
gently cradled the bruised woman, whispering
comfortingly to her as his hand rubbed slow circles on
her back. Gradually, her trembling body stilled, and
he lowered her back down onto the pillow. Immediately,
she reached out to him in a desperate gesture to keep
the safety of his presence near her.

"Stay with me," she pleaded. "Don't leave me alone."

He shook his head, "I won't."

Moving slowly so as not to frighten her, he laid down
beside her. Willow curled her body around his, and he
placed a kiss on her forehead and tucked her head
under his chin. Blinking back red tears, he looked
over at his sire. Angel smiled sadly as Spike caressed
Willow, his slow rhythmic movements lulling her back
to sleep. Angel turned away, wiping a bloody tear from
his own cheek, and left the tormented young woman and
the vampire who so obviously adored her alone.
*<>*<>*<>*<>*<>*
Willow gasped as the warm water cascading from the
shower hit the tender bruises on her body. She had
never experienced such pain before, had never even
realized anything could hurt this badly. Her face was
swollen, and the ache between her legs radiated up
through her abused sex and wrenched at her heart.
Every muscle in her body seemed to protest as she
lathered herself and rinsed off before turning off the
water and stepping out of the tub.

Pulling on the over-sized robe Angel had loaned her,
she returned to the bedroom to find a pair of clean
sweats folded neatly on the freshly made bed. She
dressed as quickly as her limited movement would allow
and made her way out to the living room. Spike looked
up from his chair and stood, going to her and guiding
her to the sofa.

"Are you hungry, luv?" he asked softly.

She shook her head, a quiet hiss of air expelling from
her lungs as she sat down. Spike sat beside her,
tucking a strand of wet hair behind her ear and eyeing
the nasty bruises that extended from her left eye to
her jaw.

"Is Angel awake?" she asked.

Spike nodded.

"I thought, if he'd let me use his computer, I
could--"

"Later, pet. We need to get some food into you," he
told her.

"I'm really not hungry," she insisted. "Actually, I
feel a little nauseous. I don't think I could keep
anything down."

"Try this," Angel suggested from across the room.

He crossed over to the couple and handed her a glass
of orange juice and a plate of dry toast. She eyed it
warily.

"That's the pain talking," the dark vampire assured
her. "You'll feel better after you get something in
your stomach.

She reached for the glass and took a shallow sip,
wincing as the citric acid hit the raw and tender
flesh of her lips.

"You shouldn't even be out of bed, yet," Spike
admonished her gently.

"I don't want to sleep. Every time I close my eyes, it
happens all over again," she replied softly. "Besides,
we should be researching--"

"You're in no shape for that," Angel told her. "I
called Giles--"

The glass shook in her hand, and Spike reached out to
steady it as it threatened to slip through her
fingers.

"You didn't tell him?" her eyes filled with tears as
she looked up at him.

"Not all of it," he answered. "He knows you and Oz
fought, and that he bit you. He promised he'd help
find out--"

"What?" her eyes darkened. "Find out what? How does he
think he's going to be able to help me? How are either
of you, for that matter? We all know what's going to
happen to me. Two weeks, Angel. Two weeks until the
full moon, and then--"

"Stop it," Spike said firmly, trying to silence the
hysteria climbing in her terrified voice.

"I'm sorry," she sniffled quietly. "I'm so scared."

He took the glass from her and gently pulled her close
to him, "You're going to get through this, luv. We're
going to get through this."

"Willow," Angel perched on the edge of the coffee
table, facing her. "Oz isn't the same person you knew
back in Sunnydale. Whatever he did after he left town,
something changed him. He isn't even trying to fight
the forces that drive the animal inside him. Maybe he
did for the first couple of months after you got here.
Maybe he was only biding his time. Maybe knowing Spike
is here drove him to it. Whatever his motivation for
attacking you last night, he's different. He would
never have done this to you before."

"No, he wouldn't have," she agreed. "But I don't see
how that helps."

"Something's changed inside him. He isn't fighting
those impulses, anymore. From what Spike told me, that
was the reason he left Sunnydale to begin with--to try
to come to terms with what he is."

"I'd say he succeeded," she answered bitterly.

"But not in the way he intended. Something's happened
to him, Willow. Maybe that something changes the
affects of what he's done to you."

She looked up at him, "You think that's possible?"

"I think anything's possible."

"Then we should be researching this, not sitting here
talking about it!"

"Cordelia is on her way over here to start working on
it, and Giles--"

"Cordy?" Willow asked, her eyes widening with dread.
"Does she know what--"

"She knows," he nodded.

"Oh, goddess," the redhead whimpered. "What must she
think of me? She already hates me, and now--"

"She doesn't hate you," Spike insisted gently. "Listen
to me, pet. You have no reason to blame yourself for
any of this. You are not responsible for that prick's
actions."

Willow's eyes welled with tears, and she lowered her
head, "I should never have let it go so far. I should
have--"

"I won't listen to this," he refused. "He told you he
wanted you. He said he loved you."

"This isn't love," she whispered sadly.

"No, it isn't," Angel spoke. "And you didn't deserve
any of this."

She looked over at him, "I don't know how long he'd
been in L.A. before he came back to Sunnydale. Did
Spike tell you I think he may be using drugs?"

Angel nodded.

"Maybe that's why he did this to me. Maybe it's the--"

"Willow, don't," he moved slightly forward and took
her hand, carefully avoiding the bruises on her
wrists. "Don't excuse him. There *is* no excuse for
what he's done to you. He made his own choices, and he
dragged you into the middle of them. He--"

"Angel!" the unexpected urgent shout caused Willow to
jump in alarm as Cordelia flew around the corner and
skidded to a halt. "Willow! You're--oh, gods--you look
like hell."

Willow's gaze immediately fell to the hand that
clutched Spike's. Cordy took a steadying breath and
entered the room.

"Sorry. I've been working on the tact thing, which I
obviously haven't mastered, yet," the brunette
apologized softly. "Are you all right? What am I
saying? Of course you're not. Willow, I'm really
sorry."

"I'll be okay," the redhead's voice was barely more
than a whisper.

"Angel," Cordy turned her eyes back to the vampire. "I
saw Oz's van pull up to the curb, just down the block.
He's headed this way."

Willow's entire body stiffened, and Spike slipped his
arm around her waist and stood as Angel reached for
her and pulled her up off of the sofa.

"He's come for me. I knew he would," Willow's voice
quivered.

"He's not taking you anywhere, Willow. I promise,"
Angel said.

The small woman looked as though she was about to jump
out of her skin, and Spike pulled her closer to him,
"She can't face him. Not yet. It's too soon."

"Get her out of here," Angel nodded.

"What good will that do?" Willow asked. "He won't give
up, Spike, and you can't fight him."

"I can," the dark-haired vampire's voice dropped to a
threatening tone. "I'll tear his hands off at the
wrists before I let him touch you again. Spike, take
her to the tunnels. Stay there until I come for you."

His childe nodded and began to pull Willow away. She
was visibly shaking, and Cordelia moved ahead of them
and hurried to Angel's bedroom, yanking the thick
comforter off of the bed and racing back to them.

"Keep her warm," she said to Spike, thrusting the
cover at him.

Angel waited until the couple had disappeared before
taking Cordelia's arm, "I want you to get busy
researching."

"But what about Oz? He--"

"I'll deal with Oz. Just stay in my office.
Understood?"

She nodded mutely in response to the barely-controlled
fury in Angel's voice, and he turned on his heel and
headed for the elevator.
 
 

Angel approached the elevator as it came to a stop,
and Oz emerged through the heavy metal gate. The young
man glared over at the waiting vampire.

"Where is she?" he demanded.

"Where's who?" Angel asked casually.

Oz bristled and stepped toward him, "You know who.
Willow. I know she's here. I want her back."

"What for?" the vampire questioned. "You have the
sudden urge to smack her around some more?"

"She didn't get anything she wasn't asking for--for
weeks. I didn't hurt her that badly--"

"Her face says otherwise," Angel glared coldly at him.

"I know she's here. Where have you hidden her?" Oz
asked as his eyes darted around the apartment.

"It doesn't matter. She isn't going anywhere with
you."

The wolf was quickly becoming angered, "This is none
of your damned business--"

"Is that right?" Angel's eyes darkened ominously. "She
landed on her knees on my doorstep, raped, beaten
until I could hardly recognize her. I made it my
business. What the hell has happened to you? What
could she have possibly done to make you think she
deserved what you did to her?"

"She needed to be reminded of who she belongs, too.
She's mine, Angel," Oz hissed. "You have no right to
keep her here. I'm taking her home."

