Notes: Sequel to ‘Replace the Pain’. Second in the ‘Season 7 Revisited Series’. Re-write of ‘Same Time, Same Place’.
Notes2: A few of my friends asked me to re-write all of Season 7 and I have agreed to it. Yes, I have officially gone insane.
Series: Season 7 Revisited
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: I own nothing. Joss & Company own all.
Thanks: To my lovely beta, Em, who is so incredibly nice! And, to all those who asked for a sequel, hope this doesn't disappoint!
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Last time on Season 7 Revisited:
There was a silence in the room before Buffy turned around and walked up to the redhead, wrapping her arms around her, “I’m glad you’re back, Will.”
-*-
That feeling. It was familiar, all too familiar.
Willow froze in her steps.
It was the same feeling she got when she was around Oz. When she was around Tara. She looked up at his retreating figure, and now, she felt it when she was around Spike.
-*-
“You got your soul back?” She asked, the surprise still obvious in her voice, “How?”
“It was what she wanted,” Spike said quietly and Willow nodded, knowing who he was talking about, “And then the voices in my head started talking. Change, change, change. It’s all mixing together, all different. Not for her anymore.” He paused, “Never for her.”
-*-
When their lips met, Willow felt the confusion lessen inside her and she poured all her hidden feelings into it. Somehow hoping that he would understand. Understand that she cared. Understand that she wanted to help. And, understand that she was there.
And for the first time since Tara died, the pain was gone. Replaced by something else.
Hope.
~^~**~^~
~Part: 1~
She could never keep her own secrets.
At least, not for a very long time and definitely not from Buffy or Xander. Willow was just that type of girl. If Buffy or Xander seriously sat her down and grilled her, she would probably end up telling all within a few seconds. She hated lying to her best friends. The situation was the same a few years ago as it was now. Even though she’d tried to destroy the world, deep inside, she was still Willow. As small as they may be, there were parts of her personality that would stay with her forever.
And it wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. In many cases, it was good. It was her honesty that her friends loved and it was why they trusted her so much, even after all that had happened. But the guilt and confusion were eating her up inside, not literally of course.
She had kissed Spike and it wasn’t just a simple peck on the cheek kiss. It was a mind numbing, earth shattering, soul chilling kiss. It was a kiss that even a few days afterwards, she still thought about. Every time she touched her lips and looked at herself in the mirror, she would remember Spike and his touch, his words, and his kiss.
When she was around him before, things just made a little more sense. He seemed to have that effect on her. But now, things were just confusing. She hadn’t seen him since that night. She knew that he meant something to her or at least, he would mean a lot to her, soon. Based on what he said that night, it would appear he felt the same way as well. But, still, she could never be sure.
She was just going with instinct and feeling. Right now, they was telling her to just go with it. And, so, she would. But, Willow couldn’t take her and Spike’s relationship any further without telling Buffy and Xander. They were her best friends and they had been there for her since the very beginning, they deserved at least that much. She respected them and so, she couldn’t keep this secret from them.
She had to tell them.
The only problem was, she didn’t know *how* to tell them. Xander was never that big of a fan of Spike, in fact, Willow was almost positive that Xander hated Spike with a fiery passion. And Spike’s brutal attack the summer before only made everything worse. It wasn’t just that Buffy was Xander’s friend. Xander was always oddly protective of Buffy, even though she was the Slayer. It was just a Xander thing. And, so, if he found out that Willow had been sucking face with the evil dead, god, she didn’t even want to think about it.
But, still, she couldn’t just keep it from them.
And that was just Xander. She hadn’t even gotten to Buffy yet. She didn’t even want to *think* about how Buffy would react. The blonde was still pretty shaken up about the whole incident and Willow knew that Buffy would never truly forgive Spike. And, right now, Willow wasn’t sure she did either.
She knew of Buffy’s treatment of the vampire and how everything played out in the end, but there were just some things you couldn’t forgive. Then again, Willow truly believed that Spike had changed and she couldn’t just take away his second chance away so unfairly. There were so many ways to argue both sides of the story and right now, she didn’t have the energy to argue with herself.
Maybe, it was just better to leave the past in the past.
~^~**~^~
Buffy leaned her elbows against the kitchen counter as she snatched a piece of toast from Dawn’s plate, eliciting a protest from the teen. “Where’s Willow?”
Dawn glared at her sister as she stuffed a mouthful of eggs into her mouth. She chewed a few times before replying, “Dunno. I checked her room and the covers are all messed up but she’s nowhere to be found.”
Buffy raised an eyebrow, “Willow actually left her bed unmade and left the house without telling us? That doesn’t sound right.”
“Maybe she was in a rush.”
“To go where?”
Dawn shrugged, “I don’t know,” she gulped down the last of her orange juice, “Just giving out suggestions.”
Buffy put the dirty plates in the sink as she grabbed a pad of paper off of the counter and took a pen out of her purse, “Alright, you go wait outside for Xander. I’m gonna write her a note.” She looked down as she scribbled a few lines before signing her name with a heart and grabbing her keys off the table before heading out the door.
~^~**~^~
After Willow finished making her bed and going through her daily morning ritual, she rushed down the stairs, wanting to catch Buffy and Dawn before they left. But, when she got to the dining room, disappointment flashed across her face when she realized that they had already left. Her eyes caught notice of the note that Buffy had left her and she picked it up to read it.
‘Hey Will-
Don’t know where you went off to but Dawn and I will be back soon. If you need anything, feel free to drop by the high school.
Buffy’
Her back was turned as she read this and so she never saw the door open and shut. It wasn’t until she heard the click that she whipped her head around, confusion settling into her green eyes. She crumpled up the note, not even bothering to analyze Buffy’s first sentence. She threw the note into the trash and grabbed her jacket off the chair as she walked outside, double checking that she had her keys with her before she closed the door.
Willow watched as a few kids played on the sidewalk, her eyes sad. She sighed before walking past them and down the street, her destination unknown.
~^~**~^~
Buffy waved to Xander before getting into the car and nodding towards the window, “Watch out for the kids, Xan, don’t wanna hit them.”
He grinned before nodding, “I’ll have you know that my driving skills are quite advanced.” Xander tried to catch Buffy’s gaze in the rearview mirror but after a few failed attempts, he finally asked, “Something bothering you, Buff?”
