Fic: The Wolf Within (18/?)

[Erin <erin@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Here it is, the long awaited Part 18! Hope you guys enjoy. I feel
like I should be doing a "Last time, on Wolf Within..." opening
sequence, but if you're really curious go read part 17 on my website
to refresh your memory. :)

And coming soon, the dramatic conclusion! (Ok, maybe not so dramatic.)

Erin

TITLE: The Wolf Within
AUTHOR: Erin (erin@xxxxxxxxxxx)
SPOILERS: None, really.
RATING: PG-13 at worst, because of some violence. It is a
Buffy/Willow fic, so if that bothers you, or it's illegal to even
think of a Slayer and a Witch getting it on, then just don't read it.
Or move.
DISCLAIMER: Buffy the Vampire Slayer and all characters belong to Joss
Whedon, Mutant Enemy, and Fox. I'm just borrowing them for a bit.
I'll put them back when I'm done, no worse for wear (but maybe a
little happier). Most of the werewolf stuff is copyright White Wolf,
such as Garou, Crinos, Child of Gaia, Glass Walker, etc.
ARCHIVE: Currently, I believe my stories are being archived at the
following places:
Kim's Corner - 
http://www.fortunecity.com/village/villageplace/93/
Bill's Page -
http://members.spree.com/entertainment/kerrison29/default.htm
Gary's BtVS Fanfiction -
http://psycho.simplenet.com/fanfiction/index.mv?index+buf
Please let me know if I've left someone out, or if one of the URLs is
in error. Anyone who isn't listed here who wants to archive my
stories is welcome to, just let me know so I can add you to the list.
Thanks.
FEEDBACK: Constructive comments are encouraged.
SUMMARY: (Buffy/Willow) Willow discovers that there is more to her
than meets the eye, and it could tear her life apart.

Part the Eighteenth

Willow let out the deep breath she had been holding; she knew her
'resolve face' worked pretty well on her friends, but she guessed it
worked pretty well on animal spirits, too. At least Bear was willing
to hear her out instead of killing her. That was always a plus.

"Thank you. I know I'm a Garou, and I know they've done not-so-good
things in the past. But all I want to do is help my friend. That's
why I'm here."

Bear stared at her, eyes narrowed. "I'm not inclined to trust Garou;
first they turned their back on me, and then they targeted my Children
for destruction. I heard their screams, their cries, but there was
little I could do." Bear lumbered toward the young redhead, stopping
with his massive head just inches from her face. "You wish my
knowledge? Then you shall have it."

Willow looked into Bear's eyes, noticing for the first time the
swirling black-brown depths. They mesmerized her, and she felt
herself being drawn in, a dizzying sensation not unlike the childhood
game where she would look up into the night sky and twirl around
rapidly. Just like the night sky, Bear's eyes seemed to hold a
multitude of stars, and they blurred together as the world whirled
around her faster and faster...

Willow hung weightlessly in the dark sky, drifting above the earth in
slow, lazy fashion. Everywhere she looked in the sky were other
spirits, watching the proceedings on Earth from the Spirit World with
interest. Close by, the great Celestine Luna travelled through the
sky, pouring cold radiance down upon the face of Gaia.  

Every so often her Children would call out to her, the Great Bear, and
honor her with song and ritual. And she smiled on them, and taught
them new rituals and secrets, because they were the healers of Gaia,
and she loved Gaia and her children with all her heart.

Her children led peaceful lives devoted to teaching, and tending the
sick and injured. She knew every single one of them by name; they
would sometimes travel to the Spirit World to visit her and bring her
food and honor gifts. She watched as they welcomed their new brothers
and sisters, the other Shape Changers created by Gaia. The Children
of Cat, Raven, Coyote, Wolf -- all were welcomed by the elder Children
of Bear.

But inside the Children of Wolf she saw Rage and jealousy, and for the
first time she feared for her own Children.

