There they sat at the fountain in the "courtyard" of Sunnydale High. They looked like a miserable threesome, wrapped up in the woes of life and tragedy. In truth, Buffy and Xander had joined Willow with every intention of cheering her up. They each loved Willow and they couldn't bear to see her so despairing.
"Malcolm...Moloch..." Willow said with a slight tremor she was trying to keep out of her voice. She shrugged. "Whatever he's called. The one boy that's really liked me and he's a demon robot. What does that say about me?"
Buffy shrugged imperceptibly. "Doesn't say anything about you."
Willow stared at the ground. "I mean, I thought I was really falling..." she trailed off. She thought to herself, <Oh, who am I kidding?! Who would fall for me? What a joke?> She clenched her teethe together in an attempt to hold herself together.
"Hey," Buffy said, forcing a smile, "did you forget? The one boy I've had the hots for since I moved here? Turned out to be a vampire."
Xander nodded his head, grinning like a mad man. "Right, and the teacher I had a crush on? Giant preying mantis."
Willow nodded absently. "That's true."
Xander shrugged. "That's life on the Hellmouth."
"Let's face it." Buffy looked at Willow. "None of us are ever gonna' have a happy relationship,"
Xander shrugged. "We're doomed!"
Willow smiled wryly. "Yeah!"
Then they shared a short laugh, and abruptly fell into a deep silence.
Willow frowned. <Why are they down in the dumps? Isn't it my turn? Or is it because I'm good old reliable Willow who can't be in the dumps by herself because she can't even find a boy who really likes her!> She glanced cautiously at Xander. Then she looked over at Buffy. She wanted to cry. They had no idea what they did to her and yet it should be as plain as day.
"Hey, I know..." Buffy smiled as she came up with a plan. "Let's go to the Bronze tonight and party our blues away."
"Isn't it a school night?" Willow asked softly.
Xander shrugged and grinned. "Never stopped us before." He put his arm around Willow. "What do you say, Will? You, me, the Slayer! At the Bronze. A little dancing...a little drinking..."
She looked at him.
"Pop soda, of course," Xander said, raising a hand. "We'll chase your blues away."
Willow looked from Buffy to Xander. She didn't actually feel like going out tonight, but they were trying to cheer her up. Maybe it would be nice. She nodded. "Okay...I have to go home first so...I'll meet you guys there. Okay?"
"Sure, Will." Xander gave her a squeeze.
Buffy gave Willow a reassuring smile. "We'll see you there."
They went their separate ways. At least Willow thought they had until she stopped to turn around. She saw Buffy and Xander walking together. They were walking side by side, talking and laughing. Xander, she supposed, was probably saying something witty to which Buffy would laugh and tell him how funny he was.
Willow let out a long weary sigh. Then she headed into the school, heading for her locker. She opened her locker and absently went through the books she was carrying to trade them for books she wanted to take home with her. It was automatic for her, she wasn't giving it a thought because her thoughts were not on her surroundings. They weren't on her homework. They weren't on the Bronze, or vampire slaying.
Her thoughts were of Xander and Buffy...Buffy and Xander.
She went to close her locker when something fell out onto the floor. She looked down and she saw a computer floppy disc laying at her feet. Curious, she picked it up and looked at it, turning it over in her hands. On the little white sticker on the front of the disc were the words... [Tell No One]
Puzzled, she slipped it into one of her books...and forgot about it for awhile. *****
"Willow!" Buffy bounced on her feet and waved at her friend as she entered the Bronze.
Willow saw Buffy at their favorite table and she approached the table. Buffy frowned with concern. Willow was moving as if she had no motivation. Her face was almost a blank. But the pain in her eyes was not something a person could ignore. Especially if that person was someone who knew Willow.
"Willow, are you okay?" Buffy asked as her friend took a seat at the table.
Willow nodded. "I'm fine." She looked around.
Buffy noticed. "Oh...Xander's not here yet."
"Oh...He didn't come here with you?" Willow avoided eye contact.
"No. He didn't." Buffy looked at Willow, regarding her as she realized what her friend must be thinking. "Willow...Look. It's not worth being so depressed over."
This time Willow did look at Buffy. "What's not worth being depressed over? Who-who said I was depressed anyway? What? Are you and-and Xander the only ones who can have long faces but I get to be excluded?" She frowned. "I don't get to be upset because I have to break up with my boy friend who-who was a demon? He was nice to me, Buffy...before I knew he was a demon! He was nice to me...Like Xander was nice to me."
"Xander? Willow..."
"You think I'm upset over Malcolm...over Moloch!" She looked at her defiantly. "Well, I'm not!! It's...It's Xander! But Xander likes you, not me."
Buffy put up her hands. "Will, we went over this. Don't you see? You thought he was after me before, but then we found out that he was possessed by a hyena. It wasn't him."
"He said some things..."
"It wasn't Xander!" Buffy re-emphasized.
Willow got real quiet as she looked away from Buffy. She looked at her hands folded on the table in front of her and frowned. When she did speak, her voice almost cracked with emotion. "Words are a funny thing, Buffy. When a person says something, they can't take it back. What has been said is said...And-and I believe that if it can be said then it must be true." She took a deep breath. "Maybe the hyena in him said those things...but what if somewhere deep inside him, Xander was thinking those things."
Buffy looked aghast at her friend. She grabbed her hand and squeezed it reassuringly. "Willow, no! Xander doesn't think of you like that!"
Willow looked at Buffy and hesitated. This time her voice did crack with emotion. "I know what he said to me. I wonder what he said to you."
<"Do you know how long I've waited for you to stop pretending that we aren't attracted?"> Buffy remembered Xander's words clearly. <"Until Willow stops kidding herself that I could settle with anyone but you?">
Buffy tried to clear her thoughts and tell Willow something, but she was at a loss for words.
Willow's eyes closed. "I...I knew it."
"Willow, you don't know, you--"
"I'm going home, Buffy. I'm tired. I'm just...so tired."
"Will, let me walk you home."
Willow shook her head. "No. I may not be a slayer. I may only be a 'guy-friend, pasty-faced' Willow, but I am still Willow and-and I can walk home alone."
Buffy didn't know what to do. She wished Xander would arrive before Willow made it out the door but that didn't happen. What did happen, however, was that Willow passed by Angel who said a greeting to her. When Willow kept going without a word, Angel turned to watch her with concern. Just as she disappeared through the doors, Buffy approached him.
"What's wrong with Willow?" Angel asked.
"She's mad at me because she thinks I'm after Xander!" she said in exasperation.
Angel looked at her. "Are you?"
Buffy squinted her eyes at him. "Am I what?!"
"After Xander."
She looked at him in disbelief. "How could you ask me that?! No, I'm not after Xander." She tossed her hands up to stop him from asking any more questions. "Angel, could you please follow Willow home? Make sure she gets there safe?"
Angel nodded his head. "Sure. I'll see her safely home."
Angel left the Bronze and in no time, he had caught up with Willow. He caught up enough to keep his presence from being none. He stayed in the shadows and watched.