She looked up distracted, “Huh? What? Oh, no, it’s nothing.”
Dawn shook her head from the front seat, “It’s Willow.”
“Willow?” Xander paused as the worry increased in his voice, “What about Willow?”
“Nothing, nothing about Willow,” Buffy silently shot daggers at the back of Dawn’s head.
“She wasn’t in her room this morning and the bed’s all messed up and Buffy’s worried cuz she doesn’t know where she went.”
“She didn’t leave a note or tell you guys anything?”
“No, nothing,” Buffy said as she tapped her fingers against the window, watching as a spray from a sprinkler hit the car, “It’s probably not a big deal. Maybe she just woke up early and didn’t want to wake us up or,” she faltered, “something.”
“Come on guys,” Dawn said chirpily, “We’ve been through this already, the whole worrying stage. We went through that when she first got back. I mean, she went through Giles’ course of de-evilizing and she’s fine now.”
Buffy smiled guiltily as she said, “Actually, she kinda didn’t finish.”
Dawn’s eyes got wide, “She didn’t finish? She didn’t finish being not evil?”
The blonde stammered, “H-he said it was really important that she come back early and that she was doing really well and we shouldn't worry.”
“We shouldn’t worry?” Dawn asked incredulously, “Okay, I love Willow and all but the last time we ‘didn’t worry’ she went all evil-y and bent on destroying the world. And, she tried to kill me, more than once I might add.”
Xander thought differently, “Yes, but she’s got a lot more control now. She may not be completely back to being our Willow but she’s getting there. We just gotta believe in her and give her our support.” He grinned, “And, hey, if that doesn’t work, you guys have me to save the world again.”
Dawn groaned from the passenger’s seat as Buffy giggled in the backseat, “Oh, god, not that whole crayon speech again.”
“Not that it isn’t a great speech,” Buffy said, trying to make him feel better.
“Hey now, you underestimate me. I saved the world with talking from my mouth.” He paused as his grin grew, “My mouth saved the world.”
~^~**~^~
Willow walked down the street, her arms wrapped around herself as she sighed for the fifth time in four minutes. She didn’t know where she was going and honestly, she really didn’t care so much at that moment. She just wanted to walk, think, and maybe figure a few things out while she was at it.
Thinking about the past and overanalyzing it was already on her ‘no-no’ list. After all, no matter how many times she reviewed it, there was no way she could change it, as much as she wanted to. But, still, everything was still there, in the front of her mind, screaming for attention and begging for her to think about it, break it down piece by piece.
She was so tired of thinking. The only time in the past week where she didn’t feel so tired was when she was kissing Spike, ironically enough. She knew now why Buffy was so drawn to him in the first place. He was like a tourniquet, a mental bandage that just made all her thoughts stop flowing through her mind for awhile. And, that was so relieving and different at the same time.
Spike confused her and helped her achieve clarity, all at the same time.
Willow’s head shot up when she felt the spray of a sprinkler hit her face. Instead of feeling anger or frustration, she felt refreshed. She stood there in the middle of the sidewalk, no doubt attracting attention, letting the light spray wash over her, a small smile on her face.
The coolness of the water felt good on her skin. Cool, like Spike.
Willow shook those thoughts away as she started to walk again. Seeing that she was only a few more blocks away from the school, she decided to pay Xander a little visit. Maybe, she could get a head start on the whole revealing secrets thing.
Huh, big trucks, lots of tools that could be used as weapons. Spike was probably still in the basement and easily accessible.
Maybe that wasn’t such a good idea.
~^~**~^~
“Willow!”
Her head snapped up when she heard someone calling her name. As she saw who it was that was crossing the street, she sighed, “Oh, hi, Anya.”
Anya stood in front of her with a large smile before backing away slowly.
“What?”
“I just realized how maybe I shouldn’t have called out your name.”
Willow’s brow furrowed, “Why?”
“Well, you’re either all, ‘let’s make Anya reverse the wish and piss off her bosses’ or about to bring on the fiery apocalypse of death.”
Willow flinched at her bluntness as she stuttered, “I-I’ve been working really hard, Anya. I-I’m better now and I’ll be fine.”
“Oh. Good. 'Cause I remember the last time you said that. I've spent a lot of time since them cleaning the debris out of my ex-livelihood. Stuff like that.”
The words were a direct stab into her heart as she felt the past inch up on her, ready to pounce at any given moment, “Well, yeah, I wanna help any way I can with that. I-I feel really responsible.”
Anya’s tone was incredulous, “You *feel* really responsible? You *are* responsible.”
Willow felt the guilt and anguish begin to wash over her, not even noticing the familiarity of it all. She had already dealt with this before and yet she was putting herself through it all over again, “I know I hurt you and-and everyone. I’m sorry.”
“Here's something you should know about vengeance demons: We don't group with the ‘sorry.’ We prefer ‘Oh, God, please stop hitting me with my own rib bones.’"
Those words made Willow look up at Anya, the guilt and anguish quickly dissipating. “Anya, I really am sorry about what I did but you are in no position to place judgment on me.” She crossed her arms as she gathered up the little bit of confidence she had left, “Remember the little mix-up a few days ago?”
Anya let out a sigh as she shook her head and sat down on the curb, “Your little Scooby Gang has just been a little temperamental lately.”
“What? Anya, you—”
“Yes, yes, yes. Been there, heard that. Demon here!”
Willow sat down on the curb, next to Anya, “Does that excuse really work?”
Anya looked at her and smiled, “More often than you would think.”
She tried at easy conversation. After all, it never hurt to try. As long as she didn’t say the word ‘wish’ around Anya, things should pretty much be okay. “So, how are things with you these days?”
“Well, I'm back in my own apartment. And, of course, vengeance takes me all over the world. I was in Brazil yesterday. They love their soccer.”
“Brazil,” Willow tried to sound enthused, “Sounds like fun.”
Anya raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms, “You don’t sound very interested.”
“Oh, no, I am, really, I am,” she tried to convince her but the demon wouldn’t have any of it, “Okay, sorry, but my mind seems to be elsewhere today.”
“Literally?”
Willow cringed, “No, bad mental picture.”
Anya cocked her head to the side, “Would make an interesting wish. Can’t believe I’ve never thought of that before.”
