| Awakening. Buffy gaped in amazement. She had persuaded Willow to dress sexily for Halloween but she had never imagined her shy friend would look so good. Say something you idiot. She told herself. She had been checking her friend out for too long without speaking. Willow was looking nervous and ready to bolt. Buffy realised she had to say just the right thing to stop her whipping out the ghost costume. �You look good as a whore.� Willow looked at her and then down at herself in distress. Buffy had a sudden fear that Willow had stashed a gorilla costume in her back pocket just in case of such an emergency as this and would whip it out and cover herself up. Buffy realised that she wasn�t thinking clearly. �What I mean is that you look good. You look different. Not that you don�t look great normally.� Buffy wondered if there was a special hell for people who couldn�t stop talking. �You don�t think it�s too much?� Buffy didn�t answer for a second as Willow�s newly revealed curves caught her attention once more. �I think it�s perfect.� Willow walked over to stand by Buffy and look at herself in the mirror. She clearly was very uncomfortable at what she saw and grabbed the package of the ghost costume to cover herself. Buffy couldn�t have that so she grabbed at it to stop her. Willow turned her head to look at Buffy but she hadn�t realised that Buffy was so close. Their faces were mere inches apart. Buffy�s breath caught in her throat as she realised what she was about to do a second before it was happening. She almost stopped herself but then she let go of her reason and kissed Willow. Willow seemed to melt in her arms. She responded with a warmth and abandon that Buffy hadn�t known the redhead possessed. The kiss was infinitely slow as if both had all the time in the world and couldn�t think of a better way to spend it. Buffy�s mind was consumed by Willow. Her hand slowly slid up to Willow�s bare waist and she marvelled at how soft her skin was. Such a contrast to the cool hard muscles of Angel. The sudden remembrance of her boyfriend brought Buffy back to a semblance of reality. She started to move back but Willow held onto her and started sucking at her bottom lip. Buffy tried to hold onto the thought that she shouldn�t be doing this but it was hard work. She couldn�t do anything other than let Willow kiss her. Buffy took control of herself and stepped back. Willow gave a small moan of distress as they parted. Buffy could see Willow trying to fit her mind around what happened. For what seemed like forever neither spoke. Their eyes were locked on each other. Neither wanted to be the first to say anything. Neither knew what the other wanted. Neither knew what they wanted. Neither saw the man standing behind Willow until it was too late. He was massively built with a ragged and filthy monk�s robe wrapped around him. His face was dominated by oily black eyes and a bushy, lice filled beard that reached down to the middle of his chest. His hands were hairy and the fingernails looked like jagged hooks. He appeared out of nowhere behind Willow and grabbed her throat. Before Buffy could even move he had dragged her back into the darkness. Buffy woke. * * * * * The room was bright and filled with sunshine. A murmur filled it from the hall outside and the sounds of the campus filtered in though the open window. Buffy couldn�t remember where she was for a moment. The dream had been so real. She touched her lips remembering kissing Willow. Willow was just her roommate. Her closest friend but nothing more than that. She suddenly wondered if she was missing a class and looked at the clock. It was only nine, she realised that she was classless till the afternoon so she lay back in the bed and tried to sort her head out. It was a weird guilt dream. Guilt about not being more supportive about Oz leaving. That was it. Buffy did feel guilty about having to go after Spike when Willow had been depressed that Oz had had his gear sent to him. She had been desperately unhappy that he had completely abandoned her never to return and Buffy had run off after a neutered vampire. Being a witch her unhappiness tended to manifest in interesting ways and a particularly powerful miscast spell had made Buffy fall in love with Spike. Buffy had had to brush her teeth four times in a row before she got rid of the cigarette taste after kissing him. She glanced over at Willow�s bed and tried to remember if her roommate had a class. Yes she started pretty early that day on some sciencey subject. Buffy wished that Willow were there to tell her about the dream before suddenly being very glad that she wasn�t there. Buffy normally just told Willow about any dream or weird thought. If she had a dream that was weird she told Willow about it. She was just used to Willow knowing everything. It wasn�t hard to realise that she couldn�t tell Willow about the larger part of that dream. There was a problem though. Buffy had many slayer powers. Most of them were directly related to combat but there were a couple that were a little more esoteric. Sometimes before dangerous threats and apocalypse type dangers she would have dreams. Nightmares to be more precise. They were prophecy dreams that although vague and hard to decipher at first were blisteringly obvious warnings in hindsight. The trouble was that her dreams could be pretty intense at the best of times. Life as a slayer was not dull and did not lend itself to dreams about tea parties and gentle summer walks. Her dreams were violent, energy filled and often blood drenched. This dream had felt particularly real. There had been a deep abiding dread at the man who had appeared. If he had been an old foe then she might have thought twice but this guy was new. She started to get up to phone Giles about it before lying back down again her mind in turmoil once more. Why had she dreamt of Willow like that? She loved Willow but then she loved Xander and Giles too and she had never had dreams like that of them. Not counting the extremely disturbing and mind scarring nightmares after she had read her mothers mind and found out the full terrible truth about the band candy incident. She shivered in horror at the memories once more. Buffy laughed at herself. She knew that dreams were weird. She knew this, so why was she so worried about what she might have been doing with Willow in one. It didn�t say a thing about how she felt about her friend. Buffy reached for the phone again, this time only pausing the make sure she had every detail of the dream etched into her memory. Not that she would tell Giles any of it apart from the attacker. It was just important that she have all the details to hand. After she had regained her composure she called Giles. * * * * * �Giles, pick up, I know you�re there, you don�t have anywhere else to go.� �Hello?� �Giles, Hi, It�s me.� �Good morning Buffy, is something wrong?� �Giles do I need an excuse to call you, why couldn�t I just have wanted to say hi?� �Oh, I�m sorry Buffy, I guess I am just basing my beliefs on the fact that you have never called here without a specific reason. Silly of me really.� �Look if we had time then I would have a lot to say about that but I need you to start some research, I just had a really weird dream.� Since it was Giles he immediately turned all business. Anyone else would have at least sounded smug but he was a watcher, albeit a fired one, so he just asked �you think it was prophetic?� �It�s really not something I want to risk ignoring.� �It sounds quite serious. What happened?� �Well I was with Willow and suddenly she was grabbed by this creepy looking man� �Did you recognise the man?� �No, I�ve never seen him before. He could have been a demon, he looked pretty demony.� �Perhaps a more detailed description?