And when she looked again, she saw war; war against the Gurahl. There
was Sits-on-Mountain, once a happy tale-spinner who loved her cubs and
kept a garden, now torn apart by a pack of Garou. And over there was
Warindo Silversalmon, a wise, jovial lorekeeper who taught the art of
beekeeping to humans; his head was torn off, nailed to the doorframe
of the Garou pack-leader who killed him.

Jaice Mountainwind, Urian Walks-the-Land, Orphea Lightwalker,
Leaping-Bear, Kirima Skye, Gardio Faces-the-Death-Bear, Shoshona
Medicine-Bear, Seeks-After-Death, Chewanna First-Mother... Bodies were
piled upon bodies.

Death.  

Her Children were dying, swarmed by the Garou who hunted them. She
thought her heart or mind would break from the sorrow; death would be
preferable to sitting in the Spirit Realm, watching her Children
murdered. But she was a spirit; she couldn't die. She could only
feel.

Willow fell to her knees, sobbing.

* * *

The dark, Umbral landscape flashed by as Buffy ran after the two Black
Spirals. Luckily, Oz and his packmate were more focused on reaching
Willow than they were covering their trail; they appeared to be
stumbling through the brush wildly, ripping up great clods of dirt and
leaving branches and bushes trampled in their wake. Buffy clutched
her silver knife tightly.

God, she thought, I can't believe I let her go out here alone with Oz
still on the loose. If anything happens to her... Buffy furiously
clamped down on where that thought was going. Nothing was going to
happen to Willow, she thought.

I'll die before I let it happen.

* * *

A deep, growling voice interrupted Willow's sobs. "Now you
understand."

The redhead nodded. Once she had taken a few deep, shuddering
breaths, she spoke. "I understand." She had a new respect for Bear,
this spirit that had lived longer than all of human existence and seen
things that no creature should be subject to. "The Garou today don't
teach any of that; according to some of them the war was justified.
And even some of the more peaceful Garou just think that it was all
done out of pride."  

She lifted her head and looked at Bear, who was looking back at her
sadly. Not with anger anymore, or rage, but sadness. It touched her
heart. "I could tell them; teach them the truth about the Gurahl, and
you. I know...I know I'm not responsible for all those things that
happened long ago, but...I want to help."

Bear let out a snuffling sigh. "I doubt they will listen. But...now
I know your heart is pure. You are the first Garou in many ages to
seek me out. Why?"

Willow brushed the back of her hand across her eyes, wiping away the
tears. Clearing her throat, she said, "I have a friend who was a lost
Garou cub. He was very confused, and a group of Black Spiral Dancers
took him and made him in...into one of them." She dropped her eyes
again, feeling that now-familiar guilt and regret.

"Did he join with the Wyrm willingly?" The deep voice asked.

Willow shook her head. "No. He's a good person, he helped us kill
demo--um, Wyrm beasts more than once. He wouldn't have gone with them
if he felt he had any other choice."

Bear regarded the redhead for a moment. "If it is true that he did
not accept the Wyrm voluntarily, then his soul might yet be saved."

Willow held her breath. After all this time, is it possible someone
knew the cure? "What do I have to do?" She asked, breathlessly.

"You must kill him," the great bear replied.

"What?" Willow cried, disbelievingly. "We've come all this way--"

"_Listen_," Bear interrupted. "Here is what you must do..."

* * *

Oz caught the scent and howled with delight. They were very close
now, which was good because he could sense the Slayer on their heels.
With any luck, they should be able to reach Willow before the Slayer
could do anything about it.

He howled again, hearing his bloodlust echoed back to him in the
answering howl of the other Spiral.

* * *

Willow raised her head, the mad howl of approaching Black Spirals
signaling that they were very close to her now.

"You know what you have to do," Bear said. It wasn't a question.

Willow nodded; her hands were sweating, and she wiped them on her
deerskin outfit before shifting into Crinos to meet their attack.

"Then, Gaia be with you," Bear responded, melting into the shadows of
the forest. Willow turned toward the sound of the howls.