Willow looked so sad it almost broke his heart. He didn't know her as well as Buffy did, but anyone who was important to Buffy was just as important to him. The girls heart was obviously broken and Angel knew from experience that a person could get physically hurt in many different ways, and the body would still heal with a little time. But a broken heart was not so easily healed. That took a lifetime...and some times more than one.
Willow walked on alone...and Angel followed. Across the street, Angel noticed that they were not walking alone after all. There were four others in the shadows and they were keeping step with Willow. He watched Willow and was certain that she was unaware of her followers...of her stalkers. Angel focused on them. They were human...but there was something about them. Some kind of powerful presence.
They all made it to Willow's house without a hitch. Willow went inside, unaware of those who waited out in the night. Angel decided to stick around and he was glad he did. The four stalkers were aware of him as well, and whether it was because he was there or some other reason, they didn't come any closer to the Rosenberg house. In fact, after awhile, they left altogether.
But Angel stayed yet awhile longer.
Willow entered into her home and she found her father heading through the hall with a suitcase in his hand.
"Hi, sweetheart," Ira Rosenberg said in greeting. "How was your day?"
Willow frowned at the suitcase in his hand. "You...you're going away again? But you just got home!"
"I'm sorry, Willow. But I also have to make a living, as does your mom." He hesitated. "Listen. There's groceries in the fridge, and if that doesn't meet your cravings, we left money on your computer desk. We'll be back on Monday."
"But..."
"But what, Willow?"
She looked at him. "Dad...I was kidnapped by a demon robot! He-he was going to kill me, but not until after he thanked me for-for freeing him from some-some dusty old book that smelled like stinky mildew! And-and then he got into the computer, and-and Giles said he could have destroyed the world, but-but he and Miss Caldender did a spell and conjured him back in-into the book! Plus, Buffy-she's the Slayer, Dad!- she and Xander came to save me from the CRD and-and Buffy fried the demon and-and Xander punched out one of the minions." She paused to catch her breath. "Oh, you know what a minion is, don't you?"
Her father just looked at her in silence for a moment. Then, he shook his head and laughed. "You know, Willow...some lucky boy is going to find you and you are going to make him happy. You're smart, and you're also very imaginative." He kissed her on the forehead. "Well, I can't miss my flight. We'll call you tomorrow."
And then he was gone.
Willow stood there in stunned silence. The house was big enough for a family...but alone, it was just too big.
"What is wrong with me?" she asked outloud, even though there was no one around to answer her. She walked in a daze toward her bedroom and turned a light on. She looked at the mirror above her dresser and studied her reflection.
<"Xander, what's wrong with you?"> Willow closed her eyes as the first tears began to fall. <"I guess you've noticed that I've been different around you lately." "Yes."> She tried to stop the thoughts, the memories, but they were so fresh in her mind. <"I think, um...I think it's because my feelings for you have been changing..."> "No..." Willow said softly as the tears began to flow freely now. <"...and, well, we've been friends for such a long time that I feel like I need to tell you something."> Willow fell to her knees and buried her face in her hands. <"I've, um..." There was a sigh. "I've decided to drop geometry, so I won't be needing your math help any more which means..."> "Please, stop..." Willow cried as she lay on the floor trying to block out the memory. <"...I won't have to look at your pasty face again.">
Then there was that laugh. What had made it even worst was that the four new friends of Xander had joined in on that laugh. It was the most horrible sound Willow had ever heard. And it was the most painful thing she had ever been faced with.
The damage was done.
Xander was lost to her.
Willow hugged her knees to herself and cried herself to sleep.
Xander looked around the Bronze as he approached the table where Buffy sat alone. It was obvious to him that Willow was not present, but what was also painfully obvious to him was how solemn Buffy was. She was even avoiding eye contact with him and this gave him reason to be concerned.
"Okay, I'll bite...What's with the expression of death warmed over?" Xander asked as he sat at the table across from her.
Buffy looked at him. "'I'll bite'?"
"Okay. Bad choice of words considering your job description. Let me try something else..." He paused as he regarded her with his dark eyes. "What did you say to Willow that made her run off?"
Buffy looked startled. But she also looked guilty. "What do you mean by that, Xander? I haven't said anything!"
"You did. I can tell. What did you tell her?"
"Xander, I didn't tell her anything. I..." She opened her mouth and then closed it. Then, she tried again. "Willow and I had girl talk. That's all. It didn't involve you."
Xander frowned. "Girl talk is just another way of saying, 'We're talking about boys'. My guess is you were talking about Moloch and you said something and Willow booked on out of here. Is that the way it went?"
Buffy didn't answer. She looked at him as if she wanted to say what she and Willow had talked about, but she didn't want to bring him into it.
"You talked about me." Xander nodded his head slowly. "Willow's hurting...and it's my fault?"
Buffy shook her head. "Willow will be fine, Xander. Just let her have her space for awhile."
Xander looked at her as if she were insane. "Wait a minute! Willow left here and you didn't walk her home?"
"She didn't want me to--"
"She didn't want!! Since when do you let that stop you from seeing your friends home safely?" He rose from the table.
Buffy did, too. "Xander! Willow's safe. Angel followed her home. He'll make sure that--"
Xander pointed angrily at her. "That's another thing I don't understand about you, Slayer. Willow is your friend and you entrust her life to a blood-sucking vampire. You are even in love with him, aren't you?" He shook his head. "Well, it's wrong. One day you'll see that. Too bad it isn't tonight...unless he takes Willow now."
"He won't--"
"Don't follow after me. I'm a big boy and I can take care of myself." With that, Xander spun away from her and stormed out of the Bronze.
Not willing to let Xander go alone, Buffy did follow him. But as she saw Xander walking off down the street in the direction of Willow's house, two dark figures stepped out of the shadows in front of her. From the way they began to approach her and from the hissing sounds thsy made, she knew that they were vampires. She knew it even before then.
"I am NOT in the mood for you fiends tonight!" Buffy declared as a stake appeared in her hand from within the folds of her coat. "You want a piece of me? Come and get it!"
They attacked together and Buffy's feet were suddenly spinning through the air. Her fighting skills had managed to seperate the two from each other and she managed to thrust the stake through the heart of one. As it turned to dust, the remaining vampire leapt onto her back and they both fell to the sidewalk. Buffy managed to roll away and she was on her feet as the vampire was on his.
Unfortunately, he was facing the other way.
She tapped him on the shoulder.
"Huh?" the vampire inquired as he began to turn around.
"Not very bright, are you?" she asked. She staked him through the heart before he could answer.
Then she looked down the street. Xander was no where in sight, but that didn't mean she couldn't catch up to him.
That's when she heard the growl from behind. She turned around and discovered two more blood-sucking fiends.
"My my...aren't I the popular one," Buffy said to no one in particular. Then she launched herself at them.
Xander never made it to Willow's house himself. He had meant to get there. He had wanted to. But he saw something that disturbed him so in a wild hunch, he went away from Willow's house as he trailed the four figures he saw moving down the street. They had come from the direction of Willow's house and Xander was certain that they could have been from one of the neighboring houses...
