Book 3: Wanted: A Werewolf And A Superman

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Scully frowned as she looked up from her laptop when Mulder entered her hotel room with barely a knock.

“What up?” he asked casually as he dropped a pizza on the bed next to her and peeled off a Pepsi from the six-pack he was carrying.

She decided to make him wait as she raised the top of the pizza and investigated what kind he had ordered. <Combination without onions, nice.>

“I’ve been going over Willow Rosenberg’s records from the Initiative,” she said as Mulder settled in on the other side of the bed and grabbed for a slice, handing her several napkins.

“They put her through hell in just those three days, Mulder,” Scully growled. “Electric shocks, mind altering drugs, heat tolerance, cold tolerance, pain tolerance, and that’s just the start. Then they decided on some real torture, more mind altering drugs, extreme noise, light, sleep deprivation, and triggering phobias.”

“What were they trying to accomplish?” he asked with a frown as intense as his partner’s.

“To force her to change into a werewolf without the trigger of the full moon,” Scully answered. “Their goal is to train werewolf soldiers to be able to change on command, either voluntarily or through some device implanted in them.”

“Not with Willow, they may have with others,” the FBI agent/doctor said as she moved her cursor around on the screen. “I’m concentrating on Willow’s file specifically right now so we might be able to tell Giles and the others what to expect.”

“Good idea, we’ve been called back to the Hill to account for our time here,” Mulder said casually.

“Someone at the Initiative complaining about us shutting down their organization?” Scully questioned with a smile.

“Well, sabotaging their entire computer system, blowing up one of their Centers, killing several of their operatives and stealing Willow back from them tended to make them very unhappy,” Mulder agreed.

“Danger? Yes,” Mulder nodded. “Career? No, they can’t touch us without risking exposure, for once.”

“Any chance Professor Maggie Walsh will talk and they’ll capture Willow again?”

“There is a risk but a small one, I think she’ll move onto her Super Soldier program and leave Sunnydale alone,” Mulder shrugged between bites. “Any permanent damage to Willow?”

“Possible flashbacks from some of those drugs, almost all of which are not approved for testing on animals, let alone humans,” Scully complained. “Definite flashbacks from the physical torture she went through. Possible seizures from the electric shocks, and sensitivity to heat and cold. She was very lucky, actually.”

“Right, Daniel Oswald, the young werewolf responsible for breaking her hand and infecting Buffy. Ultimately responsible for Willow’s lycanthropy,” Mulder nodded, reaching for another slice of pizza.

“Yes, they were hoping he was still out of control and would rape her,” Scully said bitterly.

“Oh God,” Mulder muttered, struggling to keep his pizza down at the thought of his young witch friend being raped by a werewolf.

“They wanted to use her as a brood mare werewolf,” Scully said softly, remembering her own child. A daughter she never knew she had conceived, born in a test lab and dying because she was an alien hybrid and couldn’t tolerate the Earth.

“I’m sorry, Scully,” Mulder said softly, realizing by Dana’s expression what she was thinking about.

“I’m alright,” she said with a small smile. “It would have been worse for Willow, going through the pregnancy and giving birth due to rape and then have the child taken away as a lab rat.”

“You know we stopped them here in Sunnydale but they have other Centers,” Mulder complained softly.

“I know. A little at a time, Mulder,” Scully said. “That’s all we can do. One windmill at a time.”

Buffy felt the body next to hers jerk and then heard a familiar whimper. The Slayer opened her eyes and tightened her arm around Willow as the young witch flinched.

“Wills, it's okay,” Buffy shook her lover again and wasn’t surprised when Tara, on the other side of Willow, turned over to face Willow and Buffy.

Willow jerked and opened her eyes, a look of fear on her face. She blinked a couple of times and then sighed.

“I’m sorry, guys,” she said softly as both blondes wrapped their arms around her.

“It's okay, Wills,” Buffy smiled, wrapping her arm around both Willow and Tara.

Tara leaned up and looked at the clock and then snuggled back down onto Willow’s shoulder. “Time to get up anyway, the alarm is about to go off.”

With a frown, Buffy leaned back and whacked the radio alarm, just as it started to buzz.

“I could use another few hours,” Tara complained, lightly nuzzling Willow’s neck.

“Me too,” Willow whispered as her hand unconsciously played in Buffy’s hair. “They didn’t let me sleep much.”

Buffy frowned and squeezed both her girlfriends tightly. She reflected she could use some extra sleep as well, especially now that they had Willow back from the Initiative.

“Come on, guys,” she said easily, leaning over to kiss Tara and then Willow. “Giles is expecting us downstairs.”

After a short meeting at Giles’ place, the girls and Joyce had returned to the Summers home for a round of showers, food, and a long nap. It had been 11 a.m. when they finally laid down for some much-needed rest.

Now it was 4:30 p.m. and they needed to get ready for the full moon. Another night when Willow would turn into a werewolf.

“Okay, I admit it, I’m scared,” Willow said, sitting up in the middle of the bed.

Tara sat up beside her and wrapped an arm around the red-haired witch’s shoulder.

“We’ll be right there,” Tara tried to reassure her lover. “The spells we did will keep out everyone out of the crypt, except members of the Scooby Gang. You’ll be safe with us.”

“I know, I’m just squeamish when it comes to pain,” Willow tried a small smile.

“After all the times you’ve been thrown around, backhanded by some vampire, put in the hospital and terrorized out of your mind, you won’t notice this,” Buffy grinned. “I don’t remember beginning to change last month when you did that spell.”

“I know, Oz said you don’t start remembering the change until you’re used to it and it’s not as painful,” Willow commented, getting out of the bed behind Tara.

Buffy leaned down and grabbed Willow’s shoes and motioned for the witch to sit down on the bed.

Since they had lain down on top of the bed with their clothes on, they didn’t have to get dressed except for shoes and Willow needed help with hers.

“I would love to spend the rest of the night snuggling with both of you but we’ve only got an hour and twenty minutes before moonrise,” Willow reminded them as Tara reached down to kiss her and then Buffy.

“I have a feeling we’re going to know the rise and setting of every moon for the rest of our lives,” Tara complained. “Moonrise at 5:54 p.m. and setting at 6:24 a.m.”

Giles was sitting at the dining table with Scully and Mulder while Joyce prepared a quick dinner in the kitchen.

Buffy and Tara looked over Giles’ shoulder at the computer screen while Willow began to pace in the living room.

“Restlessness is common,” Giles muttered to them. Willow glared and then continued pacing.

Joyce entered from the kitchen with a plate of roast beef sandwiches and three bags of chips. Giles jumped up and went into the kitchen for sodas.

“What have you science types figured out?” Buffy asked, watching Willow pacing.

“You already know most of it,” Mulder commented. “You’ve actually dealt with werewolves before. The affects from her time with the Initiative should be short term except for the flashbacks and nightmares.”

“So we go on as before?” Tara asked. “We continue helping Buffy with slaying… .”

“You know that spell you did was irreversible, don’t you? It can’t be undone even with another spell,” Giles commented.

“I don’t think we have time to lecture me about risking such powerful and dark magick,” Willow snapped.

“Shall we then?” he asked as Buffy grabbed another sandwich as they headed for the door.

The worried mother watched her daughter and two daughters-in-law leave with Giles and looked over at the two FBI agents.

“There’s always hope, we’ve seen some incredible things,” Mulder said with a small smile.

“We might be able to do something with reversing the DNA change that she’s been through,” Scully said thoughtfully. “And Mulder, Giles, and Willow will continue to look for a spell.”

“God, she’s so young,” Joyce complained. “Buffy was only fifteen when Merrick told her she was the Slayer and turned her into a vampire hunter.”

Willow sat down unhappily on a sleeping bag as Tara knelt and began removing the red-haired witch’s shoes. Willow unconsciously scratched at her fingers sticking out of the cast.

Buffy sat down behind Willow and wrapped her arms around the hacker. Willow leaned back and interlaced her fingers with the Slayer.

“Yup, got it covered,” Buffy agreed. She looked up and saw Giles preparing a needle. “With you unconscious when you change, you probably won’t shred your clothes though.”

Buffy felt the witch stiffen and her breathing quicken. Tara also noticed the change in energy and looked up into Willow’s green eyes.

Tara fell backwards and Buffy tightened her embrace around Willow when they all heard a warning growl from the witch.

“Okay,” she agreed and tried to keep her breathing calm and even as Willow’s green eyes changed to yellow. Tara looked up at Buffy. “Drop your shields, Buff.”

Buffy dropped her mental shields and let Tara connect with her. In a moment she could see what Tara was seeing, Willow’s yellow eyes, growing teeth and tense muscles. Together, she and Tara melded their connection and reached out for Willow but found themselves blocked.

Tara reached out with her left hand as if to gently stroke Willow’s cheek and slid the needle to Buffy.

Willow growled at Tara’s hand and Buffy tightened an arm around the witch and quickly injected the hacker in the neck.

The Watcher moved forward and checked the witch’s pulse and pupils. “She’ll be okay. Let’s get out of here before she changes, she may thrash.”

Buffy and Tara reluctantly moved out of the cage with the Watcher and watched as he shut the door firmly and listened to the lock click.

“Come on, Tara, this is the painful part for us too,” Buffy urged Tara, gently pulling the witch away from the cell.

“Buffy?” Tara whispered as Buffy tried to lead her away from the bars, her eyes still locked on Willow as the red hair turned into fur and claws extended from the hacker’s hands.

“Come on, Tara,” Buffy urged and got her girlfriend away. “Giles, what was that about? She started changing early!”

“I think she was reacting to the sight of the needle, recent trauma and such,” he pondered.

“She’s on the verge of being able to change at will?” Tara asked, her voice fearful.

Giles hung up a blanket across the cell bars and turned to comfort his Slayer and Tara.

“Okay, Professor,” a young man with a military haircut called to a middle aged woman in a lab coat. “We set up in those caves you specified. Industrial size generators installed, super computers, three labs set up.”

“Totally, Finn. You get to know everything now,” Professor Walsh smiled. “The first thing you get to know is the need for absolute silence. You cannot be spotted by Buffy Summers or any of her friends, they cannot know we stayed here in Sunnydale and had this alternate plan.”

“Yes, Professor,” Riley agreed, frowning as he thought about his ex-girlfriend.

“Your first assignment is to contact the Los Angeles unit, they have a particular demon that we need for our experiment, arrange transport,” Walsh ordered. “You’ll be let in on the project very soon, Finn.”

“Now we work full time on the ultimate project, the super soldier of the future,” Walsh said softly to herself. “The first soldier shall be named Adam.”

Buffy moaned and lifted her head off the pillow and glanced down at Tara sleeping in her arms.

The Slayer had stayed with the blonde witch during Willow’s first night as a werewolf with them. The drugs had worn off after two hours and they had elected not to shoot her with a tranquilizer dart when the werewolf didn’t seem overly violent, just restless. They tried to ignore the werewolf watching them through the bars most of the night and the animals’ pacing. Occasionally the werewolf would even growl when they moved around the crypt.