Angel's hand shot out and grabbed hold of the wolf as
he tried to step around the seething vampire, "You're
taking her nowhere. I thought you wanted to keep
Willow safe. I thought that was the reason you ran off
and left her. You're not even fighting it anymore, are
you? You've completely given in to--"

"It's what I am," Oz answered coldly. "I stopped
fighting it weeks ago. I can't escape it any more than
you can escape what you are."

"I can control what I am," Angel said calmly. "You
used to be able to do the same. What changed? You got
a taste of the she-wolf you killed and decided it
wasn't enough? You decided you need a mate of your
own? Is that why you bit Willow?"

"Did I bite her? I don't remember that part," the wolf
smirked cruelly. "I guess that proves the bitch really
is mine, after all."

Angel shook his head, "Guess again."

"You can't keep her from me," Oz snarled.

"I can, and I will," Angel insisted. "You haven't
answered my question. You left Sunnydale to keep
Willow safe. You didn’t want what happened to--"

"Veruca?" Oz spat. "You're right. I had to keep Willow
safe, so I killed the bitch. Veruca thought she could
take Willow's place. She couldn't have. She was never
meant to be my mate, but she did make me
realize--after I’d gotten away and had time to think
about everything that had happened--that a mate is
what I need."

"So you went back to Sunnydale with the intention of
making Willow your mate," Angel concluded. "You
brought her here, to L.A., so the others couldn’t
interfere. How am I doing?"

"Close enough," Oz confirmed. "She’s truly mine, now,
Angel. Whether you like it or not. I bit her. She’s
mine.

"She’s your victim. That’s all she is to you," the
vampire argued. "And she isn’t even that, anymore."

"You can’t keep me from her forever. She has two weeks
before she becomes what I am. When that happens,
*she’ll* come looking for me."

"Don’t bet your canines on that," Angel sneered.

"Going to build her a nice iron cage?" Oz scoffed.

"If I have to," he nodded, taking a step closer to the
wolf. "But I’ll promise you this. I’ll kill you myself
before I let you get your hands on Willow again.
Whether or not she becomes what you are remains to be
seen, but she won’t become yours. Not in two weeks,
not ever."

Angel grabbed for the man's shirt collar as Oz
suddenly swung out at him. The infuriated vampire
lifted the wolf up until not even the toes of his
shoes touched the floor, holding him there for a
moment before snarling loudly and flinging him across
the room. Oz hit the wall and grunted as the breath
was knocked out of him. He tried to scramble up onto
his shaky legs, only to feel Angel's hand clamping
around him once more, dragging him upright and pinning
him against the wall. The vampire's fist lashed out,
connecting solidly with Oz's nose, and Angel smiled in
satisfaction at the sound of crumpling cartilage.

"Feel good?" Angel questioned, his human features
sliding away in response to the blood that coursed
from Oz's broken nose.

"So, you can control it, huh?" Oz taunted, grimacing
at the pain that shot through his skull.

"When I want to," Angel nodded. "Which, at the moment,
I don't. Consider this payback. For Willow."

Oz shoved himself away from the wall, lunging at Angel
and throwing him off balance. The vampire rolled and
sprang to his feet. Reaching for the nearest object to
hand, he grabbed up a brass bookend sitting on a shelf
near his shoulder and slammed it into Oz's jaw. He
howled and staggered backward. Angel brought up a
booted foot and kicked out, sending the wolf
catapulting across the room to crash into the iron
gate of the elevator.

Storming across the room, Angel smacked his fist
against the button. The vampire grabbed Oz by the
hair, hauled him up, and threw him into the elevator.
Blood from a deep gash on the back of the wolf's head
coated Angel's fingers as he gripped his hair, forcing
the nearly unconscious man to remain on his feet. When
the elevator stopped, the vampire dragged Oz across
the room and reached for the door.

"If you come here again," Angel snarled, shaking Oz's
head as he spoke, "I'll kill you. I swear it."

The enraged vampire barely noticed the flash of
sunlight that prickled painfully on his flesh as he
swung open the door, flung Oz out onto the steps, and
slammed it closed behind him.
*<>*<>*<>*<>*<>*
Willow gingerly lowered her bruised frame onto a
kitchen chair as Spike pulled another up close to her.
He reached for the edges of the comforter she had
draped over her shoulders and pulled it around her as
her whole body shivered.

Cordelia filled a mug with hot, black coffee and set
it down in front of the redhead before perching on the
corner of the table and gently pushing a strand of
fiery hair away from the small woman's badly swollen
face.

"You okay, Will?" the brunette asked softly.

She nodded and molded her hands around the warm mug
and glanced at each of them in turn, "Thank you. For
helping me. For keeping him away from me."

Angel laid a gentle hand on her shoulder, "There's no
need to thank us. You know we'll do whatever it takes
to make sure you're safe."

"I know," she whispered gratefully.

Breathing out softly, she raised the coffee to her
lips, stopping mid-way as a quiet sob parted her lips.
Spike moaned and took the mug from her hands and
pulled her toward him, gently shuffling her onto his
lap and rocking her as she wept against his shoulder.

"She's exhausted," Cordelia's voice cracked as the
gravity of the situation threatened to overwhelm her.

Angel drew the brunette off of the table and rested a
comforting hand against her back, "Come on. Let's give
her a few minutes. Show me what you've come up with so
far."

Cordy nodded sadly and followed the tall vampire out
of the room, glancing back over her shoulder to see
Spike place a kiss on Willow's head and run his
fingers through her hair.

"I'm sorry," she sniffled. "This is all I seem to be
able to do lately."

"Willow, luv, stop apologizing for everything," he
spoke close to her ear. "You're fighting your way out
of hell. Most women would have completely broken apart
by this time. You're stronger than you know."

She shook her head, "I wish that were true."

"It is true," he insisted softly. "You're here, and
you're sane. Aren't you?"

"Just barely," she answered with a small smile.

"Barely counts," he told her. "You need to get some
sleep."

"I couldn't. Even if I wanted to, I couldn't," she
replied. "Maybe we could go help Angel and Cordy? Give
me something to do besides sit around and--think."

"You sure?"

"Yeah," she nodded. "I'm sure."

He raised her head to look into her eyes and traced a
gentle thumb over her lips. She placed a little kiss
on the pad of his thumb, and his mouth twitched into a
slight grin. Willow slid her arm around his neck as
his hand clutched her waist, and he helped her to
stand. Walking in front of him, she slowly made her
way out of the kitchen.

"So much stronger than you know," Spike whispered to
himself as he watched her for a brief moment before
moving close behind her and following her to Angel's
office.
 
 

Angel stopped outside the closed bedroom door as the
sound of soft whimpering came from the other side.
Quietly, he turned the knob and opened it enough to
look in on the sleeping redhead and felt an unexpected
sigh of relief push from his dead lungs as he saw his
childe resting silently beside her. The frightening
dreams that would cruelly snap her out of a restless
sleep had not subsided over the past three days that
she had spent with them here.

Willow had taken to researching during the night while
Angel and Spike were out roaming the dark streets of
the city. Only after the vampires had returned to
Angel's apartment would she allow herself to crawl
into bed in a futile attempt to achieve a peaceful
sleep. Instead, she would awaken with a soft cry and
stumble out of bed to search out Spike, who was never
far away. He would comfort her with soft words and
gentle motions, lulling her with a tenderness that
truly astounded his sire. Then, once she had begun to
drift back to sleep, he would carry her back to bed,
where she would cling tightly to him and finally,
finally, accomplish a few hours of undisturbed
slumber.

Angel smiled softly to himself as Spike's sleeping
body inched closer to the troubled redhead,
unconsciously offering her his calming presence. His
arm folded around her, and she immediately quieted and
and snuggled against the cool of his chest. The darker
vampire's expression sobered as he watched them for a
moment longer. His reason told him that the redhead's
torment was a natural result of what she had been
subjected to. The ugly thoughts she tried to push away
during her waking hours were bound to come creeping in
when sleep could no longer keep them at bay. But this
realization made it no easier to watch her struggle
through the process of healing.

Reassured that Willow was all right, Angel closed the
door and returned to the kitchen to warm a mug of
blood before going to his office to continue the
research the redhead had been working on a few hours
earlier.
*<>*<>*<>*<>*<>*
Willow opened the apartment door and felt Cordelia’s
steadying hand on her shoulder as she stepped inside.
She looked around the unoccupied living room, and her
body unconsciously tensed as the memories of Oz's
brutal attack came rushing back with overwhelming
swiftness.

It had been no small effort to persuade Angel and
Spike to agree to let her come back to Oz's apartment,
particularly without either of them. But there were
things here that she needed--her laptop, her
books--and she knew Oz would be at work if she came
during the day. Cordy had offered to accompany her, on
the condition that Willow agreed not to retrieve her
clothes from the apartment. The demand had elicited a
soft giggle from the redhead, and the two vampires had
finally conceded.

