Willow sat nervously on Anita's couch, Bob coiled up her arm.
The
serpent was agitated as well, biting at anyone who came near them.
She would have admonished him for acting so mean to others, but she
was too worried. She didn't particularly like everything Anita had
told her about Paris. Willow needed to find Xander and fast.
"I've phoned Richard," Anita announced, walking back into the
living
room. "He's going to go find Paris. See what the girl is up to."
"She doesn't have him at her house," Willow informed
them. "Not
unless her house is some sort of natural ward."
Nathaniel frowned, leaning in closer, not not too close. Bob
was
still acting all bitey.
"What do you mean?" he asked the redhead.
"I can't find Xander," she explained. "I can usually find
Xander no
problem. He and I took this potion together before we moved here.
It lets us track the other down when we need to. But I can't find
any trace of him anyway. So, whoever has him, must have him in a
naturally warded area. Sacred ground that holds off the magic of
others."
"The lupanar," Zane declared breathlessly. Willow shot him a
confused look.
"The what?"
"The lupanar," Micah repeated. "Meeting ground of the wolf
pack.
It's sacred ground. If she's got him there-"
"Then we know why you can't find him," Anita finished for the
leopard. "I'm phoning Richard back. Everyone get ready. We're
heading out."
"I'm coming," Willow added, jumping to her feet. "And don't
even try
to make me stay. I'm going to get my friend."
Anita stared at her hard for a second, before nodding her
consent.
The redhead sighed in relief, resting her cheek on top of Bob's head.
"Thank you for this," she called after Anita. The brunette
merely
nodded, turning her attention to Richard. How she was going to
convince the man to let a powerful witch onto his lupanar was beyond
her. But Anita knew, she had to try.
There was a life at stake here.
*****
Richard wasn't having the best day. In fact, this had to be
one of
the worst days he had ever had. First, he is informed that Paris
might have taken hostage a young man very near and dear to a powerful
witch. And then his ex-girlfriend and current Bolverk, informs him
that that same witch is coming to his lupanar to search for his
wayward wolf.
And for some reason, he agreed to it all. Richard didn't know
what
it was. Maybe he knew that Anita wouldn't push something like this
on him without damn good reason. Maybe he could sympathize with this
girl who was desperate to find her friend. Or maybe because he knew
in his heart that Paris had done something bad. And that something
had to be stopped before it went any further.
"You ready?"
Richard looked up at the question. Jamil and Shang-Da were
waiting
for him. Sylvie was gathering the other wolves, getting everyone to
the lupanar. Just because he was letting the witch onto pack ground
didn't mean he trusted her. Having the pack there would foil any
underlying the plots the redhead might have. But Richard knew she
didn't have any. It was all a precaution, to show to the pack that
he was taking this seriously and with their interests in mind.
"I'm ready," he nodded, rising to his feet.
If only he really was.
*****
Willow didn't understand why they couldn't drive faster.
Every
minute Xander was gone was just adding to her worry. Willow felt as
if darkness was trying to climb up into her life. And it was using
her best friend to do it.
Bob sat discontentedly in his cage. She had to put him in
there
until they got to the lupanar. After that, he would be free to go
and to guard Xander from further harm. After all, that was what
feathered serpents were made to do. To guard objects of great
importance to their master.
And no one was as important to Willow as Xander.
She felt a reassuring pat on her shoulder. She didn't have to
look
to know it was that Nathaniel guy. He was doing a lot of that
comfort stuff for her. She patted his hand back, letting him know
she was okay. It was strange that she even let him touch her. She
never let anyone else touch her. Zane and Micah had picked this up
as well. They were shooting her and Nathaniel strange looks during
the entire drive. But Willow ignored them, ignored her own
thoughts. All that mattered was Xander.
And that bitch Paris better not have hurt him. Because
otherwise,
Willow was going to rip her limb from limb.
*****
Richard heard the car approaching from a distance. He
motioned for
his wolves to stay back, and to keep Paris back. The pack had
surprised the woman at the lupanar. They found not only her, but the
missing man. And they had found out what she had done to him.
Richard had never been so angry in his entire life. How he
kept from
killing Paris on sight was beyond him. His eyes darted to the man in
question, watching as the doctor checked him over. He was in bad
shape. The only solace Richard could give him was the knowledge that
by tonight's full moon, the pain would recede.
But something else was going to take its place.
He moved to the front, Jamil and Shang-Da at his side. He
waited
patiently for the car to stop and the passengers to get out. He felt
the power before he saw her. It had been amazing that night at the
Circus, but now it was even more intense. Because she wasn't holding
it back, her emotions made it impossible for her to.