� Buffy ignored the mild sarcasm. �He was about two metres tall, crappy dresser, real mad monk wardrobe I�m talking here. He had these weird eyes, totally black and a beard. Oh yeah and the beard was infested with these bugs or something, really icky� �Anything else, the smallest details may be relevant?� �Oh, I forgot to mention his name tag, would that help?� Giles sounded hurt by her snapping. �I�m just trying to be thorough. The description you�ve given rings a bell though, I�ll look into it, In the meantime I suggest that you find Willow and stay with her until we can determine who this person is.� �Fine, we�ll pop round tonight.� * * * * * Willow enjoyed science. The acquisition of knowledge itself was always a wonderful thing but she particularly liked trying to fit what she knew about magic and demons into the generally accepted scientific theories. Thinking about it helped her get a deeper understanding of how the world fitted together. She could see the hard facts of science. Things that were proven and often irrefutable. Then she could see the mysticism of Wicca. She herself could do things that science said was impossible. She kept turning everything that she knew around in her mind. It didn�t fit but it was like a jigsaw puzzle. She was sure that it had to fit together in some way. �Willow, I said Hi.� Willow realised that she had walked right past Buffy. She smiled apologetically and realised that her friend was looking at her really oddly. She was looking kind of intense and preoccupied herself. �Is everything ok?� Buffy seemed a little embarrassed and was suddenly not meeting eye contact. �Yes everything's fine. Oh, no wait, it isn�t.� �What�s wrong?� �I had a dream with you in it. Quite heavily in it actually. Something attacked you.� �What?� Willow looked worried now. �It was this guy. It�s hard to describe. Giles is looking up the details now. Don�t worry about it. It was probably a false alarm.� �Well you told me yesterday that you dreamt of having to try and stake the stay puffed marshmallow man. You didn�t think that was a prophecy dream. Why do you think this one is?� �Let�s just say this dream was a bit more intense.� �Maybe you should tell me more details of it.� �Maybe we should go get breakfast.� * * * * * Buffy was exhausted by the time they got to Giles. Willow knew that she was holding back about the dream. She knew Buffy too well and if it was prophecy Buffy didn�t want to make up something that could send them all on a false lead. Constantly being on guard to make sure she didn�t let something slip had tired her out. Giles expression when he opened the door didn�t fill her with confidence that it would all be sorted out quickly either. �I haven�t had much luck I�m afraid.� �You didn�t find anything?� �On the contrary I got a solid lead. The monk attire and beard as well as the black eyes seem to describe a particular warlock by the name of Nyle. He is referred to as a Nephandi mage.� �Great. What else?� �That�s everything actually. I am sure I could find out a little more given time though.� Willow and Giles sat down on the couch and started to look through the books again. Buffy paced behind them talking rapidly. �But it was a real guy that I dreamt of. It was a real guy who I have never meant which means that it really was a prophecy dream. I mean obviously not all of it would be the prophecy part. Obviously the prophecy could start halfway through or right at the end. There was a prophecy part of the dream but that is all we know.� She stopped as she saw Giles and Willow looking at her with concerned expressions on their face. Willow looked like she was about to ask a question but at that moment Spike walked in sipping from a mug filled with something that almost certainly wasn�t tomato soup. �If it isn�t the missus.� �Knock it off, Spike.� �Pardon me for breathing.� �You�re not breathing.� Spike shrugged �so what evil is afoot? One of my pals causing a ruckus?� �Not unless you know a Nephandi called Nyle.� Spike spat the blood, covering Giles books in a fine spray of pig�s blood. Giles was stuck dumb in utter horror but Spike never noticed �a Nephandi? Oh bloody hell.� * * * * * Nyle sat back in his limo as it sped into Sunnydale. The speed never slowed as it approached red lights but miraculously the light would be green when it got to them and it sped through. The Imp driving it gibbered and howled as it upped the acceleration but Nyle let all of the surrounding world drain from his mind as he sent his consciousness out to touch the tear between realities that locals called the Hellmouth. His mind slipped into the crack between realities and there he found the presence he had sensed from afar. The demon was ancient and powerful. It�s mind vast but primal. The very personification of fear and evil. Now it was filled with rage and hate and eager to rend, tear and devour. It was trapped. Twice now the demon, called only Maw, had tried to push its way into this dimension. First when the Master vampire had attempted to open the Hellmouth, using his own energy as the conduit. The Master�s death had smashed Maw back into its home reality but then the Sisterhood of Jhe had opened the Hellmouth again and the demon had come forth. As far as Nyle could tell as Maw was incarnating on this plane he was met by warriors and held back while a binding spell was performed by a witch. The spell had covered the rift and strengthened the Gauntlet, the wall between realities. In doing so Maw had been trapped in the wall. Neither in the demon realm or this one. It was torment for it and when Nyle had discovered it, it�s lust for freedom and revenge was at an intensity that even few demons could even comprehend. Maw had promised Nyle strength and power beyond his imagining. Nyle could become the most powerful mage on earth and Nyle knew that Maw had the power to give him that. All Nyle had to do was free him. All Nyle had to do was find the witch that had cast the binding spell and persuade her to release it, Killing her would seal the spell in blood and make it too powerful to break by any means. Nyle didn�t normally need to be persuasive. His dark power was such that he could bend those he wished to his will. He could intimidate humans and demons alike with his presence. This however was a delicate situation. The witch would have to release the binding spell. There were other ways to open the Hellmouth but many of them would still leave Maw trapped. It would be no use widening the tiny flaws in the wall. He would have to weaken the wall itself. Nyle would need to persuade the witch to release the spell. Nyle smiled as the imp managed to run over a cat. He knew he would have to move very carefully. The warriors that had beaten Maw would have to be powerful indeed. * * * * * �Spike, you�ve got blood everywhere. There isn�t another copy of this book in existence.� �Then you better go photocopy it. I�m out of here.� Spike turned to leave the room but Buffy spun him round and pinned him against the wall by his neck. The mug clattered to the ground. �Oh now you�ve got it all over the carpet. Blood never comes out you know.� Buffy ignored Giles. She was eye to eye with Spike. She could see anger and fear in his eyes. He was probably in quite a lot of pain from her hand half crushing his throat too. �Listen to me Spike. This Nyle guy is coming here after Willow. He is coming after her and we are not going to let that happen. Do you understand?� Spike tried to nod but Buffy tightened her grip and continued. �Now you are going to tell us everything you know about this guy and then you are going to help us research and I swear to you that if you hold back anything or if you do anything that could lead to Willow getting hurt I will make sure you see the next sunrise.