The werewolf had finally settled down on the sleeping bag at 4 a.m. and Buffy and Tara had decided to lay down on the air mattress to try and sleep. Tara had drifted to sleep and Buffy dozed lightly. She was aware every time the werewolf got up, looked around and then lay back down.

Buffy stood up and walked over to the bars and glanced over the blanket. She remembered the numerous times they had watched Oz in the bookcage at the school library. Similar blankets had been hung up to give the young man privacy when he would change back into human and find himself totally naked.

Willow was asleep in the sleeping bag with her back to the door. Buffy could see the red head’s naked shoulder and sighed with relief that the young witch had gotten into the sleeping bag shortly after changing. Maybe they wouldn’t have to worry about Willow catching a cold from the cold winter morning in a damp crypt.

Buffy heard movement behind her and turned with a smile to see Tara sitting up, rubbing her eyes sleepily.

“Hey, baby,” Buffy grinned and crossed back to the bed and into Tara’s arms. The Slayer laughed softly as Tara pulled her over onto the mattress, ending up on top of Buffy.

“Morning,” Tara said softly and began kissing Buffy as the Slayer moaned and wrapped her arms around the witch.

Buffy slid her hands under Tara’s t-shirt and the witch responded with a moan of arousal and broke the kiss to nibble on Buffy’s neck.

Tara’s head and back arched as Buffy’s hands roamed over her breast and pulled at her t-shirt.

“Willow is going to wake up and Giles will be here any minute!” Tara insisted with a small laugh.

“Listen, I’m going to go outside and head Giles off, you wake Willow up,” Tara suggested. “I’ll bring Giles back in about an hour.”

“Because Willow is going to wake up frisky and need one of us,” Tara explained and was surprised when Buffy frowned.

“You make it sound like you’re second choice,” Buffy complained. “You are not second choice or second best!”

“Relax!” Tara smiled. “I don’t think that even though I know you’ve always been in Willow’s heart first.”

“Yeah, you’re the one that woke her up from that darkness Oz left her in,” Buffy growled. “And your connection with her is much different than mine and deeper.”

“Might be rushing Willow,” Buffy said thoughtfully. “Those damned Initiative types messed with her a lot.”

“No, we’ll talk about this after breakfast, school, and a nap today,” Tara promised and sat up, reaching for her shoes.

“I love you, Buffy,” Tara answered with a smile, leaning back into the embrace. “I’m not jealous and I don’t feel left out.”

“I hope not,” Buffy said softly. “Have you seen the way Willow looks at you?”

“Both,” Tara laughed. “At least before the Initiative. Agent Scully didn’t say anything about hurting her sexually.”

“No, they didn’t have time,” Buffy confirmed. “They wanted Oz to mate with her but he became a nice guy again according to the reports.”

“No, not really,” Buffy answered seriously. “You know we still need to find out more about that spell she did. Mulder said it was dark magic.”

“I know, to call a curse like lycanthropy on yourself is almost the equivalent of making a pact with a demon for your soul,” Tara said thoughtfully.

“Damn,” Buffy muttered and then tried to smile. “Go, find Giles and head him off.”

“I will,” Buffy smiled and watched the blonde witch climb the stairs to the upper crypt and out the door.

Professor Walsh stood over the table and looked down at the figure on the steel table with the loving eyes of a parent, or Victor Frankenstein looking at his creation.

The only ones that could look at the creature on the table with such affection would be a creator. The only thing normal looking about the figure was its short brown hair and part of the right half of his face. The rest of the head was a combination of strange green demon skin and the shiny metal of a cyborg. The rest of the body was covered with a white sheet.

Various tubes and wires ran to different parts of the body under the sheet, including the metal part of his head.

Professor Walsh checked several read-outs from different machines lining the walls around the table in the center of the room.

Buffy whimpered and clutched at the sleeping bag below her as Willow thrust into her even deeper and harder.

Tara had been right in her assessment of Willow’s mood when Buffy woke her up. Willow had nearly attacked her when the ‘good morning’ kiss became something very heated and lively between the two. Buffy’s clothing had quickly been pulled off or ripped off as Willow’s teeth, hand and lips were all over the Slayer.

“Wills! Oh, God!” Buffy cried out as her hips lifted off the sleeping bag. Willow followed the Slayer with her fingers and tongue, not stopping pleasing her lover and never breaking the rhythm they had set.

“Wills!” Buffy screamed again. She had no idea any more how many times they had pleased each other. She became aware of her surroundings when she collapsed back onto the sleeping bag, breathing heavily. Her muscles were shaking and she felt like she had no strength left.

Buffy looked down to see Willow’s head resting on her thigh, loving green eyes watching her as the red haired witch caught her breath and slowed her heart rate.

“I love you too, Buff,” Willow smiled. “We should get dressed; won’t Giles and Tara be here soon?”

“Buffy,” Willow began slowly as she reached for a t-shirt and Buffy helped her get it on. Willow leaned on Buffy’s shoulder to step into the sweat pants she had taken to wearing since her hand was caught in the cast.

“What happened last night?” Willow asked softly. “I don’t remember getting a shot.”

Buffy suddenly looked uncomfortable. “Uh, Wills, you saw the needle and had a panic attack or something. You started to change early.”

“Change, early?” Willow repeated. “I was so scared I started to change? Oh God, Buffy!”

“Wills, it's okay!” Buffy exclaimed, grabbing Willow from behind and hugging her. “You didn’t hurt anyone. Mulder and Scully said you might have reactions like that.”

“After that workout, I probably won’t need to spar with Giles this afternoon,” Buffy teased and grinned as Willow blushed.

The day went quickly for the three young college students. Willow felt a little ridiculous going to class with the threat of the full moon hanging over her just a few short hours away. She wondered once again how Oz could have dealt with it all those months with very little wigging out.

By the end of classes all three were dragging; especially Willow and Tara since they didn’t have Buffy’s Slayer stamina. They readily agreed to a nap. Giles and Joyce went to the crypt to stock snacks in anticipation for Tara to watch over Willow that night.

Willow woke up in Tara’s arms and no sign of Buffy. Tara muttered and slammed her hand down on the snooze bar of the clock radio. Willow couldn’t help but grin.

“How does Buffy do it, night after night with so little sleep?” Tara growled.

“Slayer stamina, goes along with that extra strong thingy,” Willow managed to smile as she glanced at the clock. “We’d better get going.”

“I know, I know,” Tara muttered, swinging her legs over the side of the bed.

Willow and Tara were surprised to see Mulder and Scully waiting downstairs in the living room for them along with Buffy, Giles and Joyce.

“Where’s Xander, Anya and Brad, it could be a full Scooby meeting,” Willow quipped, trying to be upbeat.

Willow grabbed a quick hug from Buffy and sat down on the floor in between the Slayer’s legs while Tara sat down on the arm of the chair, playing with Buffy’s hair.

“We have to leave in an hour and thought we’d drop by,” Mulder explained. “Didn’t want to leave without saying goodbye.”

“Just very detailed reports of what they did to her,” Scully answered and Willow shifted uncomfortably.

“I don’t remember a lot of the details, it was all pretty awful,” Willow muttered. “Really high up there on the awful scale.”

“Just like we figured the other day, you may experience flashbacks from some of those experimental drugs they gave you,” Scully said softly.

“Terrific,” Giles complained. “They get through their entire teen years without drugs and now this?”

“She’ll also have some reactions that are common to victims of assault and torture, I’m leaving a disk with things to expect,” Scully continued. “Panic attacks, nightmares, flashbacks during intense emotional moments, depression, insomnia, short temper, relationship problems… .”

“Look, I’m really sorry,” Scully said gently. “We just want you to know what you might expect.”

“We appreciate that, Agent Scully, truly,” Giles said calmly. “Please go on.”

“Denial, suppression, uncontrolled sweating, hyper alert, hyper watchful, distrust of government or official institutions… ”

“Headaches, lack of concentration, possible memory loss, and feelings of being numb are just some of the fun highlights,” Scully finished.

“Not to mention clenching jaw muscles, racing heartbeat, breathing difficulties, chest pain, change in appetite, and emotional outburst,” Giles added. “Slayers often suffer PTSD during their careers and Watchers seem to suffer quite a bit with it, especially in retirement.”

“Nothing we can’t handle, Willow,” Tara said firmly, glancing at her watch.

“Dealing with all the side affects can work on a relationship,” Scully explained. “Having your partner suddenly snapping at you, suffering with nightmares, having flashback during sex, all that can take a toll.”

“We already deal with Buffy’s nightmares and doubts,” Willow said thoughtfully.

“Exactly,” Giles nodded with a rueful smile. “Now it’s time to say goodbye, girls.”

“Damn!” Willow muttered and ducked as Buffy climbed over her to stand up. The Slayer reached down and helped Willow to her feet and drew Willow into a reassuring hug which was joined by Tara.

“I’m going to miss you,” the red haired witch said softly. “You’ll still email?”

Thing went a little smoother for the three young women, Willow didn’t freak at the sight of the hypodermic needle this time and let Buffy inject her with the tranquilizing drugs.

Tara held the witch as the drugs took affect and Willow’s head fell back against her shoulder.

Tara gently stroked Willow’s head and laid the witch back onto the sleeping bag and watched closely.

“Come on, Tara,” Buffy said softly, gently touching Tara on the shoulder. “She’ll be okay the change won’t hurt.”

“Yeah, totally,” Buffy agreed and held Tara’s hand as they walked out of the cell and closed the door, listening to the combination lock click into place. Buffy looked at Tara’s watch and sat down at the card table with her lover.

“How many times did someone sit outside the bookcage and watch Oz during his furry time?” Tara asked.

“Lots,” Buffy answered with a smile. “With your protection spells around the place it should be safer than the library at school was.”

“Then I’ll be fine. I’m going to do homework and nap,” Tara said easily, glancing over at the cage. She frowned as Willow began to jerk and moan softly in her drugged sleep. Buffy followed her gaze and both watched as Willow’s light red hairs on her arms became darker and thicker.

“Come on, Tara,” Buffy said, turning her head. “Don’t torture yourself.”

“I know, it just kills me that she goes through this,” Tara said softly, trying not to cry. “Those damned Initiative bastards!”

“Go on,” Tara urged. “We’ll be fine. She’s changed and still asleep.”

Buffy glanced over and saw that Willow was indeed a full werewolf now and still unconscious.

“She should sleep for several hours, Oz averaged about four hours before the wolf came out of it,” Buffy said.

“No,” Buffy frowned. “Only if she managed to rip that door open would you need to sedate her.”

Buffy melted into Tara’s embrace and the kissing lasted over a couple of minutes until they broke apart, their foreheads touching.

Giles watched as the FBI agents got into their rental car and slowly pulled away in the early evening. The Watcher hated seeing them go but knew they had their own jobs and lives to get back to.

“What they said about Willow, it’s horrible, Rupert,” she said as they turned to go back inside the Summers' house.

“I know, it won’t be easy. They’ve all been through a lot with that damned deal with Oz, having the Initiative kidnap Willow and torture her isn’t going to be easy to get over,” he commented.

“We’ll get them through it,” Joyce said firmly. “Their love is strong.”