He watched as the redhead automatically let loose her
feathered
serpent, Bob was his name? The serpent flew over their heads, going
immediately to the injured man's side. He motioned with his hand
that it was all right. He turned back to watch her approach.
"He's alive, right?" Anita asked him, eyes watching the
redhead shove
her way through the wolves.
"He's alive," Richard affirmed. "Barely. You're going to have
to
dole out some punishment for this Anita. You should see what she did
to him."
"I probably won't have to," Anita mused. "Not when Willow
sees him.
She is gone, right?"
Richard shook his head. Anita's eyes widened. Her turned her
head
over to Willow, watching as the redhead took in the sight of her
friend. A strangled sob escaped her as she took his hand. Tears
leaked out of her eyes as she placed a kiss in his palm.
Anita pushed her way through the crowd, Richard right on her
heels.
The Executioner fought to get to the witch before Willow could
register her presence. Cause after that, things would get ugly.
"Get Paris out of here Richard," she ordered the
Ulfric. "Before she-"
But it was already too late. Willow had put Xander's hand
back at
his side and slowly risen to her feet. The redhead turned to face
the crowd, everyone getting a good look at her black eyes. She
continued to turn until she set eyes on her target. Willow picked
her out from the others and honed in on her. The other wolves were
blown to the side as the angry witch marched over to the cowering
Paris.
"Oh shit," Anita muttered, watching as Willow's red hair
changed to
black, falling like a curtain around her face. She shot Richard a
look and the man motioned his wolves to stay far back from the witch.
Anita swore, drawing her gun and running to catch Willow
before she
did something very bad.
*****
Part Eight
"Back off Anita."
The command came before the brunette could even reach
Willow. Anita stilled immediately, but kept her gun up.
"Willow, think about this," Anita pleaded with her. "You've
been invited to the lupanar on the Ulfric's invitation. Killing a
pack member is not a good way of showing thanks. And it's against
protocol. We've come here under a banner of peace."
"You came under the banner," Willow shot back. "I came to
get my friend. Look at what she did to him. She's going to pay.
She's stupid to think she won't."
"You cannot do this on lupanar grounds," Richard
declared. "I'm Ulfric, I command it."
"Pack law again?" Willow snickered. "You're talking to the
expert on that shit. I understand all of pack law very well. And it
states that in situations like these, the injured party has the right
to demand vengeance. Xander was made against his will. He's the
injured party."
"He hasn't given you the permission to take his revenge for
him," Anita informed her. "This would be illegal Willow. In both
human and lycanthrope realms."
"Well, she's got permission now," came a hoarse call from
behind them. Anita turned, seeing Xander using Bob to help him sit
up. The man had a look of pure hatred in his eyes.
"Do it Wills," he spat out. Willow needed no more
encouragement than that. With a flick of her wrist, Paris went
flying, smashing up against a tree.
Richard motioned for some of his wolves to step forward.
Willow turned on her heel, sending all approaching persons flying
backwards. She turned angry eyes on Richard.
"Butt out," was the witch's command. Richard couldn't help
but feel a shiver of fear looking at her. The black hair and the
black eyes made a scary picture.
"What are you going to do?" he demanded.
"I won't kill her, if that's what you're asking," Willow
informed him. "Because I want answers. There is no way this stupid
little bitch came up with this idea on her own. I want to know who
put her up to this, and why. Then, you can put her through your
stupid trial system."
Willow turned back to Paris, the woman still struggling to
free herself. Paris stilled for a second, glaring down at the witch.
"You think I'm scared of you?" she shouted down. "I don't
care about you. You're nothing!"
"Who?" was the only thing Willow had to say. Paris laughed
at her.
"Like I'd tell you," she sneered. "Face it bitch, you're not
getting anything out of me."
Willow sighed and hung her head.
"And we could have done this the easy way," she declared in
remorse. When she lifted her head, there was a wicked grin on her
face.
"Glad you chose the hard way," the witch smirked. Time
seemed to stand still for a second. One minute, there was just the
stare down between the two women. The next, Willow was surrounded by
a dozen knives, all hovering around her steadily. Paris didn't even
have time to scream before the knives were flung into her body. Too
late did everyone realize the knives were silver. Too late before
Paris was skewered by them. She couldn't even get out a gurgle after
that. Blood poured down the base of the tree, the pain evident in
Paris's little gasps for air.