But his gut told him that that wasn't right. There was something very sinister about them and as he watched them, he was more than certain that he knew them. There was something familiar about them. What was even more distressing was that he had a very bad feeling that the four dark figures that he was now following had meant to do something to Willow.
Did they see Angel and back off? If that was the case, Xander silently thanked Angel and continued to follow the four.
They stopped beneath a street light and were laughing and talking together. For awhile, they just stood there.
It was enough.
Xander saw them.
And he knew who they were.
Willow's eyes were open. They had been open for awhile now, staring at the ceiling above. She was still on the floor at the foot of the bed, her back on the floor and her eyes simply staring. She had had a terrible dream...a nightmare. It was the worst dream she had ever had.
In the dream, she saw Xander. Every where she went in the dream, he was there. In class, in the gym, in the library, at the Bronze. He was always so nice to her and he was always asking her out. He was telling her that he wanted to be with her and no one else.
But in the dream, Willow turned him down every time. Told him to go away. To get lost. To even drop dead. In the dream, she told him that she hated him. Never wanted to see him again. That he should be with Buffy.
Buffy...
<"Tell me, Will...Before Buffy came along, our lives didn't need that much saving...did they?...When we were alone.">
Willow blinked her eyes.
She just wanted to lay there and fade away, but that wouldn't happen. There would be a tomorrow. There was one more school day before the weekend. "I'm not going," she said softly to herself. "My parents don't care anyway...and...and neither does Xander."
She brought her hands to her face and rubbed her tear stained eyes. She had been on the floor for quite a few hours so she was stiff. She sat up and stretched. The light was still on and she looked at the clock on her desk.
4:48 am.
Slowly, she rose to her feet and sat on her bed. For awhile, she simply sat there as if she were trying to wake up from a slumber, but didn't want to. She looked at her desk and her eyes fell onto the books she had brought home from school. One of them was open and on the pages of the book was a disc.
She remembered that someone had put it in her locker at school. With nothing else to do besides stew in self despair, she decided to find out what was on the disc. She picked it up and read the writing out loud.
"'Tell No One.'" She frowned. "Oh, great...an X-File on floppy."
She sat down at her desk, turned her computer on, and waited. She twirled her hair around her finger while she waited. Her eyes spied a picture of Xander and absently, she reached over, grabbed it, and laid it face down. She continued to wait for the computer. Then, she went through her log-in and finally her desktop arrived.
She put in the floppy.
She opened the Word Document and began to read what was in the disc. It was a letter addressed to her.
DEAR WILLOW, IF YOU ARE READING THIS LETTER THAN IT MEANS THE WORST HAS HAPPENED AS I FEARED THAT IT WOULD. IT MEANS THAT YOU HAVE BETRAYED ME. IT MEANS THAT YOU HAVE STAYED TRUE TO YOUR FRIENDS AND HELPED THEM RETURN ME TO THE DREADED PRISON THAT HAS BEEN MINE FOR SO LONG. AH, WELL...THERE WILL BE ANOTHER TIME. SOONER THAN YOU EXPECT. FOR I HAD THE FORESIGHT TO SEE WHAT YOU WOULD EVENTUALLY DO. I HAVE MADE PREPARATIONS...AND THIS IS ONE OF THEM. NOW OBEY MY WORDS VERY CAREFULLY, MY LOVE, FOR WE SHALL BE REUNITED ONCE AGAIN. IF YOU CHOOSE TO GO TO YOUR FRIENDS, THEY WILL DIE HORRIBLY. I HAVE ALREADY SET THINGS IN MOTION. XANDER WILL DIE, BUFFY, YOUR VAMPIRE SLAYING FRIEND WILL DIE, GILES, YOUR FAVORITE BRIT, WILL DIE. PERHAPS WE'LL ADD JOYCE SUMMERS AND JENNY CALENDAR AS WELL. THERE ARE MANY PEOPLE IN YOUR LIFE BESIDES THE ONES I MENTIONED THAT WILL SUFFER IF YOU DO NOT DO AS INSTRUCTED. SO YOU CAN TELL NO ONE AND DO AS EXPECTED OR YOU CAN TELL YOUR FRIENDS AND REAP THE CONSEQUENCES. THE CHOICE, MY LOVE, IS YOURS. I TRUST THAT YOU WILL USE WISDOM IN THIS AND DO THE RIGHT THING. ONCE WE ARE TOGETHER AGAIN, WE WILL NEVER BE SEPARATED. FOR I BELONG TO YOU AND YOU BELONG TO ME. IT IS DESTINY NOW. IT WAS DESTINY WHEN YOU FIRST RELEASED ME. IT IS IRONIC DESTINY THAT YOU WILL RELEASE ME ONCE AGAIN. FORGET YOUR FRIENDS, FOR THEY DO NOT EVEN KNOW THE REAL YOU. THEY DO NOT KNOW YOU AS I DO. WILLOW, I LOVE YOU. GO ABOUT YOUR DAYS AS YOU NORMALLY WOULD, MY LOVE. YOU WILL BE APPROACHED SOON BY SOME OF MY MOST DEVOTED FOLLOWERS. WHEN YOU SEE THEM, THEY WILL TELL YOU WHAT TO DO. BUT YOU MUST STAY AWAY FROM THOSE WHOM YOU THOUGHT WERE YOUR FRIENDS. STAY AWAY...OR THEY DIE. SO UNTIL WE MEET AGAIN, MY LOVE...I, YOURS...YOU, MINE.
Willow was horrified. Could this be happening? She read the note over again and realized that this was very real. Somehow, Moloch the Corruptor had prepared a plan in the event that he was returned to the Book. That plan was now in action and...and if she told anyone, they would be killed. Horribly killed. How could she tell anyone when she didn't know who Moloch's followere were or how many there were? Could they really kill the ones she loved? Were they watching her house?
She took the disc out of her computer and looked at it in fear.
She felt so alone. She didn't know what to do.
But she had no choice now. She had to go to school, avoid her friends...and wait until the devoted followers to come to her.
"But, then what?" she asked herself softly.
Xander walked into the library, and he discovered that Buffy and Giles were in a deep discussion. He could always tell it was deep just by the stern expression on Giles face alone. But that stern look was always accompanied by Giles occasionally taking off his glasses and using them as a pointer. He was waving them at Buffy now.
"You fought four of them last night and you didn't bother to tell me about it until just now?" Giles looked perturbed by this. "That's four v-vampires in one night, Buffy."
"If it makes you feel any better, I fought them two at a time." Buffy let out a sigh. "And I had to tell you just now...because this is the first time I've seen you...just now."
"You couldn't have stopped by here last night, or called me at home?"
"What is the big deal? Why can't you just be happy that I took our four vampires who won't be around to bother any one any more. And I didn't even break a nail." She turned her hands towards her so that she could display proudly her nails to Giles. "See? These nails would make Cordelia proud."
Giles stared.
Xander came over to them and he stood beside Giles, also to examine the nails. "You know what they say about Slayer nails, don't you?" He continued before anyone could stop him. "'These nails were-a made for scratchin', and scratchin's what I'll do. These nails were-a made for scratchin', and I'm-a gonna scratch all over you.'"