� She let go of him but kept him fixed in a stare. Spike was a little shaken by her intensity. �Fine I�ll stay. I happen to have soft spot for the little witch myself you know.� He eyed the door but Buffy stepped between him and it. �Talk.� Spike put on a big show of lighting up a cigarette and settling down into an armchair. He almost put his feet up on the book-laden table but a hard glare from Giles, who was busy trying to clean off one of the more valuable books, made him change his mind. �I don�t know anything about this Nyle bloke but I have met a Nephandi.� He paused as he shuddered at the memory. Buffy wondered what could make Spike shudder. �It was a few decades ago. Me and Dru were in San Francisco. There�s a big magic community there and I was after something special for Dru�s centennial. I thought that I could get her a....� �Get to the point, Spike. I don�t want to hear about your ex. Tell me about the Nephandi.� �God, I try and add a little colour to the story and what do I get?� �A staking unless you get to the Nephandi.� �He was called Ezekial. I met him in this bar there. You�ve probably never been to a haven.� Giles looked up �I have.� Spike ignored him �a haven is a place where demons and other weird things hang out. There is no violence at all. If anyone tries to harm someone in a haven then everyone will take them on. I mean everyone. It is one of the few times that good and evil warriors will fight together. Anyway, here I am in this bar that�s a haven. It�s called Samedi�s child and in walks this weedy little guy. He looks about five-foot nothing and he�s wearing rags. And he walks up to this good witch who I happen to know is about two hundred years old and tough as nails and he just blasts her right there. She doesn�t even get a chance to react. She�s just incinerated. Everyone is completely stunned. I mean the last person I heard about who violated a haven, he was sent to hell. Literally, some guy opened a portal and dumped him through, minus his major extremities. The weasely guy though, he just laughs and starts to blast everyone else. It all takes about two minutes and the place is full of corpses.� �So how come you survived?� �Me well I kind of . . .� �Ran?� �I did not run.� Spike looked highly offended. �I hid. Oh don�t look at me like that. Have you ever seen a Katrice demon?� He waited for anyone to nod. Giles did after a moment�s thought. �Well have you ever seen one turned inside out? So anyway. I�m hiding behind an upturned table and it all goes quiet. I peer out and everyone is dead. Everyone! I can�t see the runt that did it so I turn to get the hell out of there and he is standing right behind me. He looks me up and down. Now this guy didn�t look like much but he had presence. He exuded power; I couldn�t have run if I wanted to. He says to me: �What is your name vampire?� So I say: �Spike.� And he smiles and nods, like he recognises the name and I am proud of this. I mean this guy is obviously a big power and he�s heard of me. So he says. �I am the Nephandi Ezekial. I like a demon without even the decency to defend a haven. Good day to you.� And then suddenly he just wasn�t there anymore and I get the hell out and decide that I�ve had enough of America for the time being.� �He scared you that much?� Spike was pleased for a moment that Buffy had trouble believing that he had been scared but then he remembered the bodies in Samedi�s child. �There are some things you can�t fight, love.� * * * * * There is a place that holds 1240 computers. These computers are used for nothing other than monitoring what happens on Internet search engines. Occasionally a computer will pause in its scanning and forward onto the master computer a keyword that has cropped up. Words like Marauder, Tellurian and Technocracy. Phrases like New World Order. The master computer will investigate each incidence further and investigate the user and what else the computer has been used to look up. Some words cause an automatic red flag. Some words are too dangerous to miss. Words like Nephandi. * * * * * Willow switched off her computer. She hadn�t found anything useful. Whoever the Nephandi were they kept a low profile. One site had mentioned them as being an evil elite of warlocks who were dedicated to ending the world but then it had said that they had killed Kennedy and were the brains behind cattle mutilations so the site had lost some credibility in Willow�s eyes. She glanced over at Buffy�s bed. The slayer had patrolled and tried to get any information about new arrivals in town but everything seemed quiet for now. Willow heard a murmur and looked at Buffy more closely. It wasn�t a great feat of observation to see that she was having a particularly nice dream. Buffy writhed under the covers. The undulations muted in her real body but Willow couldn�t help but see the sensuousness of whatever she was dreaming. Willow backed away, embarrassed at seeing it and feeling unreasonably guilty that she was invading her friend�s privacy. She couldn�t resist a glance back and a grin as she got into her bed. She did like to see Buffy happy. Willow wondered who she was dreaming of. She mused that it was probably Riley. * * * * * Buffy danced in the Bronze. The lights were swirling leaving patches of light and dark all over the dance floor. As she swayed to the music she sometimes she seemed to be the middle of a crowd and sometimes she seemed to be alone. Across the dance floor, sitting at a table by herself, was Willow. She was gazing out at Buffy as the slayer danced to �Babylon�. And if you want it come and get it for crying out loud. Buffy was enraptured by the redhead. She couldn�t take her eyes off her. Willows eyes were locked with her for a second before she looked down at her drink. She glanced up and seeing Buffy�s eyes still on her she looked away again with a shy smile. The love that I was giving you was never in doubt Buffy slowly danced towards her. She moved with fluid grace around the other dancers and before Willow even knew she was there she had swept the redhead to her feet and into her arms. Willow looked at her questioningly and seemed about to speak when Buffy stopped her. Let go of you Heart. Let go of your Head. And Feel It Now. The kiss was long and sweet. They were unconcerned with the world and anything outside of their arms. They stopped reasoning. They stopped thinking and let their desires control them if only for a moment. There was a moment of complete silence as the song finished. Buffy opened her eyes. The inky pools that passed for eyes in Nyle�s head stared back at her. His hook like nails were digging into Willow�s throat. Buffy tried to grab his arm but before she could even gasp in shock he had ripped her throat out. Buffy woke. * * * * * �Buffy, it�s ok it was just a dream.� Buffy realised she was in bed and Willow was sitting beside her. Without thinking she turned Willow�s head to see her neck. It was smooth and unhurt. Buffy was suddenly very aware of her hand against Willow�s neck. She slowly moved herself back slightly away from Willow. �Buffy what�s the matter? Was it another nightmare about Nyle?� �I... I saw him kill you, Will. I couldn�t stop him. I wasn�t fast enough.� �I�m ok. Look at me. All here.� Buffy looked at Willow. She realised that these dreams were definitely affecting her. She was really seeing Willow. She wondered when the girl she had known had become the person she was looking at. �It looked like a good dream at first.� �What?� Buffy said, shaken out of her thoughts. �The nightmare. At first it looked like you were dancing. Who were you dancing with? Was it Riley? Angel? Please don�t say Parker.� Buffy had always loved Willow�s innocent enthusiasm for naughtiness. She wanted everyone to be having fun and she was the perfect friend when it came to someone to confide naughty secrets to. She giggled and bit her lip and went �awww� at all the right bits. �It had a certain angelic quality I suppose.