“Okay, anyway,” she tried to change topics, “Umm, have you seen any of the Scooby Gang today?”
“Well, it’s early and thankfully, no. But I know they’re all at the high school.”
Willow sighed and clasped her hands together, “Yeah, I figured, I was there with Buffy last week.”
“Did you see Spike in the basement?”
The redhead let out a cough of surprise at her words and nodded, “Umm, yeah, I did.”
“Was he still insane?”
“Pretty much, he’s getting better though.”
“A soul will do that to you,” Anya nodded surely before getting up and reaching her hand out.
Willow took it and Anya lifted her up to her feet. She gave her a thankful smile, “How could you tell? I didn’t figure it out until he told me, well, actually, it was more of riddling.”
“It was in his eyes. To see to the inside, in his case, his soul, you have to look into his eyes.”
~Part: 2~
After saying goodbye to Anya, ending their odd conversation, Willow walked down the street, seeing the construction site up ahead. She didn’t want to break the news about Spike to Xander there, but she knew that she couldn’t avoid him forever. Besides, even if she didn’t tell him now, it didn’t mean she couldn’t at least visit him, maybe go for lunch or something. She walked up to the edge of the pit and looked down, not seeing him or anyone else for that matter, anywhere.
She frowned before climbing down the stairs and jumped onto the dirt ground. Looking around, she called out, “Xander? You down here?”
Xander was not, indeed, down there, but what was shocked her so much that she halted her steps immediately as her mouth dropped open. In front of her, only a few feet away was a dead body lacking an extreme amount of skin. Willow gasped and backed away slowly, feeling the bile rise in her throat. She skittered up the ladder and ran away from the site, images of Warren and what she did to him playing on repeat in her mind.
~^~**~^~
Buffy stood by Xander as hazel eyes stared at the skinless body lying before them, “No skin.”
“Tough to look at,” he commented quietly.
“And yet my eyes refuse to look away. Stupid eyes.”
Xander sighed as he ran his hand through his hair, “I found it first thing this morning. I gave my crew the day off and I called you right away.”
“I gotta get a job where I don’t get called right away for this stuff.”
Both heads shot up when they heard a clanking sound by the ladder but when they looked, there was nothing there, just an empty ladder. Buffy looked back down at the body and shifted uncomfortably before asking, “You don’t think…” she trailed off, not wanting to finish her sentence but knowing Xander would understand what she meant.
“I don’t know what to think. I mean, it just, it can’t be. I don’t want to believe it.”
“We didn’t want to believe it the last time,” Buffy whispered quietly, “It wasn’t until we saw it with our own eyes that we really believed it.” At getting no reply from Xander, she pressed forth, “If it really is,” she forced out her next words, “Then we have to stop her. We can’t let her go through that all again.”
Xander averted his eyes from the body, “I don’t think *we* can go through all that again.”
~^~**~^~
Willow walked down the hallway of the school, feeling the all too familiarity of it all, it was just like it was last week when she visited the school the last time. She walked pass Buffy’s office but seeing no one there, she continued down the hallway, her steps slowly as she realized the only place left she had to go.
She had to see Spike.
It wasn’t that she didn’t *want* to see him because goodness knows she did but it was just she didn’t know how to act around him anymore. Because of his soul, Spike was now a little bit on the insane side and she still wasn’t sure if he was interested in *her* or if he was still in love with Buffy. Willow remembered how he was around the ones he loved, completely and utterly loyal. It took him nearly forever to get over Drusilla and he was about to *kill* his sire for Buffy so Willow knew that his love for Buffy must have been great.
And that disappointed her a bit. She knew that Buffy may have cared about Spike, even if the Slayer didn’t want to, but Willow also knew that Buffy never loved Spike. She wasn’t sure if Buffy *could* love Spike, not after Angel.
Opening the door and walking down the steps, she took a deep breath as she prepared herself. Getting down to the basement, she looked around, not sure where he was or if Spike was even there.
Suddenly, the vampire jumped out of the darkness, stepping right in front of her, “You need permission to be here. You need a special slip with a stamp.”
Willow took in a few gasping breaths and help her hand to her chest, “Spike! My god—”
Spike began to pace around her, ranting, “You go off and try to wall up the bad parts and put your heart back in where it fell out. You call yourself finished, but you're not. Worse than ever, you are..” he trailed off as he looked back at her, his eyes softer and his face pensive, “You went away. You’ve been gone since…”
She looked down guiltily, “I needed to go, Spike, I’m sorry but,” she paused. She was getting off topic, this wasn’t what she was here for, “I umm, I found a body.”
Spike faced away from Willow, as if looking off at another place altogether, “Tragedy,” he looked back at Willow, “Is there blood?”
“Uh, I, yeah, and I can't find Buffy or Xander or Dawn. And there's this thing killing people. And the victim was skinned. What could do that?”
“You did it once. I heard about it.”
Willow swallowed the lump in her throat as she shifted her weight from her left foot to her right, “Anything other—other than me?”
He took a few steps toward her, a small smile on his face as he said, “Look at you, glowing. What’s a word.. means ‘glowing’? Gotta rhyme.”
At the sudden change of subject, Willow looked up, surprised, “Spike, what are you—?”
He held up a hand and took a few more steps, almost touching her as he whispered, “Missed you,” he took her hand and held it to his chest, “In here. The spark, it still burns.”
Willow looked up at him, feeling the tears form behind her eyes as she said hoarsely, “Spike, I—”
He dropped her hand all of a sudden and walked away, “Oh, ah, no. I-I-I should hide. Hide from you. Hide my face. You know what I did.”
“What you did?” Willow paused as she shook her head, “You didn't do anything, did you?”
Spike stopped in the middle of the room, “Everyone's talking to me. No one's talking to each other.”
“Spike, please, try and listen to me.”
He began to pace again, “Must listen but I can’t. All these voices,” he tapped the side of his head, “Someone isn't here. Button, button, who's got the button? My money's on,” he faced Willow, “the witch.”
~^~**~^~
Xander walked alongside Buffy as they searched the basement for Spike, “We can't use the blueprints to find our way around down here. It's like the walls move or something.”
Buffy’s sensitive ears caught a bit of Willow and Spike’s conversation though she only heard his voice, “I think I hear him.”
