FicWad

"I really wonder how Buffy is doing." Willow and Tara were walking towards Giles' apartment. It was rather late and there were many dangers here in Sunnydale, but they were having trouble coming up with anything on control by themselves. "It's been a while since I've seen her this distracted and that's so not of the good while she's trying to fight all those baddies out there. And Spike is still out there. You know he always was a little obsessed with Buffy."
"I wouldn't say that, luv." The blonde vampire practically fell out of the woods that were on the other side of the path that the two women were walking down. "It's not Buffy so much as she is the slayer. That whole vampire/slayer dance and all."
Willow was at first terrified. Even though he had been unable to bite her the last time, it was still Spike. Or was it. Even for a vampire he looked really pale. And if it were possible he looked like he was getting thinner. "Spike, are you all right?" The surprise of his condition made her ask.
"And why wouldn't I be, bitch?" Spike swaggered towards the two witches. He again stumbled as he did so. "Bloody hell!" That was the last thing he said. He fell to the ground, unconscious.
"Woah!" Willow's green eyes widened as she watched him. "That was interesting." She looked at her girlfriend. "Should we stake him?" She had a stake in her back pack for just such emergencies as this. Well, at least if a vampire attacked them, not passed out on them.
"I'm not sure." Tara couldn't take her eyes of the vampire. She hadn't dealt with him as much as Willow but she still knew that he was deadly. Or at least he used to be deadly. But seeing him like this was weird. Very weird.
"Maybe we should take him to Giles." The red head also stared at the blonde vampire. It was as if she were mesmerized. "We've either got to stake him or take him to Giles." She again took in the way that Spike looked. "I vote that we take him to Giles. That way, maybe we can find out what happened to him."
Tara nodded. "But how are we going to get him there?" Tara knew that she was strong and so was Willow but Spike was a man. And was not going to be easy to carry.
"We could try floating him there." Willow saw the look on Tara's face. "I know that would take a lot of concentrating and a little bit of power." Tara raised an eyebrow. "O.K., a lot of power. But if we work together and you help me to keep focused and grounded I won't go all evilly storm on us. 'K? Besides, Buffy's on patrol who knows where. Xander was going to The Bronze with Anya. And Giles already knows that we're coming." Tara stood staring at her. "I don't really like it either, but I think it's our best bet."
Tara nodded. This was the first thing that really required both power and concentration since her everything had almost gone over the edge. All the other spells were basically harmless. She just hoped that Willow could handle it.
Riley and Buffy were now in her dorm room. They had walked in silence after both had realized that the other was also a sort of demon hunter. But there were still so many details to sort through. And unbeknown to them, a hybrid demon was busy making plans for the world.
"We really do need to talk." Buffy looked over at Riley who sat on Willow's bed. She sat directly across from him on her own bed. "Before one of us graduates."
Riley stood and began pacing. "I've never seen anything like that before. I mean, no offense, but you're just so tiny. Who are you?"
"Who am I?" Buffy stared angrily at him. "You've been hiding something as well. Or did you just do your shopping at the army surplus store."
Riley looked down at his military garb. In all the surprise and confusion of finding Buffy fighting and killing a vampire, he forgot how he was dressed. "Well, I um.." He stopped pacing and began staring at his girlfriend. "You might not understand."
"Let me take a stab at what you do." Buffy stood and faced Riley. "You are part of some military organization, hence the army surplus outfit. You track and kill demons giving them some fancy term. Oh, and some of the demons you just neuter. You make them so that they can't harm anything. How am I doing so far?"
"Pretty damn good." Riley stared at the blonde woman. "That pretty much sums up what I do. So, you pretty much know about me. What about you. What are you?"
"I'm just a girl." Riley shook his head. "All right. I'm just a girl who happened to be chosen. Have you ever heard of the slayer?"
"That sounds like a band to me." Riley kept staring at Buffy waiting for her to tell the whole story.
"Well, it's not." She paused. "Actually, I think it is." She shook her head. "But I'm the slayer. The one and only. Into every generation. And you still have know clue what I'm talking about."
"All I know is that my girlfriend can handle herself with vampires." Riley stepped closer to Buffy. "And there is a reason for it. Care to explain further."
"Well, the vampire slayer fights all the evil in the world." Riley continued to stare at her. "There has been one girl that has fought alone. When one girl dies, another takes her place. And so is my legacy. Death. It's what I do, it's how I'll end." Her eyes got a really sad look.
"I'm sorry. I.." Riley took her into a big hug. "But you're not alone, are you?"
"No. Willow, Tara, Xander, Anya, and Giles all know who I am and help with the fight." She broke away from Riley's grip. "That's probably why I'm still alive now. I've always had somebody watching my back."
"Well, if you want it, you've now got a whole army watching out for you." Riley got a real sad look on his face. "Except that we are kinda in disarray at the moment. My commander was killed somehow. We're still trying to figure it out."