� �I knew it. Was it sexy dancing? I bet it was sexy.� The two girls were sitting close to each other now. Both on Buffy�s bed. The lights were off and there was just enough light from outside to barely see each other. It was fun and intimate and Buffy realised that if she couldn�t tell Willow how she was beginning to feel in a setting like this then she wouldn�t be able to tell her at all. �Willow . . I...� �What is it Buffy?� Willow could tell that Buffy wanted to say something serious. �Willow have you ever had dreams that had people in that you didn�t really expect?� �Expect?� �I�m not saying this right. I mean have you ever had fantasies about people who you think that you shouldn�t have fantasies about?� �I think I can see what you�re getting at Buffy.� �You can?� �Yes.� �What do you think?� Buffy tried to keep the waver out of her voice and keep calm. Her pulse felt like it was going for a world speed record. How could Willow be so calm in answering this? �No Buffy. I never had any fantasies about Angel.� �Angel?� �Wasn�t that who you were thinking of?� �Oh . . . yes. I suppose it was.� Bitterness and relief filled Buffy�s mind. She barely heard Willow saying that Angel wasn�t her type. She couldn�t bring herself to try and tell Willow again. She told Willow that she was really tired and wanted to try and sleep again and her friend moved back to her bed. Buffy listened to Willow�s breathing until she fell asleep. * * * * * The following day Willow was sitting alone on a bench outside the lecture hall where Buffy was no doubt getting some much-needed sleep. Buffy had been reluctant to leave her on her own but the area was crowded and in the bright light of day demons and warlocks seemed far away. She was trying to read but after noticing that she couldn�t recall a word of what she had just read she put down the book and tried to put her thoughts in order. She was very shaken up over Oz leaving. Willow had an advantage in that she knew the order her life would take, she would continue to study; she didn�t have to worry about that. She knew she would have her friends around her and if she couldn�t fathom some of the choices they sometimes made she still knew that she could always count on them. She still didn�t understand the whole Anya thing but she did envy Xander that he had someone. Someone who was an ex vengeance demon and could possibly decide to gut him on a whim but still that was better than nobody. Willow paused and re-evaluated her last thought. Maybe it wasn�t better but at least he was getting some. She turned red at the thought. She was embarrassed at how much she was missing sex. It didn�t seem important in light of missing Oz�s love, the warmth of him sleeping next to her, the way the back of his ears turned pink, a hundred other things that she missed about him. Still the sex did keep cropping up in her mind. She had to accept that he wasn�t coming back. She had to stop bothering all her friends with her whingeing and get on with her life. Willow closed her eyes. She felt like she was falling apart. Her boyfriend had left her and now old crushes were haunting her mind. Her rage and pain was enough to cross-dimensional boundaries. Some people would be proud of that but Willow just wanted to be quiet and unseen. She didn�t know what she wanted half the time. It would be so much easier if Oz came back. She suddenly caught a whiff of a half-forgotten smell. It was hard to identify exactly what it was but it immediately brought to mind Oz. Willow opened her eyes and looked around. Nyle was sitting right next to her. She didn�t know it was Nyle at first. His appearance was quite different than Buffy had described. The first impression could never be anything but that he was strong. He was tall and wide with muscles that while not bulging looked hard as iron. His age was indeterminate. He could have been anything from a hard-lived thirty to a youthful fifty. His face was creased with laughter lines. He was dressed in an immaculately pressed and obviously expensive business suit and looked generally extremely neat and well groomed. He did have a beard; it was bushy and came down to the centre of his chest. It appeared to be completely lice free. His eyes were blue and sparkled with good humour. His entire demeanour was relaxed, confident and good-natured. Willow naturally noticed him immediately and tried to look at him without being rude. He smiled winningly at her and put out his hand for her to shake. �Good afternoon Miss Rosenberg, my name is Nyle.� Willow had half reached out to shake his hand but snatched it back as if she�d realised she was putting it in a fire. She scrambled to her feet and shook her finger at him. �You, you�re that guy.� Nyle seemed a little confused by her reaction and she was sure she detected a hint of reproach in his eyes as he spoke. �It appears as though you have heard of me. I perceive that your current perceptions of me are not altogether glowing.� Willow felt a little more relaxed now. This person certainly didn�t appear to be an evil warlock intent on evil, destruction, evil, murder and maybe a little evil. �I heard that you were a Nephandi.� �And why would that mean I was a villain?� �Well I heard that the Nephandi were evil.� Nyle sighed and looked at her almost pityingly. �Doubtless you have excellent and trustworthy sources...� Willow thought of Spike and decided to at least hear Nyle out. �...But I had believed you would be less likely to condemn us out of hand. Might I inquire as to what you have heard of us?� �Well . . . there was a person called Ezekial who called himself a Nephandi.� Nyle nodded his head sadly and turned his head away slightly in shame. �I know of him. I realise now why your impressions were so bad. Let me try to explain. The Nephandi are not a unified group as you would know it but rather a number of individuals who seek the same thing. We attempt to guard this dimension from the powerful forces that surround it. Not just the demon dimensions that encroach upon it but also the so-called powers of good that would use our plane as their battleground. It is a hard battle and sometimes our members falter. Unfortunately when we lose our way the results can be catastrophic since we can channel forces that few would be able to counter.� Willow had listened intently while Nyle spoke. He paused, as she seemed about to speak. �You fight the forces of good?� �I think that vocabulary is getting in the way of your understanding. You see the forces of good are not really what you would call good. They have their champions and their pawns but they do not care about them. Think of chess. When you play you do not concern yourself with the survival of the pieces, all you care about is that you defeat the other side regardless of your own casualties. This is how the forces of �good� and �evil� see our universe. They use it to play their game.� His voice was calm and entrancing. Willow felt herself drawn in. �We are all pawns in their game. It may be preferable for good to win but the Nephandi want to get rid of the game altogether. We want to free humanity.� Nyle leaned back and laughed. �I am sorry, Miss Rosenberg. I did not mean to preach to you. I am not here to convert you.� �They why are you here?� �I need your help, Miss Rosenberg.� Willow was surprised and flattered at this. �Please call me Willow. What do you need my help for?� �I am going to close the Hellmouth.