Oz burst out of the brush, his large Crinos form smashing through the
dense foliage like tissue paper. He didn't hesitate; he covered the
open ground between himself and the red-furred werewolf almost
instantly, crashing into her with all the momentum a 600 pound
werewolf could provide.

Willow went down under his attack, her arms barely holding his
claw-tipped hands at bay. She drew up her knees and, planting her
feet firmly against his stomach, flipped the Spiral off of her,
sending him crashing head-first into a tree. She jumped up and faced
Oz, who was now stumbling groggily to his feet, a gash in his forehead
trickling blood into his dark fur.

Her elation was short-lived, however, as she felt a strong blow to her
back which sent her sprawling face first into the turf. She rolled,
narrowly avoiding the kick aimed at her from the jackal-headed Spiral
who had followed Oz into the clearing. She was forced to keep
rolling, the blows aimed at her not giving her enough time to get to
her feet, only to dodge.

I can't keep running! Willow thought wildly, and almost as fast as
thought she shifted into wolf form, gaining her feet, er, paws,
quickly and running to the opposite side of the clearing. Once there,
she shifted into Crinos and eyed the two Spirals warily, waiting for
their attack.

The two werewolves approached her now, sidling cautiously to either
side of her. "Wil-low," Oz said in a sing-song voice. "We don't have
to fight. You can join me now, save yourself a lot of pain. You
can't stand against both of us alone."

"She doesn't have to." A voice from the other side of the clearing
interrupted him. Willow would have recognized it in her sleep; she
smiled at Oz, all her fangs bared for him to see.

"You heard the Slayer. I don't have to." She lashed out, kicking Oz
squarely in the chest, the force of her blow rocking him backward.
Jackal snarled and whirled around to face Buffy, his werewolf form
towering over her by at least three feet.

Buffy eyed the mottled werewolf, his fur missing in huge patches. "If
I didn't know better, I'd say that someone gave you the mange," she
said smoothly, waving her silver knife in front of her. Jackal
growled at her, his considerable reach giving him an advantage, but he
seemed reluctant to get close to her while she still possessed the
razor sharp blade.

On the other side of the clearing, Oz and Willow were exchanging
furious blows. Willow had the advantage of Slayer-training, but Oz
fought with a ferocity matched only by the truly insane. Willow felt
her strength sapping, her body bleeding from a dozen different cuts
and slashes, each burning with an infectious fire.

"You can't stop me, Willow," Oz grinned, foam-flecked lips pulled back
from yellow fangs. "Your faith in Gaia has made you weak, and the
Wyrm has made me strong." Another clawed hand got through her
defenses, raking hot tendrils across her chest. She stumbled back,
feeling her knees give way; she landed on her back heavily, Oz looming
over her with a victorious howl.

Buffy glanced over at the fight, her heart leaping into her throat at
the sight of Willow down on the ground. In less than a second, she
leapt forward, straight at Jackal, and her silver blade flashed twice.
Her leap carried her past the surprised werewolf, and she yelled,
"Willow! Here!" and threw the silver knife at her downed friend.

Jackal looked down at the slashes on his stomach, watching with
surprise as blood and intestines poured out of the wide openings. His
mind almost didn't comprehend the fact that he was dead, and he keeled
over before he completely realized it.

Willow reached up and grabbed the silver knife, muttering a quick
thanks to Gaia that it had flown at her handle first. She raised the
knife, pointing it straight at Oz's chest.

Oz stumbled back, eyes widened in horror. His nightmare coming
true...Willow holding a silver knife...he clutched his head, his brain
pounding inside his skull. Willow scrambled to her feet, her heart
breaking at the frightened look Oz was giving her now.

"I'm really sorry, Oz. I have to do this."

Oz let out a cry of sheer terror, the sound cutting right through
Willow's heart. She looked into his eyes, once filled with love, now
only madness, and stabbed, the silver blade sinking deeply into Oz's
chest.