“You know, I wasn’t sure Buffy would really get over Angel,” Giles said thoughtfully. “I never really thought she was deeply in love with Riley. I knew she depended on Willow, just didn’t know they would realize how deep that love went. Tara was a surprise, I must admit.”

“I agree, they’ve been good for each other. All we can hope now is a chance at some peace and quiet,” Giles smiled.

“The Slayer and the Scooby Gang getting some peace and quiet?” Joyce teased.

“I know, I know,” he muttered, sitting down on the sofa and pulling her into his arms. “What say we set a wedding date now that we have Willow back and the Initiative is gone?”

Buffy grinned as she spotted Xander and Anya snuggling in a corner of the Bronze. She quickly made her way over to the couple and tapped Xander on the shoulder.

“Hey, Buff!” Xander grinned and Anya smiled, keeping her arms around Xander’s neck. “Heading back to the cemetery for furry duty?”

“Yeah, the streets around the Bronze are clear as of five minutes ago,” Buffy grinned.

“Four vampires and one new demon I need to talk to Giles about,” Buffy grinned. “Not even a scratch.”

“What was the new demon thing?” Anya asked as Buffy sat down in a lounge chair across from them.

“This one was big, green, ugly and had a long spike that came out of its forearm,” Buffy described. “Fortunately, he tried to impale me and got the spike thingy stuck in a fence. Took him out with a sword.”

“Giles pointed out that some demons have really thick skin and stakes may not always work. Angel and I used to practice with swords.”

Buffy was surprised when she fell out of the chair amid shouting, screams, creaking walls and a deep rumbling from the ground. The Slayer clung to the floor with her hands over her head. She glanced over and saw Xander lying on top of Anya, trying to protect her with his own body.

“Earthquake!” he screamed and Buffy nodded, putting her head under a coffee table as Xander moved Anya and himself to do the same.

The quake seemed to go on forever but Buffy knew that it was probably less than 30 seconds, if that. Anya started to move and Buffy grabbed her shoulder, keeping her down. In a moment the aftershocks hit and the screams started again.

Buffy felt the last rumble shake the hangout and sat up slowly. She looked around and was relieved to discover that no one seemed more hurt than maybe broken arms and sprained ankles. A few cuts from broken glasses but no collapsed walls or ceiling and no smell of gas leaks.

“Be careful, Buffy,” Anya added. “Earthquake may have tossed unhappy things out of their crypts.”

“What?” Xander asked and then his and Anya’s eyes widened. “Oh no! Willow!”

“Meet me at the crypt in an hour,” Buffy instructed them as she headed for the door.

“Willow! No! Please!” Tara pleaded, trying desperately to get the heavy cell door off her legs as the werewolf approached her slowly, growling deep in its throat.

Tara quickly looked over at the card table, a good five feet away and now on its side. The tranquilizer gun lay on the cold stone floor, at least six feet away.

The witch looked deep into the werewolf’s yellow eyes and saw nothing of Willow inside.

The wolf’s jaws opened and Tara whimpered at the sight of the mouth full of very sharp teeth meant for ripping.

Tara closed her eyes and mentally tried to calm herself and dropped her shields, reaching out psychically. She felt her mind touching the werewolf’s brain and felt it hesitate. Tara opened her eyes and tried to calm her heart rate as the werewolf walked over to her and sniffed her hair and neck.

The blonde witch somehow kept from screaming both physically and mentally. She poured all the love she felt for Willow into her projection to the wolf and Tara felt a tear escape as the werewolf nuzzled her neck for a moment, a low whine in the back of its throat.

“Willow!” Tara screamed, trying to maintain her contact with the wolf but sensed nothing but the intense need for freedom and the hunt.

Buffy wasn’t surprised when she saw Giles and her mom getting out of the Summers car in front of the cemetery gate.

“I don’t know, I was patrolling around the Bronze when the quake hit,” Buffy explained.

“Come on then!” Giles urged, pulling out a tranquilizer pistol as Buffy dashed through the gate.

“Come on, Joyce,” Giles said anxious, keeping his eyes moving around the cemetery. “Get inside; it’s probably safer in there, right now.”

“Oz tried to attack anyone within sight, including Buffy, Faith and Willow,” he explained.

Giles closed the door and bolted it from the inside and the couple moved to the second door leading to the lower crypt. As they headed down the stairs, watching for cracks and loose stones from the earthquake, they spotted Buffy squatting down next to the cell door, still trapping Tara beneath it.

With a growl, Buffy lifted the door as Giles and Joyce reached the girls and they grabbed Tara and pulled her out.

Buffy dropped the cell door and was beside Tara in an instant as Giles and Joyce looked her over.

Buffy held her lover close and fought against her own rising emotions as she thought of Willow as a werewolf and loose.

“Ow! Ow!” Tara cried as Giles moved her foot. “Willow, I mean the werewolf woke up in a really anxious mood. She kept pacing and growling, not like last night. Then she started howling and pounding on a wall. Ow!”

“I don’t think it’s broken but the ankle should have an x-ray just as a precaution,” Giles announced.

“I got up and went to the door, I was trying to reach her with our mental connection but the wolf wouldn’t let me in. Then everything went crazy. Earthquake, I guess. I grabbed onto the bars, trying to keep my balance and it twisted off the hinges and fell on me.”

“It's okay, baby,” Buffy whispered, stroking Tara’s hair and holding her tightly as Giles went to the first aid kit and came back with a large ace bandage and began wrapping the witch’s ankle.

“Buffy, she… s-she started towards me,” Tara said softly, her tears beginning again. “The wolf, I mean. It… it wasn’t Willow.”

“I know, I know,” Buffy said softly, remembering what Oz was like as a werewolf before he left Sunnydale.

“I tried to connect again, I was so scared! She growled… and… and… she was s-stalking me. I… something happened.”

“The w-werewolf stopped and… .it sniffed me,” Tara sobbed. “I could feel her c-confusion and c-curiosity. I poured all of my love into the connection. Buffy, she nuzzled me and then took off!”

“I d-don’t think so,” Tara shook her head, clinging to Buffy. “I… I confused her, the wolf. It knew me on a basic level but not as Willow. I tried to connect with it as the werewolf ran away but couldn’t. Being free to hunt was in its thoughts.”

“Thank God she didn’t hurt you,” Buffy said, letting the tears escape down her face. “None of us could live with that.”

“Especially Willow,” Tara nodded. “You’ve got to find her, Buffy. That’s not Willow, only the werewolf who wants to hunt.”

“With the earthquake there’s going to be a lot of people in the streets,” Giles commented. “It’s a natural human reaction, to check on neighbors, curiosity about damage and possible death, and the need to connect with other humans after a crisis.”

“This graveyard is the closest to the woods, I’m betting that the wolf will want to run through the woods rather than the streets,” Buffy said thoughtfully. “Most werewolves try and head for woods or fields.”

“Hopefully with the earthquake that’ll mean the woods won’t be popular tonight,” Joyce commented.

“Let’s get Tara and your mother to the car,” Giles suggested. “She can take Tara to the hospital and get that ankle checked out while you and I look for Willow with the dart guns.”

“Good idea, Xander and Anya are supposed to meet me here in about a half hour,” Buffy added. “They can help look.”

“Let’s meet them at the gates, if Willow stayed in the graveyard, I don’t want them running into her on their way here,” Giles instructed.

Within a half hour Joyce and Tara were on their way to the hospital and the remaining Scooby Gang had split into two teams and were now searching the woods and the graveyard for a werewolf. Xander had Giles’ tranquilizer pistol and Buffy with the tranquilizer rifle.

“Damage report!” Walsh snapped at the soldier stopping at attention in front of her.

“The cave on the northwest quadrant collapsed with three lab techs and one guard, we’re trying to dig to them now. Expected level of damage in the labs themselves, broken vials, beakers, and equipment, nothing that can’t be replaced or repeated.”

“Good, any structural damage that will force a move?” Professor Walsh questioned.

“The engineers are checking that out now, Professor,” he reported. “It doesn’t appear necessary. A low grade earthquake, looks like the tunnel in the northwest quadrant may have been structurally unsound before the quake. The soil behind the rock in that part of the tunnels and caves was mostly sand, very unstable.”

“Once that’s completed, have Corporal Finn report to me,” she instructed and the soldier quickly saluted and dashed down the tunnel.

Professor Walsh turned and walked down a different tunnel, heading deeper into the cave structure that had been expanded by the Army Corp of Engineers who had worked secretly for seven months. Instead of a simple series of small caves the area was now large enough to continue with Professor Walsh’s work as well as that of several other Initiative researchers.

The Professor cursed the earthquake once again as she made her way back to her inner sanctorum, the lab containing the developing body and mind of her prize experiment. The Super Soldier of the future, Adam.

She had been in the middle of operating on the body when the quake had hit and Walsh had been forced to end the operation quickly. That meant that her latest grafting would appear ugly and careless and Walsh wasn’t happy with that. She knew deep down that Adam would be seen as a monster, she was enough of a realist to know that but she also knew that as a prototype, his looks really weren’t of importance.

Once she proved her theories in actual real life, the government would come through with enough funding and personnel to ensure that the future soldiers would be more pleasant in appearance, or more frightening.

Walsh stopped just inside the door, totally stunned as she took in the sight of Adam sitting up on the steel table looking at her.

“Spike! What the hell is with you, sneaking up on me is so not a good idea!” Buffy snapped as Giles attempted to get back to his feet while he glared at the blonde male vampire.

“Oh, someone’s in a bad mood!” Spike growled. “Saw you two slackers roaming out here and thought I’d drop in.”

The vampire had literally ‘dropped’ in on the Slayer and her Watcher from a tree. Only his anticipation of Buffy’s reactions had saved Spike from being staked a half second after he had landed on the forest floor. He had rolled backwards and blocked her second thrust while laughing at Giles falling backwards onto his backside.

Buffy, realizing it was Spike, had put her stake away while Giles checked the safety on the dart rifle.

“Like any other night is?” he asked and took in the sight of the dart gun. “You’re trying to capture something instead of slaying? Didn’t you give that up when you left the soldier types?”

“Oh bugger!” Spike cursed. “Little tree is all wolfie tonight and she got out?”

“That’s about it,” Giles nodded as they began moving through the woods again.

“Oh hell, count me in,” the vampire grumbled. “Where do you want me to look?”

“Xander and Anya are looking in the nearest graveyard, how about between here and my place. Something inside her might send her home,” Buffy suggested.

“Good, because then I’d have to hurt you,” Buffy growled and the vampire just grinned and trotted off.

“He can register pretty high up there on the annoyance meter,” Buffy agreed.

“If we don’t find her tonight, can you and Tara make contact with her in the morning and find out where she is?” Giles asked.

“Should be able to, the connection seems as strong as ever,” Buffy nodded, keeping her senses on heightened alert.

“And naked,” Buffy added. “Let’s hope she doesn’t get arrested for indecent exposure before we can find her.”

“Well, yes, of course,” Giles agreed, running his hand through his hair in a nervous gesture of discomfort.

“I smell blood, Giles,” Buffy said softly and moved slowly through the trees into a clearing near one of the spots that was popular with high school students to park and neck.