Spike was pacing around the room, his hands stuffed into his pockets, “And put your heart back in where it fell out. You call yourself finished, but you're not. Worse than ever, you are…”
“Spike?” Buffy asked, as she tried to catch his attention, “Spike?”
His back still turned, he said, “You went away. You’ve been gone since…”
Xander cleared his throat and finally, Spike turned to face them, “We’re here for a reason.”
“Tragedy,” Spike said, nodding his head before turning away again, “Is there blood?”
Xander looked at Buffy, “He knows. He must’ve seen the body.”
“You did it once. I heard about it.”
Buffy sighed, “Spike, we need to know who did this.”
Spike continued to look away as he said, “Look at you, glowing. What’s a word.. means ‘glowing’? Gotta rhyme.”
Buffy and Xander stared at him, completely confused as Spike raised and imaginary hand to his heart and said, “Missed you. In here, the spark, it still burns.”
Buffy coughed, “Spike, please.”
Spike looked away from the open space as he said, “I-I-I should hide. Hide from you. Hide my face. You know what I did.”
“Boy, he's extra-useful today,” Xander commented sarcastically.
She whispered to Xander, “This isn’t the time.”
“Everyone’s talking to me,” Spike said as he looked from Buffy and Xander to the open space, “No one’s talking to each other.”
“Might as well go,” Buffy nodded towards the stairs. They started to walk away as Spike began to mutter to the open space again but his next words caught the Slayer’s attention.
“Someone isn't here. Button, button, who's got the button? My money's on the witch,” He smiled, “Red’s a bad girl.”
“He’s talking about Willow,” Buffy said as she moved forward.
“And that means something because he's chock-full-o-sanity.”
“Maybe he saw her.”
Spike turned to the open space again, “They think you did it. The slayer and her boy. They think you took the skin.”
Buffy looked around curiously, “Is there something here? Something that killed?”
Xander crossed his arms, offended, “Her boy? I’m her boy?”
Spike began to walk away, getting deeper and deeper into the basement, “I have to go. There are things here without permission. I have to check their slips. Make sure they have authorization.”
Buffy let out a heavy sigh as she watched Spike walk away. She grabbed Xander’s hand and led him up the stairs, “Well, that was interesting.”
~^~**~^~
Willow ran up to Spike as he began to walk away. This basement was obviously doing him no good if he was talking to himself, deluding himself into thinking that Buffy and apparently Xander were in front of him when they obviously weren’t. She caught his arm and he whipped around, his blue eyes wide. “Spike, wait.”
“Mustn’t speak,” He held a finger up to his lips, “Shhh.”
She wrapped her hand around his finger and pushed his arm down gently, “Spike, you need to listen to me. I can’t find Buffy, Xander, or Dawn. I don’t know where they are and there’s something out there that’s killing people. I need to find them, please, help me.”
“Can’t help. Can’t talk. Shh. Can’t see. You can’t see,” he shook his finger at her, “Can’t see anything.”
“Spike, I don’t understand—”
He grabbed onto her hands and pulled her closer, “Shhh, mustn’t speak.” He cocked his head to the side and said with a small smile, “Still glowing.” He ignored her protests as he lifted his hand and brushed the hair out of her face, “And, round and round we go.” Leaning his head down, he captured her lips in a soft but persistent kiss.
Willow closed her eyes and lost herself in the feel of his lips against hers as her worrying thoughts were put on pause for a few precious minutes. She felt Spike pull away, but still she kept her eyes closed, trying to gain some sort of balance for her emotions. When she opened her eyes, she saw that Spike was gone. Walking a few steps forth, she looked around the basement, “Spike, are you there?” Getting no answer, she sighed in defeat before turning around and heading up the stairs, her worries for Xander, Buffy, and Dawn creeping up upon her again.
~^~**~^~
Willow walked into the house, inside, knowing it was empty but she checked all the rooms anyway. She leaned her back against the table as she picked up Buffy’s planner, not knowing why everyone was suddenly gone. Hearing what sounded like the front door opening, Willow dropped the planner back onto the table and bounded down the stairs.
“Dawn? Did I hear the door?”
Looking around and seeing no one there, she sighed before sitting down on stairs, not knowing where else to go. She got up and walked into the kitchen, her eyes settled onto the background on the cabinet and they widened when she saw what was painted there. Bunnies, pictures of little bunnies in an open field.
“Oh, Anya!” She whispered before heading out the door.
~Part: 3~
Dawn pushed open the door as she leaned against the wall, looking from Buffy to Xander, “No skin?”
“Yeah,” Xander said, a hint of disgust in his voice, “No skin.”
“Do you think it’s—”
Buffy closed the door and leaned against it, “We don’t know. We—” Her ears perked up when she heard the sound of something dropping upstairs, “Did you guys hear that?”
“It came from upstairs,” Dawn looked up before running up the stairs, calling out, “Willow? You here?”
Xander followed her, “Will, is that you?”
After a few moments of searching, Buffy crossed her arms and sighed, “Definitely not up here.”
“She didn’t leave a message,” Dawn said quietly as she looked up at Buffy, “Her bed’s made so that means that she came back here but everything’s still there, her clothes, her laptop, everything.”
“So, we can cross running away off the list,” Buffy said, hope in her voice.
“Where is she then? It’s not like her to just be missing for half the day without telling you guys. Something doesn’t seem right.”
“No need to wig, Xan, I mean, maybe she went out for groceries or.. something.”
Dawn raised an eyebrow, “From the early morning to the late afternoon? Even *you* don’t shop at the grocery store for that long.”
Xander shrugged, “Well then, where is she?”
~^~**~^~
Willow knocked on the door hurriedly and when the door flung open, she let out a sigh of relief, “I need your help.”
Anya held onto the door as she replied simply, “I don’t have any money.”
“I don’t want money,” she said as she walked into her apartment.
Anya looked at her, slightly peeved that the redhead didn’t even wait for an invite, “Come in. Enjoy my personal space.”
Willow looked back at Anya as she closed the door, “I found a dead body near the high school.”
“Yes, that can happen.”
“Something horrible killed a boy. Took his skin right off.”
There was a pause before both women asked at the same time, “Was it you?” Then both answered in shock, “No.”