Giles and Buffy looked at him with raised eyebrows and humorless expressions.
"Hey, everybody likes Sinatra," Xander told them.
Buffy frowned. "Frank sand a song about nails?"
"Okay, forget the nails. It's not important anyway." Xander looked from one to the other. "Have either of you seen Willow yet?"
Buffy shook her head.
Giles pushed his glasses up onto his nose. "I had expected her to arrive with either one of you, but I have not seen Willow either." He regarded both Buffy and Xander. "Is there something going on that I should know about?"
"Well, it's just that Willow--" Buffy began.
But Xander cut her off. "--Is just fine. I did call her this morning to check in on her. She told me that dear old Mom and Dad are off on another trip so she was running late." He looked at Buffy meaningfully. "That's all there is to it."
Buffy returned the look, but it was mixed with concern.
"Well...th-that's good, then," Giles said, as he turned to go into his office. "I would like to look into the books today. Too many vampires are showing up and...and I would like to know why their numbers are increasing."
Xander began to follow him. "Wait up, G-Man. I have to ask you something." He waved at Buffy. "We'll see you later, Slayer Girl. You've got just a few minutes before class."
"Well, so do you," Buffy retorted.
"Yeah...but I want to get kicked out of school. You don't."
Buffy frowned. "Oh...Right." She looked at him with concern because she had the strangest feeling that he was up to something. She just didn't know what. But she would have to find out later. She turned and left the library.
Giles turned to regard Xander. "What is it that you wanted to ask me?"
Xander took a deep breath. "I just want you to give me some kind of assurance."
"Do you have a specific assurance in mind, or a general one, Xander?"
"Well, we fight a lot of vampires and demons..." He paused as he saw Giles facial expression. Then he corrected himself. "Okay...Buffy fights a lot of vampires and demons. My point is when we come across an object of power that could be deadly..." He snapped his fingers. "Like that book that Willow scanned! What was that?"
"The Book of Molech, the Corruptor?" Giles inquired.
Xander nodded his head. "That's the one! What happens to that book now?"
"And why do you want to know?"
He shrugged. "Oh, you know...Willow was very distraught about it, and I told her that I'd look into it...To make sure that it would never be a problem again." Xander paused. "Whatever became of that book?"
Giles paused before he gave his answer. "That book is in my home. I plan on shipping it to the Watcher's Council tomorrow morning." He gave a wry smile. "Tell Willow not to worry. The Council will know what to do with that book."
Xander smiled back. When he left the library, he didn't plan on going to first class. He had another plan in mind, but first, he had to find Willow.
Willow was purposefully late for school. It was the only way she could think of that would prevent her from running into either Buffy or Xander. But she was wrong. A minute after the bell rang and with the halls empty, she stopped in her tracks as she saw Xander leaning up against the lockers right next to her locker.
She wanted to turn back but she couldn't bring herself to move. Especially since Xanders dark eyes were looking right at her. Trying to still her fast beating heart, she forced herself to move. She went to her locker and began to fumble with the lock.
"Hi, Xander," she mumbled, not looking at him.
"Hi, Willow," he responded, not taking his eyes off her.
Willow missed the combination and tried again.
Xander continued to watch her. "Do you need help with that?"
"N-no...I'm fine, thank y-you." Willow was starting to panic. She could not keep anything from Xander, especially if he began to question her. But with a sigh of relief, she managed to open the locker and her eys immediately saw the envelope that wasn't there yesterday. She quickly grabbed it as she took out a book with it. She held the envelope on the side of the book that wasn't facing Xander, but she looked at him out of the corner of her eye.
Xander noticed the look. "Willow, what are you trying to hide from me?" He was asking her what was bothering her.
Willow, however, thought that he had seen the envelope. "N-nothing, Xander! It's just my history book!"
She closed the locker and tried to walk away.
But he gently grabbed her arm, stopped her, and put himself in front of her. He looked into her face. "Willow. I'm your friend. I've known you a long time and I can see in your eyes that there is something wrong." He looked into her eyes. "Talk to me, Will. I just want to help you."
She shook her head. "You can't help me." It came out as a whisper.
"What's wrong?"
She couldn't tell him the truth that she wanted to about the disc she had found in her locker yesterday. So she told him a different truth. "You really want to know what's wrong, Xander?"
He nodded.
Willow hesitated. "I'm in love with you...but you're not in love with me...That's what's wrong."
She brushed past him and hurried to her class while Xander stared after her with a bewildered look on his face.
Willow was only a few minutes late to her class, and it was a class that she usually shared with Xander. It never even occurred to her until later that he didn't show up after her. She apologized for being late, took her seat and as the class continued, she opened the envelope to see what was in it.
It was just a note that read...
AUDITORIUM! 5TH PERIOD!
She crumpled the note and shoved it into a pocket in her skirt. She would throw it out later. Her heart began to race again as she wondered who wanted to meet her in the school auditorium during 5th period. She realized that she was going to actually have to skip a class.
Her eyes went to the desk next to hers as the class continued. Xander hadn't arrived and she suddenly became afraid. Molech's followers might have taken him to make sure she did as she was told.
She closed her eyes as a tear rolled down her cheek. When she opened them again, Xanders desk was still empty.
Xander strolled toward Giles home but as he neared the door, it began to open and someone was coming out. He quickly ducked into hiding around a tree and he carefully peered out to see who was leaving Giles home. He was quite surprised.
It was Jenny Calender. She closed the door and, carrying a large bag with handles, she headed for her car without being aware of Xander as he watched. Xander waited until she had drove away. Then carrying the large book he held in his hands, he approached Giles front door.
It took him a moment to pick the lock, and then he was inside.
There on the counter before the kitchen was a neatly wrapped package. Xander headed for it with a purpose.
"Hey, girl friend," Buffy greeted from behind as she approached the girl at her locker.
Willow jumped and cried out, dropping her books onto the floor. She turned to look at Buffy with wide eyes. "Don't do that!"
Buffy held up her hands. "I'm sorry, Will. I didn't mean to scare you."
Willow bent down to pick up her books and Buffy also bent down to help her friend retrieve her books. "Willow, we're concerned about you," Buffy said softly, not wanting to run her off like she did at the Bronze lastnight. "Both Xander and me are."
"Xander and I," she corrected.
Buffy grinned. "That's a good sign. You know how terrible my grammer is."
Willow looked at her. "I have to go, Buffy."
Buffy's grin faded. "Willow...what's going on?"
"Nothing's going on. I just have things to do! You know, Willow-like things that don't have anything Xanderish or Buffyish to do with them." She didn't look at Buffy. "No slaying involved...and-and no b-book studying...Just stuff."
"Willow...I'm not losing you, am I?" Buffy hesitated as she felt like her throat was closing up. She realized it was a lump in her throat. "I feel like I'm losing a friend here, Will. Please tell me it isn't so."