On top of a picnic table was something large. Since the moon had gone down, Giles was hoping they were about to find a sleeping Willow as he pulled out his flashlight. As he shined the beam on the table, the Watcher fought the urge to be ill.

In the harsh and narrow beam of the flashlight, what he and Buffy could make out was the figure of something that had been human but was now a tangled mess of ripped clothing, torn tissue and blood covering everything.

Giles swallowed as they moved closer. “Oh God,” he muttered as the flashlight caught the unseeing eyes of what once was a teenage girl. The Watcher noticed the logical side of his mind taking notes and cursed that part of himself that could turn this off so easily and file away facts for later.

The girl’s eyes were blue and her hair was once blonde, he thought. Now it was mostly red, a deep dark red of dried blood. Giles frowned and touched some of the blood and then the girl’s body.

“Cold, the blood is dried except where it’s pooled,” he said offhandedly. “I’d say at least three hours.”

“There is that possibility, I’m going to take samples from under her nails and measure the bite pattern, just to be sure,” he said.

“Giles, there’s another one just at the edge of the trees,” Buffy said softly.

Giles looked up and followed where his Slayer was pointing with the flashlight beam and saw another huddled form at the base of a tree. They quickly moved to it and rolled the half naked figure over and both fought the urge to be sick. This body was a teenage male and he had been slashed repeatedly across the stomach and chest and his throat had been ripped out.

“So it would seem,” Giles agreed. He quickly began shining the flashlight over the ground and the bodies, putting away the dart pistol and pulling out a small notepad. “I’ll call the police in a moment,” he muttered.

Buffy sat down at the edge of the clearing on one of the other picnic benches and ignored him while he worked, staring at her shoes.

“I suggest that we continue on protecting her and locking her away every month and not telling her,” he suggested.

“No, a werewolf or a demon killed two people, Buffy,” he amended. “What would you suggest? Putting a silver bullet through her heart?”

“Yes, I know, none of us could do that,” he said. “This isn’t some damned Hammer film, Buffy. We have to figure what’s best for Willow and the world. I see only two choices: continue on like we have been; try and get her through what the Initiative did to her and keep her and the public safe. Or, second, we kill her, that’s it. I am open to other suggestions if you have them.”

Buffy felt the tears welling up in her eyes and angrily wiped at them. “You want me to try and keep this from her? How am I supposed to do that with this connection we have?”

“Well, yes, there is that to consider,” he pondered. “Let’s just get through today, alright? We call this in, I’ll stay and deal with the police and you find Willow.”

Buffy nodded, her face very unhappy as she looked at the two bodies in the pre-dawn light. Whatever had attacked the girl had been brutal and enjoyed the slaughter. When she looked at the body of the male, Buffy frowned.

“Giles?” the Watcher looked up from his measurements. “Is the bite pattern the same?”

Giles actually smiled. “Good girl,” he commented. “Actually the bite patterns are different for each body. What tipped you?”

“They were killed differently,” she commented, wanting a closer look but keeping back. Last thing they wanted was to explain to the police about a contaminated crime scene. Giles would have enough explaining to do about that without adding Buffy into the tracks surrounding the students. “The girl was ripped apart. Whatever did that enjoyed it. The guy looks like he was in a sword fight or something.”

“Yes, I noticed that,” Giles agreed. “His wounds are defensive, like he was fighting something and lost.”

“Okay, so they’re out here necking,” Buffy pondered. “They get attacked, guy is knocked aside while the werewolf attacks and rips apart the girl. The guy jumps in and gets killed as well. That could still be one wolf.”

“Except for the bite patterns, the girl was killed by a creature with a larger jaw and the slashes are slightly farther apart,” he pointed out.

“It is a possibility, or we’re dealing with a hunting team, maybe a married couple,” he threw in.

“God, I’ve got to find her,” Buffy complained, jumping up from the picnic bench.

“Professor Walsh?” Riley Finn called as he stopped in front of the partially open lab door. This wasn’t normal and the soldier was quickly alarmed. This was the one room that no one entered without two different security checks: a code key card and a retina scan.

Riley drew his Glock pistol and chambered a round. He reached up and keyed his radio, the mike on his shoulder.

“This is Finn in corridor 7, outside room 75; I have an unsecured Level 5 security door. Send a security team.”

Riley held the pistol in front of him and cautiously opened the door slowly. Keeping the gun scanning the room, he reached out with his other hand and flipped on the light switch.

Corporal Riley Finn walked into the room slowly, his gun still scanning the room as he stepped over the figure on the floor. His military training demanding that he check and clear the room of any threat before he allowed his mind to accept the fact that it was Professor Walsh’s body that he was stepping over. Seeing nothing in the room except the body of his mentor, Finn holstered his weapon and bent down, turning the Professor over.

Riley checked for a pulse, knowing from her open dead eyes that it was useless but it gave him something to do and it was protocol.

He lifted the lab coat open and filed away in his mind for his report that he observed four bloody wounds in the Professor’s chest, the wounds going through her shirt. Riley turned the body slightly and noted the exit wounds as well but there was a lack of gunpowder residue and the exit wounds appeared to be the same size as the entrance wounds. In fact, he couldn’t tell which was exit and which entrance, unlike most gunshot wounds.

Riley vaguely remembered the demon Walsh had wanted from Los Angeles, a demon with a spike that extended from its forearm, like a spear.

The soldier waited for the security team to arrive and take over as he fought back tears.

Willow woke up shivering, huddled in a tight fetal position. The witch cautiously looked around for the sleeping bag. She wanted to be inside it where it was warm and grab a couple more hours of sleep before Tara would wake her up.

Willow frowned. It was cold, dark, damp and smelled and there was no sleeping bag near her. The witch felt her breathing quicken and her pulse rate jump as she raised her head and looked around.

The hacker fought down a sweeping wave of panic as she realized she was in the sewer tunnels; she was naked, alone and had something caking her chin and chest. Willow, with her new senses and a little light could make out that whatever covering her was dark.

Willow’s heart rate tripled when someone stepped out of the shadows and the sound of boots came towards her. The hacker curled up into a ball against the cold wall, trying not to whimper as she tried to clear her mind enough to form some kind of protection spell.

The red head looked up as the figure stepped into better lighting and she tried not to scream at the sight of a vampire in full game face.

///Willow!/// Tara concentrated for several moments and then opened her eyes and shook her head as the Scooby Gang watched her and Buffy try to make contact.

They were once again in the Summers' home, with only Giles missing as he dealt with the police and the bodies.

Buffy also opened her eyes and shook her head. “She’s so confused, we can’t get through.”

“Dammit!” Xander snapped, rubbing a hand over his scruffy face. “Okay, how about Anya and I call Detective Santiago and find out if any naked female has been picked up and taken to jail or the hospital?”

“Good idea, Xander,” Buffy agreed as Joyce reached for the telephone for him.

“Let’s get out the city maps and figure out where she might have ended up,” Joyce suggested and both Buffy and Tara nodded.

As everyone moved to do something around them, including Anya heading to make coffee, Buffy and Tara reached for each other's hands across the table.

“We’ll find her,” Buffy promised, her voice firm but her eyes were haunted.

“Yes, she completes us,” Tara agreed, her voice nearly cracking with the same fear.

Willow noticed that he was dressed in an Australian cattle duster coat and hat and had the most lovely accent she had heard since watching Crocodile Dundee. He also had a mean set of fangs and she whimpered as he reached for her.

“Hey, you’re not human!” he protested as he grabbed Willow into his arms, frowning.

“Yes I am!” Willow protested, forgetting for the moment that she was about to become a vampire’s early morning snack. “Like totally human! Nothing wrong with that.”

“You’re a wolf!” he grinned and held the young woman at arm’s length, checking out the substance on the young woman’s face, chest and hands.

Willow began to blush, both at his words and his appraisal of her totally naked body.

“You’re the Slayers little bitch, aren’t you? I’ve seen you with her,” he commented.

“I am not ‘little’ anything!” Willow mumbled, trying to mentally process the blood on her. “I’m even taller than she is.”

“Come on, sister,” he said easily. “Let’s get you cleaned up and some sleep. I’m Carson.”

“I need to go home,” Willow muttered, absently putting on the jacket and wrapping his flannel shirt around her waist as he stripped down to a t-shirt and jeans.

“Your girlfriend is the Slayer,” Carson said gently. “Think she can let you live after she finds out you’re a wolf?”

“It’s not like that!” Willow protested. “She knows I’m a werewolf. They lock me away to keep me and everyone else safe.”

“Well something went wrong last night because you’re here with me and covered in blood. I know mammal blood when I smell it,” Carson pointed out and drew the witch into his arms as she began to cry.

Carson laughed and wrapped an arm around her shoulder and began walking down the tunnel.

“I’ve been around for a long time, takes the edge off of being a monster, I guess,” he said.

<The vampire was actually cute,> Willow thought. He was about the same height as Willow, which made him taller than Buffy and about the same height as Tara. His hair was dark brown and spiky, like Oz. Bright blue eyes looked over in amusement.

“Longer than Spike,” he grinned. “You are the Slayer’s girlfriend, right? Not into guys?”

“No, I mean yes. Wait,” she stammered. “I’m the Slayer’s girlfriend and I’m gay.”

“Okay, I guess that leaves out the incredible sex after a night of the full moon,” Carson commented casually and laughed at Willow’s blushing face. “I’ve been around werewolves. Even had a werewolf girlfriend in Russia. God, she could wear me out after a moon!”

“You’re a sister now,” he explained. “I know you don’t remember your kill. Maybe someday you will.”

“Exactly, things will never be the same again for you or your friends,” he continued as they walked. “Even if you never tell them and the bodies are never found, you’ll be different. You’ll always know and the guilt will eat away at you until you kill yourself or accept the dark side and live with it.”

“My ex-boyfriend was a werewolf and gave in,” Willow said. “I didn’t like what he became.”

“You can choose to chain yourself up every full moon from now on,” Carson pointed out. “I don’t care if you never kill again. I just happened to be here when a beautiful, naked, and confused female werewolf woke up after her first kill. I’ll keep you safe, warm and fed until you get back on your feet.”

Carson turned to look at Willow as she stopped in the tunnel, a faraway look on her face.

///I don’t know, I don’t know what happened. Are you okay?// Willow asked mentally.

//Thank God!// Carson caught the look of relief on Willow’s face and watched her closely. Willow’s face became puzzled as she closed her eyes, concentrating. //I thought with the blood… //

//You’re not telling me something!// Willow mentally shouted. //Did I hurt Tara?//

///No, I swear you didn’t hurt me,/// Tara responded but Willow caught the hesitation in both their manners.

//Oh God,// she muttered mentally. //The blood! I killed someone last night, didn’t I?//

//For sure?// Willow repeated. //I wake up with blood on me, I’m like naked and cold and can’t remember anything! What happened?//

///Willow, please!/// Buffy pleaded. ///Just tell us where you are and we’ll figure it out.///

//Figure what out, Buff?// Willow demanded, tears flowing down her cheeks again. //Who I killed? Whether it's best to kill me now or risk me killing again in the future now that I’ve tasted blood?//

///Willow, please,/// Willow could hear the tears in Tara’s voice and could feel Buffy’s mental anguish as well. She also caught a flash of memory from the Slayer’s less protected mind. The memory of seeing the slaughtered bodies of a teenage couple who had been necking in the woods.