"You okay?" Cordelia asked softly.

Willow swallowed and nodded, "Yeah."

"I’ll get your books; you get your laptop. And
remember *no* clothes," the brunette said playfully,
attempting to draw the young woman out of the painful
memories that had caused her pale face to blanch even
further.

Willow smiled and handed Cordy the sturdy clean box
she had picked up from beside the dumpster outside the
apartment building, "I’ll remember. My books are on
the second shelf, over there."

Cordelia crossed the room to the bookshelf near the
window on the opposite wall. Willow’s gaze briefly
settled on the sofa as she moved around it toward the
bedroom, and she shook herself and took a deep breath,
forcing her mind to focus on the task at hand. Cordy
quickly cleared Willow's books from the narrow shelf
and packed them into the box. Then, picking it up, she
walked over to the open door of the bedroom. Willow
had gathered up a few sentimental trinkets and a
little jewelry box. Grabbing her bathrobe from the
hook on the door, she wrapped these few items in the
thick garment and lowered the bundle into the box, on
top of the books.

"That everything?" Cordy asked, looking down into the
woefully empty box as Willow went to a little stand in
the corner of the room and closed up the laptop
sitting there.

"I didn’t bring very much with me when I left
Sunnydale," the redhead answered, reaching down beside
the stand to pick up the laptop’s case. "And without
my clothes--"

"You are *not* bringing them," Cordelia insisted as
Willow looked hopefully over at her. "We have a whole
city to shop in, and you’re getting a new wardrobe,
even if I have to hogtie you and drag you into the
fitting rooms."

"That should raise a few eyebrows," Willow laughed
softly as she zipped up the case and slung it over her
shoulder. "Okay. I’m ready."

Cordy nodded and handed Willow the box, then reached
into her purse to fish out the keys to Angel's car.
The redhead followed behind her and stopped beside the
sofa. Balancing the box on one hip, she reached into
her pocket and pulled out her key to the apartment and
placed it on the scarred end table Oz had purchased
for a few dollars at a nearby thrift shop.

"Hello, babe," Willow’s head whipped around at the
sound of Oz’s voice. "Going somewhere?"

She felt a wave of panic rising up within her and
nearly dropped the box from her trembling hands as the
wolf stepped through the doorway, "Wh--what are you
doing here?"

"I got off work early," he answered, his cold eyes
shifting from Willow to Cordelia and back again. "I’ve
been getting these--headaches--for the past couple of
days."

He raised his hand and fingered the bandage that
covered the gash on the back of his head. Oz’s nose
was swollen even worse than the redhead’s, and the
black and purple bruise extended from his nose to
beneath each of his eyes. Cordelia saw the blatant
terror on Willow's face as she gazed back at the
injured wolf, and she reached out and touched the
redhead's arm, letting her know she was not alone.

"She’s leaving, Oz," the brunette spat hatefully. "She
isn’t coming back."

"This is her home," the wolf’s voice was deceptively
calm. "This is where she belongs. She knows that.
Don’t you, baby?"

Willow’s green eyes stared sadly back at him, "I don’t
know anything, anymore. I don’t know you."

"You know me," he argued. "I’m your mate."

"You’ll never be that. Not after what’s happened."

He took a step toward her, "I gave you a hard fuck
because that's what you were asking for. We both know
you needed it. You haven't forgotten whose marks
you're wearing, have you? You're mine, Willow. My
mate. I won't allow you to leave."

Cordy heard Willow’s sharp intake of breath as Oz’s
hand curled around her arm. Willow pulled away, every
nerve in her body jarring at the sensation of his firm
hand on her flesh.

"Leave her alone," the brunette snapped.

The wolf’s eyes became harder, colder, as they
remained fastened on the redhead, "Get out, Cordelia.
Willow, my little bitch, you’re staying."

The fear that had threatened to swallow up the redhead
suddenly gave way to anger as his eyes raked
possessively over her body and drank in the dark
bruises on her face with a chilling sense of
satisfaction. Willow dropped the box, and Oz snarled
as it landed on his foot. He kicked it aside and
grabbed her arms with both hands. From behind him,
Cordelia’s hand shot inside her cavernous purse and
pulled out a small, slender canister. She grabbed Oz’s
shoulder, and he whirled around, wobbling a bit as the
pain in his head caused the room to spin before his
eyes, and backhanded her. She yelped as her head was
wrenched to the side, and the canister clattered to
the floor at her feet.

Willow placed her hands on the wolf’s chest and shoved
him hard as he turned back to her. He staggered
unsteadily, and his back slammed against the open door
behind him. Growling in a mixture of pain and anger,
he flung the door open wide, sending it banging into
the wall, as Willow bent and scooped up the canister.
She yanked off the top and raised the container to his
face as he stalked toward her.

"I will never be yours," she vowed between clenched
teeth as her finger stabbed the button on the top of
the canister.

Oz howled as the pepper spray hit him squarely in the
face, and Cordelia darted aside as he weaved blindly,
scrubbing frantically at his eyes. She raised her
handbag and swung it violently into his head, and Oz
pitched forward, a loud shout of agony bursting from
his lungs as his broken nose impacted against the hard
floor. Cordy quickly retrieved the box, then reached
for Willow's hand and hauled her to the door.

The redhead looked around at the man writhing on the
floor and hissed, "Bastard," before slamming the door
shut with enough force to send the picture on the wall
beside it crashing to the floor.
*<>*<>*<>*<>*<>*
Willow winced under the pressure of Cordelia’s hand on
her arm as the brunette all but dragged her into
Angel’s office.

"What happened?" Spike asked, rising to his feet in
alarm as the two slightly-out-of-breath women stood
before them.

"Oz showed up," Cordy answered.

Angel pushed himself up out of the desk chair, "Oh,
hell. Are you two all right? Did he hurt you?"

"Other way around," the brunette smiled smugly.

The two vampires shot a look of confusion at one
another.

"His face is currently mashed all over his apartment
floor. You should have seen her," Cordelia continued,
draping an arm over Willow’s shoulders. "I was so
proud of her. I’ll bet that bastard knows better than
to mess with her again."

"I wouldn’t take that bet," Angel cautioned, his eyes
fixed on the little redhead.

Willow nodded once, not believing that Oz would back
off so easily, either, and looked at Spike as he moved
close in front of her and placed his hands on her
shoulders.

"Are you all right, luv?" he asked softly, staring
down into her eyes.

Her steady gaze met his, and her mouth twitched into a
proud little grin as she flung her arms around his
neck and hugged him fiercely.

"I’m great," she whispered triumphantly against his
neck as she felt his arms tightening around her waist
and heard his soft chuckle close to her ear.
 

"Angel, you're awake" Willow spoke from behind the
computer as the dark vampire appeared in the office
doorway. "Want to see what I found?"

He walked around the desk to peer over her shoulder.
She waited in silence as his eyes scanned the
newspaper article she had pulled up regarding four
unsolved murders.

"I don't recognize the town," he told her.

"I talked to Giles on the phone this morning, and he
said Oz's change of behavior struck him as odd. I
mean, Oz admitted that he brought me to L.A. so he
could--"

Angel put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed gently
as her voice faltered.

She took a breath and steadied herself before
continuing, "Giles said he wondered where and when Oz
changed so drastically. When I first moved here, he
told me about some of the places he'd been after he
left Sunnydale, so I've been backtracking. This is the
town he was in just before he came to L.A."

"Are you saying you think he killed these people? Why
would he? Was there a full moon?" the vampire asked.

"I called the landlord of Oz's apartment building. Oz
moved in two days after these murders," she explained.
"Two of the victims were killed during the day, the
other two at night, but no, there wasn't a full moon."

"Other than the timing, I'm not seeing the connection,
then," he told her.

"Their bodies were mutilated. Look at this
photograph."

"A knife," Angel replied, pointing to a line of text
on the screen.

"Must have been one hell of a knife. This guy's neck
look like it's been torn out. I also called the
newspaper. The police still have no motive and no
suspect."

"You've been busy this morning," he remarked.

"I need answers, Angel. There isn't much time left,"
she reminded him, turning her head to look into his
deep eyes.

"I know," he nodded. "Okay, it's worth checking out."

"Cordy's already on it," the redhead smiled. "Short
skirt. Tight blouse. She said she'd get the sheriff to
drool out the answers."

The vampire chuckled, "I'll bet she will. Is Spike
still asleep?"

Willow nodded and sat back in the chair, "I think I
wear him out with my nightmares."

Angel straightened and smoothed a gentle hand over her
hair, "I don't think he minds all that much."