Anita watched the whole scene in horror, noting Willow's
pleased smile at Paris's pain. The witch seemed very happy with
herself. And Xander appeared to be as well.
"Stop this," Richard choked out, eyes intent on Paris. "Stop
this now. It's cruel."
"Yes it is," Willow agreed with a calm nod. "But she doesn't
get down until I get an answer. Who put you up to this bitch?"
But Paris had resistance in her yet. She refused to speak,
using her one free hand to pull the knives out of her body. Willow
allowed it, waiting patiently for Paris to finish. Once they were
all out, Paris began to shift, to heal herself. And Willow smiled
wider.
Anita was stunned by what the witch did next. Willow waited
until Paris was halfway through her transformation before raising her
hand again. The Executioner didn't even register what was going on
until she heard Paris scream. Her eyes went to the pinned woman,
taking in the horrible sight in front of her.
Willow had frozen Paris in middle of her transformation. The
shifter was half human and half wolf. Her eyes were frantic as she
thrashed about, trying to complete the shift. Changing to heal was
enough of a chore, but to have your bones stuck in that awkward
transformation state . . . Anita couldn't think of words to describe
the pain.
"Who?" Willow repeated, smile leaving her face. "It all
stops when I find out who Paris."
The wolf was wailing. Some of the other pack members were
trying to move towards her, to help her in some way. People could
feel the pain on the air. But Willow kept them at bay with one
raised hand. Anita knew that girl was too powerful to trust.
"Just give her the goddamn name Paris!" Richard shouted up to
the wolf. Anita had been startled to hear him yell. She cast him a
look. The Ulfric was frantic. He had let a dangerous witch onto
pack ground, and now she was torturing one of his while he stood by
helpless. This was not going to bode well for his reign as leader.
"D'Zanaon," the wounded wolf managed to growl out. Willow's
eyes seemed to flicker at the name. The witch stared hard at Paris,
as if determining if she was telling the truth.
"She gave you the name!" Sylvie shouted. "Let her go
already!"
Willow ignored all of them. She tilted her head slightly,
looking at Paris carefully. A bit of a smirk came to her face and
she raised her hand once more . . .
"Wills?"
The witch stopped immediately, turning around to face her
friend. Xander looked horrible, bloodied, and dead on his feet. Bob
was coiled around him, somehow holding the man up.
"Wills," he continued. "I want to go home now."
And that was all it took. Willow faltered, and then turned
around completely, walking over to her friend. Paris was let go
immediately, falling to the ground in a heap. When the shifter hit
the earth, her transformation was completed. Anita let out a huge
sigh of relief.
Willow continued to make her way to Xander. The other wolves
parted, letting her pass unhindered. She came to her friend, arms
going around him at once. Her eyes went back to green and the
blackness faded from her locks. She leaned her head against his
shoulder and Anita saw the tears leak out.
Willow raised her head and pointed at Paris.
"You take care of her," she instructed. "Or I'll come back
to do it myself."
And then she whispered a few words under her breath. The two
friends and the serpent seemed to shimmer and then disappeared.
Silence reigned at the lupanar, broken only by the soft
exclamation of Jason.
"Maybe she should be lupa."
*****
Part Nine
"You chose a hell of a time to start being assertive."
Nathaniel offered Anita a small little smile as they made
their way down the hallway. Richard with Jamil and Shang-Da were not
far behind. Anita had her gun out and ready while the bodyguards
were on high alert as well. Nathaniel thought they were overdoing
it. Willow hadn't been mad at them, she had been mad at Paris. And
for damn good reason.
He was still a little surprised that he had managed to get
himself permission to come along. Anita usually didn't back down on
these things, but for once, neither did he. It was either he went
with her or he went on his own. Anita opted to take him with her.
But don't confuse matters. She wasn't one bit happy about it.
"She's in a volatile mood right now," he responded to his
Nimir-Ra. "She seems to like me. Shouldn't we be cautious and send
in people she deems as non-threatening."
"You're a lycanthrope Nathaniel," Richard added from the
back. "Right now, she might be finding all shifters to be a threat."
"We won't know until we try," Nathaniel shrugged, stifling
the urge to argue with the Ulfric. He knew inside him Willow
wouldn't hurt him, she wouldn't hurt any of them. She had her
vengeance. But the others weren't convinced.
They stopped in front of the apartment door. Anita knocked a
few times. They got no response. Anita shrugged and turned to
Jamil. Together they kicked in the door. Anita went in first, gun
raised.