“//NO!!!//” Willow screamed mentally and verbally and let the darkness surround her, vaguely aware of Carson catching her.

///Willow!/// Both Buffy and Tara screamed as the mental connection was severed.

“Basic human body to start with,” Riley read aloud. “Grafting of superior body parts onto the torso. Enhancements will include cyborg mental implants, optical addition, CPU connected directly to the neuro net and brain activity.”

“What the hell was she working on?” Forrest asked, listening to Riley reading.

“A Frankenstein Monster that is programmed to kill without mercy,” Riley frowned. “Enhanced strength, speed, reflexes, and mental processing.”

“I don’t know,” Riley admitted. “His skin will be too thick for darts or stakes. Probably most small arms rounds as well.”

“I would try stun guns set on kill and work up from there,” Forrest suggested seriously.

“Don’t panic on me, sis,” a male voice suggested. “You fainted on me there.”

“You know your accent dances all over the place?” she mumbled. “One minute Australian, next German, then Californian.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” he muttered. “You live for a few hundred years and see how your syntax holds up.”

“I don’t know, you went all Twilight Zone on me and then got a really scared expression on your face and fell into my arms,” Carson explained as he placed her one her feet.

“I was… ” she stammered, remembering the connection with Buffy and Tara and why she had severed it. Willow felt something snap inside of her as she looked at the blood coating her hands and cast.

The hacker held her hand over the cast and narrowed her eyes. Carson watched closely, being curious what his new friend was up to. His eyebrows shot up in question and amazement as the cast split apart and fell away from her arm.

Willow’s eyes blackened totally as she concentrated. Carson bent down and retrieved some silver looking things after they dropped to the floor, as if Willow’s hand had been holding them inside the cast.

“The pins that were holding my hand together,” she explained, stretching and bending her fingers easily.

“Wait a minute!” he exclaimed. “You’re saying a minute ago your hand was rebuilt on the inside with these pins?”

“Yes, my hand was pretty much crushed and they put pins in to rebuild it,” she answered, her eyes returning to normal green.

“How long were you supposed to be in that cast?” he asked softly, suddenly not as cocky.

“Another few months, more operations, another cast, another operation and then therapy, about a year and a half recovery, they told me,” Willow explained in a typical babble.

///Willow!/// Both Buffy and Tara called. Willow closed her eyes, debating with herself whether to open up or not.

“You’re a witch?” Carson squeaked. “Like, I piss you off and you turn me into a toad?”

“No, no, toad would be bad,” Willow muttered. “Toads are frog family, not a good thing. I would feel guilty over frog issues.”

“Okay, okay!” Carson interrupted her. “Up this ladder is a crypt where I’ve got a really nice place set up. I don’t have any human food but I do have a warm bed and some clothes.”

“Well, first we’re going to get some sleep and we’ll figure it out in a few hours,” Carson suggested and lead the way up the ladder. “Either that or you go down about an eighth of a mile to the next ladder on the right and you’ll come up just outside the graveyard. Find your friends and hope they don’t put a silver bullet through your head.”

Willow stood at the base of the ladder considering her options, thoughts, and mainly guilty feelings.

Riley Finn moved through the cave tunnels cautiously. After the earthquake, the security sensors still weren’t working and no one knew where the creature was that Professor Walsh had been working on.

With Riley was Graham and Forrest, two of his regular platoon members. Riley was glad they had volunteered to stay behind in Sunnydale, even if it meant they had to stay out of sight for awhile. Buffy knew them by sight and they weren’t going to take a chance on the Slayer finding out the Initiative was still in town and operational.

Finn never saw what hit him, he only vaguely heard Forrest screaming and Graham shouting as he tried to get to his knees, shaking his head.

“Good night, brother,” a voice whispered in Finn’s ear and something hit him again.

“Hey, Scarlet,” a voice broke into Willow’s dream state and she mumbled something about not wanting to go to school. The male voice laughed and someone shook her again. “Come on, I had food brought in.”

Willow opened her eyes reluctantly and frowned, trying to remember where she was and how she got there.

The crypt had been cleared out of its coffins and they had been replaced with a queen-size bed, a sofa, a coffee table and an easy chair. Carson had been right, it wasn’t bad for a crypt dwelling and the vampire had been a perfect gentleman. He had rummaged through a pile of clothing and tossed a pair of cargo pants and sweat shirt at the witch. He turned his back so she could take off his coat.

Somehow Willow hadn’t thought twice about lying down on the bed with a vampire who earlier had been willing to snack on her. He had merely said good morning, pulled the covers up over them and turned over.

Willow sat up and glanced at the vampire and a stranger sitting on the sofa. The newcomer was a young male, somewhere between late teens and mid twenties. Dressed in baggy trousers, extra large t-shirt, flannel shirt and baseball cap; he looked like a typical local skater.

Willow’s sharp senses took in the smell of hamburgers and fries in a bag on the table.

“This is Renfield,” Carson said, introducing the young man who was sipping on a milkshake.

Willow shrugged, went to the easy chair and reached for the bag. “Renfield isn’t eating, or do you only eat bugs?”

“A ghoul?” Willow hesitated about opening the fast food bag. “You mean, the traditional type ghoul?”

“Yup, only lives on fresh bodies,” Carson grinned. “Fortunately, he eats out and doesn’t bring it home.”

Willow’s stomach won out over the thoughts of Renfield’s diet as she dug into the bag and quickly downed the hamburger and fries.

“What do you remember about last night?” Carson asked, leaning his head back on the sofa cushions.

“Not much,” Willow admitted. “I remember B… my friend giving me a sedative and I went to sleep. Next thing I know, I woke up with you hovering over me.”

“Naked and with a lot of blood on you,” Carson reminded her and Willow’s face became pained.

Willow’s firm control finally broke down and she curled up in the chair into herself.

Part of Willow protested loudly when Carson wrapped his arms around her but she accepted his comforting as she sobbed.

“There was an earthquake last night,” he said softly. “That’s probably how you got out.”

Buffy took a flying kick at the punching bag and followed through with a standing kick with a scream. Giles jumped out of the way as the chain snapped and the bag flew several feet.

Tara came dashing down the stairs and Giles let her replace him as she drew Buffy into her arms, both crying.

Giles sat down heavily on a bench against the wall, watching the two young women.

He looked a little surprised when Spike came down the stairs. Buffy and Tara looked up, wiping at their eyes.

“Hello, one and all,” he said easily. “Sorry to report that there’s no sign of Little Tree among the demon types.”

“Damn!” Giles muttered. “How the hell can a naked young woman disappear?”

“Well, you know she’s still alive, right?” Spike asked as he took a couple of blows at a punching board.

“Yes, we get f-flashes from her before she slams her shields d-down,” Tara answered as Buffy helped her to her feet.

“Why is she hiding from you guys then? The Initiative types didn’t grab her again, did they?” he asked.

“No, we ran them out of town, remember?” Buffy snapped. “How did you get here anyway?”

“Well it bloody well wasn’t easy!” Spike growled back. “Bloody humans, nice wide sunny streets and not a manhole anywhere near the house. Had to dash a whole block with my coat steaming.”

“As for those Initiative military blokes, they’re still around. They just moved shop, sis.”

“Oh God,” Giles muttered. “Alright, let’s go over this, Spike,” the Watcher demanded, pulling Spike back up the stairs to the kitchen.

“I came down to see if Buffy would help me go through the books and Willow’s notes,” Tara said. “I know Willow had a tracking spell that we might be able to use.”

“She left a magical trail, I remember that,” Buffy frowned. “Do you think there’s one where we can find one to track her?”

“I think so, I’ve got some of her hair and some of her magical items we can use as a focus,” Tara explained. “Why won’t she contact us?”

“Could she have really hurt those people?” Tara asked softly, wiping away a tear of her own.

“Yes,” Buffy admitted, failing to hold back a new round of tears. “That wasn’t Willow, that was a werewolf, not Wills.”

“That would send her over the edge, especially since it’s only been two days since the Initiative had her,” Tara said thoughtfully.

“You’re better at the connection thing, isn’t there some way to get to her?”

“No, she’s put everything into shielding and blocking out whatever she’s not wanting to look at,” Tara said softly. “She’s in extreme denial.”

The couple reached the kitchen and gave Joyce a quick hug and headed up the stairs to search through Willow’s computer, books and notes. Tara especially wanted to look at Willow’s Book of Shadows.

“I remember what it felt like when I thought I had killed someone,” Buffy said, frowning.

“My Mom started dating this guy,” Buffy started explaining as she grabbed up several of Willow’s books. “Everyone loved him and I couldn’t stand him. I even second-guessed myself that I was upset that it wasn’t my Dad. Then he crossed the line and threatened me but no one believed me.”

“Mom grounded me so I snuck out one night to do Slayer duty and when I came back in, he was in my room,” Buffy continued.

“Oh uncool,” Tara commented and Buffy nodded as she sat down on the bed next to the witch.

“Yeah, he had gone through my stuff, found my crosses, holy water and stakes,” Buffy leaned against Tara’s shoulder. “He had even read my diary and about me being a Slayer. He threatened me to stay out of his way with my Mom or he’d have me committed as being insane and delusional like.”

“Yeah, I grabbed for my diary and he slapped me,” Buffy nodded. “I hit him back and he attacked me.”

“I pulled several moves on him and he went flying down the stairs,” Buffy said softly, remembering the horror of seeing Ted laying so still and her mother’s shocked and accusing face when she couldn’t find a pulse. “He was dead and the police were thinking about charging me with at least manslaughter or something.”

“Turned out Ted was some maniac android who wanted the perfect wife,” Buffy explained. “He would marry them and force them to live in a prison home he had built until they died and he found another one. We took him out and exposed him for the crossed wired bot that he was. I hadn’t killed anyone.”

“Yeah, I was miserable and Giles and I were still getting used to each other,” Buffy agreed. “He didn’t know how to comfort me.”

“You finding anything in there?” Tara asked as she tried to decipher Willow’s handwriting and sometimes the witch glyphs.

Riley sat on a log, staring straight ahead without blinking. The horrible huge figure hovered over the soldier with a hand held computer in one hand and a syringe in the other.

“Well, brother,” the tall monster said easily. “I fear I might have made a mistake in killing Mother too soon in our development. We’ll have to figure things out ourselves. Good thing Mother’s laptop wasn’t connected to the main computer when your girlfriend blew the place.”

“Any major decisions?” Carson asked as Willow looked over his book collection. A collection that ranged from the works of Milton to Harry Potter books.

“I have a life outside of this crypt but I’m not sure I can go back,” Willow admitted, sitting down on the stone floor. “I can’t stay here forever either. My friends are frantic but how can I face them?”

“I don’t know,” Carson admitted. “When I changed my entire family was dead from the plague and all my friends had fled the city.”

“Plague, when was that?” Willow asked, her curious nature bringing her out of her self-induced fog.