Willow was slightly offended at Anya’s accusation but she could understand why Anya asked.
“Well, with the whole skin thing, they’re definitely going to think it was you. Buffy is, anyway.”
She bit her lip guiltily, “Yeah, they probably will. I don't know. I just—I-I have to find whatever did this. I just—I need to do something right.”
“Oh, and so they'll think it wasn't you, right? I mean, that has to be part of it. Maybe you're even thinking you kill this thing, they don't even have to know about it. Won't suspect you, even for a minute.”
“No, I-I don't,” Willow paused, knowing that she couldn’t lie, “When did you get all insightful?”
“I'm surprisingly sensitive.”
She smiled at her words, “So, will you help me?”
Anya crossed her arms and let out a heavy sigh, “Is it difficult or time-consuming?”
~^~**~^~
Anya and Willow sat Indian-styled facing each other in the middle of Anya’s living room, the curtains drawn and candles lit as they both looked at the map of Sunnydale before them.
Anya raised an eyebrow, “This isn’t going to get all sexy, is it?”
Willow suppressed her smile as she answered, “I’d be shocked. Okay, do you have your powder?”
“Oh, I ate that,” She rolled her eyes when Willow didn’t react, “I have it. I have it.”
“Okay, we scatter it over the map, and everywhere there's a demon, a little light appears.”
“Oh, pretty!” Anya cooed before asking suspiciously, “Will it hurt the carpet?”
“No,” Willow paused to clear her thoughts, “Okay, scatter.”
They both threw the powder onto the map at the same time and watched as several small dots glowed on the map, the most cluttered on the center.
Anya leaned in and pointed, “Hey look! That’s me! Hello!” She said excitedly before asking, “What’s that huge clump?”
“It's the high school. It's all hellmouthy underneath.”
“Things have been stirring there lately. Is it getting brighter?”
“Smoke!” Willow yelled before standing up, watching with wide eyes as the dots on the map grew brighter and brighter, eventually catching on fire. They both quickly stomped on it, effectively putting the fire out.
Anya bent down, upset as she inspected the damage, “Ah! OK. Remember our talk about the carpet?”
Willow picked up the map and eyed the marks left behind by the lights carefully, “Th-this could be it. It's strong, it's near the body, and it's all by itself, hiding in the woods or-or maybe cave. There are a couple of good caves around there.”
She started to clean up the mark on the carpet, “I don’t know. Sounds pretty thin to me.”
“Well, that's why you teleport over there real quick like a bunn—real quick and, uh, see if I'm right.”
“No. Sorry. You damaged my carpet.”
“Anya, you're a vengeance demon. Just teleport,” Willow protested.
“Well, as it turns out, teleporting isn't a right, it's a privilege.” Anya stood, giving up on removing the mark from her carpet, “Remember that vengeance spell you guys made me withdraw last week? Well, this is my punishment. I can only teleport for official business. I have to file a flight plan and everything.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. That must be hard.”
She shrugged, “Yeah, it bites a pretty big one. And the vengeance itself, i-it's not as fulfilling as I remember.”
Willow looked surprised at her words, “Really? 'Cause I got the impression that you enjoyed—you know, inflicting.”
“Well, causing pain sounds really cool, I know, but turns out it's really upsetting. Didn't use to be, but now it is.”
“Is it like you're scared of losing that feeling again? And that having it be okay to hurt people? And then you're not in charge of the power anymore because it's in charge of you?” Willow asked, speaking more about herself rather then Anya.
“Wow, that was really over-dramatically stated, but, yeah, that's it.”
“I get it. Believe me.”
“I'm sorry, Willow. I wish it were better for you,” Anya said sincerely, feeling a twinge of guilt for the redhead.
“You, too.”
Anya paused as she thought over the spell, “It did get a little sexy, didn’t it?”
Willow smiled before walking away quickly, “I have to find this monster.”
“Willow, um, isn't there another spell? I mean, you're trying to find Buffy and Xander. Couldn't we use a spell to do that?” Anya asked as she held the candles in her hands.
She frowned as the subject was brought forth, “I did. I-I tried, and something went kaflooey, and it didn't work.”
“What did it say?”
“It said they don't exist.”
~^~**~^~
Dawn sat at the dining room table, surfing the internet on Willow’s laptop, “Okay, so I looked up demons that skin their victims and demons that flay their victims 'cause, you know, same thing. There's a ton of prospects. Anything else gone? Uh, eyeballs, toenails or viscera? That's guts.”
Buffy looked over the scattered books in front of her, “She knows about viscera. Makes you proud.”
Xander flipped the page of the book in his lap, “Just skin.”
“Okay, I’ll work on that.”
Buffy sighed before standing up, motioning for Xander to follow. She stood in the corner of the room, not wanting to say the next words.
“What’s up?”
“I need to do something. I just—I have this feeling in my gut—”
“In your viscera!”
She went on as if Xander never interrupted, “—that we know exactly who did this. You know I don’t want to blame her and I’m glad she’s back and all but still, Giles said she never completed the course so we don’t know if she’s really stable. I’m worried, Xan, I mean, she disappears the same day that we find this body. It just, something’s up.”
Xander raised an eyebrow, “Do I get to yell at you now for having the wiggins?”
Before she could answer, Dawn spoke up, “Oh guys,” she waved for them to come over, “got a good one. A demon called ‘Gnarl.’ He's a parasite with these nasty long fingernails. He secretes something through them and uses that to paralyze his victims. He then cuts strips of their skin while they're still alive. It takes hours.”
“We didn't find any strips of skin. Which, by the way,” Xander shuddered, “gghhhh.”
“You wouldn't. He eats them,” Dawn stated as she read the information off the screen, “That's why he's a parasite. It's like his natural food.”
“Dawn, you're new at this, and I get why you're proud, but I'm not exactly sure why this demon is any more likely than any of the others,” Buffy said unsurely.
“You never said pool of blood.”
“There was no pool, just splatters.”
Dawn smiled as she continued her explanation, “Then this is your guy. He laps up the blood. You could say it's like his natural beverage.”
Xander pointed at the teen, “You're terrifying.”
“Now if we just knew how to find this thing,” Dawn minimized the window as she looked up at Xander and Buffy.
“Well, we could ask some questions over at Willy's place,” he suggested.