Oz felt the burning deep inside his chest and he stumbled backward,
the blade slithering out of him, his blood burning against the silvery
surface. He clutched at the hole in his chest, blood pouring over his
clawed hands. "Why...?" He said, unable to summon more energy to
speak.

Willow looked at him, her eyes filled with tears. "I'm so sorry. It
has to be this way. Oz, I'm sorry..."

Oz's knees buckled, and he fell heavily to the ground. A wracking
cough seized him, and he tasted the oily, coppery flavor of his own
blood. I thought you loved me, were his last thoughts, then darkness.

Willow watched Oz's still body, her eyes unblinking. Buffy approached
slowly, her voice quiet. "Will, I'm sorry..." Willow raised a hand,
interrupting her.

"It's ok, Buffy, it's going to be ok..." She continued watching Oz's
body. Did she...? Yes, there, coming out of the wound. A translucent
figure seeped out of the gash, small at first and then growing larger
as it took shape.

It was a nightmare creature, covered in sickly green balefire.
Serpentine, it made the dead Mayor look pretty by comparison; numerous
tendrils waved in all directions, toxic ooze flowing over its skin in
dark rivulets.

"What...?" Buffy said, mouth agape. Willow nodded as if she expected
this _horror_, and stepped forward, slashing at it again and again
with the silver blade. Tendrils and bits of spirit-bane-made-flesh
went flying in all directions; the thing screamed, a high-pitched
sound which made Willow feel as if her eardrums were going to burst.
Gritting her teeth against the pain, she kept on hacking at the thing
until nothing was left.

Once the spirit bane was dispatched, Willow knelt down on the ground
next to Oz's body. "What was that thing?" Buffy asked, quietly.

"A spirit bane. It was Oz's link to the Wyrm." Willow's eyes flicked
over Oz's body, looking for any sign of life. "Oz? C'mon, you can do
it...Oz?" Willow shook the limp body which now had the face and body
of the Daniel Ozbourne that she remembered. "He's supposed to be
alive...killing the bane is supposed to bring him back to life!" She
shook him more violently now, the body cool under her fingers.

"Willow..." Buffy pulled Willow back gently but firmly, the much
larger werewolf yielding to her touch. In an instant, Willow was back
in her human form, her arms enveloping Buffy in a hug. Buffy held
onto her love firmly, feeling sobs wrack the young woman's frame.

"Hey, who died?" They heard a soft groan from right next to them, and
both young women fixed their startled gazes on a young man who was
trying, rather unsuccessfully, to rise to his feet.

"Oz!" Buffy and Willow both cried out and rushed forward to help their
friend upright. "Are you ok?"

"Well, physically," Oz began, poking at the now-healed chest wound
tenderly, "I feel like I got hit by a truck. Twice. Mentally," he
looked at Willow, deep guilt shadowing his eyes, "I don't think so."

"Oz, it's ok," Willow said, smiling. "How much...?"

"All of it," Oz replied, his voice dull. "Every thought, every word.
Every time I hurt you, or Buffy." He looked at the girls, his eyes
pained. "I'm so sorry...I can't begin--"

"Shh, it's ok," Buffy said, giving him a small smile. "We should get
back to Artur's. I think we could all use some food and rest."

* * *

The three friends slowly made their way back to Artur's cabin, the
werebear providing them with hot fish stew and refreshing spring
water. He also healed their wounds as Willow told him the story.

"It seems that Bear has given you his favor," Artur rumbled,
approvingly. "If you are an example of the type of Garou the tribes
are producing, then I have great hope for the future of both our
peoples."

Oz, who had lapsed into deep silence since they left the spirit world,
asked, "Now what?" He was unable to summon up the energy to even
pretend indifference; that mask was gone, shattered by the Wyrm and by
the horrific deeds he still remembered all-to-clearly.

"Now I guess we rest, then go back to Sunnydale," Buffy said. "Chris
and Nichole are probably freaking out by now."