� * * * * * Buffy let the origins of the First World War wash over her and felt her eyelids drooping. She had taken a place in the back row so wasn�t worried about the teacher spotting her but did want to hear this. She was interested in the class and that was rare enough that she wanted to take full advantage of it but her eyelids weren�t having any of it and were persisting in their attempts to close. It was a battle she was destined to lose and soon she was discreetly slipping into sleep. The dreams came quickly. This time there was no altered memory or fantasy scenario. She could just feel Willow�s body beneath her. Her friend gazing up at her blissfully. She kissed her deeply. Both of the girls moving against each other unconcerned about anything other than the others touch, their kiss, their smell. Buffy licked a bead of sweat off Willows neck. She almost didn�t feel the threat coming from behind. A part of her could tell this was a dream and she struggled to control it, to make it unfold how she wanted. She turned and saw a black furred, wolf like Nyle. He was unquestionably the same demon like man who had haunted her earlier visions but now his mouth was twisted into a muzzle jutting from his lice ridden facial hair and filled with yellowish teeth covered in frothy saliva. His hands were long and thin with reddish claws and he stood as if poised for a leap forward. The leap came quicker than thought. Buffy tried to grab him and throw him but before she could even think his claws slashed past her throat. She felt the blood pushing for a moment at the thin slice but then it spurted out. Buffy woke with more calm than she felt. She managed to touch her throat and feel it was whole before closing her eyes and letting the terror seep out of her. She left the lecture early. She was eager to find Willow and make sure she was safe. * * * * * �You�re going to do what with the who now?� Nyle didn�t answer. He simply grinned broadly at her, showing off his perfect white teeth. �You can do that? Close the Hellmouth?� �Well what good would we be if we couldn�t do such things? It is a difficult task. Possibly one of the most difficult tasks I have ever undertaken but with your help I am certain of success.� �How can I help with something like that? I am not very powerful.� Nyle looked into her eyes and said in a deadly serious voice �You have more power than you give yourself credit for and you have potential for even more. I think I had better let some of this sink in before I explain further.� �Wait I need to know more.� �I will answer your questions tomorrow.� With a quick bow he swept off into the crowd and was quickly lost form sight. Willow tried to keep track of him but her eyes seemed to slip off him. Willow couldn�t quite believe that the encounter had happened, it seemed strange and unreal but she knew it had. He had told her that he was going to close the Hellmouth. * * * * * �Is it even possible?� Giles smiled in a bemused, stunned way. Willow kept looking at him questioningly. �It is a rare occurrence but yes it can happen. Unfortunately it isn�t at all easy.� Giles stood up and searched through a pile of books while he spoke. �Although the rift can be covered up or blocked once the energy needed to open it has been expended, healing it completely is an immensely delicate affair. If you consider the constant attack upon the fabric of reality from the dimensions on the other side, it becomes very tricky. Mostly the sorcerers involved are killed by the backlash of energy or simply sucked through the portals.� Giles finally found the book he was looking for and spread it out of the table so Buffy and Willow could see the wood carving in it. It depicted a warlock decked out in robes and brandishing a staff towards a swirling vortex with tentacles poking out of it. Giles turned the page. The next picture was off the warlock�s body spiralling into the vortex; an intense look of agony was on his face and the tentacles wrapped around his feet. Giles turned the page again. �Eww grosss� �Ouch.� Buffy and Willow turned away and Giles shut the book with a grim expression on his face. The last picture had been of the warlock being feasted upon in hell. �So Giles, why would he want my help?� �I don�t know, I must admit that I still don�t believe his first story. I would be vary wary of him at the best of times and with Buffy�s dreams as well...� �You didn�t meet him. He was really nice, kind of intense but he just felt really trustworthy.� Buffy scowled. After he dream she hadn�t been in the best frame of mind to be told that Willow had had a comfy chat with the Nephandi. Willow was adamant that he was on the side of the angels but Buffy was not remotely convinced. �Of course!� Buffy and Willow looked up at Giles exclamation. �I think I know why he needs you.� �Why?� �As I just said any other magic can throw a spell of this nature off. However there is already a spell keeping the Hellmouth at least partially sealed.� �My spell?� �Yes, the spell that you performed after the Sisterhood of Jhe opened it. If Nyle tried to perform any kind of magic while that seal was in place that would be enough to disrupt his spell and kill him.� �So he�s going to ask me to remove the protection spell?� �That certainly fits with his intentions.� �Well you can�t do it!� Willow and Giles turned to look at Buffy. �It�s a trick. He just wants your spell out of the way.� Buffy held her gaze, resolute. Willow looked sad. �Buffy if there is a chance that the Hellmouth could be closed completely shouldn�t we take it? I mean Nyle seemed very sure of success and think of the good it would do.� �What if he is just trying to open it, or what if he is trying to close it and fails and it opens?� Giles interjected �Buffy, if he is trying to close it then it is highly unlikely that he will accidentally open it. Once Willow�s spell is gone then although reality will be weak it should hold long enough to reinstate Willows spell if Nyle is sucked into hell.� �If he is trying to close it!� Buffy looked over at Willow. �I�m not saying that he is definitely evil.� He is definitely evil Buffy added in her head. �But can you really take the chance that he is telling the truth?� Willow looked torn. � I�m sure he is� but she didn�t look sure. * * * * * That night Willow dreamt. She was standing on the roof of her dorm. There was a storm smashing the sky around her. Lighting was hitting the roof feet from where she stood with her face to the heavens. The wind sounded like screams straight from hell and pushed her about uncontrollably. The rain drenched her to the skin. She should have been terrified and miserable but she wasn�t. She was filled with elation, filled with sharp joy. She could feel the power running through her veins. Like she had been struck with lighting and it had replaced her blood. She could see the world and how it fitted together. She could see the beautiful simplicity of the storm and the terribly complexity. Willow looked up and saw that standing over her was a massive figure made of electricity. It sparked and seemed to bend the sky around it. She saw it reach down towards her with one hand and she reached up, desperate to touch it. Moments before they touched she woke. Her alarm clock was beeping mockingly. In a rare expression of anger she hit it hard. It shut off the alarm but was undamaged. Willow held her hand where she had just bruised herself and tried to recapture the specifics of the dream but it had already slipped away. Sighing, Willow got dressed without waking Buffy and went off to get some breakfast. She had an important decision to make. She wanted someone else to decide. She couldn�t bear the burden of a decision like this. On the one hand she could stop Sunnydale being demon central. On the other hand if she was wrong about Nyle then she might end up releasing Hell on Earth. She wasn�t sure if she could live with letting the Hellmouth stay there. She knew she couldn�t live with second possibility. In the end there was only one decision to make. * * * * * �I�m sorry but I just can�t take the risk.