“Hamburg, the dark ages,” Carson answered easily. “Last night was the last full moon for another 28 days so you have a little time and you’re welcome to stay here as long as you want.”

“Thanks,” Willow tried to smile. “Why so friendly? Are all vampires and werewolves like best buds or something? I never noticed that with Oz and the local vamps.”

“Not really, when in wolf form, you’ll attack a vampire before you go after a human,” Carson admitted. “We have a natural hatred of each other for some reason. Like mongoose and cobras. Me, I’m not your average vamp any more.”

“You wouldn’t happen to be cursed with a soul, would you?” Willow asked hopefully. She could trust that quicker than a demon inhabited body.

“No, that’s Angel’s gig, not mine,” Carson grinned. “I’m just very old and more tolerant. You’ll find a lot of species among the dark ones don’t like each other.”

“So like am I accepted in some secret club now and have to learn a new handshake?” Willow attempted some humor and Carson laughed.

“I don’t know, work with computers. I’m a geek, you know, total computer nerd,” she explained. “I’m good with the things and Giles is always relying on me because he’s so non tech like.”

“Okay,” Carson broke in. “You’re in school, smart, got a lively future ahead of you, right?”

“I did, everyone is looking at recruiting me for computer stuff from the government to the top programming companies,” Willow said easily and it didn’t sound like bragging to the ancient vampire.

“Then get out of this crypt, go back to school and live your life,” Carson advised. “Forget your dark side and leave that magic to the airy white-light stuff.”

“Yes, plenty,” he admitted, his eyes becoming thoughtful. “I’ve seen some talented witches become sorcerers and destroy their lives and everyone around them. Your dark side has been awakened and playing with magic can lead to trouble.”

“I know, I can sense the power in you and that trick with your hand wasn’t a low level protection spell either,” he said seriously. “You’ve also touched the darkness, haven’t you?”

“Dark magic,” Carson nodded, confirming his suspicions. “You opened up a gate, now you have to decide what you invite through that gate. It won’t be easy either, with you now being a werewolf. The darkness will be attracted to you like moths to a flame.”

“How can I go back to the mundane world after this?” Willow demanded. “How can I face my friends and my lovers knowing that I’ve killed someone and they know it too!”

“Sleep on it tonight and decide in the morning,” Carson suggested. “Renfield will be back in an hour with dinner for you. He’s also getting you a pair of shoes. Don’t worry about him, he’s pretty much harmless.”

“You’re going out to kill someone for their blood,” Willow frowned intensely.

“Unless you’re willing to let me feed off of you,” Carson countered and Willow shook her head. “I didn’t think so. This is what I am, Scarlet. I am a vampire and I take blood from humans and mammals to survive. I don’t take enough from humans to kill them and I haven’t turned someone in three hundred years.”

“I guess I got lucky that you found me, a vampire that’s almost a good guy,” Willow smiled slightly.

“Yeah, well, don’t tell anyone,” he grinned. “I’ve got a reputation as a bad ass.”

By nightfall, both Buffy and Tara had headaches from hovering over books and computers all day looking for a spell that might help them find Willow. They also took frequent breaks and tried to contact the witch but found her shields still in place.

Joyce made them eat dinner, despite their protests. Giles, Xander and Anya were also gathered around the table but there was no sign of Spike.

“They never left, they merely moved their operations to a series of caves in the woods,” Giles told everyone, relaying what Spike had informed him. “They already had the place prepared. Most of their operations have moved out of the city but some of the experiments are still going forth.”

“What does that mean? Is Riley and Walsh still in town and could they have grabbed Willow again?”

“I think Willow would have conveyed that to you, don’t you think?” Giles asked.

“I think there is a possibility that both Riley and Walsh are still in Sunnydale,” Giles answered the original question. “I don’t think they snatched Willow, they seem to be concentrating on a specific experiment and they aren’t sending commandos out to capture demons, werewolves and vampires anymore. At least in Sunnydale, anyway.”

“So that leaves Willow hiding because she thinks she killed someone,” Buffy growled.

“Yes, exactly,” the Watcher agreed. “In her fragile mental state, the longer she runs from this the worse it will be.”

“She just went through hell with those Initiative bastards because they tried to turn her into a monster and now she thinks she is one and has killed,” Xander snapped. “What do we do about this?”

“She’s not responsible!” Buffy snapped back. “It’s not like she was a vampire who could make conscious decisions.”

“What do you suggest, Xander?” Tara snapped. “Kill her; turn her over to the police?”

“We could turn her over to the Initiative again,” Buffy growled. “In her mental state, it wouldn’t take much to finish the job and turn her into a mindless killer.”

“Hey, back off!” Xander protested. “I’m just saying what no one else wants to say, Dammit!”

“What do you want to do, put Willow down like a rabid dog?” Buffy nearly shouted. “The only reason you aren’t guilty of murdering and eating Principal Fluete is you were too busy trying to get into my pants to be with your pack, hyena boy!”

Xander flushed bright red and started to stand up angrily as Anya grabbed his arm, trying to restrain and calm him.

“Enough!” Joyce shouted. “We’re all worried sick about Willow and this isn’t helping. We will deal with it when we get her back!”

“Yes, Mom,” Buffy said sullenly and Xander nodded, refusing to meet Buffy and Tara’s eyes.

Carson climbed into the bed with the witch with a smile. Out of respect for his guest, he kept on his shorts and a t-shirt. The vampire lost his smile when he looked down and saw the pained look on Willow’s face and the sweat pouring off of her as she thrashed lightly in the grip of a nightmare.

Willow’s eyes snapped open and Carson tried to scramble out of his bed with a squeak of surprise as the witch raised her hands, pointed at him.

“Dammit, wake up!” he shouted, just as a massive burst of energy hit him, sending him and the covers flying into the far wall.

Carson blinked several times as he thanked the dark gods that he no longer had to breathe to live because he was certain he had several broken ribs.

“You were having a nightmare and zapped me when I woke you up,” he explained, trying to unwrap his feet out from the blanket and sheet.

“Oh Goddess,” Willow cried and rushed to the vampire, “I’m so sorry, are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine,” he said and winced at the pain in his ribs and Willow noticed.

“Yes, you did and I should have known better,” Carson said firmly, finally getting to his feet and pulling her up. “I shouldn’t have gotten in your line of fire; a witch with a nightmare can be deadly.”

“I can’t let Tara and Buffy see me like this,” she whispered as he led them both back to the bed and spread out the sheet once more.

“Nope, figured that was your business if you wanted to tell me or not, Willow Rosenberg,” he grinned. “You’ll find on this side of the fence most of us don’t even remember our real names.”

“You knew my name though,” Willow said, crawling back into bed with the vampire.

“Everyone knows Willow Rosenberg, college student, witch, lesbian and girlfriend to slayer and witch. Buffy Summers the Slayer and Tara McLay the witch.”

“No, just a few of us that don’t care to go tracking her down,” Carson explained. “Some of us just want to stay out of her way and not force a scene.”

“What the hell do I do now?” Willow demanded, more from herself than the vampire lying next to her, as she sat up and wrapped her arms around her legs. “I killed someone innocent.”

“What? They were human, that’s enough,” she clarified her own morality issues. “I saw a mental flash from Buffy, I saw the bodies in her mind.”

“Okay, you killed,” Carson leaned up on a hand and elbow. “Deal with it somehow.”

“Well, the basics of survival are covered: shelter, food, water, clothing. Can you get on with your life with your lovers and friends, go back to your old life?” he questioned.

“I don’t know,” Willow admitted. “I’m supposed to go back to school and my life as if nothing happened until the next full moon. Let them lock me away and pray that something doesn’t let the wolf out?”

“What would you do if you didn’t go back to them?” Carson asked. “The same thing but without your friends and family. Trying to survive until the next full moon and finding a place to lock yourself up and praying something doesn’t let the wolf out.”

“That’s why they call them curses, shouldn’t have gotten yourself bit,” Carson smirked.

Willow smirked. “Nope, that’s what I meant when I said I called it to me. Buffy was bitten and I took on the curse to save her.”

“Damn, girlfriend!” Carson shook his head. “Now you get to pay the heavy cost.”

“I figured it was only fair, Buffy has more than enough to deal with being the

“Then go home to her and Tara,” Carson suggested. “You guys obviously love each other. Let that get you through this.”

“They won’t look at it that way,” Carson argued. “Did you want to dump your boyfriend because he was a werewolf?”

“No, we had to work around it but that wasn’t a question,” Willow explained and then smirked at herself. “Right, I get it, Buffy and Tara wouldn’t even question getting me through this. Just like I didn’t second think taking it from Buffy.”

“Right, now lets get some sleep and you can go home in the afternoon,” he suggested and was surprised but pleased when Willow laid back down on the bed and snuggled in his arm. “How do you know I’m not hungry?” he asked.

“You’re warm, you’ve fed,” she said, suddenly sleepy. “Besides, you’re a gentleman.”

Riley watched the Summers' house closely with unblinking eyes. He waited in the shadows for Buffy and the others to leave and followed Buffy and Tara as they headed to one of the graveyards.

Buffy and Tara stood near the entrance of the crypt and the Slayer waited while the witch concentrated and chanted several phrases along with some hand gestures. Tara’s face lit up with hope and Buffy smiled.

“Lead on then, Indian scout,” Buffy grinned, keeping an eye out for vampires, demons and any other thing crawling about in the dark.

Tara headed for the far end of the cemetery, heading for the wall closest to the woods.

Tara, sensing the change in her lover’s energy, turned and looked at Buffy with a concerned expression.

“I know where we’re headed,” Buffy said flatly, her emotions going numb. She motioned for Tara to continue following the magical energy trail and felt darkness trying to crowd into her heart and mind as things became familiar.

Buffy tried not to whimper when they came upon the clearing. Tara looked around in confusion, spotting the torn police tape, the taped outlines of where bodies had been found, and the dark stains on the picnic table.

It was close to dawn when they worked their way down into the sewer tunnel and found where Willow’s energy pattern changed.

“What are the odds she didn’t run into something down here?” Buffy pondered, looking around. The sewers were notoriously known for harboring vampires, demons, criminals, the homeless and runaways. The dark tunnels protected the vampires and demons from the sun and the protected the homeless, criminals and runaways from the law.

“Let’s hope they were friendly,” Tara agreed, beginning to follow the new trail.

Riley waited at the grate covering the entrance to the sewer tunnels and stood unblinking as Adam moved out of the woods and approached him.

“They went down there?” the hybrid human/demon/cyborg asked, pointing to the grate.

“Yes,” Riley nodded. “What have you done to me?” he managed to question.

“I merely activated your implants,” Adam said impatiently, easily lifting the grate.

“Of course they would,” Adam said easily. “Just like they use drugs to enhance your strength, stamina and reflexes. The implant that is controlling you is right here,” Adam said, pointing at Riley’s breastbone. “It connects into your neuro-system. Makes controlling your movements easy. It also hooks into the mind control implant.”

“What do you want?” Riley questioned, struggling against the control of the hybrid.

