Happy Development
by Whedonist
Little Red Riding Who?
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Disclaimer: See Priors
A/N: The usual really...G thanks..the rest of you rock...
Chapter 6- Little Red Riding Who?
The battle with the demon was quickly finished as Carrie made good on the distraction her leader had asked for. While the girl engaged the demon with mace in hand, Buffy was able gain a small advantage by sneaking up from behind and decapitating it. She rode the headless body to the ground and jumped off tucking herself into a roll as she hit the ground. Popping up she ran to Carrie first.
"You ok?" Buffy smiled at the girl. Receiving an affirmative nod she then took a look over to Willow and Xander. They had gotten the three other girls up and on their feet, but Faith had yet to come to. "Come on; let's see if we can wake up your team leader."
Buffy's inquiries regarding the health of the injured slayers were stopped short as Willow pointed to Zo' who was staggering up the hill waving her arm. Buffy spun quickly and ran to meet the other woman. As Zo' got nearer, Buffy took in the thrashed look, the cut eye, and bruised cheek. "What happened?"
Zo' winced as the pain in her side flared from the jog over to find the slayer, "We, we were talking outside the van and three vampires and two ugly lookin' ching-wah tsao duh liou mahngs (frog-humping sonofabitches) attacked. They were too strong. Tied up Simon while the rest of us were taking a forced nap and made off with the Captain, River, and Kaylee."
"Fuck. Okay." Buffy turned to her group, "Xander carry Faith. We've gotta motor. Our friends here were attacked." Everyone looked rather confused at the command. "Let's go guys. Death, kidnapping, any of it ring a bell?"
Willow was the first to react, Xander then quickly scooped Faith up and the rest followed as her friends made their way quickly to the blonde's side. No one talked as they half walked half jogged back to the van.
Worried about any injuries sustained, Willow strode ahead of the group and was the first there to assess the injuries. No one was too bad off. Simon had already checked everyone over and let the witch know that out of everyone Zo' had sustained the worst injuries. Willow felt a small pain in her chest as she took in the battered people. They hadn't even been here two days and already three members of their family were in grave danger. Sighing she walked over to Inara, "You okay?" She placed her hand on the woman's arm letting her know she understood.
"Besides my head, I'm fine. Does this happen a lot with you guys?"
"Only every other Tuesday. We'll get them back. Promise." Willow tried a reassuring smile and put her arm over the woman's shoulder giving her a good squeeze.
"Willow, Zo', Jayne and Carrie come with me." Buffy barked the order out and turned away.
The redhead nodded towards Buffy and shrugged, "Be back soon." She told the companion.
The four went to meet the slayer and noticed what she had found. There were hoof tracks that led away from the van. Willow bent down and felt the markings. They reminded her of horse tracks, but larger and it looked like they were also clawed. She stood and looked out over the hillside of the cemetery. The nice thing about Lakewood was that it bordered a huge golf course. It was a good bet that's where they went and it was probably where the vamps and demons had come from. She turned to look at Buffy and knew what she was thinking.
"Xander," Willow called over to her friend. "Inform command of the sitch please. Let them know that we are gonna go track the kidnappers down." She turned to Buffy and nodded. The slayer returned her own smile and hefted the still slimy sword.
"Xand," Buffy asked, "See if you can get a clean up crew out here. That thing, whatever it was, stinks." She turned back and shook her head, "These leather's are completely ruined."
"We ain't gonna go after those things are we?" Jayne asked the worry evident in his voice.
Zo' was the first to respond, "Jayne, they have our crew. This is not open for discussion."
"Look here. All I'm sayin' is those things whatever they were whooped on all of us right and good and I kinda happen to like all my parts. We go after 'em; I might lose some of my parts."
Zo' stared at the man for a moment and out of all the surprises of the night, Jayne backing down and nodding his compliance was the biggest of her evening. She motioned to Buffy and Willow, "You can lead the way."
Buffy nodded and began the trek down the hill towards the golf course. The walk was short and they were at the edge of woods when Willow stopped everyone in their tracks. She opened up a telepathic link to Buffy to discuss what was up ahead.
~Buff, can you feel the demon's ahead? ~
~Wills? Christ I hate it when you jump in like that. Yes, yes I can sense them, but I don't know how many. Do you? ~
~5 vamps, 2 Fyarls, and another one that I can't make heads or tails of. It feels like this is their hide out. What do you want to do? ~
~I'd rather come back here with more than a short sword, a mace and a few stakes. You think they're gonna kill Mal, Kaylee, & River? ~
Willow squinted in the direction of where she thought the demons were and shook her head. ~I can't tell. But this does have an air of trap written all over it. ~
~You picked up on that too? Can you at least tell me why a routine patrol can never be simple? We go, we slay, we go home to a shower and food? ~
~So I'll take that as we go in and kick a little demon ass? ~
~Can't take the chance of people dying. ~
Willow only nodded and moved forward. The trek was through the lower half of the adjacent golf course and into a thick part of the woods that bordered the cemetery and the golf course. Buffy pulled everyone back when she saw firelight up ahead.