� Nyle�s face was impassive as Willow explained to him how they had worked out what he wanted and decided that it was too dangerous. She was sure she saw a flicker of anger in his eyes but his voice remained calm. �I am disappointed that you came to that conclusion. I had hoped that you would be more willing to trust.� Willow felt inordinately guilty as his eyes bored into her. She apologised again and walked off, unable to face him. * * * * * �He just seemed really disappointed in me, you know?� Willow was lying in her bed talking to Buffy. Her friend was obviously pleased that she had rejected Nyle�s offer but she still seemed distracted. �Well I am proud of you. I think you made the right decision.� �It�s not that open and shut, Buffy, now whenever something happens that is caused by the Hellmouth I am going to think �I could have prevented that� I�m not sure I can cope with that.� Buff sat up so she could see Willow more clearly. �Its� something that I live with everyday, Will. Every time I am not patrolling and someone gets hurt or a demon escapes and kills someone else. That is something that I have to live with but this isn�t something you should feel guilty about. Nyle was evil, I felt it. You just have to trust me on this one.� �I do trust you, Buffy, its just that you never met him. He seemed like he was a good guy.� * * * * * �I�m going to rip that bitches intestines out� Nyle screamed into the night sky. His rage was almost overtaking him and the werewolf part of him was threatening to surface. He tried to calm himself, to think clearly, but try as he might to suppress his hatred and bile it was spilling out and colouring his thoughts. He wanted to bite and rend flesh. He yearned to taste blood, hot in his mouth. He let the glamour he had over himself drop to reveal his true face. The Nephandi was pacing in a small clearing of the woods, pausing now and again to slash at the already splintered bark of the trees around him. As he paced he thought. Willow was a human. Humans were weak. They let their emotions rule them. He had tried the easy option first and he had been denied but he had other ways to make people do what he wanted. He would try persuasion once more and then if that didn�t work then his torture skills were very well respected in some circles. * * * * * �I guess we should go see Giles. Tell him that I told Nyle and that everything is fine.� Buffy realised that Giles was probably still researching and might appreciate a visit. It was just like Willow to remember things like that. She was thoughtful. Buffy frowned. She was having trouble thinking of anything at the moment. Her thoughts were full of Willow. Her dreams seemed to be affecting her in a big way. She couldn�t go on like this. She needed to talk to someone. �Tell you what, Will, you head over to Giles house and I�ll do a quick patrol and meet you there.� �Sure, Buffy, you go find creatures of evil.� * * * * * �Hey Buffy, what brings you to maison le Xander?� �Doesn�t that mean Xander the house?� �How the hell would I know?� Xander smiled winningly and beckoned her inside. �I came over because I needed a friend�s advice.� In truth Buffy wasn�t entirely certain she had come to the right place. Xander was a good friend but he was possibly not the right person to talk to about this. She had considered her Mom but that could open up some very bad situations if her Mom reacted badly and she didn�t want to go there. What she did know was that she was finding it very hard to think straight and her feelings about Willow were complicated. She needed someone to talk them through with. Xander could see that she was nervous. �Come in, sit down and tell me all about it.� �Er, is Anya about?� �No not right now, why?� �It�s just kind of personal. In fact what I want to say really shouldn�t leave this room.� �Whoa this is starting to sound serious.� �Well, it�s just I really need to get something of my chest, it�s been eating at me a bit. I�ve never really been good at keeping secrets from everyone. You�d think I would be with all the practice I�ve had but I�ve almost always had someone to talk to about it. Even when I was hiding Angel at least he knew about it.� She was procrastinating and they both knew it. �It�s Ok Buffy you can tell me anything� Xander made an effort to look serious. �Ok, recently I�ve been having feelings about someone who I�ve known for a long time, I mean we�re good friends but I�ve never really thought of them as anything else. But recently I�ve been having these dreams and they have kind of opened me up to feelings about this person and I�m really not sure what to think.� �Wow, well I mean that�s really flattering� Xander placed his hand comfortingly on her shoulder �but I�m with Anya now Buffy.� �Not you.� �Well if not me then, oh god not . . .� Realisation dawned on his face, his eye�s widened in shock. �Yes.� Buffy confirmed. �Giles?� �Gross! No, you have a sick, sick mind.� �Sorry but some girls have that whole father figure thing.� �Not me, eewww.� �Well if it isn�t me or Giles then who else could it be?� Buffy looked at him. Xander looked at Buffy. Buffy looked at Xander with a little more impatience. Xander looked at Buffy with a little more confusion. �Willow!� She finally said unable to stand the suspense. �Willow?� He replied with surprise. �Willow.� She said firmly. �Willow, wow.� He said still with surprise. �Are you going to say anything else?� �Sorry it�s just a little unprecedented, I mean Willow.� �What�s wrong with Willow? You were attracted to Willow.� �Yeah but that was me, this is you.� �I�m so glad I came to you, I really needed these sage observations.� �Look Buffy, I�m sorry it is just a bit of a shock.� �Imagine how I felt?� �Yeah.� �So what do you think?� �Willow?� �Willow.� �You and Willow?� �Yeah.� �I don�t really know how to put this. She�s never really given any indication she might feel that way about a girl.� �Well I�ve never given any indication either, have I?� �Well I always thought Angel was a bit girly, does that count?� �No.� �I mean the guy must have shaved his chest or something. In my opinion a real man should be hairy.� �Xander, back to subject.� �Sorry, it�s just hard to get my head around the concept.� �You�ve known Willow for longer than I have.� �All my life, I know her better than I know anyone.� �So how do you think she�d react?� �I have no idea. I�m sorry it�s just not something I ever thought about.� He paused and considered. �Which is really kind of odd when I think about it. I would have thought my fantasies would have covered that but I seem to have missed it.� �Do you think she�d hate me?� Buffy gazed into the distance. She couldn�t stand it if Willow hated her. �Of course not, Buffy, Willow is your friend and she does love you. Whether she feels the same way as you or not she won�t push you away.� �No she wouldn�t do that and I didn�t when you asked me out.� �Yes, I was shot down and wished I was dead but here we are still friends� his face darkened at the memory. There was an uncomfortable silence. �Maybe I should just forget it, try and not think about it.� �Is that really an option?� �I don�t know. It�s just after the whole Angel thing. I was broken up when he left but the thought that kept me together through the pain was that at least now I could have a normal relationship.� �It�s not like Willow�s a vampire.� �I know, it�s just . . . I don�t know.� �Buffy the important thing is to be happy, if you give up a chance like this would you really be able to forgive yourself?� �If I destroy my friendship with Willow would I be able to forgive myself?