"Professor Walsh!" Buffy started to add things up in her head. Riley was her TA. She had seen them together a lot. And it wasn't just a professor/student thing. And the good professor had now been missing for over a week. Put that all together with all the other things that had been happening over the past week and you got, "you've got a rogue demon on your hands, don't you?" She asked, but she really already knew the answer.
"How did?" Riley was stunned that Buffy had figured out about Professor Walsh and that there was an indication that some project she was working on had indeed gotten loose.
Buffy simply shrugged. "Things are adding up. And I'm not liking what they are adding up to. We need to get to Giles. He'll be able to come up with more. I hope." They both turned to go. Before they could move, a part demon, part man, part machine stepped through the door and smiled at them.
"I told you we could do it." Willow smiled as they had managed to get Spike to Giles' front door. "And you didn't let me go all evilly once." She swallowed hard. "I did feel the power wanting to take over. I admit that. And I know you know."
Tara smiled shyly. "You can't hide anything from me. We are connected in every way possible. For life, if you'll have me."
Willow smile huge. "You had to ask." She shook her head and gave Tara the most passionate kiss ever. "We better stop. We've got to figure out what's going on with Spike. But later, I promise to show you how much I love you." Tara blushed at the thought. The red head knocked on the door. "Giles, it's us. And we need you to bring chains or really strong rope!"
Giles opened the door. "I beg your pardon." He looked down at the figure of Spike still slumped on the ground. "Bloody hell, what have you two done." He looked quickly at Willow. "You haven't lost control of your powers, have you?"
"Giles, he tried sorta attacking us. But he passed out as he did. We weren't sure if we should just stake him. But we thought that maybe we could figure out why he can't bite people." Willow smiled nervously. She bowed her head. "Although, we did use the magicks to float him here. A-and I did almost lose control. B-but Tara stopped me just like in the dream. She can help me learn control. I think."
Giles shook his head. "Let's get inside before the neighbors start asking questions." He heaved the still limp Spike over his shoulder. He carried him to the bathroom. "Watch him. I'll be right back." The two girls stared at the vampire. It wasn't long before Giles returned with chains and a sturdy padlock. The two witches watched him as he wrapped the chain around the solid pipes and around spike. It would be difficult for even vampire strength to break free of the prison they had for him.
All three of them made their way back into the living room. "I know that the whole Spike deal is huge." Willow sat next to Tara on the couch. "But have you or that coven come up with anything new. We're almost done with all of the books that Tara inherited from her mother. And there's talk of losing control, just not how to keep your control. It's frustrating."
Giles smiled. He was proud of the fact that Willow was trying so hard to learn about her powers. Most young people would not care about the consequences. They would just take full advantage of these new and probably intoxicating feelings that came with all of that power. But she had always been a smart young lady. "Well, there is a very powerful young witch named Althena. She is actually around your age, I do believe. She has been practicing since she was only five. Her mother taught her well before she died. Even though she is the youngest member of the coven, she is also the second highest ranking. She has sent some invaluable information. And she has also sent this." He handed Willow a letter.
"What is it?" Giles only looked at her so she opened it.
Dear Miss Rosenberg,
Giles has told me a lot about you. But he really didn't need to. I could feel your power. You and the one that you are with. I feel that you both have even more power than I have. And I understand how hard it is to control. Especially if you have not been trained before. And that is not a reflection on you. From my understanding, witchcraft and the wiccan lifestyle is looked down upon in America. Here in England, we are a little more open to alternative lifestyles. And that's why I send you this. This is an invitation, if you so choose to accept, to come to England and train with me and the rest of my coven. This invitation, of course, includes your girlfriend. We would be thrilled if witches with your power feel that you could spend some time with us. I think we have a lot to learn from one another. Giles knows how to contact me. Please seriously consider my offer.
Althena
Willow let Tara read the letter as well. "Do you think it would be a good idea? I mean, now? We have Spike and there is this new demon. At least we think it's a demon. All those people disappearing and also turning up not alive." She swallowed hard. In all the time she had been a member of the scoobies, this past week there had been some of the most gruesome deaths ever. It made her sick to even think about them.
"I feel that it is a wonderful opportunity for the both of you." Giles looked at Willow. "But, I feel it can wait until this summer, if you so choose. That way, neither of you will miss any school."
Willow smiled. "Thanks. I know the control thing is what's important, but I want to be here for Buffy. She made need me."
The front door to Giles' place burst open at that moment. Buffy ran in, followed by Riley who slammed the door shut. The slayer's eyes were wide. There was blood dripping down from a huge gash in her forehead. Her left arm was hanging kinda limp at her side. Riley also had blood streaking his face as well as both his arms.
"What happened, Buffy?" Giles quickly made his way over to the slayer.
"We now know what's behind all the badness this last week." She sighed heavily. "And I couldn't even touch the thing."