“Or, we could be smart. Sorry, Xander.”
“What?”
“W-whoever did this had to get blood on them, which means they left a trail,” Buffy clarified.
“Right,” Dawn nodded, “Minute traces of blood.”
“And we have a way to track it.”
“We have a,” The teen paused for a moment before it hit her, “Oh, I get it.”
Xander still remained clueless, looking from Buffy to Dawn as he asked, “What? How? What's going on?”
~^~**~^~
Spike walked through the forest, the pale moonlight shining down on his skin, giving him an ethereal look, “William's a good boy. Carries her water, carries her sin. Supposed to get easier, isn't it? Supposed to help to help, but it doesn't. Still so heavy.”
“Should've put a leash on him,” Xander mumbled as he struggled to keep up with Spike.
Buffy looked at him incredulously, “Yes, let's tie ourselves to the crazy vampire.”
“You really think it's gonna work?”
The Slayer nodded at her friend, “It's pretty easy. Spike follows the exciting smell of blood, and we follow the fairly ripe smell of Spike.”
Dawn almost giggled as she said, “It's smellementary.” She paused, “Also, I'm sure there's tons of stuff like this. You know, procedures we can use that don't involve magic spells. Just good, solid detective work. And we can develop a database of tooth impressions and demon skin samples and I could wear high heels more often.”
Her sister smiled, “Wow, that was so close to being empowered.”
“Everybody loves a slender ankle.”
Spike stopped walking when he got to the edge of a rock cliff, “That's it. End of the line. Everyone off,” he turned to Xander, “Keep your ticket, you'll need that.”
“That's a rock cliff,” Buffy stated bluntly, not knowing what Spike was talking about.
“Well, give him a break, Buffy. Maybe it's a vicious skin-eating rock cliff.”
Spike pushed the bushes aside as he pointed, “There's a cave in it. Look,” He looked from Xander to Buffy, “I’m insane. What’s his excuse?”
~Part: 4~
Willow stood at the entrance of the cave, the nervousness fluttering around inside her belly as she took a few steps in. She looked at the narrow opening and managed to squeeze through. Her green eyes surveyed the seemingly empty cave, the only light coming from a burning fire. There had to be someone or something here. The fire was going strong.
“All alone.”
~^~**~^~
Xander walked into the cave, followed by Buffy and Dawn. He stood by the entrance as he commented, “Dark and dank. I was hoping it’d be dark and dank.”
Buffy gestured for him to be quiet, “Shh! Do you hear that?”
“No, I don’t,” Xander leaned forward, “But now I do.”
Dawn looked around nervously, “Something’s moving around in here.”
Buffy nodded, “Guess we’re in the right place.”
~^~**~^~
The redhead whipped around when she heard the voice, it’s tone and words sending chills down her spine.
“Look at the shorn lamb. See how he trembles. Is it the cold wind? Or is it that the flock is nowhere to be seen?”
She continued to look around her, not seeing the figure that was speaking.
“Poor little lamb all alone.”
“You guys hear that right,” Dawn asked, inching closer to Buffy.
“Yup.”
Buffy’s eyes narrowed as she continued to look around the cave, “It's echoing. I know it sounds close, but I don't think—”
Before she could finish, Gnarl jumped out from the shadows and scratched Dawn in the abdomen. Satisfied with the damage it inflicted, Gnarl moved back into the shadows, watching quietly.
“Dawn! Are you OK?”
Dawn held onto her stomach as she said weakly, “I guess so. Poison paralyzes.”
“Dawn. Ok, we need to get her out of here. We'll deal with him later. Seal him in,” Buffy and Xander held onto a woozy Dawn as they moved out of the cave.
~^~**~^~
Willow backed away nervously as she tried to figure out who or what it was that was talking to her. She only saw a flash of what it looked like but it wasn’t much. Hearing sounds of shuffling, she looked at the entrance of the cave where rocks suddenly appeared, sealing her inside.
“Who’s there? What’s going on? No! Stop!”
She tried not shiver as she heard something cackle evilly behind her.
“No way out now. No way out.”
Willow turned back towards the fire as she whispered a prayer to her Goddess, “Protect me, Goddess. In thy name, I supplicate myself. Take the powers from my enemy, and lay him lower than the lowest field.”
“Gnarl loves spells. He keeps them as pets. They love him. And they leave him alone.”
She tried her best to push away the fear inside her as she answered, her voice shaking slightly, “You may be immune to magic, but I've got more than that. You wanna fight?”
“Your friends left you here,” he said in a sing-song voice, “No one comes to save you. They wanted me to have you.”
~^~**~^~
Buffy walked through the woods, one of Dawn’s arms hooked around her neck as she said, “The computer. That thing Dawn was reading might have an antidote for the paralysis.”
“Umm, Buffy?”
“What?”
“I’m really sorry.”
Buffy patted Dawn on the back, “Oh, it’s okay.”
“You couldn’t help it. It had paralyzing fingernails,” Xander said soothingly.
“Just like you said it would, so good on you.”
~^~**~^~
“Did they leave you as a gifty for me? Are you a tasty little gifty?”
Willow continued to look around her, slightly frustrated that she couldn’t see who it was that was going to attack her, “Stop it!”
“Or did they just throw you away?”
She felt the confusion and tears rise in her as she asked, “Were they here? Were my friends really here? I heard something.”
He never answered. Instead, Gnarl swooped forth from the shadows and scratched on his nails on her belly. Willow collapsed against the wall in pain as she bit her lower lip, sinking down onto the ground, feeling her control of her own body dissipating quickly.
“They were here. Here they were. And there they went,” He sang the next few words, “Gone, all gone, what a pretty song,” he grabbed her ankle and pulled her towards him, “They sealed you in with me.” Gnarl squatted over her and clicked his nails, “I love a gifty. Can't wait to unwrap it.”
He pushed Willow’s blouse up her body, the material scrunching up right below her breasts. Smiling, he leaned down and licked her stomach as she winced in pain.
~^~**~^~
Buffy and Xander held onto Dawn like she was a roll of carpet as they entered the house hastily.
“Watch-watch the head,” Buffy cautioned as they moved Dawn into the living room.
“Gotcha,” Xander nodded towards the furniture piece, “Sofa.”