"It's weird, you know? It wasn't so long ago that
Spike was the one who wanted me dead, and Oz was the
one I loved. Now--"

"Now?" he prompted, staring down at her with interest.

She blushed faintly, "I just mean--well, you know--I
trust Spike, now. In a best friend kind of way."

"Is that all he is to you? A friend?"

"That's all I can ask, isn't it?"

His expression sobered, "Why do you say that?"

"Well, look at me, now. After Oz--after what he did to
me, I can't really expect--"

"Willow," Angel groaned. "Don't say that. Don't even
think it."

"I try not to, but--" she shrugged and let the rest of
the statement slide.

He frowned sadly and turned to leave the room as the
little redhead focused on the monitor once more. He
looked up as Spike came around the corner.

"Where's Willow?" the blonde vampire asked, a tinge of
panic in his voice. "I woke up, and she wasn't--"

"In there," Angel gestured toward the open door.

With an inaudible sigh of relief, his childe
disappeared into the office, and Angel stepped back a
pace and watched as Spike went to the desk. Willow
smiled softly as he knelt down beside her chair.

"You had me worried, pet. I've gotten used to waking
up to you."

"Sorry," she said. "Had another dream, and I couldn't
get back to sleep."

"You should have given me a nudge," he admonished her
gently.

"I thought you'd had enough of that."

"I'll decide that for myself," he told her, taking her
face in his hands and placing a kiss on her forehead.
"Got it?"

She nodded and cupped her hands over his, "Take a look
at what I've found."

Angel shook his head in amusement as his childe
grinned and lifted Willow slightly, taking her place
in the chair and settling her onto his lap.

"Just friends, she says," he murmured to himself.
"Spike, my boy, we'll have to do something about
that."
 
 

"I hope you appreciate how much leg I had to show in order to get this
information," Cordelia said.

Angel’s gaze traveled the length of the brunette’s shapely legs,
stopping at the hem of her mid-thigh skirt, and decided he could
definitely appreciate her efforts. His eyes flicked back to hers, and
he grinned sheepishly as she crossed her arms under her ample bosom and
glared back at the once-over she’s just been subjected to. Her lips
twitched into an amused grin, and she flopped down into the chair on
the other side of the desk.

"So, what did you find out?" Willow asked. "What did the sheriff have
to say about the murders?"

"Not a lot, really," Cordy answered. "There’s something really weird
about that guy."

"Weird? How?" Angel questioned.

"Well, he almost acted like those killings were nothing out of the
ordinary, like I was making a big deal out of nothing," she explained.
"He didn’t tell me anything we didn’t already know, and he seemed
totally uncaring about what those poor people must have suffered. I
don’t think he cares whether he finds out who did it or not."

"Maybe he already knows," Spike suggested.

"Like he’s involved, you mean?" Cordelia asked. "Could be. He brushed
me off as quickly as he could, so I cornered his deputy. Now, *there’s*
a guy who’s just begging to be manipulated."

"So, you did," Angel guessed.

"Of course," she shrugged. "Anyway, he told me the sheriff only gave
him two weeks to investigate the murders before he announced that the
case was a lost cause and pulled all his men off of it. The deputy also
told me he wasn’t convinced that the victims had been killed with a
knife. He thought two of them looked like they’d been attacked by an
animal of some sort."

"Only two of them?" Willow asked.

"The other two had been eviscerated, and their eyeballs had been cut
out." Cordy looked over at Willow’s shocked expression. "Sorry about
the ick factor. That’s just what he told me."

"None of that made it into the papers," Angel mentioned.

"The sheriff told his men not to let that information out. You know how
they do that--keep information secret while they’re trying to find the
criminal. Well, that’s what the deputy thought it was, at first. But
then after the sheriff ordered them to drop it, the deputy started
wondering. Can’t say that I blame him. That man has the coldest eyes
I’ve ever seen."

"Sounds like he’s hiding something. Spike and I will check him out,"
the dark vampire said. "You did good, Cordelia."

"Yeah, I know," she nodded. "Well, if you two are going to make a run
back there, Willow and I are going out for dinner and some serious
power shopping."

"We are?" Willow said.

"Yup," she held out her hand to Angel and snapped his fingers, sighing
impatiently as he looked at her in confusion. "Credit card. You owe me.
I’ve spent the afternoon being ogled."

Angel chuckled and nodded in surrender, and Spike turned Willow toward
him, "Don’t be out late. I don’t like the idea of you walking around in
the same city as that bastard."

"I’ll be careful," she promised.

"We won’t be gone long. Be here when we get back?" he requested.

She nodded, and he squeezed her hand and turned to follow his sire out
of the office.
*<>*<>*<>*<>*<>*
"Think she’ll be okay?" Spike asked as they headed out of the city
limits.

"I think it’ll do her good to get out for an hour or two," Angel
answered.

"She’s safer at our place," his childe argued.

Angel took a moment to let the "our place" sink in and, deciding he
liked it, smiled softly, "She’ll be fine. Cordy will make sure they
stick to places with lots of people. You really worry about her."

The vampire’s blue eyes drifted out through the windshield in front of
him, staring anywhere but at his sire as he replied, "I can’t help it.
I--I care about her."

"You love her," Angel asserted.

He nodded slightly, "Yeah."

"But you haven’t told her."

"I don’t want to scare her. She’s been through too much already. I want
her to know she can trust me."

"I think she’s figured that out," his sire grinned. "And I’m not so
sure she’d be scared."

Spike’s gaze finally moved to him, his voice hesitantly hopeful,
"You’re not?"

"Well, I don’t hear her calling out for me after one of her nightmares.
The path to comfort seems to lead directly to your arms."

"I don’t mind," his childe told him.

"I’ve noticed," Angel’s eyes sparkled with amusement before becoming
more serious. "She doesn’t think she deserves you, Spike."

"What??" Spike barked, completely thrown by the statement. "How the
bloody hell did she get *that* so backwards? I’m the one who doesn’t--"

"Because of Oz," he explained softly. "Because of what he did to her."

His childe’s hands clenched into fists, "She thinks that matters? Gods
below, doesn’t she see how strong she is? I’ve never seen anyone fight
so hard just to survive. She can’t let him have that kind of power over
her. I don’t care what he did to her. Even if she does become what that
bastard is, it won’t matter to me. She’s amazing. She deserves whatever
the hell she wants--"

"I already know that," Angel interrupted with a calming hand on Spike’s
shoulder. "You have to make *her* believe it."

"Damn straight," he nodded emphatically. "I bloody well mean to."

"Good," his sire smiled.
 

Cordelia and Willow were waiting at Angel's apartment when he and Spike
returned.

"Is that your idea of dinner?" Angel asked as Willow set her empty dish
of ice cream on the coffee table.

"I tried to talk her into a fancy restaurant. I mean, how often do I
get to charge an expensive dinner to you?" Cordelia answered. "But she
wouldn't go."

"This is easier right now," Willow answered. "No chewing."

Spike dropped down beside her on the sofa and brushed his cool
fingertips over the healing bruises on her jaw. Her hand captured his,
stopping their movement, and he curled his fingers around hers and drew
her hand onto his lap.

"So, did you see the sheriff?" Cordy asked them.

"He's dead," Angel answered.

"Dead! How?"

"We killed him," Spike shrugged and planted his booted feet on the
coffee table, playfully ignoring his sire's annoyed glare.

"You aren't serious," Willow spoke, though her tone was uncertain.

"He was a demon," Angel explained. "Which explains why he seemed so
strange to Cordelia."

"Did you know that before you left here?" Cordy asked.

"I had my suspicions," he nodded. "The eviscerations, removing the
eyes. It's a sort of ritual some demons perform on their victims."

Willow looked over at him, "The sheriff. A demon."

"They take on all sorts of forms. You know that," he nodded.

"Well, what about the other two people who were killed? They weren't
subjected to that," Willow pointed out.

Spike and his sire exchanged a glance, and the dark vampire moved
across the room and sat down on Willow's other side.

"It was Oz, wasn't it?" she asked, her voice trembling slightly.

"Yes," he answered softly. "The demon recognized Oz for what he was
when he arrived in town. At that point, he was still struggling with
how to control what he is. He was frustrated and angry and probably
feeling a bit lost, and the demon took advantage of that. He drew Oz
in. Offered him answers. Made him believe that the only way to survive
was to embrace the darker side of what he is. The demon had been using
L.A. as his hunting ground--the homeless, prostitutes--people who
wouldn't be missed. He lived far enough away that he wouldn't be easily
traced, and no one in town would believe that their sheriff had
anything to do with the deaths of people nobody wanted."

"What about those four victims in the newspaper? They lived in that
town," Cordy pointed out.