Only to have it snapped out of her hands. Anita started,
glancing down at her empty hands. And then she looked up and saw
Bob. The feathered serpent was floating right in the entryway, and
he was flicking his tail at them. A few times he nailed Jamil. The
wolf hissed in pain and tried to back off. The serpent looked angry.
"It's a guardian by nature, remember?" Nathaniel called out
from behind them. "Bob won't let in anyone who might be a threat to
his mistress."
"And he's not letting any of us in," Anita sighed, eyes
looking for her gun. Bob flicked his tail in her direction and she
obediently backed off.
"Maybe we should come back later," Richard mused, eyes on the
serpent in front of them. Nathaniel ignored this and stepped right
up to the serpent. Bob seemed to stare at him for a bit. Finally,
the serpent moved out of the way and let Nathaniel pass through.
Anita tried to follow but was cut off once more by the
serpent.
"Hey!" was the only thing she could muster. Bob hissed and
began crowding the rest to the door.
"Maybe you guys should wait out there," Nathaniel called out
from behind Bob. "I don't think he's going to let you in."
Anita huffed and made to protest when Richard grabbed her arm
and pulled her back.
"Be careful," he shouted to the leopard. And then the rest
of the group allowed Bob to usher them out. Once back in the
hallway, the serpent slammed the door on them. Anita stood in front
of the closed door, beyond anger.
"What the hell?"
*****
"What are you doing here?"
Nathaniel turned when he heard her speak. Willow stood in
front of a bedroom, leaning against the doorframe. She looked tired
and sad. There were tear tracks on her cheeks and her hair was
mussed up. The redhead looked like she had been to hell and back.
"We came to get some answers out of you," Nathaniel
answered. "Well, Anita and Richard want answers. I just wanted to
see if you were okay."
Willow gave a hollow laugh at that.
"The mighty Executioner at my door, demanding answers," the
redhead shook her head. "I should be frightened, no?"
"I doubt much frightens you," he replied.
"You'd be surprised," she whispered, almost as if to
herself. She shook herself and turned to face Bob.
"Go and stay with Xander," she instructed. The serpent flew
off obediently, going into the bedroom she stood in front of. She
waited until both occupants of the room were settled before shutting
the door.
She walked towards him, arms wrapped around herself. It was
a defensive stance if he ever saw one.
"There's a whole lot more going on here than just one
werewolf disobeying her Ulfric," Willow confided in him. "There are
others involved . . . It's just not a good idea for any of you to be
around us right now."
"But why?" Nathaniel pressed. "Who is D'Zanaon? Why would
he hire Paris to do that to Xander?"
"Why does anybody do anything really?" the redhead
shrugged. "Who knows? It's definitely revenge. But whether against
me or against Xander, I have no clue."
"Revenge?" he repeated. "Why would he want revenge on either
of you?"
"There are things about us none of you know about," Willow
replied evenly. "Things you're better off not knowing about.
D'Zanaon is after us; there is no doubt about that. Don't worry
about it. We'll take care of it, we always do."
"That's not good enough," Nathaniel protested. "I'm worried
about you. About both of you. Xander, he's going to be going
through a lot in the next few months, starting tonight. You can't
handle it by yourselves."
"We have before," Willow shrugged. "Did it for Oz, I can
sure as hell do it for Xander. Look Nathaniel, I know you're just
trying to help. I appreciate it, but you have to know, this does not
concern you. I can take care of this. It's my fault anyway."
"Why?" he demanded. "What happened?"
"I crossed a line," she replied quietly. "A line that you're
not suppose to cross. This is just a repercussion of it. I've been
waiting on them, I can handle it."
"But we can help," Nathaniel put his hands on her shoulders,
shaking her a bit. "And Anita and Richard will not let this go. Why
don't you just let us help already? We're not easy to get rid of."
Willow closed her eyes and Nathaniel watched as more tears
fell.
"You can't help," she repeated softly. "I brought this on
myself. I have to deal with it."
She just looked so sad, so guilty, he didn't know what else
to do. He pulled her close and gave her the barest of kisses. Just
brushed his lips across hers. She stiffened at first and then
relaxed. She kissed back. He could feel the tears on her face as
she cried and kissed at the same time. And he knew, it didn't matter
what she said. He was going to help her with this.
A loud knocking on the door pulled them from each other.
"Let us in already!"
Nathaniel shot Willow a wry grin.
"Told you she doesn't give up easily," he shrugged. Willow
gave a little laugh and then pushed him to the door.
"Let her in," she instructed. "Before my landlord kicks us
out permanently."