Willow was speechless. She had to be. If she opened her mouth to say anything, she would end up telling Buffy what was happening. But if she did that, then Xander was as good as dead. It was after 4th period and Willow had not seen Xander since that very morning. She couldn't say anything...so she didn't. She clamped her mouth shut, abruptly turned and as the tears began to fall, she walked away as fast as she could.
Buffy was dumbfounded. She stared in shock and wanted to go after Willow so badly...and yet if she did, she risked pushing her friend away forever.
The bell had rung. The halls were empty. And Willow found herself standing in front of the doors that led into the Auditorium. She looked at the double doors as if they were the enemy waiting to grab her.
She gathered up what courage she had and slowly began to reach for the door.
"'I'm not afraid of spooks'," she chanted. "'I'm not afraid of spooks.'" She took a deep breath. "Cowardly lion or no cowardly lion...here goes."
She opened the door and entered the Auditorium.
The place was huge and she couldn't see anyone about. But that didn't mean there couldn't have been someone in hiding.
"Hello?" she called out.
She took a few steps down the ramp between the seats and looked toward the stage.
"Anybody here?" she asked.
She made it to the stage and stood there for awhile, listening and looking around. Puzzled, she slowly made her way up the ramp but that's when she stopped in her tracks.
Two teenage girls were making their way toward her from the top of the ramp. With dawning horror, she recognized them. One was a brunette named Rhonda, and the other was a blonde named Heidi. They were smiling at Willow as they approached, but there wasn't anything friendly about those smiles.
Willow took a step backward. Then another. Then she began to turn around and directly behind her were two teenage boys. She cried out in alarm. She also recognized them. The dark haired, tall boy was Kyle, and his blonde haired friend was Tor.
When the four bully's had Xander as their friend, they had been called the Pack. But why had they returned now? They had vanished after the hyena spirits had been restored.
Kyle grabbed Willow before she could try to run away. "Where do you think you're going? Weren't you told to cooperate?"
"Y-yes. I--" Willow began.
Kyle interrupted her by shoving her into one of the auditorium seats. He sat beside her as Rhonda took a seat directly behind her. Heidi climbed over the seats to sit beside Willow and that left Tor to take a seat directly in front of her.
She was trapped, and she was scared. She couldn't stop thinking about Herbert the Mascot, and Principal Flutie.
Kyle smiled at her. "I know what you're thinking. But relax." He shook his head. "We're not cannibals any more." He reached over and stroked her hair. He leaned forward. "But I'll bet any amount of money, Willow, that you taste even better than Flutie did."
The girls laughed and Tor smirked.
Willow reflexively moved her hands up to try to remove his hand from her hair.
"Put your hands in your lap and sit still," Kyle ordered. Then he raised his voice menacingly. "Now!"
Willow flinched. She forced her hands into her laps and she literally froze with fear.
Rhonda moved her face close to Willow's ear. "Poor girl. She's so tense."
Kyle shook his head. "You shouldn't be tense, Willow. We are family after all."
Willow looked at him, hesitant. "F-family?"
"That's right. You see, someone loves you so much that he has instructed us to take care of you for him. So you have no reason to fear us." He regarded her. "If you relax and be yourself with us, we'll treat you a lot better than your other so-called friends do. They don't even know you truly exist. They just let you hang around them because they feel sorry for you. But we don't feel sorry for you. We respect you."
Willow had a hard time fighting back her tears. "My f-friends care for me. Xander--"
"Xander," Heidi cooed. Then she and Rhonda giggled.
Tor grinned at Willow. "Xander was bad, Willow. Real bad. And he said some bad things about you."
Willow shook her head. "I...I don't want to hear this. Th-that was not Xander...He-he was possessed."
Kyle shrugged. "Doesn't matter. He still told us all about you and what he really thought of you." He leaned forward. "Didn't he call you pasty-faced? At least, that's what you heard him say. You didn't hear what he told us."
"Please...stop." Willow looked at him with pleading in her eyes. "Is th-this why I had to meet you h-here...so you could make me f-feel bad about my friends?"
Kyle shook his head. "There's always a reason, Willow. We just like to set the mood."
"Well...It-it's set, so can we just g-get on with this please?" She sat still with her hands folded in her lap, and she stared at them as she tried to keep from trembling.
Kyle looked at his friends one by one, and then he finally regarded Willow. He nodded. "All right. It's simple really. There's an old cathedral on the edge of town. Has a big bell tower and a cemetary in the back...Do you know the one I speak of?"
Willow nodded as she wiped a tear from her eye.
"Be there at midnight. Alone." He paused for affect. "And bring the book."
"Wh-what book?"
"Moloch, the Corruptor."
Willow stared at him. "I c-can't do that! You don't understand. I--"
Kyle suddenly grabbed a handful of red hair and he pulled Willow's head back. "No. You are the one who doesn't understand! We have been instructed to kill Xander if you do not do as we say, and we will do it. He will die a slow death, Willow. And it will be your fault." He brought his face close to hers. "You don't know what you're dealing with. We are followers of Molech and we hear his voice. He makes us strong. He shows us how weak you are. Am I making myself clear?"
The tears were flowing freely as Willow stammered, "Y-yes! I-I'll get the b-book!"
"Be sure that you do. You don't show up at midnight, we'll go to your boyfriends house and kill him and his parents." He released his grip on Willow and he and his friends got up to leave.
Willow just sat still and tried to compose herself.
Kyle turned to look at her closely. "Xander told us, Willow, that you are nothing but a pathetic little girl and that is all you would ever be. A pathetic little girl who would never find anyone because no one would ever want you." He paused for affect. "I thought that you should know what Xander really thinks of you. See you at midnight."
They left her then. For the rest of the period, she sat there and cried until the bell rang. After the bell rang, Willow steeled up her nerve and headed for the library to look for a book.
At the library, she saw Giles and Jenny talking excitedly about something as they headed out of the library. Willow waited for them to pass and then she hurried inside. She headed for Giles office since she knew that the book would not be on any shelf. But after she searched the office, she found nothing.
She sat at the desk and frowned in thought.
"Maybe he brought it home," she wondered outloud.
She frowned. It looked like she was about to skip three remaining periods. But she had no choice.
She had to get that book or Xander would die!
Willow was far more terrified as she stood in front of Giles front door than she had been when she was trapped in a crypt by Darla and Thomas.
<Thomas!!> she thought bitterly to herself. <Even he didn't want to date me! He just wanted to share me with Darla! What is wrong with me?>
She took a deep breath as she stared at the front door. She was just about to do what she considered to be the unpardonable. But she fully intended to get into Giles house and steal a book.
Giles was going to be so angry with her. However, she thought that she might be able to live with that. What she knew she couldn't live with was what her actions would do to the relationship they shared together. She loved her parents, but they did not give her the time of day. For the most part, Willow felt like she was in her parents way, taking up too much space. But Giles was special to her and he probably didn't even know it. He was the father that she didn't have. He listened to her when she babbled on about whatever was on her mind at the time. He even responded with answers, suggestions, or helpful hints about life in general.
She wondered if he knew how she felt about him.
But then she realized that it didn't matter if he knew how she felt or not. After what she was about to do, he would never trust her again. Neither would Buffy. But Xander might understand...because if she didn't get the book, the Pack was going to kill him.