He nodded, "By that time, Oz had made his choice. He'd stopped fighting
what he is, and the demon had shown him how to draw on the power of the
wolf inside him, even without a full moon. The demon called the murders
'victory kills.'"

Willow shuddered slightly and looked down at her hand in Spike's lap,
"I thought it was the drugs--"

"I don't think that started until he got here," Angel told her. "The
deputy showed me photographs of the victims. The two Oz attacked had
been badly mangled. It looked like the result of frenzy or desperation.
I'm guessing once Oz unleashed that side of himself--when what he was
about to do finally hit him--he had a harder time dealing with it than
he'd expected. The demon provoked Oz to do something he wasn't totally
prepared for when it came right down to it."

"But he did it anyway," Willow murmured.

Angel reached for her free hand, "Yes, he did. And then he fled to
L.A.--maybe to escape the demon, probably to escape what he'd done--but
it followed him, anyway. The thing is, Willow, once he'd embraced that
kind of power, the craving to taste it again would have been
overwhelming."

"But he's still human--well, most of the time," Cordy spoke. "How can
he live with himself?"

"Maybe that's why he started using," the dark vampire suggested. "Maybe
the drugs help the part of him that's human to forget what he's doing
to himself, what he's done to you, Willow. Or maybe they help feed that
darker side. But they weren't what caused him to hurt you. The demon
did that when he seduced Oz into pushing aside his humanity."

Willow shook her head slowly as a single tear rolled down her cheek,
"That's an excuse, Angel. Oz's will is his own. He made his own
choices."

"Yes, he did," the vampire conceded sadly as he stood up. "I'm going to
call Giles and let him know what we've found out. It might be helpful.
Are you going to be all right?"

She nodded, though her eyes didn't rise to meet his, and he focused on
her small hand wrapped up in Spike's larger one.

"Why don't you take a few minutes, maybe go up on the roof?" he
suggested.

"The roof?" she asked.

"Yeah," his gaze shifted to Spike. "It's quiet up there, and there's a
nice view. Cordelia and I will come get you if Giles comes up with
anything."

Spike nodded and pulled Willow's unresisting body up off the sofa and
led her out of the room.
*<>*<>*<>*<>*<>*
"This was a bad idea," Willow decided as she took a step away from the
low wall that bordered the roof.

"Why?" Spike asked, reaching out for her.

"Because I'm scared to death of heights," she admitted, a little
embarrassed.

He smiled and pulled her close to him, "I wouldn't let you fall."

"I know," she nodded against his chest.

He held her quietly for several minutes, stroking his fingers through
her hair before asking softly, "You tired, pet?"

"Mmmm," she answered. "A little. Ridiculous, isn't it? A couple of
hours traipsing through stores, and I'm worn out."

"After very little sleep," he added. "And you're still healing."

"I hate sleeping," she admitted. "Those damned dreams. And every night
I wake up is one night closer to--"

"Don't, Willow."

"I can't help it. It's all I can think about. Wondering if he really is
going to win in just a few more nights."

He raised her head and looked down into her eyes, "He won't win. I
won't let him. I won't leave you, luv. No matter what happens, I won't
leave you."

Her eyes left his as they swelled with tears that spilled down her
cheeks, "I feel so helpless. I'm so tired and so scared. I've never
been so scared."

He pulled her back into him, wrapping his arms tightly around her, "He
won't have you, Willow. I promise. He'll never have you."

He held her, letting her cry it out until her tears subsided, and she
took in a deep breath.

"I told myself I wasn't going to do this anymore," she muttered,
smiling weakly up at him. "And look at me. Here I am, getting your
shirt all wet, *again*."

He grinned down at her, "I can take it off, if it'll make you feel
better."

She giggled softly and reached up to caress his cheek, "Thank you,
Spike. I don't think I could get through this without you."

"You don't have to."

She nodded and stepped back as the door behind her swung open and Angel
stepped out onto the roof.

"What did he say?" Willow asked, feeling Spike's arms circling
supportively around her as she turned to face his sire.

"He did a lot of incoherent mumbling," Angel answered with a slight
grin. "Said he'd need a few hours to check it out and that he'd call
back."

"So, it's back to the books, then," she said as she moved away from
Spike.

"You've had a long day. Just wait for Giles to phone, and take it easy
for a couple of hours--"

"I can't, Angel. We're running out of time. I'll just gulp down a cup
or two of Cordy's coffee. No body could collapse with that sludge
running through its system."

The redhead gave the tall vampire's arm a light squeeze and gave Spike
a small smile before slipping through the door. Angel watched his
childe as his blue eyes trailed after the woman's small form.

"You okay?"

"No. Not really," Spike answered before following after Willow.

Angel forced a heavy sigh from his lungs and stared out over the
rooftops at the waxing moon hanging serenely in the night sky.
 
 
 

"What did he say?" Cordelia asked the moment Angel hung up the phone.

The vampire looked across the office at Willow, who had entered the
room with Spike while Angel had been talking quietly to Giles.

"Oz's collusion with the demon makes a difference," Angel told the
redhead. "After their attack on those people they killed, the demon
would have performed a ritual involving ingesting their hearts
and--well--maybe we'd better leave that part of it alone."

"Maybe we'd better," Cordy quickly agreed.

"If Oz participated in the ritual, it's changed him."

"But how do we know if he did?" Willow asked. "And what would it have
done to him?"

"If Oz had refused to participate--which, I doubt that he would have,
considering the state of mind he must have been in to have murdered
those people--the demon would have killed him. The demon had already
been feeding the beast inside Oz, seducing him to embrace that part of
himself. By taking part in the ritual, Oz seriously damaged his own
humanity. If he's been trying at all to control the wolf, it's been an
uphill battle ever since he allied himself with that demon."

"You said all this makes a difference," Spike said.

Angel nodded, "It's complicated. I'm not sure even I understood
everything Giles said. But the bottom line is that when Oz bit you,
Willow, he claimed you, but he didn't change what you are."

"I don't get it," she told him. "I thought when a werewolf bit a
human--"

"It does, usually," the tall vampire agreed. "But the human side of Oz
was changed--corrupted, Giles called it--when he took part in the
ritual. He was in that town, with the demon, for quite awhile, Willow.
Long enough to be completely influenced by the demon. He still is. The
relationship that developed between them is similar to a sire-childe
relationship. Well, that's not exactly accurate, but it's the closest
Giles could come."

"I think I understand," Willow nodded slowly. "Go on."

"What Oz has become since he left Sunnydale is partly due to the
influence he allowed the demon to have over him. Giles found a curse to
counteract any attack made by the demon's allies. Since Oz's humanity
has been fundamentally corrupted but the demon, he would be included in
that list of allies. Giles performed the ritual the minute he realized
what it meant. The result is that Oz claimed you when he bit you, but
he didn't make you what he is."

Tears glistened in the redhead's wide eyes, and Spike clutched her
waist as her knees weakened with the shock of relief that swept over
her, "Then I'm not--not--"

"No, you're not." Angel answered softly. "But you're not safe, yet,
either."

Cordy looked at him in confusion, "But you said Oz can't--"

"No, I said he didn't change her when he bit her that night in his
apartment. He was in his human form when that happened. It's the man
who was corrupted by the demon. The curse won't protect Willow if he
gets to her on the night of the full moon because it will be the wolf,
not the man, that attacks her. If he bites her while he's in the form
of a werewolf, nothing will protect Willow from becoming one, too."

Spike pulled Willow a little closer to him and looked over her head at
his sire, "Can I fight him, Angel? If he's got some sort of connection
to that demon, can I fight Oz?"

"Yes, you can," Angel smiled slightly. "You could during the full moon,
anyway, since when he transforms, the wolf completely takes over the
human. And now that he's allied himself with a demon, Giles feels
certain you can fight him even in his human form."

"No bloody way is he getting to you, now," Spike grinned broadly and
turned Willow to face him. "If he comes after you again, I'll kick him
so hard he'll be snarling out of his ass."

"Maybe Oz has already worked this out," Willow suggested hopefully.
"Maybe that's why he hasn't come looking for me--because he knows Spike
can fight him. He might have decided to just give it up and--"

She stopped speaking as she witnessed the dark glance that passed
between Angel and Cordelia.

"What? What is it?"

"Willow, Giles didn't call me. I called him," the vampire admitted.
"There wasn't time to wait for him to get back to me."

"Wasn't time?" Spike repeated.

"Cordy, you had a vision," Willow guessed.

"He's on his way--" the loud slamming of a door broke her response, and
she jumped slightly. "--here. He's here. That has to be him, doesn't
it?"