Nathaniel gave her one more soft kiss before going to open
the door. Willow sighed and leaned against the wall behind her.
This was going to be a long day.
*****
Part Ten
"Who the fuck is D'Zanaon?"
Willow arched an eyebrow at Anita.
"Hello to you too Miss Blake," the redhead returned
sarcastically. "What brings you here this lovely morning?"
"You know damn well why we're here," Anita spat out angrily.
The Executioner had shoved Nathaniel behind her from the moment she
had been granted access to the apartment. The leopard was looking at
his Nimir-Ra in annoyance, but she didn't seem to notice. No, all
her attention was focused on Willow.
"And the Ulfric comes as well," Willow continued as if she
hadn't spoken. "Well, I wasn't prepared for guests this morning, but
obviously that's out of my hands now. Would any of you care for tea?"
"Who is D'Zanaon?" Richard repeated Anita's first question.
The redhead offered him a half smirk.
"Do not worry your head about D'Zanaon," she informed
him. "You can't do anything about it anyway. It's my problem."
"He's using my pack members to get at you," Richard
objected. "I say that's a reason for me to worry about this person.
Now who is he?"
Willow remained silent, seating herself nonchalantly on the
couches. The others stood in front of her, their irritation defined
clearly on their faces.
"I'm only going to ask you once more-"
"Good," Willow interrupted Anita. "That means I only have to
tell you to mind your own business once more."
"Just tell them already," came the croak from the doorway.
Willow spun around in her seat, seeing Xander leaning against his
bedroom door for support. The man did not look much better from last
night, but he was more alert. He made a motion to Bob, signalling
the feathered serpent to help him to the couches. Willow met him
halfway, taking an arm and leading him to the couch. Once more Anita
was stunned by the change in Willow's demeanour. She wasn't cold and
collected anymore. No, she was kind and worried; loving in a way
Anita had yet to see her act with a human.
Xander gave the arrivals the barest of nods, sinking into the
comfort of the couch immediately. He closed his eyes for a brief
second, discomfort flashing over his features. Willow hopped about
him, fussing and fluffing pillows, all the while admonishing him.
"You shouldn't be up," the witch muttered. "I can handle
this on my own."
"Except you weren't handling it," Xander shot back. "You
were just trying to alienate possible allies."
"We don't need allies in this Xander," Willow retorted.
"Yes we do," Xander replied firmly. "We can't handle all
this on our own Wills. I'm going to change-"
"We've dealt with that before," she reminded him.
"By locking him up in a cage," Xander shook his head. "Even
in the end, it didn't help him. Oz still couldn't control the
beast. He killed Veruca. I don't want to take that risk, not when
you would most likely be in danger. I need to learn how to control
the wolf. Who better to teach me than my Ulfric?"
Richard nodded slowly.
"We can teach you," the Ulfric agreed. "We can help you
through it. But we need to know what is going on first."
Xander turned back to Willow, pleading with his eyes. The
redhead seemed to deflate all at once. Her face got tired and Anita
could have sworn she saw years just add themselves on to the
redhead's features. She looked so worn out for a minute.
Willow let out an audible sigh before sinking down next to
Xander. She rested her head on his shoulder before motioning the
others to take seats.
"You really want to know?"
They all nodded. Willow let out another sigh, a defeated
look on her face.
"Well, don't say I didn't warn you."
*****
"We're originally from Sunnydale, the Hellmouth. Lived there
all of our lives. Xander and I have been friends since like birth.
We had this other friend Jesse, who died when we were fifteen. He
was killed by vampires, made into one himself. That's when the
supernatural entered our lives full force. We got a new friend that
year, Buffy Summers, the Slayer. And we helped her out. Her and her
Watcher Giles, we helped them keep a lid on some of the nastier
residents of SunnyHell. And along the way, I picked up witchcraft.
I wasn't great at it first, but I had a lot of power. And so, things
continued to build for a while. We helped the Slayer and also tried
to do the normal people things like school and such. About two years
ago, we had to go up against some hell god from another dimension.
Basically she wanted to open all dimensional gates and plunge the
world into chaos. Buffy's job was to save her. Long story short, we
got the bitch but Buffy died along the way. And I for some stupid
reason couldn't leave it at that. Since Buffy died an abnormal
death, I thought I could bring her back to life. We hid her death
from everyone, using a Buffybot, which I am not going to explain,
take over her duties. And then I brought Buffy back to life. It
took a lot of magic but I did it. Kind of pushed me into a higher
level as a witch. Okay, the rest of the stuff that happened that
year was really inconsequential. I gave up magic because I think I
got hooked on it, Xander left his bride at the altar-"
"You had to mention that," Xander interrupted, shaking his
head. Willow offered him a little smile.