<Besides,> she reasoned to herself, <they can't use the book. Molech was never restored to it anyway. Buffy fried him in the robot, so what is there really to worry about?>
She hesitantly approached the door and glanced about nervously. She tried the doorknob and found it to be locked.
She sighed. <Of course, it's locked, pasty-face! Giles isn't home.>
She again nervously looked around as she made her way slowly around the house. She was totally oblivious to the fact that a neighbor had seen her and was at that moment calling the police. She continued on with determination, but at the same time, her eyes kept blurring her vision with tears.
She approached a window and looked in. There on the counter was a nicely wrapped package the size of a large book. She breathed a sigh of relief that Giles hadn't sent it out yet. She tried the window and discovered to her horror that it-like the door-was locked.
In desperation, she picked up a rock and gathered her courage. She closed her eyes as she tossed the heavy rock through the window with a crash. She put her hand through the hole she had made and unlocked the window. Once she managed to get the window open, she climbed in as carefully as she could. But she stumbled into a bookshelf and fell to the floor.
She got up from off the floor, dusted herself off and slowly moved toward the counter where the package was. She grabbed the package, pulled it toward her cautiously-as if afraid it would bite her-and then she ripped open the package. When she saw the cover of the book, she froze. Molech's image seemed to be staring at her, but the cover looked strange to her somehow. She tried to ignore the feeling and slid the book aside.
She picked up a pen and wrote a note onto the torn package covering. Her hand trembled as she wrote...
GILES I AM SO SORRY. PLEASE FORGIVE ME. WILLOW
Finally, she picked up the book, walked purposefully to the front door and opened it.
She stared in astonishment.
Two policemen were standing there waiting.
Without thinking, Willow reacted. She slammed the door shut, locked it, and ran. She hurried out through the back door and ran as fast as she could. She heard the police giving chase but at some point in time, she had lost them. Still, she ran and she didn't stop running until she fell with exhaustion onto the ground in the woods. She dragged herself to a tree where she sat with her back against it and tried to catch her breath. She looked fearfully about, feeling more alone in the world than she had ever felt. She was a fugitive now. She was certain that she had just lost the only true family she had ever known.
She didn't know what else to do, so she leaned against the tree and cried.
Willow had been overcome by exhaustion. The stress of what she had done and at avoiding her friends so she could keep her secret safe was too much for her to bare alone. A heavy sleep fell upon her but it was a restless sleep filled with horrible nightmares. She had dreams of being arrested and humiliated in public. She had dreams where her friends turned their backs on her with disgust evident on their faces.
But the nightmares did not end.
Or perhaps they did.
For in her dream, she collapsed onto her knees deep in the woods and she said softly, "I don't want to be alone." The tears flowed down her cheeks and she buried her face in her hands, weeping bitterly.
In her dream, a hand touched her shoulder. "Willow..."
Startled, she looked up. She saw Angel standing over her and he looked at her with such kindness in his eyes and she saw the concern he had for her.
He squeezed her shoulder gently, reassuringly and said, "I know you think you're alone right now, Willow." He shook his head. "But you're not alone. You never were."
Startled, Willow suddenly jolted awake and looked around in bewilderment. She was surprised to find that the sun had gone down some, and the woods around her was almost dark. She wiped her eyes, picked up the book, and looked around again. How she wished that the last part of her dream had been real...but it wasn't.
Angel was nowhere to be seen.
He wasn't really there.
Taking a deep breath, Willow began to walk back in the direction from where she came.
Angel stepped from around the tree that Willow had been sitting against and he followed her. He followed her for quite a ways and Angel was aware that Willow was purposefully going around the town, but staying at the edge of the woods. Eventually, she reached her destination.
It was an old cathedral.
As Willow disappeared into the dark building, Angel saw movement on the opposite end of the property which the cathedral was on. Someone else had arrived.
Angel smiled wryly. "Well, I'll be damned..."
It was Xander.
Willow found herself in the large open area where the congregation used to sit. All of the benches, however, had been removed at one time or another so the room was quite bare except for a single altar at the end. Candles were lit upon the altar and torches hung from the walls. The torches were lit and she was able to see quite clearly that the Pack was waiting for her.
They all stood by the altar and watched her as she entered. She walked toward them, but she stopped when she felt a reasonable amount of distance was still separating her from them. If she had to run, she wanted a good lead. Tor was her only worry when it came to running. He had been on track and he was fast.
Kyle smiled at her. "I'm glad you came, Willow."
Willow's mouth felt dry. "I-I only did this so you wouldn't hurt Xander." She held the book to her, as if it were a shield.
Tor grinned. Rhonda and Heidi giggled.
Kyle slowly approached Willow. "I know you did, Willow. You did the right thing."
Willow took a step backward.
Kyle stopped. "There's no reason to be afraid, Willow. We won't hurt you."
"W-why do you want this book?" Willow asked, trying to get him to talk.
"Don't you want to see your boyfriend again, Willow?" Kyle asked her.
She shook her head. "I d-don't have a boyfriend."
"Molech was your boyfriend...wasn't he? He loved you, Willow." He took a few cautious steps toward her and held out his hand. "Give me the book and you can go...all right?"
She held the book out to him and he took it. He turned around and held it out to Tor who came for it. Tor grinned at Willow and then he headed toward a fire that was burning in the center of the room. Without any hesitation, he dropped the book into the flames. Then he and the two girls began to dance around the fire, singing, laughing, and howling like animals.
Willow stared in wonder. <Why did they burn the book?>
Kyles was standing right next to her. He smiled. "He can never be captured again, Willow. No one can put him back into that book ever again." He looked at her. "And he has you to thank for that."
She frowned. "What do you mean? M-Molech is dead. He can't come back."
"I can," said a voice directly behind her. "And I did."
Willow froze. Slowly, she turned around and came face to face with Fritz. "You!" Willow exclaimed, taking a step backward.
Kyle grabbed her and held her tight.
Willow was too terrified to fight back. Her wide frightened eyes were locked on Fritz as he slowly moved closer to her.
"You're...you're dead!" Willow cried out. "I saw Molech kill you!"
"You saw what I wanted you to see, Willow, my love." Fritz brought his hand up and caressed Willow's face as he leered at her. "The robot was remotely controlled...and I was here in this body while you and your friends thought they destroyed me." He smiled. "And now the book is destroyed. I am truly free!" He looked into her eyes. "I shall reward you for your service to me, Willow. I shall reward you well."
Willow screamed.
Willow stared in horror at Fritz. Fritz had been taken over by Molech at the CRD and she had not known it then. She had seen the robot snap Fritz' neck like a twig. It was true that the lighting in the room had been dim and she even thought she could remember seeing a leer on his face then just before he fell to the floor. And now, here she was, her arms held forcibly behind her by Kyle and Molech/Fritz standing before her, leering at her.
She looked into his eyes and saw nothing but evil there glaring back at her.
"You have helped me destroy the only thing that could imprison me, my love," Molech/Fritz said to her as he raised her head by her chin. "For that, I shall reward you."