“To fulfill our destiny, you are the first generation soldier of the future, I am the third and the prototype for the next level,” Adam explained as he pointed to the ladder and Riley Finn began descending into the tunnel. “I am going to take things to the next level by creating an entire army of those like me. Instead of being prodded, poked, tested and kept in a lab for the rest of my life, I’m going to prove by example.”

“That’s not what Mother wanted,” Riley argued as Adam followed him down the ladder.

“The student has outgrown the teacher,” Adam shrugged. “We’ll take over Sunnydale and force the demons and humans to work for us and prove our superiority.”

“Us, brother, us,” Adam corrected. “That’s why we’re going to take her out now, pre-emptive strike.”

“There’s someone coming up the ladder, someone activated my trip alarm,” he whispered. “Get your clothes and let’s go!”

“I’ve got an idea, get against the wall, quick!” she instructed, thrusting her feet into the sneakers Renfield had brought her. She grabbed up the sweatshirt and quickly pulled it on.

She joined him against the wall and closed her eyes, concentrating as they heard sounds of someone climbing the ladder leading from the sewer tunnels into the crypt.

“I don’t have to breathe,” Carson muttered and tried not to squeak as his hands and feet faded out of sight and both of them became invisible.

Willow opened her eyes as the grate opened and a crossbow appeared from below. A familiar hand and head followed as Buffy entered the crypt, followed by Tara.

Carson’s eyes widened at the sight of the Slayer in his crypt as Buffy’s eyes quickly scanned the room, looking for danger. After a moment, the Slayer relaxed and helped Tara the rest of the way up the ladder and into the room.

Tara glanced around the room while Buffy explored. Her mind taking in the empty fast food bags and water bottles.

“I don’t know, probably,” Tara said, looking around and stopped, hesitating on the spot where Willow and Carson stood. Willow held her breath and Tara’s eyes moved on. “Buff, what is this place?”

“Someone’s lair, a vampire with company,” Buffy said, continuing to look around.

“No food or food storage but empty fast food bags and bottled water,” Buffy reasoned. “Someone who doesn’t need food suddenly has someone around who does.”

“Willow,” Tara nodded. “Why would a vampire take Willow in, unless he’s holding her against her will.”

“I don’t think so, she would have yelled for help,” Buffy said thoughtfully.

“Buffy, what will we do when we find her?” Tara asked, sitting down on the edge of the bed.

Buffy walked over and wrapped her arms around Tara, gently stroking her hair after dropping the crossbow on the bed.

“Her trail showed us she was at the killing,” Tara cried lightly. “Her worst fear was killing someone innocent or hurting one of us.”

“We’ll deal with it somehow,” Buffy said softly. “As long as Walsh and the Initiative don’t get their hands on Willow again, we can face anything.”

“Maybe, we’ll stake out the place tonight and see if anything comes back,” Buffy said.

“It’s alright, Xander,” Joyce said as Anya grabbed the coffee tray from her. “Everyone is upset and worried.”

“I didn’t mean we should kill Willow,” he continued, his voice almost cracking.

“I know that, it’s just an impossible situation,” Joyce agreed. “We’ll just have to get through it one day at a time.”

The three of them looked up at a knock on the door. Joyce started for the door and Giles stuck his head in.

“No, I’m afraid not,” he said. “Spike says there’s been no word among the demons and vampires. No one at school has seen her and Brad says nothing coming into the police either.”

“What the hell was that all about?” Carson demanded when he could see his body again.

“I don’t know,” Willow frowned. “I wanted to hear what they were thinking before showing myself.”

“Yes, most every demon, werewolf, vampire and daemon in town knows to stay clear of those damned military types,” Carson nodded.

“Well, I know they put some damned chip in Spike’s head and neutered him,” Carson grinned.

“Yeah,” he said softly. “I saw a werewolf they let loose after they were done with him. He was totally nuts and became this homeless guy. Kept jumping at shadows and talking to himself. On nights of the full moon he’d crawl into the sewers and changed. He would howl all night and throw himself into walls, holding his head.”

“They put a chip in his head, it sends a signal to his ears like a dog whistle,” Willow explained. “I was captured by the Initiative.”

“Yes. To make a long story short, in three days they nearly drove me insane and tortured me physically, I can’t risk that again,” Willow said softly.

“Two days ago, first day after the full moon, Buffy and my friends rescued me, destroyed the Initiative center and ran them out of town, or so we thought,” Willow said bitterly.

“Wow, you haven’t even started recovering from that let alone going through your first kill,” Carson commented.

“You heard them, the Initiative is still in town,” Willow explained. “I can’t take the chance. They know about me.”

“I’ve got friends who can help with a new identity but I have to get out of Sunnydale,” Willow explained, tears starting to fall from her eyes.

“I have to,” Willow argued. “All of my friends risked their lives to rescue me a couple of days ago, I can’t risk that again.”

“You keep saying that,” Carson snapped. “Maybe you should ask them if they’re willing to risk it.”

“I’m not willing to risk them anymore,” Willow countered. “Buffy is the Slayer, life is dangerous enough for her and my friends without adding me being a werewolf and taking on the government.”

“Okay, you have a very distinctive look when you get stubborn don’t you?” Carson grinned.

“He’ll be fine; he can take over the place after your Slayer realizes we’re gone. I can’t stay here now the Slayer knows this is occupied,” Carson shrugged. “I can help you make some contacts in LA.”

“Okay, let’s get out of here before they come back on surveillance duty,” Willow suggested and Carson grabbed a couple of backpacks and threw one at Willow.

“Pack the best books, they have an X on the inside cover,” he instructed and the bookworm grinned in appreciation. “What’s the plan after that?”

“I go to my parent’s place and get the car,” Willow began. “I wait until Buffy and the rest leave for the evening, grab my clothes and a few things from home and pick you up somewhere and we go to LA.”

“Sounds good, I got friends we can stay with until you get on your feet,” Carson said easily.

“You’re running on denial, anger, and shock,” he commented. “You’ll need a friend when you collapse.”

Buffy and Tara headed for the nearest ladder leading to the upper world only to find it blocked by a huge monster and an expressionless Riley.

“Uh, yeah,” Buffy agreed, taking in the size, apparent strength and confidence of the creature and Riley’s dead eyes.

The two young women turned to run when Tara squeaked and fell to the slimly ground in convulsions with two Taser spikes in her back, wires trailing to Riley’s electric stun gun.

“Tara!” Buffy screamed and grabbed a chair without a seat someone had thrown into the sewer and broke it into pieces. One piece she shot at Riley, knocking the gun out of his hand and with another she whacked at the wiring and pulled the darts out of Tara.

“Impressive, quick thinking, quick reflexes, enhanced strength,” the creature commented as Riley stood motionless.

“Yeah, and mine comes naturally,” Buffy quipped, trying to get Tara to her feet and giving up as Adam suddenly dashed forward, moving faster than Buffy thought he could with his size. The Slayer barely turned to face the monster and took a backhand blow to her jaw, which sent her flying across the tunnel and sliding down the cold stone wall.

Adam was on her before Buffy could even shake her head and then grabbed her by the throat. Buffy clawed at his arm uselessly as he lifted her off the ground, slowly tightening his grip.

“Over so quickly,” he commented as she gasped for air. “Even the mighty Slayer is helpless before my strength and speed.”

Adam glanced back in time to see Tara facing him with both hands raised. He dropped Buffy and turned to face the witch as she chanted and concentrated. The creature suddenly began howling in pain as flames enveloped him.

As he batted at his blistering demon skin, Tara ran forward and ducked under his wild flailing arms to grab Buffy and drag her away from Adam. As he dropped to the slimy floor, the two women stumbled to their feet and began to run down the tunnel past Riley.

Buffy stopped and waved her hand in front of her ex-boyfriend’s face and frowned when he didn’t even blink.

Buffy was in a miserable mood by the time she and the gang got back from watching the tomb all night. Xander and Anya had volunteered to watch the ladder in the sewer tunnel, Xander armed with a Glock automatic pistol and Anya with a shotgun. They figured that a head shot to whatever had attacked Buffy might just take the creature down.

Buffy and Tara watched the outside entrance to the tomb. By dawn everyone was tired and suffering from frazzled nerves.

Giles had stayed behind to contact Agents Mulder and Scully and go over the files from the Initiative. He updated them about the cyborg hybrid that Buffy and Tara had run into.

"I've been going through those files," Mulder said after Giles gave the FBI agent Buffy's description of her attacker. "That sounds like the thing Professor Walsh was experimenting with but she was nowhere near ready to activate."

"Well, it was with Riley Finn and apparently had mental control over Riley, that tells me it's from the Initiative," Giles explained.

"I agree," Mulder responded. "Listen, from what our techs here tell us, they don't think it’s possible to make something like this. This is straight out of Frankenstein."

"Well, you and I both know that your techs don't think werewolves exist either," Giles countered.

"Right," Giles could almost hear Mulder smiling over the phone. "If she got this thing activated, it's deadly. Enhanced strength, rapid reflexes, infra-red sight in one eye, extremely thick skin, a CPU processor in his head and the heart is protected by metal."

"The power supply for his CPU and adrenaline pumps is at the base of his spine, you might be able to break it, or crush his head in a vice like in the Terminator," Mulder suggested.

"Yes, he could be only slightly less dangerous," Mulder answered. "How's Willow?"

"What?" Mulder demanded on the other end of the phone and Giles winced. "When? How?"

"Well, that earthquake we had loosened the cell door and the werewolf escaped," Giles explained. "We know she's alive and hiding."

"There is evidence that it was possibly Willow but there's also some confusion," Giles said.

"Send everything you got to Scully and me, we'll see what we can figure on this end," Mulder insisted.

"There are two victims, a teenage male and female. It looks like the male and female were killed by two separate creatures," Giles explained.

"Yes, any of those are possible except that Buffy and Tara tracked Willow's magical trail to the scene. She was there that night and when they connected with her the next morning she was confused and covered in blood," Giles expanded.

"No, we didn't have a chance. We only had her back two nights," Giles' voice was threatening to crack.

"Wait a minute, all those tests the Initiative did, I bet they have a bite pattern for the werewolf," Mulder grumbled and Giles could hear him clicking on his computer keyboard. "Send me what you've got, I've got a bite pattern for Willow as a werewolf."

"Well, your Slayer was a little disappointing but that witch was most entertaining," Adam said calmly. When Riley didn't respond, Adam pressed several keys on his small hand-held computer and Riley blinked and glared at the cyborg.

"Buffy will figure out a way to stop you," Riley snapped, struggling to move but unable to move more than his head.

"I doubt it," Adam dismissed the soldier's ranting. "The Slayer is very predictable; she is clever but relies heavily on her friends in her duties. Remove her friends and family and she will be weak."

"Logic, brother," Adam said casually. "Find your enemy's weakness and exploit it. Buffy Summers' weakness is her reliance and loyalty to her friends. Mother often commented on it in her notes about the Slayer.”

"A mistake, I admit," Adam said easily. "I wasn't functioning properly yet when she entered the room."

"To prove that I am the future of the military," Adam responded. "To do that, I will take over Sunnydale with very little help and show what can be accomplished by a super soldier. Then I will oversee the limited construction of others like me and the research onto the next level.”