� �Buffy, I may not be the smartest guy around but I do know that secrets come out, especially in our little Scooby gang. If you tried to keep this secret there would be some mind reading demon or a weird spell gone wrong or maybe even just a slip of the tongue but it would come out. At the very least you should decide when she discovers.� �You could be right.� �Stranger things have happened.� �Well we do live on a Hellmouth.� She smiled at him affectionately. �Buffy, I want you to know that whatever you decide I�ll support you fully.� �Thanks Xander that means a lot to me. Oh, I�d better be going. I was supposed to be beating up demons.� �Give em a pummel from me.� Buffy let herself out and Xander sat in silence trying to wrap his head around what he�d just been told and tried to keep his thoughts serious and mature. Unsuccessfully. * * * * * Nyle sat in the clearing; surrounded by the shattered remains of the trees he had taken his anger out on. He sent his mind out to find the witch. His astral body drifted through Sunnydale till he came to the house of the watcher. The witch and slayer were there with him and they were discussing him. He listened with cruel amusement at Willow telling the others that he was a good guy. That would make it easier to persuade her. It meant that she had a chance to avoid immense pain. He gently probed the corners of her mind. She was a witch so this was risky but Nyle was an expert. All he needed was a slight indication of what she wanted. What he could offer her? It didn�t take long to find the clues he was looking for. He stayed away from the Slayer�s mind. Slayers had some strange powers that he didn�t fully know. Most people just saw the strength and skill but Nyle knew that she was a champion of light and might be protected in other ways. He scanned the Watcher�s mind. It was interesting. He too had a degree of magical strength. If he hadn�t turned away from it he would have been quite impressive but he too was weakened and emasculated by these human needs and guilts. They were fun to manipulate but sickening in their way. What was that? Nyle paused as a thought flashed through Giles mind. Nyle had heard him thinking of the Master�s bones. If Nyle had the Master�s bones then that would help him greatly. When a vampire died it�s demonic power incinerated its body but in exceptionally old and strong vampires the bones absorb the power and aren�t destroyed. They can be used to resurrect the vampire if the proper rituals are performed. In this instance the Master was the one who opened the portal and if his bones still contain that power they can be used to open it again. It would still be difficult with the protection spell in place but Nyle loved the odds to be stacked in his favour. He needed to know where they were. Giles deeper thoughts were protected by some mental barriers. Nyle took a moment to admire the strength and discipline of them and then ripped through them like they weren't there. He ransacked Giles mind for the information he needed and returned to his own body. * * * * * Willow was looking for a spell book in Giles collection so she didn�t notice Giles collapse at first. She just turned and saw him on the floor. His back was arched as he writhed in pain and he clutched at his head. She saw blood welling from the shallow cuts he had made with his nails. After a moment he slumped on the floor, limp. He didn�t lose consciousness but it was a long time before he could talk. Giles could feel his mind had been torn into. He was having trouble piecing his thoughts together again but he knew that there was danger. He knew which memories had been accessed and he knew that this could not be a good thing. Buffy had seen from the kitchen and ran to Giles. �Oh god, are you ok?� �Buffy, I�ll be fine but you must hurry. Someone is intending on using the bones of the Master. My memories of them were raided. I caught a glimpse of their intentions.� �What are they going to do? Resurrect him?� �No. Whoever it was wants to open the Hellmouth. You have to go there and stop them before it�s too late.� �But what about you?� �Don�t worry about me, Buffy, I�ll follow on as soon as I can. Now go.� He used his authoritative watcher voice on them and they ran out the door. Giles let the facade that he was ok fall and allowed himself to pass out from the agony of his bleeding mind. * * * * * Willow and Buffy ran to the school. They were both feeling guilty about leaving Giles but he had ordered them to go and the stakes were too high. Buffy wondered who had attacked Giles. Could it have been Nyle? There was no way she could know but her gut was screaming at her that Nyle was still dangerous. They reached their old high school quickly and apprehensively made their way inside. Everything was blackened and scorched from their bomb. Buffy occasionally regretted blowing up the school. She had so many memories there. Then she would remember what a lot of those memories were and be glad that the place was gutted by fire. She looked over at Willow who was looking around and smiling. They passed the fountain where she had first seen the redhead and seen her verbally cut up by Cordelia and remembered that she had always wanted to be with Willow. Then it had just been an urge to get to know her, to be her friend and protect her. Willow was slightly ahead of her, which gave Buffy the opportunity to look at her friend. She couldn�t drive her away. She couldn�t risk her hating her. She needed Willow, she couldn�t tell her how she felt. Buffy tried to sound confident in her mind like she�d made a decision but she didn�t find herself convincing. They were approaching the library and so she tried to focus her thoughts. She moved ahead of Willow and crept through the doors. She immediately saw the corpse of a demon lying near the pit that she could only assume was the Hellmouth. It wasn�t a demon she recognised but he was still clutching a sack with a bone sticking out of it. He had been impaled by something and as Nyle stepped out of the shadows leisurely holding a large broadsword she had a good idea what it had been impaled with. �Good evening, Willow, and Miss Summers, I hope you will forgive the weapon. I was forced to take drastic action to prevent our demonic friend there from causing an apocalypse.� He leaned the sword against a broken beam and stepped towards them with his arms open welcomingly. For the life of her Buffy couldn�t think of a good reply to this. Willow however grinned broadly at him and gestured to the dead demon. �He was going to use the Masters bones?� �I fear so. Willow, this time I was here but if I hadn�t been then there is a good chance that this demon would have been able to open this portal fully.� �We would have stopped him in time. How was he able to get the bones so quickly?� �He must have had some kind of magical ability to summon objects to him once he knew of their location. Indeed this time you may have stopped him but what if he had used more conventional methods to track down the Masters bones rather than a mind rape. You would never even have known of him. You find it hard to imagine living with the consequences of not letting me close the Hellmouth if you just consider it�s effects on everyday life but there is a very real chance that someone could open it fully.� �I�m sorry I just can�t release my spell. I�ve told you this.� �I had hoped you would see reason. I had hoped that this would be the beginning of a glorious future for you. If you helped me now then I would teach you the magic of the Nephandi. You would have power undreamt of. Your fondest wishes could become true.