"But none of that really prepared us for what happened next,"
the witch continued, her voice becoming forlorn. "There were these
three idiots, computer nerds and the such, who wanted to take over
the Hellmouth. Basically, we foiled all their plans and the leader
went nuts. Came to our house in the middle of the day and shot it
up. One bullet hit Buffy, but she survived. But one hit my
girlfriend Tara, and killed her almost instantly."
She stopped for a second, pain flashing over her features.
Xander slung an arm over her shoulders and prodded her along.
"I was upset to say the least," the witch shrugged. "It's
not an excuse for what I did, but it was how I felt. I killed
Warren, the man who shot Tara. And I don't regret, so don't even go
there. But I was still unsatisfied with my revenge. I wanted to
kill the other two idiots who were working with Warren. Long story
short, Buffy and the others tried to stop me. But by the end of the
day, I decided maybe ending the entire world would have been better.
Don't even ask why, I don't know. But I tried. There was this altar
of sorts to some goddess or the other. It had been buried under the
surface of the Hellmouth for decades. I raised it and tried to
infuse it with power so that it would scorch the world of all life.
But this moron jumped in the middle of it. He stopped me, brought me
back to myself right before I could do anything too stupid."
"But what about D'Zanaon?" Anita pressed.
"Well, D'Zanaon is a higher level demon," Willow answered
slowly. "Unfortunately, he was the head worshipper of that goddess
whose statue I tried to use to end the world. And when it was
brought back up, I guess he thought the plan he had devised years ago
would come to fruition. But Xander stopped me. And once I was calm
enough, I destroyed the damn thing. Flung pieces of it across the
planet in smouldering ashes. It can't be rebuilt. I'm figuring he
might just be a little angry about that."
"So that's it?" Richard asked incredulously. "He's angry
because you ruined his statue?"
"I ruined any chance of him fulfilling his lifelong purpose,"
Willow clarified. "Nothing he could do would fix what I had done.
He's probably very ticked off with me. Maybe more so with Xander
because he's the one who stopped me."
"And he hired Paris to do this just to torment you?" Anita
asked, brow arched. Willow shrugged.
"It's entirely possible," the witch conceded. "I don't
know. I just know that he's most likely going to come after us. And
you don't want to be here for that. He's a higher-level demon.
Almost entirely pureblood."
"And he's coming for you two," Nathaniel finished for her
quietly. Willow nodded, closing her eyes as she rested her head on
Xander's shoulder.
"Now do you see?" she asked them. "This is why I want you
guys to leave us alone."
Anita nodded slowly. She exchanged a look with Richard, the
two of them communicating silently. Finally the brunette turned back
to her with a determined face.
"You don't always get what you want."
*****
Part Eleven
Richard let out a deep sigh, looking up at the sky. The sun
was setting, moon about to rise. Full moon tonight, the first night
they would see Xander change.
His eyes went to the new member of his pack, noting the way
he stood shivering in the breeze. Richard had warned him about the
whole clothes shredding thing when one changed, but Xander was quite
adamant about not being naked. So he stood in the middle of lupanar
in his boxers.
Richard's eyes left Xander to travel to his companion,
Willow. The redhead sat on the edges of the lupanar, seated rather
primly on a large rock. Bob was off floating the sacred ground, as
if seeing it was in fact safe. And it was. Anita had dealt with
Paris just this morning. There was no danger here for Xander.
Too bad he couldn't say the same thing about Willow. The
other wolves had not forgotten the actions of the witch on their
land. Something they saw as unforgivable in many aspects. Sylvie
was snarling in the redhead's direction, eyes flickering with amber.
Richard had given Willow safe passage in the lupanar for the night,
something he hadn't wanted to do. But Xander had been adamant that
Willow be with him. He in fact refused to go if Willow couldn't go.
The man felt safe with her. And given the circumstances of his
change, Richard was willing to make that sacrifice.
His eyes went back to the sky, noting the sun was just about
to slip under the horizon. He looked towards Xander, giving him the
barest of nods.
It was starting.
*****
Willow watched in trepidation as the moon rose up high in the
sky. She didn't want to look at Xander at this moment, too see the
pain on his face at the change took him. But she had to.
Her eyes went to him immediately, letting all her love and
comfort flow into them. He looked back at her, taking solace in her
presence. And then it began.
He let out a gasp at first, faltering a bit on his feet.