Angel nodded and headed for the door, "Cordelia, take Willow to the--"

"No," the redhead spoke sharply. "I'm not running from him this time.
He thinks he's won, that he's made me what he is. I want to be there
when he finds out--"

"He isn't going to find out," Angel told her. "Not yet. It's better if
he thinks he succeeded, for now."

"All right," she agreed. "But I'm not hiding anymore."

"I'm glad to hear that," Oz spoke, having heard her last comment as he
rounded the corner. "There's no point in hiding, is there? We're the
same, now. You belong with your own kind. With your mate."

"I could have belonged with you, once, but not now, Oz. You aren't the
man I loved. I don't know who you are, but you're not him," Willow
stated calmly.

The wolf dragged his hands out of his jacket pockets to reveal a cross
in one hand and a gun in the other. Spike snarled as Oz thrust the
cross out in front of him, and Cordy breathed in sharply as he trained
the pistol on her.

"Now, we can do this the easy way, or I can pull the trigger. These two
can't stop me. One way or another, you're coming with me," Oz told her.

Willow's gaze shifted from the gun to Cordy and back again, and she
sidled closer to Spike and forced her voice to remain even, "Goddess,
look at you. What the hell are you doing? Can you even remember who you
used to be? You would never have hurt the people you cared about."

"I don't care about any of them. I want you. Let's go," he answered
coldly.

"Has anyone ever told you you're a bleedin' sod?" Spike growled and
lunged at the wolf.

The vampire hissed as the cross pressed into his arm, and he grabbed
Oz's wrist and squeezed until his fingers released the object, and it
clattered to the floor. Angel grabbed for his other arm and slammed his
hand into the doorpost, dislodging the gun.

Oz glared into Spike's angry eyes, "You can't hurt me. You've been--"

"--waiting to do this," the blonde vampire interrupted him and slammed
his fist into the young man's face.

Oz grunted and sank to the floor, and Angel dropped down as the man's
hand reached for the gun. Oz grabbed the weapon and rolled quickly away
from the vampire. He scooted backwards and pointed the barrel at Angel.
Spike snarled loudly and took one long stride toward Oz, bringing his
foot back to kick savagely into his side. Cordy shrieked as the gun
went off. The shot went wide, and Angel grabbed Oz by the shirt and
hoisted him up off the floor. Oz swung out at him, and Angel caught his
fist in his hand and curled his fingers around it, squeezing until Oz
groaned in pain.

Willow's eyes widened as Oz's free hand shot into his pocket and pulled
out a stake. Looking wildly around her, she grabbed up the full coffee
pot near Angel's desk and raced toward Oz. She smashed the pot over his
skull, and he howled as it impacted with his already wounded head, and
scalding hot coffee soaked through his hair.

Spike placed a firm hand on Willow's shoulder and gently pushed her
aside. He grabbed Oz by the hair and brought his knee up into the dazed
man's crotch. Oz grunted as he doubled over, releasing the stake to cup
his aching balls. Placing his hands against Spike's legs, he shoved
hard, and Spike stumbled backwards. Oz breathed in raggedly, pulled
himself upright, and took off, and Angel bolted after him. Cordy and
Willow shot each other a look and raced out of the office, following
Spike.

Oz was nearing the front door as the others caught up with him, and he
grabbed up a heavy ashtray sitting on a table and spun around to hurl
it at them. Angel leapt to the side, and Spike bobbed down to avoid
being hit by the hurtling object. Willow yelped as it impacted with her
cheek, just below her right eye, and Cordy grabbed her arm to steady
her as Oz threw open the front door and took off out of sight.

Spike immediately turned to the redhead and gently pulled her hand away
from her cheek. A trickle of blood was beginning to trail from a thin
gash, and the skin was already beginning to swell.

"I'm okay," she assured him, though she was trembling slightly.

"I know," he nodded and placed a soft kiss on her forehead.

He put his arms around her and held her close for a minute before
turning her to his side and heading down to the apartment.
 
 

Willow crept quietly out of the bedroom and made her way to the kitchen
to make a pot of coffee. With a tired sigh, she sat down at the table
to wait and absent-mindedly ran her fingers over the newest bruise on
her cheek, flinching a little at the pain that resulted. She had gone
to bed shortly before dawn only to be awakened by a nightmare thirty
minutes after she had fallen into a light sleep. Upon hearing her soft
cry, Spike had let himself into the bedroom to lie down next to her,
cradling her against him and whispering soothingly to her until she had
drifted off once again.

She had been awaked twice more by her dreams and had tried after each
to struggle out of the bed, but Spike's strong arm around her waist had
stubbornly clamped more tightly around her, holding her firmly next to
him. After the last attempt, she had laid quietly, blinking into the
darkness, until his hold on her had relaxed, and he shifted slightly
away from her, giving her enough space to cautiously slip out of bed.

She glanced at the clock as the coffee finished brewing. Less than
twelve hours until the full moon would rise. She poured the hot liquid
into a fat mug and padded into the living room. She stopped, more than
a little surprised, when her eyes came to rest on the empty sofa.
Angel, concerned that Oz might try to get to her at her apartment, had
insisted that Cordelia sleep here. Willow had last seen her spread out
on the sofa, yawning as her eyelids drooped heavily, with Spike's
sleeping form propped in a chair across the room.

Alarmed, she put down the mug and headed for Angel's bedroom to alert
him to Cordy's absence. She quietly pushed open the door to be
surprised, yet again, by the sight of the dark vampire sleeping soundly
next to the leggy brunette.

"When the hell did *that* happen?" the redhead wondered, then quickly
admonished herself for jumping to conclusions; they were, after all,
both fully clothed.

Willow closed the door and went back to the living room. She reached
for the mug just as the telephone rang, and she whisked the receiver
from its cradle before the annoying jangle could awaken the others in
the apartment.

"Willow," Giles' spoke in surprise as he heard her voice. "How are
you?"

"I'm fine, Giles," she answered. "Thanks to you. Angel told me about
the curse. Is that why you're calling? Oh, Goddess, don't tell me
something's gone wrong! Is the curse--"

"No, no," he said quickly as her voice rose in panic. "No, Willow.
You're safe. The curse was effective. Actually, though, it is why I'm
calling. I got to thinking about the research Angel asked me to do. The
demon and Oz. The way he attacked you. Willow, I'm concerned. I don't
mean to pry, and if I am, you can certainly tell me to mind my own
business, but--"

Willow's body had tensed, the mug in her hand forgotten, "What is it,
Giles? What are you asking?"

"Did he--did Oz--he didn't just bite you, did he?" the former watcher
asked. "Angel said he didn't even remember biting you. But I know about
the mating instinct in werewolves. Willow, did he--hurt you?"

She squeezed her eyes shut as her vision blurred with tears, "Giles,
I--"

"He did, didn't he?" the man's voice had grown soft with sorrow.

"Yes," she sighed shakily. "He beat me. He--he raped me. That's when he
bit me."

"Oh, lord," Giles groaned. "I'm so sorry, Willow. Are you sure you're
all right?"

"I will be," her voice was soft but sure. "Spike and Angel and Cordy
have been taking good care of me, Giles. I'm healing. It isn't easy,
but I'll make it through this."

"I wish we could be there for you," he told her. "You should have your
friends around you--"

"No," she refused quickly. "I don't want anybody else to know about
this. Please don't tell Buffy or Xander or anybody else. Please?"

There was a short, uneasy silence, and Willow set down the mug and ran
her fingers through her hair.

"Giles?"

"I'm sorry, Willow," he repeated. "Buffy already knows."

"What! How? How could she--"

"She saw my notes on the research. She demanded to know what was going
on. I told her as much as I knew, and we reached the same conclusion at
the same time. She's very upset, Willow. She desperately wants to talk
to you."

"I don't think I'm ready for that," Willow told him. "Just tell her
that I'm--"

She paused as she heard a door shut from Giles' end of the line, and a
second later, a familiar voice suddenly sounded in her ear, "Willow.
Oh, gods, Willow. Are you all right? God. What happened? What did he--"

"Buffy, stop," Willow begged. "I'm okay. Really."

"How can you be? He raped you, didn't he?"

"Yes," the redhead confirmed. "But--"

"But nothing. I'm coming to L.A. I'm going to hunt him down and break
his damned neck."

"No," Willow responded. "Buffy, I don't want you to do that. I can't--"

"Will, this is my fault! I'm the one who told you that you should leave
with him! You kept saying you weren't sure, but I wouldn't listen. If I
hadn't shoved you into this, none of this--"

"That isn't true," she spoke softly. "Oz had made up his mind. He came
back to Sunnydale, and he wasn't going to leave until I went with him.
He had already decided what he was going to do to me. I could have
called you when I realized I was in trouble. That night wasn't the
first time he hit me, Buffy. There were other times, not as bad,
but...and he'd changed so much. He was cruel and cold. I should have
gotten out of there. It isn't your fault. I let him do this to me."