“Watch my head. Watch my head,” Dawn said as they put her on the sofa, face down, “Face up! Face up!”
Xander rolled her over, “She’s right. Face up is better.”
Buffy sighed as she moved out of the room, “Okay, I’m going to check the computer. Find that page and see if there’s an antidote.”
“It’ll be alright,” Xander comforted, “We’ll get you fixed up. You’ll be doing limbo in no time.”
“Yeah, as a pole.”
“No, not as a pole. I promise.”
A few minutes later, they both heard Buffy yell out, “Oh, got it. It says the paralysis is permanent.”
Dawn squeaked in horror.
“No, oh, wait, my bad,” she grinned sheepishly, “Permanent until the creature dies.” Buffy got up and walked into the living room, “Sorry.” She looked at Xander, “Guess we have to go back.”
“We can’t just leave her here like this,” Xander said as he knelt by Dawn, “What if she vomits?”
“Ew. I won’t vomit.”
Buffy ignored her, “Do you think she’ll vomit?”
“Stop talking about vomit.”
“I’ll call Anya. She can watch her.”
Xander scoffed, “Right, she’ll love being called for vomit watch.”
~^~**~^~
Gnarl squatted over Willow, scratching at her stomach, “Gnarl makes a pretty picture,” he scratched her again, “It's easy when you know how. It's easy when everyone helps. They helped me,” he licked her blood off his fingernail, “Too bad there's no one to help you.”
Willow watched in agony as Gnarl removed a strip of skin from her stomach and dangled it over his mouth before sucking it in like it was spaghetti. She said a silent prayer in her mind, begging for someone, *anyone* to help her.
~^~**~^~
Spike froze in his steps as the smell of blood wafted over him. It wasn’t *just* blood. This smell had a familiarity to it. It was.. Willow’s. Rich, smooth, innocent yet deliciously dark.
He felt the demon rise in him, pushing back the protests of the soul at the thought of anything other than himself making Willow bleed. He stomped through the path and followed in his previous footsteps. As he arrived at the cave, he began to grab at the rocks, not caring if the sharp edges jabbed into his skin, creating marks and small cuts. He threw the rocks onto the ground, one by one, and slowly, the light from the fire inched from its containment and into the darkness of the forest.
~^~**~^~
“I bet she’s dying.”
Buffy flinched at Anya’s blunt words before shaking her head, “She’s not dying. She’s just paralyzed.”
“Oh,” she looked down at Dawn’s still body, “Paralyzed how?”
“Paralyzed how?” Xander stated what he thought was the obvious, “In the not moving way.”
“Well, there’s lots of different ways,” Anya lifted Dawn upright and lifted up Dawn’s legs which didn’t fall back down after Anya removed her hands, “Did you try this?”
“Hey!” Dawn protested without opening her lips, her sister did the same.
“Oh, you’re poseable,” Xander said in amusement before turning back to the weapon’s trunk.
“She’s poseable?” Buffy asked as Anya smiled excitedly.
“It’s a common variety, watch this,” Anya began to move the teen’s arms and legs, treating her as if she were a molding toy. “Huh, neat as you please. Hardly a need to undo her.”
Buffy popped a few nuts into her mouth as she asked, “Where’d you get the nuts?”
“Brazil. No need to thank me, by the way, for sitting with her. I'm feeling very benevolent today. Helping Willow. Helping you. You might even call it even for that whole worm thing last week.”
“Yeah, I don’t think we could call it,” Buffy paused as Anya’s words hit her, “You saw Willow?”
“Um-hmm. Oh, she's looking for you, by the way. Decided you might be out in some cave. Sounded pretty tenuous.”
“Anya, listen. This is really important. Did Willow go to that cave?” There was a hint of nervousness in Buffy’s voice that she was trying hard to repress.
“Mm-hmm. Last time I saw her, that's where she was headed,” Anya looked back at Dawn, “Shall I make her salute? That'd be very cute.”
Buffy ignored Anya as she looked at Xander, “She could be there right now. Willow could be trapped with the Gnarl.”
“Uh, it's not ‘The Gnarl’, just ‘Gnarl’. Oh, wouldn't it be tragic if you were here being kinda silly with your comically paralyzed sister while Willow was dying?”
The Slayer walked up to Anya, battle-axe in hand, “Anya, you know about this creature?”
“Uh-huh, sure.”
“You're coming with us,” she said decidedly as she handed Anya the axe.
~^~**~^~
Willow was still lying on the ground, the tears slipping out of her eyes and into her hair as she said, without moving her mouth, “They wouldn’t leave. They’ll return.”
Gnarl laughed at her unwillingness to give up, not even noticing the rocks disappearing, bit by bit, “They don't want you. Lock you in, nice white skin... And if they do return, where will the find you? Inside me, you'll already be.” He cut a new piece of skin from her stomach, “Aww, love it.”
“No, no, no.”
Suddenly, Spike burst through the rocks, having given up on removing them, one by one. He was in gameface as he growled at Gnarl who backed away into the shadows in surprise. The vampire looked down at Willow and his eyes glowed brighter as he turned to face Gnarl, “You made her bleed. Pretty colors, they all blend and mix. So beautiful,” he looked down at her, “Still glowing.” He looked back up at Gnarl, “You touched her.”
Buffy ran into the cave at that moment, her eyes searching, “What’s going on? Where’s Willow?” Her eyes grew wide as she saw who it was in front of her, “Spike?!”
He whipped around, his eyes going from her face to her hand and he snatched the dagger from her as he moved forward, waiting for Gnarl to strike.
“She’s right here,” Anya pointed at Willow’s body, “Can’t you see her? She’s hurt.”
“What? Where?” Xander felt around the ground with his hands, “There’s nothing here.”
“Your hand,” Anya said in surprise, “It’s going right through her,” she looked up at Buffy, “What’s going on?”
“I don’t know but I’m starting to get why we haven’t seen her,” The Slayer replied as she watched Spike with careful eyes, “I have this feeling that whatever's causing this invisible thing is a whole separate issue from the skin-eating monster.”
Spike could feel Gnarl skittering around in the shadows but the demon just wouldn’t stay in one place. Finally, fed up with standing around, he lunged for it, landing directly on it as he began to stab it. Gnarl pushed the vampire off of him and scratched at his stomach, barely missing Spike.