* * *

Nichole stared listlessly around the back room of the Dream of Gaia,
her eyes seeing but not really registering the new shipment of books
she was supposed to be putting in inventory. She heard the chime of
the front door opening, and it startled her out of her reverie.

"Hey Chris," she said, greeting the Glass Walker who had just walked
through the front door. "Did you--?"

"Nope," the young man responded. His eyes had dark smudges under
them, mute testimony to the fact that he was working overtime to try
to find the girls. Smudges which probably looked a lot like mine,
Nichole thought. "I've tried calling in some favors, tried their cell
phone, nothing seems to work. Unfortunately that thing isn't meant to
take a lot of abuse; if they got into trouble, it's probably busted."

Nichole nodded. "I've been doing a lot of spirit communication, and
haven't found anything. Wherever they are, they're so isolated that
no one can find them."

"Including the Black Spirals, maybe?" Chris asked. Nichole only
shrugged in response, her eyes filling up with tears. "C'mere," Chris
said, pulling the Child of Gaia into a hug. "They're ok, I know
they're ok."

"Never bet against a werewolf and a Slayer," Buffy said, walking out
of the back room with Willow and Oz in tow. The two Garou blinked at
the group, mouths agape.

Willow peered closely at Chris and Nichole. "Uh oh, Buffy, I think
they've broken--" She barely got the words out before she was
enveloped in a giant hug from the Gaian, the woman squeezing the
oxygen out of Willow's body. Buffy was engulfed in a similar hug,
Chris showing no mercy to the young Slayer.

The hugs seemed to go on forever, until Willow complained about not
being able to breathe. Nichole took a step back, only to have Chris
immediately take her place.

"Guess you guys are glad to see us, huh?" Buffy said with a grin.
"Believe me, we are _so_ glad to see you." She walked over to where
Oz stood quietly in a corner. Grabbing Oz's hand, she said, "I think
some better introductions are in order. Chris, Nichole, this is Oz.
Oz, this is Nichole, and that person wrapped around Willow there is
Chris." Oz gave the two a faint smile and nodded.

Nichole beamed at the young man. "So, I see the cure worked." She
shook her head in wonder. "Absolutely amazing. I guess the question
now is what tribe were you from, Oz?"

"Now, what tribe do ye think, lass?" An Irish-accented voice answered
her. "He be Fianna, a' course."

"Finian!" Willow stared at the Galliard in shock. "How did...?
Why...?"

"I followed ye, lass, how else ye think I find ye here?" The Fianna
chuckled, and stepped out of the back room, arms folded across his
chest. "The whole Spirit World is starting to buzz with the story of
your success. So I figured I'd look ye up. But to answer your
question, the Ozbourne kinfolk are Fianna, and so is Daniel."

Chris looked back and forth between the old Fianna and the back room.
Glancing at Nichole, he said, "You let anyone in here, don't you?"
Nichole just grinned and said, "Umbra," as if that explained
everything.

Finian walked up to Oz and poked a finger in his chest. "Now look
lad. I know you're feelin' bad about all the terrible things you did,
but there are two things you can do. You can wallow in it until the
Wyrm comes to swallow you up again, or you can try to make a
difference. You're a Galliard, like me, the musicians and
storytellers of our tribe. So tell your story; teach the lessons
you've learned about yourself and the Wyrm to our young 'n' old. It's
your choice."

Oz looked up at the old Fianna, for the first time in months feeling
hope about his life and his future. "I...Will you teach me?"

Finian grinned at the young man. "A' course! We can't let that brave
lass's deed go unsung, can we?" He threw a winning smile at Willow,
enjoying the young Garou's embarrassed blush.

"Well, I guess that's that, then," Buffy said.

"Not quite," Chris answered, a huge grin on his face. "There is a
little matter of a ceremony..."

END Part 18
-- 
Faith: "I mean, you're still going to that dance, right?"
Buffy: "Maybe."
Faith: "You got the tix already. Why don't we go together?"
*email: erin@xxxxxxxxxxx
*web: http://www.heckman.net/erin