"Don't say that. Don't you *ever* say that," Buffy's voice trembled,
and Willow realized her friend was weeping. "He's a bastard, Will. You
didn't deserve any of this. You thought he loved you. You had no
idea--"

"Neither did you," the redhead insisted. "So if I can't blame myself,
you can't blame yourself, either."

The slayer sniffed and took in a deep breath as she calmed her raging
emotions, "Okay. I hear you. This is just--so damned unfair, you know?"

"I know. But I'll be okay. Spike and Angel are helping. And Cordy has
been great. And you know, in spite of how awful all of this has been,
I'm learning that I'm a pretty strong person. I'm going to be all
right, Buffy."

"Are you sure I can't come out there? Because I'd really love to rip
off his cock," Buffy offered, and Willow laughed softly as she heard
Giles' astonished gasp in the background.

"I'm sure. You're needed there. And this is something I really need to
do for myself. Well, not all by myself, but--"

"I understand," Buffy's tone had calmed considerably. "But if you need
me, you call. I'll be there before you hang up. Promise?"

"I promise."

"I love you, Will," the words came out on a choked whisper.

"I love you, too," Willow replied. "I'll call you soon."

"Okay. Tell Spike I said he'd better take good care of you, or Oz won't
be the only one on my hit list," Buffy said.

"He is taking good care of me, but I'll tell him," Willow grinned into
the phone.

They said their good-byes, and Willow hung up the phone and returned to
her rapidly cooling mug of coffee. She headed for the kitchen to pour a
fresh cup and found Spike leaning against the entryway, staring
intently at her.

"That the slayer?" he asked as she approached him.

She nodded, "She knows. About everything. She wanted to come here and
tear Oz apart."

"That's probably the only thing we'll ever agree on," he told her.

She smiled up at him, her eyes twinkling slightly, "And she said to
tell you to take good care of me or Oz wouldn't be the only one in
little pieces."

He chuckled and put his arms around her, "How am I doing so far?"

Her expression grew serious as she looked up at him,
"You're--wonderful."

He traced her cheek with his fingers, carefully avoiding the bruise
near her eye, and bent his head. She breathed in softly at the
unexpected contact of his mouth against hers, and Spike drew her
slightly closer and slipped his tongue inside her mouth, sweeping its
sweet warmth with slow, gentle strokes. She melted against him as her
lips moved against his. She pulled away slightly, and he tangled his
fingers through her hair and drew her head to his chest, holding her
contentedly in the peaceful silence of the apartment.
 
 
 
 
 

"He'll be back soon, won't he?"

Angel looked up from the book he was reading as Willow's softly spoken
question broke the silence in the living room.

"Yes," he answered. "Oz thinks the transformation will occur tonight.
He'll want to be near you."

"I can't even imagine how angry he's going to be when it doesn't
happen," she said, paling slightly. "He's going to bite me again, you
know. And then nothing will be able to--"

"That isn't going to happen," the dark vampire promised. "We're not
going to let it."

"But if it does," she paused as Spike entered the room. "I want you to
promise me something."

"Willow, it won't happen."

"It might," she insisted. "It could. If it does, I want you to promise
that you'll kill me."

Spike moaned softly, "Baby, don't--"

She shook her head, "I have to, Spike. I couldn't live like that. I
won't become what he is. I'd rather be dead. Promise me."

Angel and his childe exchanged a grim look, and Spike went to the sofa
and sat down next to her.

"I could make you that promise, but I couldn't keep it."

She turned watery green eyes on him, "But Spike, I--"

"No," he refused and squeezed her hand gently. "It isn't going to
happen anyway, Willow."

Realizing she wasn't going to persuade him, she let the argument die.
Spike scooted closer and put his arm around her shoulder and placed a
kiss on her head. The vampire fancied he could feel the mental
exhaustion that the little redhead was fighting against.

"I just want it to be over," she whispered, more to herself than to the
others in the room.

He nodded and slowly stretched out along the length of the sofa,
pulling her with him to rest snugly against his body. He petted her
hair with slow, even strokes. Angel smiled softly, and his gaze shifted
as Cordelia appeared and looked over at him. He pushed himself up out
of the armchair and followed her out of the living room as Willow's
eyes
fluttered closed, and she fell asleep in Spike's embrace.

"I don't know how much more she can take," Cordy spoke softly as she
preceded him into the office.

"It'll be sunset in a couple of hours. It'll be over soon," he told
her.

"Will it? I wonder. Either Oz will bite her, and she'll start down a
completely new road to hell--"

"That isn't going to happen," Angel insisted firmly.

She nailed him with a steady stare, "He isn't going to give up. You
know that, Angel. You know, if you're really going to end this, you're
going to have to kill him."

"I know," he nodded soberly.

"What is that going to do to Will? She loved him, once. Enough to leave
everything that she knew to come here and live with him. He was her
first--"

"I know that, too," the vampire put a hand on her shoulder. "But that
Oz is already dead. He has been for weeks."

Cordy shook her head, "So that's going to make all of this easy for
Willow? Gods, Angel, I hope you don't really believe that."

"Stop borrowing trouble," he responded, his tone much firmer than he
had intended it to be. "We have enough of that to deal with just
getting through tonight."

"I'm sorry," she answered. "It's just--Oz came pretty damned close to
destroying her. I don't want him to finish the job tonight. And he
could, Angel. He really, really could."

Angel expelled a soft sigh and stepped close enough to pull her into
his arms.
*<>*<>*<>*<>*<>*
"It's time," Spike said as his sensitive hearing picked up the sound of
footsteps headed for the elevator above them.

"He can't have changed, yet," Willow replied. "The moon hasn't risen."

"Close enough," Angel told her. "It's only a few minutes before the
moon rises. He wants to be here when that happens. He thinks he's
coming for his mate."

"He's in for a hell of a shock, then, isn't he?" Cordy said dryly.

The metal grate slid open, and Oz appeared. He gave the others in the
room only a cursory glance before his gaze settled upon Willow.

"I can't believe you came here," she said, her voice deceptively calm.
"Do you have a death wish?"

"You knew I'd come," he answered. "You belong with me, to me. You're
not going to be able to deny it tonight. Willow, I can help make the
change for you easier or more difficult. It all depends on you."

She shook her head, "You haven't made anything easy for weeks, and
things couldn't possibly get any more difficult."

He looked over at Angel, "You know you can't stop what's going to
happen. And nobody can help her through this like I can. If you care
about her at all, you'll let her leave here with me."

"Let her?" the dark vampire repeated with a cold smirk. "She doesn't
want to. What the hell makes you think I'd ever side with you?"

"It's a matter of Willow's best interest. You can't help her. I can,"
Oz shrugged. "Less than fifteen minutes, Angel. She's leaving here with
me tonight, even if I have to drag her through your ashes."

"You have got to be kidding," Cordy scoffed. "Does the phrase
ass-kicking bring back any recent memories?"

He shot her a poisoned look before turning back to Willow. Spike moved
closer to the redhead's side, clamping an arm around her waist as Oz
took a step toward her.

"So, you're a vampire's whore now?" Oz sneered at Willow and then
glared hatefully at Spike. "I take it this means you don't mind sloppy
seconds."

The blonde vampire snarled softly, and his arm slid away as Willow's
body jolted slightly as though she'd been slapped. In one long stride,
he was standing before the man, lifting him by the throat, and flinging
him across the room. Oz staggered to his feet, a smug smile of
satisfaction twisting his face, infuriating the vampire even further.
Angel stepped forward as Spike moved in on the wolf.

"Don't," Cordy asked, grabbing for Angel's shirt sleeve and tugging him
back. "Don't stop him before he wrings a little blood out of the
bastard."

The vampire quirked an eyebrow and looked down at her in surprise, "Who
said I was going to stop him?"

"Oh," she grinned widely and gave him a hard shove. "Well, in that
case, get at it."

He chuckled and circled around Oz as Spike swung out. Angel grabbed
hold of the arm Oz flung out to ward off Spike's blow and twisted it,
hard. Oz howled in pain as the bones in his wrist ground together and
snapped. The cry of pain was silenced as Spike's fist connected with
the man's jaw, and Oz's head snapped backward as he lost his balance
and landed on the floor.

He dragged himself up onto his feet, his features beginning to contort
as the moon began its ascension into the darkening sky outside. Cordy
moved to Willow's side as Oz's eyes froze on Willow. His jaw dropped
open a bit as he was hit with the slow realization that the redhead had
not, was not going to, lose the beauty of her human countenance. He
snarled softly and took an awkward step toward her.