� Willow felt light headed and dizzy. His presence was overwhelming. His blue eyes were darkening, swirling into blackness and drawing her in. Nyle gestured with one hand and an image appeared before her. She saw herself alongside Buffy in a graveyard. They were fighting side by side against a virtual horde of vampires. Buffy was despatching them with stakes while Willow was destroying them with bolts of fire. She saw herself throw out a sheet of flame, which destroyed the rest of the vampires. She saw herself being hugged by Buffy and the walking back to their dorm, holding hands. Buffy too saw all of this. She was trying to move or speak to say anything. She wanted to attack Nyle or cry out to Willow that she loved her, anything. She couldn�t let Willow be subverted. Her body wouldn�t respond to any commands. She simply couldn�t move a muscle. Willow tried to think clearly. All she saw was the inky darkness of Nyle�s eyes. They seemed to be the whole world. They were offering her everything she�d ever wanted. Power to be Buffy�s equal and Buffy�s love. She could have her hearts desire if she just gave in. She would never give in though. She stepped back away from the Nephandi and looked at him in disgust. She was angry. She knew that everything he had told her was a lie. He didn�t care about people at all. She tried to think of a spell to use on him. Nyle saw her disgust and hatred and knew that she wouldn�t give in to her desires. A small part of him admired her for that but that didn�t stop the greater part of him from erupting in fury, wanting to shred her. �Very well, if you won�t do this for yourself then do it for the woman you love.� He mentally lifted Buffy off the ground and squeezed her. She gasped in pain as her bones strained under the pressure. Willow shouted �No!� But this only made Nyle snarl viciously and increase the pressure. She could see Buffy�s body compressing under the magical assault. Willow tried to focus her thoughts on the magic. She needed to save Buffy. She needed to save the friend she had loved since they had first met. She felt the magic sparking inside and she felt the touch of the lightning as the final piece of the jigsaw in her mind clicked into place. Magic responded to need. She needed to save Buffy. Electricity sparked in her eyes. Buffy�s stoicism failed and she gasped in agony. Willow raised her hands and the exposed wires that littered the gutted library burst into life. �Leave her alone.� Nyle smiled viciously and let the glamour drop from his features. Willow almost gagged as she saw the lice crawling in his beard and was hit by the stink of rotting flesh that emanated from him. �Submit to me or I will teach your beloved Slayer what true torment is.� Willow snarled at him in rage. The primal energy and emotion that she normally kept deeply hidden was bubbling to the surface. Her vision shifted and she saw the electricity all around her. She reached out with her mind and used it. Every exposed wire, plug socket, light fitting exploded with energy. The energy arced towards Nyle, grounding in him. He was enveloped in a blue shroud of electricity. There was a stench of cooking flesh and an ear-splitting howl of agony. It suddenly stopped as Willow fell to her knees on the floor. Her mind felt numb with the effort of it. She looked up at the still standing charred mess that was Nyle. The exhaustion was so great she couldn�t even move as he took a step towards her. She could see the blackened skin flaking off him and the obvious searing agony that he was in but he was still alive and had murder in his eyes. He was a few steps away from her and hooked claws extended from his fingers. Willow looked up at him defiantly. She met his gaze and saw for the briefest moment what real hate was before there was a final flash of pain and his eyes glazed over. Willows gaze lowered to the sword sticking out of his chest. Nyle fell sideways onto the floor. Buffy was standing behind him, holding onto Nyle�s own broadsword. �Forget about me?� She tossed aside the sword and knelt down by Willow. The redhead gazed up at her blearily. �Are you ok, Will?� Buffy asked with concern etched in every syllable. Willow had enough energy to nod and smile. Buffy�s grin almost split her face. She put her arms around the redhead and kissed her. Buffy wasn�t surprised that this kiss was completely different to when she had kissed Willow in her dreams. This kiss was so much better. It was real. * * * * * Willow drifted to sleep happier than she had been in a long time. She could feel Buffy�s hot body pressed against her. They were entwined almost uncomfortably but she couldn�t bear to move away from her. They had staggered back to their dorm and Willow had insisted on a quick call to Giles to tell him all was fine. Buffy seemed to have regained a little self-control and had tried to say that they should wait, be mature, responsible. Willow had smiled sweetly at her and then started to take off Buffy�s clothes. Buffy had stopped being sensible at that point and in no time they were in bed. Willow understood what Buffy meant by taking things slow but she had waited four years for this. Four years when every touch, every look and every supposedly innocent sleepover had been a joyous torture. She was not going to wait any longer. Damned if she was. She had barely had the energy to talk on the way home but somehow she was tapping into hidden reserves now to attack Buffy. She wanted to touch every inch of the Slayers body. She wanted to make up for all the times she had resisted. Afterwards she dreamt she found herself back in the library. But this was the library before explosives had destroyed it. The library that she had felt so at home in. It had been where she had got to know Buffy and Giles and where she had felt part of something. She had been happy in the library. The musty smell of books filled the air and all the gang were sitting around the table chatting. Willow could hear a crackling noise in the air. She made a complete three hundred and sixty degree turn and when she had turned fully round standing in front of her was a figure made completely of electricity. She jumped back in surprise. �Yikes!� The figure cocked it�s head on one side �people really say that?� The voice sounded strange to Willow but she realised she felt completely comfortable with the strange being. �Sorry, you startled me. Who are you?� �I am you.� �I�m me, you�re you.� �A brilliant observation but completely incorrect I am afraid.� A broad smile lit across the being�s face. �I am a part of you. The part of you which is eternal.� �My soul?� �Effectively. I am your Avatar. You awakened me.� �What? How?� �You opened your eyes to the world around you for the first time. You saw that you have the power to shape your own destiny and the world around you. You awakened.� �I still don�t understand.� �You will eventually. You have to seek out someone who can explain everything to you, who can teach you. The only answers I can give are the ones you already know.� �So what do I already know?� �You know that you are seeing the world in a new way. You know that you have been asleep but have finally woken up. You know that there are people who will want to harm you simply because of what you are.� �How did I beat Nyle? Where did that power come from?� �You simply manipulated the power that was already there. The first step in awakening is seeing the world as it truly is. After that it is easy to learn to change it.� �What am I supposed to do now?� �Continue with your life. Learn about your new power. Seek out someone who can teach you but first all you have to do is wake.� Willow woke. The light was pouring in the window. Buffy was still asleep wrapped up in Willow�s arms. The bliss and contentment on Buffy�s face just about broke her heart it was so beautiful. She knew that eventually she would go out and find out about her new powers and what it meant to be awakened but now all she wanted to do was look at the happiness on Buffy�s sleeping face. Fanfic Home |