Then he grimaced, pain obvious on his face. His arms went to his
sides as he clutched at his ribs; as if in some last ditch attempt to
keep the beast at bay. He fell to his knees with another gasp.
Willow's eyes filled with tears as he let out a painful
scream. She wanted to go to him, to hold him until the pain receded,
but she could not. Werewolves were the most contagious of
lycanthropes, meaning no touching for her. Not until he had some
control over himself.
Xander was foaming at the mouth. He turned his face back to
her, nose picking up the scent of her on the air. She took in his
amber eyes rather calmly, knowing exactly what to expect. After all,
they had done this for Oz for two and a half years. She knew what to
look for.
Richard made to step forward when Xander moved in her
direction. Amazing that he was able to keep his beast under wraps
during the full moon. That meant power and control the likes she
hadn't seen before. Sure Oz had managed not to answer to the call of
the moon, but he had a harder time controlling his emotional
reactions. Oz had never really accepted the beast as a part of
himself. Richard, though not always happy with his beast, had
accepted it long ago.
She waved him back with her hand. She didn't need him to
protect her here. It was just Xander. An infinitely more furry and
hungry Xander, but still Xander. The boy that she had loved on
sight. The boy she harboured a crush on for most of her life. The
boy who nearly died protecting her on many nights. The boy who had
turned into a man who she still loved. He took care of her when she
needed him, and she would take care of him now. And never once did
her faith in waver. Not even in all those months when a sad barrier
had risen between them. Even in the time when they weren't as close
as they had always been, she still trusted him with her life. And
that held.
He was stalking her almost. His beast was out full force.
Richard was coming to her side regardless of what she said. He
didn't think Xander could control his beast, not on his first night
of change. But he didn't know like she did.
Willow raised her hand once more, shooing Richard away. He
made to protest, but one look at her black eyes made him back off.
He returned to the sidelines, keeping an eye on the other wolves
present. They were all also intrigued by Willow's scent, infinitely
more pronounced to them in light of the full moon. He sent out a
warning to them. They would steer clear of the witch, she was off
limits.
Willow just sat and watched while Xander got furrier than
before. His face disappeared into the mask of a wolf. She saw the
fangs glinting out from underneath his lips. Those warm brown eyes
that she had swooned over in childhood changed to haunting amber.
And he just got closer.
Xander was salivating just at the sight of her. The beast
was out in full force and Richard didn't understand how the man kept
from pouncing on the waiting girl in front of him. The
transformation was complete for now, the pain having receded into
hunger.
He jumped before any of them could stop him. Richard ran to
Willow's side, skittering to a stop when he saw what had actually
happened. The witch held the wolf by the sides of the head, looking
deep into its eyes. The beast was snarling and frothing but she
never broke gaze with him.
And amazingly, the wolf calmed. He climbed down off the
witch, whimpering in the most heartbreaking way. Richard watched
astounded as Willow ran her hair through his fur, bringing him to her
once more. She placed a kiss on the top of his skull before lowering
his head to her lap.
The wolf closed his eyes and relaxed his body. She continued
to run her fingers through his fur, stroking him behind the ears.
There were a few tears on her face as she looked down at her friend,
but never once did her hands shake. Never once did fear show itself
in the witch in any manner. It was as if she knew that all of this
would happen. And that he would never hurt her, not even when he had
control over himself.
Richard watched with bated breath as other wolves emerged
from the dark, moving towards the new member of the pack carefully.
Some of them regarded Willow in a scared manner, muscles tensing at
the sight of the redhead. One by one they all made their way to
Xander, lying down next to the new wolf. Soon most of the pack lay
at the feet of the witch, but she took no notice of them. Her
attention never left the wolf she held to herself. Bob slowly
floated down to settle by his mistress, coiling around her waist to
rest his head on her shoulder. She made quite the picture.
Richard shook his head, settling down on the ground quietly.
His eyes never left the gathered group of wolves. Some of them had
drifted off into sleep, others heading there themselves. They seemed
no longer disturbed by the presence of the redhead. A few, one by
Jason himself, offered their heads to her for patting. She smiled
and complied, fingers stroking the furs of many of his wolves. Her
touch seemed tranquil in some way, leading most of the wolves to just
drift off into sleep cuddled around her feet. He let a smile touch
his lips for the first time all day.
Maybe this would work after all.
*****
Part Twelve
"So, how did it go?"