Buffy moved forward, about to help when Anya held out a hand, stopping her, “Don’t. Vampires are immune to the paralyzing poison. You aren’t.” She looked up at Spike, yelling out, “Get him in the eyes!” Anya knelt beside Willow, “I’m here, Willow, wow, you’re really hurt.”
“What’s going on?”
“Spike’s fighting the demon over there, see? If they get too close, I’m gonna have to run.”
“I don’t see.”
“They’re here though. Buffy, Xander and Spike.”
“They came? They didn’t leave me?”
“No,” Anya said reassuringly, “They didn’t leave you. They can’t see you.”
“They’re here. I’m not alone.”
“Good,” Anya pushed the hair out of Willow’s face as she smiled down at her, “You’re doing really good.”
Gnarl screeched before leaping over Spike’s head, landing behind him. Spike quickly whipped around, slashing the dagger across Gnarl’s face. The demon backed away in pain. Spike dropped to the ground, stabbing Gnarl’s foot so he couldn’t move or skitter away. Gnarl screeched again and flailed, throwing Spike off of him and against the wall.
Buffy, who was watching from the side saw what happened and quickly rushed over. She grabbed Gnarl’s head with both hands before pushing both her thumbs into his eyes.
“Ew. Ew,” Xander cringed, “Thumbs? I can’t believe you did that.”
“Oh, Buffy killed the demon,” Anya informed Willow, “It was gross.”
“I can.. I can move,” Willow said as her finger twitched. She was still on the ground, her neck muscles crying out in protest when she tried to lift her head. So, she kept it on the ground, looking up at Anya, never noticing Spike slip out of the cave, silent.
Buffy walked up next to Anya, wiping her hands on her jeans, “Willow? Are you here?”
“Where is she?” Xander asked, worried, “Is she alive?”
“She’s right here,” Anya pointed at the space by her, “Okay, stand back. You’re getting your feet in her.”
“Willow?” Buffy asked, her voice cracking.
“She’s hurt really bad, you guys,” Anya stood up, “I’m gonna go get help.”
Xander watched as she left the cave before looking down and gesturing to where Anya was pointing at earlier, “I think she’s sort of here-ish.”
“Willow? W-we can't exactly see you, but we're really glad that you're back. I-I don't know how badly you're hurt, but—” Buffy stopped as she saw a vague form beginning to appear.
“Is that Willow?”
Willow was in mid-sentence when she saw Buffy and Xander’s figures became visible, “—I couldn't find you guys and I looked everywhere. And the demon said that you left me and— Oh, there you are. There you are! Don't go away.”
“We’re not going away,” Xander gasped as he saw Willow’s wounds, “Oh, god.”
“It’s gonna be okay, Willow,” Buffy said in comfort, “You’re gonna be okay.”
“I know,” She smiled, thinking that Spike was still in the cave as well, “You’re here.”
~^~**~^~
Willow sat on the bed, trying to concentrate her powers as she closed her eyes, meditating. She opened her eyes when she felt a certain presence, “Buffy?”
“Oh, I’m sorry,” Buffy said as she leaned against the doorframe, “I didn’t mean to interrupt.”
“That’s all I had left in me anyway.”
The blonde walked into the room, her eyes on the sunlight pouring through the windows, “I didn’t realize meditating was such hard work.”
“I’m healing. Growing new skin.”
Buffy sat on the bed, “Wow. That's magic, right? I mean, when most people when they meditate don't get extra skin, right. 'Cause Clem should, like, cut back.”
“It's magic. I'm drawing power from the earth to heal myself.”
Buffy’s brow furrowed, “We’re on the second floor.”
Willow laughed at her words, “You know Giles says everything's part of the earth. This bed. The air. Us.”
She nodded, “Explains why my fingernails get dirty even when I don't do anything.”
“Plus you stuck your thumbs in a demon.”
“True.”
Willow leaned back against the headboard, feeling the energy drain out of her.
“You’re wiped out,” Buffy said, “I should go.”
“No. Please stay. I missed you so much when I couldn't find you.”
“We missed you too. I missed you. Dawn's, uh, working on what caused the mutual no-see-ums, but so far we haven't—”
“I did it,” Willow said firmly, looking Buffy straight in the eye. She had to tell her. Now was the perfect time. If she didn’t, who knew what she would do unknowingly next?
“You did a spell?”
“I didn't mean to,” Willow stuttered, “T-there was something I-I needed to tell you guys and I was scared and I wasn’t ready to see you guys yet. I was umm, afraid.”
Buffy caught the stutter and didn’t press it any further, knowing that Willow would tell her soon enough, “So, you made it happen just by thinking it?”
“Guess I have a ways to go before I master my powers, huh?”
“It’s okay,” Buffy smiled at her, “As long as you’re okay.”
“It's nice to be forgiven,” Willow looked down and sighed, “Too bad I need so much of it.”
“I have a confession to make,” she paused for a few moments, “I thought it might be you. With the flaying.”
“I know.”
“I wanna be the kind of person that wouldn't think that. Xander never thought it.”
Willow shook her head, “He did, a little.” She smiled softly and clasped her hands together, “Heck, I did a little. Xander has the luxury of not saying it, but you're the slayer. You have to say stuff like that. It's okay. It's okay too if you still don't think I can recover from this magic stuff, 'cause, honestly, I'm not that sure about it either.” She leaned forward and began to meditate again.
“I thought you were too tired.”
Willow tried not to cringe as she moved slightly on the bed, “It hurts too much not to try.”
“I’m sorry,” Buffy said sincerely.
“It just takes so much strength. I don't have that much,” Willow said, silently cursing herself for being so weak.
“I got so much strength, I'm giving it away.”
“Are you sure?”
“Will it help?”
“Much.”
Buffy sat cross-legged on the bed as she scooted forward, putting her hands in Willow’s, “Good.”
There was a few moments of silence before Willow finally sighed and looked at her best friend, “Buffy, there’s umm, there’s something I need to tell you.”
She could see the fear and worry in Willow’s eyes and caught the flinch of pain. Buffy nodded and smiled again, “Alright, but, first, we need to do the heal-y thing. We’ll talk. Just later. Okay?”
Willow smiled back as she squeezed Buffy’s hands, signaling her thanks, “Okay.”
The End