Her eyes widened in fear. <H-he's going to kill me!> she thought desperately.
"As a robot, your reward would be death." Molech/Fritz smiled as he looked closely at Willow. "But in this human body I now possess...I shall be your reward."
Willow blinked as she tried to process what he was telling her. "Wh-what?" She hesitated, "I don't understand."
He took a handful of her hair and brought it to his nose, sniffing at her. "You...are girl who has never been with a boy..." he looked into her eyes. "Isn't this true, my dear Willow?"
It suddenly dawned on her what this demon was threatening. She was terrified. She made a face. "I-I think I'm going to be sick."
Molech/Fritz looked at her, pretending to show concern. "Oh, my poor, precious Willow. We must make you comfortable. I shall have my royal subjects..." Suddenly, he stopped as he looked at something just behind Kyle.
Kyle had been holding Willow and grinning like an idiot throughout Molech/Fritz' taunting of Willow. When he saw his Master's face change expression, he himself stopped grinnging. He was trying to figure out what was wrong when a hand fell hard on his shoulder.
Kyle turned his head and looked at the hand on his shoulder. He followed the hand to an arm, and the arm led to a shoulder...and he found himself looking right at Xander. His eyes widened in surprise.
Xander glared at him. "I'm only going to say this once...Get your filthy hands off my girl." To emphasize this, he introduced his fist into Kyle's face.
Kyle released his grip on Willow and stumbled backward to the floor. Around the burning fire, Tor, Rhonda, and Heidi had stopped their dancing to see what was happening. They saw Xander and began to move away from the fire toward Xander, Willow, Kyle, and Molech/Fritz.
Xander took Willow's hand and pulled her away from Molech/Fritz. He looked at her closely. "Will, are you okay?"
Willow stared at him, surprise, joy, and anxiety playing across her face. "X-Xander...?" She put her hand on his chest as if she couldn't believe her eyes. "Xander...is that you?"
He glanced at the Pack and Molech/Fritz, then grinned at Willow. "It's me, Will. It's Xander-Man come to your rescue!"
"But...how...?" she trailed off.
"How did I know?" He smiled at her. "I knew you were in trouble, Will. I just didn't want you to go through it alone." That night he had spotted the Pack near Willow's house, he had followed them and listened to their conversation. They had talked about the Book of Molech and that Willow was going to bring it to them. They had talked about another person as well, but they never mentioned a name. But now Xander knew that they had been referring to Molech/Fritz.
"Aw," Molech/Fritz replied as he tilted his head. "Well, isn't that nice. Xander-Man has come to rescue the damsel in distress." He laughed as the Pack began to spread out around Xander and Willow. "That is all very nice, Xander-Man, but in case you didn't know it, the girl is MINE!"
"Not gonna happen, sulfer-breath," Xander replied coolly. "Willow does not belong to you. She's mine. The truth is, Willow has always been mine..." He turned his head to look into her eyes. "And you always will be."
Willow felt her face getting warm. "Xander...I know we're in a dangerous spot right now...but you make me tingly all over."
He smiled.
"ENOUGH!" Molech/Fritz shouted angrily. He pointed at Xander. "You are a fool to waltz in here thinking you could just waltz right back out with your 'girlfriend'! Neither one of you is going anywhere. You, Xander-Man, will die, and you, Willow, will be MINE and MINE alone!!" He stood up tall and proud and even tapped on his chest. "I am free, Xander-Man! Your girlfriend has given me the Book and we burned it. There is nothing you can do to stop me. You have no power."
Xander held up his hands as Willow stared in surprise. "Okay, you got me, Spawn of Satan!" He pretended to cringe. "I can't beat you. I am fairly certain that I could single handedly take on the Pack right now, but you...Oh, no. Too tough for me..." He shrugged. "You know what, I'll just leave you for someone who will have a better chance at taking you down than I will." He pointed to Molech/Fritz' left. "Like him."
Molech/Fritz laughed. "You stupid human fool! You expect me to fall for that?"
A hand landed on his shoulder. In surprise, Molech/Fritz turned his head.
Angel smiled at him. "Actually, it sounded reasonable to me."
Molech/Fritz snarled. "You are just as much of a fool as--"
Angel suddenly put on his game face and grinned. The vampire face glared at the demon. "You're the fool, Molech. You threatened my friends, and that makes me very angry." He grabbed the demon and tossed him into the air. Molech/Fritz crashed hard onto the floor next to the altar. By the time he managed to get back to his feet, Angel had leaped onto him, knocking him back to the floor.
"Showoff!" Xander exclaimed.
"Xander, look out!!" Willow shouted.
Xander turned and a fist sailed into his face. Kyle swung at him again, but Xander managed to stay on his feet and he blocked his attack. Xander struck with a right of his own and something on Kyle's face snapped with a loud crack.
"Ahhhhhhhhh!" Kyle screamed. "My dose!!!!!!! You broke my--Ummmph!!"
Xander had kneed him hard in the lower regions and Kyle, groaning, fell to the floor.
Willow grabbed Xander's arm and guided him back as the Pack surrounded their fallen comrade. There were sounds of someone approaching and they decided that they didn't want to be around.
Tor pointed at Xander. "This isn't over!" he exclaimed. "You'll pay, and so will your girlfriend!" Rhonda and Heidi helped Kyle to his feet and Tor lead them out of there.
Willow glanced nervously at the fight between Angel and Molech/Fritz and then she looked at Xander. "Angel can't beat him, Xander," she said with concern. "Molech is strong. We have to do something!"
Xander nodded. "We will...Just wait."
Molech/Fritz grabbed Angel by the throat and hauled him off his feet. He slammed him down onto the altar and put his hand over the vampires heart. He fully intended to rip Angels heart out with his own hand, and Angel knew the demon could do it. Angel wasn't too certain if that would actually kill him because it wasn't like getting a stake through the heart. But he never heard of a vampire walking around without a heart either and so he hoped he wouldn't have to find out what would become of him. He struggled hard to keep Molech/Fritz' hand from digging into his flesh, but the pain was excruciating.
That's when a pair of black womens boots slammed into Molech/Fritz' face and sent the demon falling away again. Recovering as a hand helped to steady him, Angel found himself looking into Buffy's eyes.
"Do you always time it right down to the last minute?" he asked her.
She shrugged playfully. "A girl likes to see her man hard at work."
He smiled. "Does that mean I'm your man?"
She blushed. "Uh...Well, I--"
"Would the both of you mind terribly if you would keep focused on the task at hand?" Giles asked as he strode past them with Jenny Calender at his side. In his hands, he gripped a book. The Book of Molech. "Keep him busy while we prepare."
Buffy nodded her head and turned to Molech/Fritz. Angel was at her side, and together, they began to keep Molech/Fritz quite busy.
"Giles?" Willow stared in surprise. "Miss Calender?" She looked at Xander. "Wh-what's going on, Xander? Does everyone know that--?"
"Everyone know, Will," Xander assured her. "Trust me. You were never alone on this."