Richard sighed, running his hand through his hair. He honestly
wished that Anita would remember that though being a werewolf, he was
still part human. And that his human part did need sleep every now
and then. So why was she here at his front door first thing in the
morning? Dragging none other than Micah behind her. Really, he
honestly didn't know if that woman had any sort of common sense in
her at all.
"What?" It was the only coherent noise he was capable of making at
the moment.
"How did it go last night?" Anita repeated, barrelling her way into
his living room. Micah followed, offering him a bit of a sympathetic
smile as he followed her. Richard only sighed once more and lightly
banged his head against the wall.
"Really Richard."
He didn't have to look to know that she had her hands on her hips and
eyebrow arched at him. It was the classical condescending Anita
pose. She expected him to be forthcoming this morning. He'd be a
lot more amicable if the woman ever let him get a good four hours of
sleep. Was that really too much to ask for? Fours hours? Whose
going to miss four hours of the day? There are twenty hours left
over that she could use to harrass him.
"Things went fine," he finally muttered in response. "Xander changed
and Willow's still alive, which is kind of remarkable considering how
angry some of the pack was with her."
"Did someone try something?" she asked immediately, eyes narrowing.
Richard frowned at that. She looked ready to whip out the gun and
start shooting in Willow's defence. Which was really strange
because . . .
"I thought you didn't like Willow," he stated confusedly. "Why all
the concern?"
She went red at that, shooting Micah a glance. And then Richard
understood.
"Nathaniel," he nodded in understanding. Anita sighed, turning to
sit on his couch with her hands folded in front of her.
"He really likes her," the Executioner muttered. "Which means that
the girl is important to me. He actually looks happy at the mention
of her. And after all he's been through, how can I as Nimir-Ra not
hold onto that for him?"
Richard shook his head, rubbing his eyes as he took a seat across
from her and Micah. The wereleopard was strangely quiet today, but
then again, Anita was did do enough talking for everyone else.
"She's fine," he assured her. "She is great in fact. After last
night, I'm thinking about 90% of the pack loves her."
"And the other ten percent?"
"Are scared of her," Richard shrugged. "Can't be helped. And Jason
certainly isn't helping any."
"Why?"
"Well, let's just say he's leading the Willow for Lupa campaign right
now," Richard laughed, shaking his head. "Even she seemed amused at
the prospect. But she told me in no uncertain terms that though I
was a hottie, she didn't have a desire to mate with me. Maybe she
likes Nathaniel too."
"We can hope," Micah muttered.
"Lupa?" Anita repeated. "They want her to be lupa?"
Richard could almost see the minor jealousy flare up in the brunette
again.
"She lacks two qualifications Anita," he reminded. "No lycanthropy
and no desire to hold the title. I think it's safe to say Willow
won't be lupa any time soon."
"But what will she be?" Micah piped up. "She has to have some sort
of title now doesn't she? From what you say, they've already
welcomed her as extended pack."
"We'll cross that bridge when we get to it," Richard murmured. "So,
what on your end? Who is D'Zanon?"
"A badass," Anita replied frankly. "Willow couldn't have picked a
worse demon to piss off."
"Sounds like someone else I know," Richard muttered under his
breath. Micah caught it, giving him an agreeing smile in return.
Anita just frowned at this exchanged, shaking her head a bit.
"We can fix it," she continued. "It's going to be difficult, but we
can most likely fix it."
"Or?" Richard prodded. Anita shrugged.
"Or the same thing we always do."
"Meaning worse comes to worse, you'll shoot him."
"Yeah, so?" she had a bit of a challenging look on her face. Richard
just sighed, raising his hands in defeat.
"Just checking."
*****
"Being a wolf is kind of draining."
Willow giggled at the sight of Xander, lying facedown on his bed and
talking into his pillow. The words were muffled, but she heard them
nonetheless.
"I don't know why you're so tired," she poked him. "I'm the one who
was awake all night. You slept through most of it."
"But I was the only one here who let my inner beast out of its cage,"
he retorted, face still in his pillow. "So I win this argument."
"You just keep telling yourself that," Willow giggled, moving to get
off his bed. "Me, I'm heading to the sack."
"Working tonight?"
"As always."
There was a bit of a silence after that and she moved to the door.
"Don't forget to call your kitten," Xander called out at the last
second. "He might be anxious to hear from you."
Willow paused, thinking of Nathaniel.
"I'll do that," she whispered. "Sleep well Xander."
"You too bosom buddy."
Willow shut his door, leaning against the wooden frame as she looked
at the phone on the coffee table. A smile came to her face, thinking
of her "kitten".
Willow reached for the phone, a full blown smile on her face.
*****