"Bitch," he hissed angrily around elongated teeth.

"Probably," Willow responded calmly. "But not your bitch. Never your
bitch."

Spike grinned and moved behind the wolf as Oz took another step closer
to her.

"Stay out of the way," Angel spoke softly to Cordelia as he moved up
alongside his childe.

"Hey!" she protested. "When have I *ever* been in the way!"

He shot her a look that was at once both amused and darkly serious,
emphasizing his order as his eyes locked briefly on hers. She sighed a
sigh of the forever under-appreciated, but remained where she was. Oz
had been completely overtaken by the wolf, and he snarled impatiently
and suddenly whirled on the blonde vampire behind him. He hurled
himself at Spike and buried his fangs in the vampire's leg.

"Bloody hell," Spike growled as his hands clamped around the wolf's
throat in an attempt to pry him away. "That hurts."

Angel landed on top of Oz, and the wolf yelped softly and spun around,
grazing the back of the vampire's hand with a swipe of his clawed paw.
Spike clenched onto the course hair behind the wolf's head and yanked
angrily. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Willow hefting a thick
book from the coffee table.

"Willow, no--"

The command came too late, and she brought the book down over Oz's head
with all the force her bruised body could muster. Spike leapt to his
feet and pushed her back several paces.

"No more stupid chances, baby," he demanded. "Stay away from him."

"But Spike, I--Oh, hell! Look out!" she squealed as Oz staggered from
the floor and flung himself at the vampire in an attempt to get to
Willow.

Cordelia latched onto Willow's arm and dragged her further away as
Angel brought his foot up under the wolf and kicked him off of his
childe. Oz growled in pain as several ribs snapped under the force of
the kick, and he rolled onto his feet and took a step backward. The
blow from the book had caused him to slice through his tongue with his
own fangs, and blood dripped from his mouth as he started toward Spike
once again. Shoving the pain from his mind, he lunged at the vampire
and sunk his teeth into Spike's shoulder. The vampire hissed as he
curled his fingers around the wolf's neck and forced him away,
tearing a large chunk of flesh from his own shoulder. Blood coursed
from the wound, saturating Spike's shirt.

Angel, fully in game face and completely infuriated by the injury to
his childe, clasped both of his strong hands together and clubbed the
wolf in the back of the head. Oz whimpered once and sank to the floor,
rolling onto his side as his eyes rolled to the back of his head. He
lay still, panting heavily, as Spike turned toward Willow. She took a
step toward him and laid her hand on his arm.

"Do it," she spoke softly as her gaze fell to his blood-soaked shirt.
"He isn't going to give up. He'll keep coming back as long as
he's...there's no Oz inside him, anymore. There's no other choice.
Just--do it, and be done with it."

He nodded and placed his hand over hers, squeezing it gently before
moving back to the wolf. Angel felt Cordelia's hand searching for his,
and he took it and grasped it tightly in his own as Spike leaned down
and crooked his arm round the wolf's neck and snapped it with brutally
efficient force. He dropped the carcass to the floor and stood as
Willow
backed slowly away.

"I'm sorry, Oz," she whispered, her voice strained with pain, before
turning on her heel and running out of the room.
 
 

Spike bolted out of the room after Willow, and Cordelia felt Angel's
firm hand on her arm, halting her as she attempted to follow the blonde
vampire. She spun around to face him.

"Angel--"

"Let him go to her. They need time alone."

"But Angel...he's been bitten...Oz bit him...the full moon...he'll..."

"No, he won't," he assured her. "Vampires have their own demons. A bite
from a werewolf won't affect Spike."

"Oh," she replied, her brow furrowing in confusion, but she was content
to believe that he knew what he was talking about.

Angel looked down at the lifeless wolf, "We should get him out of here.
Willow doesn't need to see this when she comes back."

Cordy put her hands on her hips and huffed, "Why do I always get the
icky jobs?"

"I'll make it up to you," he grinned. "Will you help me, for Willow?"

"What the hell," she shrugged. "I'd help you for you."

The vampire's eyes widened in delighted surprise as they followed the
young woman who moved to kneel down over the wolf.

"Well, are you just going to stand there gawking, brood boy, or do you
want to add your brawn to my brains?" she asked impatiently, though a
smile tugged at her mouth in reaction to Angel's awed stare.
*<>*<>*<>*<>*<>*
Spike was more concerned than surprised to find Willow sitting on the
low wall that edged the roof of the building, staring down at the
sidewalk below.

He spoke softly so as not to startle her, "Willow."

Slowly, her head turned to him, her face a mask of pain, her eyes heavy
with unshed tears.

"He's dead," she murmured as if the realization had only just struck
her. "We killed him. I killed him."

Spike went to her and traced the single tear that spilled from her eye,
"He killed himself, pet. A long time ago."

Willow closed her eyes and shook her head slightly, "My rational mind
knows that, but the rest of me--"

She paused and let a shuddering breath steal from her lips. Spike
pulled her gently to her feet, and she rested her head against his
still chest as his arms went around her.

"I loved him, once," she whispered. "With everything I had. I loved
him."

"I know," he answered.

"And he loved me, Spike. I know he did."

Pulling back just a little, he cupped her face in his hands and brushed
the tears from her cheeks with this thumbs.

"I know, luv," he nodded. "But that man hasn't existed for a very long
time. Oz gave up the man. Traded him in for what the demon could offer
him. That wasn't your fault. Nothing that has happened has been your
fault. You have to know that."

"I just wish--" she stopped as her gaze turned inward, as if searching
for something. "I don't know what I wish. I wish I hadn't come here
with him. It wasn't love that brought me here. I was moving past him,
finally. And then he showed up in Sunnydale with all his apologies and
promises, and I guess I wanted what we once had. I wanted it back so
badly. There wasn't anyone else, and I felt so lonely, even though I
thought..."

She looked up at him to find his blue eyes watching her closely,
"Thought what, luv?"

"I was beginning to think that you--that we--" she breathed in softly.
"I thought, maybe--"

"You thought right," he told her.

"Did I?" her eyes were so desperately hopeful as they gazed up at him,
the vampire felt his dead heart constricting within his chest.

"Yes, you did," he whispered the promise and slowly drew her lips to
his, brushing his mouth softly against hers.

Spike felt Willow's arms moving around his neck, clinging to him, as he
crushed her to him and kissed her deeply. His tongue swept inside her
mouth, so softly, so comfortingly. When she pulled away, she was
breathing heavily, still holding onto him as if he were the only thing
preventing her weary body from collapsing.

"Goddess, I'm so tired," she murmured.

Spike placed a kiss on her forehead and gathered her up into his arms,
turning toward the stairs that would take them back down to the
apartment. Avoiding the living room, he carried her to the bedroom and
she stretched out as he lowered her onto the bed. He moved down beside
her as her hand reached for him, and he pulled her close to him and
rubbed her back gently.

Willow rested her head in the crook of his neck and whispered softly,
"You won't let me go, will you?"

"No, pet," he answered. "It's all over now, and I'm here."

"It doesn't feel all over," she admitted. "It feels--I don't know how
it feels, really."

"Give it time, Willow," he said softly. "You've been doing a balancing
act on the edge of hell for weeks. Give yourself time to move past it."

"I will, you know," she told him, her voice tired but determined. "I'll
move past it. I'll be all right, now."

He nodded and raised her chin to brush his lips against hers, "I know
you will, baby. You convinced me days ago."

She gave him a smile, a smile that reached to her bright eyes for the
first time in weeks, "I think I'm even ready to face everyone
else--Buffy and Giles and Xander--when we go back to Sunnydale."

"Sunnydale, huh?" the tone of his voice brought her eyes back to his.

"What?" she asked. "You aren't coming with me?"

"Actually, I was thinking more like you staying here with me. If you'd
like."

She rolled that proposition over in her mind for a few silent moments,
and her gaze drifted from him as Angel's tall frame appeared in the
doorway.

"I think I would like," she accepted, speaking to both vampires. "If
Angel wouldn't mind."

"He wouldn't," the dark vampire grinned over at her. "Imagine what you
could teach Cordelia about filing, not to mention coffee making."

"Hey! I heard that!" Cordy's voice barked as she came from the living
room.

"Oh, hell," Angel muttered and beat a hasty path in the opposite
direction.

Willow laughed softly as she heard Cordy racing after him, "He's going
to have to slow down just a little if he really wants her to catch
him."

Spike grinned and settled her back against him, "I like it here."

"In spite of everything, L.A. isn't such a bad place," she agreed.

"I wasn't talking about L.A," he told her as his arms tightened around
her warm body, and Willow raised her head as his lips sought out hers.

End 12/12

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