“Accept your destiny,” Adam suggested. “You were Mother’s favorite among the soldiers. Your intelligence pleased her greatly. “First we cut off the head of the enemy, then we attack the other body parts. I’m not sure what to do about the witch, though.”

“Witch, that isn’t logical. Magic defies the laws of science,” Adam complained.

Buffy threw herself down on the sofa and curled up in Tara’s arms as Giles came out of the kitchen with a cup of tea in his hands.

“I take it by your expressions that no one came back to the crypt last night,” he commented as Joyce walked up behind him and under his arm as it wrapped around her shoulder.

Joyce looked at Buffy and Tara with concern. Neither one had slept more than a few hours in a week since Willow had been taken by the Initiative. Even after getting her back the full moon had interrupted any kind of a decent sleep pattern for everyone.

“No, nothing, not even a rat,” Tara complained. “Her trail ended in the crypt, it was as if she disappeared there.”

“No, it would still be there,” he muttered as they sat down across from Buffy and Tara.

“I can’t think unless she thought to erase her trail magically but I’m not sure how to do that,” Tara commented.

“Can either of you make contact yet? Maybe she’s asleep?” Joyce suggested.

“No, we tried while we were waiting and again just before coming home,” Buffy muttered. “She’s still blocking us, alive, but blocking us.”

“It just doesn’t make sense,” Joyce complained. “We talked; I know how much she loves you both.”

“You two go up and get some sleep,” Joyce suggested. “I’m going to call Theresa Santiago today and see what we can do about this semester for you three; I don’t want the three of you failing because of all of this.”

“Thanks, Mom,” Buffy mumbled and helped Tara up from the sofa and headed for the stairs.

“What is it, Buff?” Tara asked as the Slayer opened the redhead’s door slowly.

“I don’t know, I don’t remember the closet door being open when we left,” Buffy commented and walked into Willow’s room. Her tired mind tried to register what was wrong with the room.

“Oh no!” Tara cried and rushed to the bed, grabbing up a sheet of paper and began reading.

Buffy knew what the note was. When she had run away, she left a similar note for her friends and mother. At least Willow was kind enough to do that, she thought as she looked around and noticed Willow’s laptop computer, a few books and some of the witch’s clothes missing.

Buffy understood, it seemed like all they did recently was cry and they were both tired. The Slayer took the note without a word and read through it quickly.

“Gang; I’m sorry to do this. I can’t stay in Sunnydale with the Initiative still in town. I won’t endanger you by getting caught by them again and I won’t endanger you with the wolf either. I know I didn’t hurt Tara but I could have. I also figured out that I killed someone as the wolf.

“I’m not going to kill myself, even though I probably should and end the risk to the rest of the world. Guess I’m not that brave anymore. I’m leaving town for a while. I can’t let the government get a hold of me again. I could be brave enough to kill myself before that happens again.

“Buffy, Tara; I know you’re not going to understand this. I don’t quite understand it myself. I love you both more than my own life but I can’t stay and keep endangering you both. I need you both so much and I know I’m going to be lost without you but I can’t risk hurting you or having you hurt because of me. Please, let me go and be happy together. Willow.”

“Oh God, Wills,” Buffy muttered and sat down heavily on the bed. Tara gently took the note from her and headed back downstairs.

Buffy stared at the frame on Willow’s nightstand and realized it was empty. The picture of her, Tara and Willow was missing.

“Don’t give up on us yet, Wills,” Buffy whispered, mentally sending out all the love she could through their connection.

Carson, in the back seat of her parent’s car, heard Willow whimper and sat up. He kept the blanket over his head and made sure to stay out of the sunlight coming into the car.

“Not with men in white coats looking for me,” Willow said firmly. “I can’t take that again. They can make it without me.”

Willow hoped that the Highway Patrol wouldn’t take an interest in the car with towels blocking out all the windows but the driver’s side and windshield. It would be hard to explain why the guy in the backseat couldn’t get out of the car on a nice sunny California winter day.

“It’s been two weeks, Giles!” Buffy shouted, breaking another board between his hands. The Watcher barely pulled back in time to avoid the pieces smacking him in the nose or glasses.

“I know but Agent Mulder hasn’t learned anything new,” he repeated. “Wherever Willow disappeared to, she’s done a good job of it. Rather surprising, actually.”

“Why? I managed,” Buffy frowned, turning her anger and frustration into a punching routine against the punching bag.

“You took a job that paid under the table and dealt in a neighborhood of runaways, I’m not sure Willow took that route,” Giles commented, watching his Slayer work out.

“Meaning she’s smarter and probably has a nice computer job somewhere with a new ID,” Buffy said sarcastically.

“Can’t she be traced through a new ID? They take your prints now for a driver’s license,” Buffy asked.

“No sign of her. Nothing!” Buffy growled and smacked the punching bag again.

“Yes,” Giles said softly. “We have another week and a half before the full moon. I suggest for now that we concentrate on the cyborg problem.”

“This sucks, Giles,” Buffy grumbled. “I should be looking for Willow, not playing soldier against some tin plated demon.”

“He’s not a demon, Buffy,” Giles said impatiently. “And you’re not playing ‘soldier,’ you’re being the Slayer. You’re doing your job.”

“Oh right, my job,” Buffy said bitterly. “That thing that takes precedence over my life, even if it means losing one of my soul mates.”

“No, Giles,” Buffy snapped, verbally shrugging off his concern. “Just let me practice alone for awhile, okay? Go do some planning with the Gang about Adam or something.”

“Alright,” Giles agreed reluctantly, not sure how to help his Slayer’s emotional pain.

Buffy continued whacking the punching bag until she heard the door to the kitchen click shut. Then the Slayer turned into a run across the floor, through a series of gymnastic moves that put her up against a wooden wall they used to practice climbing.

With a shout of anger, Buffy began punching the wall as hard as she could, letting all of her frustration, anger and pain flow through her hands until the boards gave in under her assault and cracked.

Carson felt the familiar figure next to him twitch in her sleep and heard her moan. He figured she must be really caught in a nightmare to be able to wake him up out of a sleep during the day. <“Not a morning person” did not even begin to cover his sleeping habits,> he thought with a smile.

“Hey, Scarlet,” he said softly, using his pet nickname for the red-haired witch.

Willow nodded and curled up around the stuffed fox he had brought home for her one night. As her breathing evened out the vampire drifted back into sleep.

The two weeks hadn’t been bad, he reflected. Willow had proven more than adept at surviving; surprising him and herself. She had quickly gotten false IDs for both of them and illegally sold her parents car. That money had been spent on securing a studio apartment in a miserable part of town.

By magic, theft, barter, and creative inventiveness, furniture had been acquired. Typical of a studio apartment, some of the furniture consisted of plastic milk crates and boards but the bed was queen sized and comfortable. Heavy black material covered the windows and a curtain blocked off any light that might come in from the front door opening but that wasn’t out of place in the neighborhood of college students, struggling musicians, junkies and slackers.

Within days, the hacker had a job with a group of fellow hackers and computer geeks putting together computers for clients and hacking into and testing programs. Willow figured most of the computers they took in were stolen but it didn’t matter to her. The guys paid well, respected her skills, didn’t ask for identification and didn’t ask questions about her past.

Within a week, Carson had a job as a bouncer at a Goth bar, his pale skin fitting in quite well with the wanna-be vampires.

Carson figured it hadn’t been a bad move to hook up with the red-haired witch. The girls at the club were fascinated with his fangs and more than willing to have sex with the handsome “vampire,” especially when he could use his fangs, Carson just made sure not to let them see his ‘game’ face. <The girls never missed the blood and enjoyed the sex immensely, everyone got what they wanted,> he reflected.

One of his first purchases had been a strong set of shackles, thick chains and industrial locks.

Willow had looked at the silver items with a clenched jaw and didn’t say a word but nodded her thanks.

The computer geeks weren’t surprised when she worked most of the night and slept most of the day. Almost all of them kept the same strange schedule and the main workshop was out of a rented warehouse, so no one noticed the odd hours.

“Things are looking good here, Red,” Carson mumbled. “But you still should have stayed with your girlfriends.”

Joyce frowned and looked over at the clock on her nightstand and her frown deepened. What had awakened her at 2:25 in the morning? She sat up on her bed and grabbed for her robe when a thump sounded again on the stairs.

Alarmed, Joyce moved quickly to her door and rushed down the hall, switching on the light.

The Slayer looked like she had been in a car wreck. Joyce knew she would never get used to Buffy coming home battered and bruised but this was one of the worst. She rushed down the stairs to wrap an arm under Buffy’s and began helping her daughter up the stairs.

“Buffy?” Tara’s voice greeted them from the top of the stairs, her voice cracking at the sight of the Slayer.

Tara and Joyce helped Buffy move slowly down the hall to her room and onto her bed. Buffy winced as she sat down on the bed and Joyce helped her out of her jacket.

The Slayer’s left eye was swollen shut, her nose had been bleeding, and her arms were covered with bruises. Joyce also noticed that Buffy was holding her right arm close to her body and gently raised Buffy’s t-shirt. Both Joyce and Tara winced at the sight of the massive bruises along the Slayer’s ribs.

“Looks like he found you,” Tara countered, bending down to unlace Buffy’s Doc Martin boots.

“Well, I have to admit that it didn’t exactly go well,” Buffy said softly.

“No, Mom, really,” Buffy assured her. “I’ll be all better by morning, only a few bruises by then. Right now I need a shower and some sleep.”

“I don’t think you can stand up long enough for a shower,” Joyce commented and caught a look between Tara and her daughter. “All right, good idea.”

“Tara helping you with a shower, of course,” Joyce said calmly. “Just make it a quick one, you both have school tomorrow.”

“You sure you don’t need a doctor?” Joyce asked again, ignoring Buffy’s protests.

“I’ll be okay, Mom,” Buffy said, a little more calmly. “I’ve got to see Giles in the morning before school.”

“New developments?” Tara asked as she and Joyce helped the Slayer to her feet.

“Yeah, I ran into one of the Initiative commandos, they’re hunting Adam as well,” Buffy said. “He said that demons and vampires are flocking to Adam and they can’t get near the place. The Initiative has only a skeleton crew since we destroyed the Center.”

“Total agreement,” Buffy agreed as her mom and Tara helped her sit in the bathroom while Tara started the shower. “Now if we can find Wills and convince her that they aren’t a threat to get her home!”

“I’ll be gone to Los Angeles for a couple of days to oversee the shipment of a new show at the gallery, I could cancel if you need me here,” Joyce commented.

“No, Mom,” Buffy shook her head. “It’s probably better if you’re out of town. Riley knows who I am and Adam could come after any of you to get to me.”

“Well, I will see you girls in a couple of days then,” Joyce said, hugging Tara and then Buffy. “I love you.”

Tara waited until Joyce shut the bathroom door and turned the Slayer around to unhook Buffy’s bra.

“What’s up, Tara?” Buffy asked, leaning with one hand on Tara’s shoulder to work her way out of her jeans. “It’s freezing out there this time of night and I’m really