"If you found out we knew what you were up to," Jenny told her as she began to pour out colored sand onto the floor from a jar she had brought, "then they could have found out." She made a circle on the floor.
"What are you doing?" Willow asked.
"I'm forming the Circle of Kayless."
"But...but the book! They burned it." She looked at Giles, fearing that he would hate her. "I gave them the book..."
Giles handed her the book. "You gave them the Encyclopedia Of Idiotic Quotes From The Ancient Past, Willow. A rather large book...useless book, that Xander switched...But I guess it served its purpose." He looked over to the fight and saw that Molecg/Fritz had thrown Buffy at Xander as if she were nothing, but then Angel and Buffy turned around and hit the demon back simultaneously. "We haven't much time. Everyone stand on the circle."
Xander stood on the circle and was soon joined by Willow, Giles, and Jenny. Willow had the book open and she was looking at a piece of paper that had been stuck into the pages. She looked fearfully at the librarian. "Why...why did you give me the book, Giles?"
Giles looked at her. "Willow, we did the first one all wrong. You were the one who released Molech from the book. Therefore, it is you who must put him back into it. Just read what that says...and keep reading it! Loudly!"
Willow tried to swallow but her mouth was dry. She looked at the words.
Molech/Fritz has his hands around Buffy's throat and he was squeezing tightly. Buffy couldn't even gasp for breath. Angel pounded both fists into the demons head but to no avail. He would not loosen his grip.
"'By the power of the divine, by the essence of the word, I command you...'" Willow began to read.
Molech/Fritz spun his head around in horror. "Noo..."
Willow rose her voice. "'By the power of the Circle of Kayless, I command
you. Demon, come!!'"
"Noooooo!!!" Molech/Fritz backed away from Buffy and Angel. As Angel grabbed Buffy to steady her, he saw a white cloud begin to swirl around Molech/Fritz.
Suddenly, Fritz' body collapse, but there was a dark form floating there and it seemed to be merging with the whirlwind.
"'I command you!" Willow shouted. "'Come! Come, demon! Come!!!"
The whirlwind shot right up into the air, and then it sailed right into the book. But it happened with such force that Willow dropped the book and was thrown to the floor.
Xander rushed to her to help her up as Giles picked up the book. Jenny was at his side as he slowly opened the book. When he saw the foreign words written on its pages, he sighed a heavy sigh of relief.
Then, he closed the book and slowly turned so that he could aim a stern look at Willow. Xander helped Willow to her feet, but Willow felt weak. Especially at Giles stern look. Willow looked at Jenny, but Miss Calender was also looking at her sternly. When Buffy and Angel approached, she saw to her dismay that they too had the same stern looks.
She didn't want to look, but she had to. She turned her head and looked at Xander.
He, too, had the stern look. She didn't know why he could wink at her just as he did when he looked so sternly at her. "I," she began, but stopped. She tried again. "Please...I--"
"No talking, young lady," Giles interrupted her with a wagging finger. "You have caused us all a great deal of worry for your safety, Willow."
Buffy nodded once. "You've avoided your friends."
"You didn't ask for our help," Xander added.
Giles frowned. "You broke into my house."
Willow opened her mouth, but she closed it abruptly. What could she possibly say? The accusations were true.
"This kind of behavior cannot be ignored," Jenny replied sternly.
Angel nodded solemnly. "We've all come to an agreement, Willow. You have to be punished."
Willow stared in astonishment. "P-punished?"
Xander nodded his head. "That's right, Will. Punished."
She slowly moved closer to him. "Xander...?" she said softly. "Will it hurt?"
He tried very hard to keep a straight face. "Oh, I don't know." He turned his head. "Buffy?"
Buffy put her hands on her hips and regarded Willow. "You are about to be punished, Willow. I feel that I must tell you that this form of punishment has a name."
They all surrounded her. Buffy, Giles, Jenny, Xander, and Angel all formed a circl around her. Even though they still looked at her sternly, she felt perfectly safe with them...even if she didn't know what they were up to.
"This form of punishment," Giles began," is called...the Group Hug."
They all broke into smiles as they put their arms around Willow and hugged her as a group. Willow was happy but she began to cry anyway and she began to tell them all how sorry she was and that she would never do that again. "Giles, I'm so sorry about your window. I--"
Giles shushed her. "It's all right, Willow. It's only a window, but you are...Well, you are who you are and by far, you are more important than a window."
"You're not mad at me?"
"No. I'm glad that you're okay." He wiped at his glasses as he tried not to let any emotion blur his vision. "You had us worried. I-I want you to know that we'll always be there for you. I...I will be there for you whenever you need me."
Willow hugged him.
Xander walked Willow home.
They were both silent for the most part as they walked home, each completely content just to be with each other. They had started out walking side by side, then a little closer, and by the time they arrived at Willow's doorstep, Willow had found her hand in Xander's.
They stood there for a moment and looked at each other.
"Xander, was I dreaming?" Willow asked.
Xander smiled at her. "Which part?"
"Well...the part with you in it. You know, when you said stuff like 'Get your filthy hands off my girl,' and 'Willow doesn't belong to you. She's mine.'" She tilted her head. "Those parts." She looked into his eyes as if searching him out. "Was all of that just a dream? Am I dreaming now?" She looked at her hand in his. "'Cuz we've never done this before."
Xander took a deep breath. "Will, it wasn't a dream."
She hesitated. "Am I really your girl, Xander?" She paused. "I mean, your girl...not just your bestfriend..." She held her breath, afraid that the dream would end and she would wake up on the floor where she had fallen asleep before.
Xander looked into her eyes. "Do you want to be my girl, Will?"
"You know I do, Xander," she said, without hesitation. "Just like I want you to be mine."
They looked at each other. The night breeze moved across them. Time seemed to stand still. At that moment, there wasn't anything that existed except for themselves. They were lost in each other.
"Then be my girl, Willow," Xander said softly. "From this night and on, belong to no one but me. And I will be yours...forever."
"Forever..." A tear moved down Willow's cheek.
Xander touched it with his finger. Then he moved closer and his lips brushed against Willow's. Willow closed her eyes.
She stumbled and Xander caught her.
Looking at her with concern, Xander said, "Willow, are you okay?"
She nodded. "You didn't believe me when I said you make me tingly, did you? Well, maybe next time you'll listen."
Xander smiled at her. Then he laughed. He helped her into her house and they watched movies, ate ice cream, and fell asleep on the sofa.
Tor was angry. Tor, Rhonda, and Heidi had brought Kyle home and they all let the anger build.
Kyle, however, was the only one who kept a level head. "Don't let this get to you," he told the Pack. "We will get them the next time."
Tor glared at him. "When?" he snapped.
"And how?" Rhonda wanted to know. "I want Willow to pay!"
"Xander, too!" Heidi declared.
But Kyle shook his head. "No."
The others looked at him.
Kyle leaned forward to regard them. "The time will come...We will have Xander with us again...as a part of the Pack. And as for Willow?" He smiled. "Willow will become his initiation."
The others smiled at each other. Then they began to laugh, and soon, their laughter sounded like that of laughing hyenas.