Whispering she gave everyone the heads up, "Okay so there are at least 8 demons, some are vamps, but not all. Carrie, you and I go in and clean house. Willow stay alert for magical backup. Do not move in unless absolutely necessary. Zo' and Jayne, you two find your people and get them out then wait with Willow until we are done. Everyone clear?" She waited as nods of understanding came from all involved.
Moving forward she gave a quick glance over her shoulder to ensure Carrie was following and watched for a moment as Willow and the other two moved into a better position. Buffy approached the small clearing and did a quick scan of the area. The vamps were surrounding three poles. She assumed Mal and the others were tied to them. The Fyarls were just standing around and the other demon Buffy recognized as the counterpart of the one they had just slain.
~Willow, you there? ~
~I would be where else? ~ The witch teased.
Buffy took a moment to puzzle out what her friend said. ~Oh, well then ah, we are so gonna need some help. Is there anyway you can crispy up any of the demons? ~
~Ah, no, unless you wanna have fire roasted time travelers. Do I look like Martha Stewart? ~
Buffy stifled the giggle, ~No, absolutely not Wills; you look like the most gorgeous woman on the planet. ~ Buffy's mouth dropped as soon as the words filtered through her brain and into the link she and Willow shared. Her face flamed red and she smacked herself on the forehead for her lack of censorship. She took a quick glance at Willow to her far left. Willow was giving her a funny look. The blonde only shrugged, she would think of an excuse later if asked.
Buffy nodded to Carrie and they took off into the clearing. The Fyarls were the first to attack. With no silver at the ready Buffy relied on the short sword that she had to at least decapitate or incapacitate the demons. She glanced over and watched as Carrie started in on the 5 vampires. Buffy felt the impact of one of the demon's fist to the side of her head; she stumbled back and dropped the sword. The second one took the opening and launched itself at her midsection. Fists came flying at her head and the only thing she could do was curl up defensively before her world went black.
Willow watched as Buffy was overrun by the demons and Carrie had only managed to dust one of the five vamps circling her. Not being able to sit still any longer, she strode forward and raised her hands up in the air. "Espesar!" The air around them felt like it had turned to treacle. Willow, unaffected by the spell, moved gracefully towards the demons that were struggling over Buffy and laid a hand on each of their backs. Flames ignited on both demons and she threw them in opposite directions away from the fallen slayer. She turned heel and looked at the four remaining vamps struggling against the tar like air and smirked. She took the stake from Carries' hand and dusted the four of them while they just stood in mid attack and watched.
The last remaining demon watched as its henchmen were slaughtered with ease. It howled into the night air and tried to reach Willow. The witch only helped the demon by walking up to it and rested a glowing hand against its abdomen. The demon cried out as a fire burned it from the inside out. As the last of the demon's ashes floated in the air the spell ended and Willow collapsed on the forest floor.
While Buffy and Carrie fought, Zo' and Jayne had been able to get halfway to their crew before Willow stepped in. As the spell ended, the two rushed in and got their family untied. The five of them looked on as Buffy rushed to Willow and tried to get the redhead to recover. Mal walked over and placed a hand on Buffy's shoulder.
"Let me carry her back to the van?" He asked.
Buffy shook her head no and visibly winced as the blood dripped down her cheek and on to her clothes. "I'll carry her."
Mal balked at the idea and was about to comment on her size when he watched as she effortlessly scooped the unconscious redhead in her arms and began walking purposefully back to the van. It took a bit longer to get back, but when they arrived Delta Team was cleaning up the remains of the demon Buffy had beheaded. Xander was barking orders at the clean up crew and remaining slayers. He looked up as he saw Buffy crest the top of the hill and took off running when he saw who she was carrying. His heart dropped to his stomach until he saw his friend's chest rising and falling.
Buffy didn't answer any of the questions being thrown at her; she just moved to the van and laid Willow on the backseat. "Xander, take Carrie and let her show you where we found everyone. See if you can find out the why behind the kidnapping. I'm taking Wills back to HQ. She worked some serious mojo and she's out. I need to get cleaned up. Can you do that?"
Xander gave a curt nod to Buffy then wrapped her in a hug. "I've got it covered. Is Wills going to be ok?"
"Yeah she just used too much of the mojo and is exhausted."
Xander felt his pulse die down just a little bit and squeezed Buffy's shoulder, "Take care of her and go home."
Buffy searched for the keys on the unconscious witch and handed them to Faith. The blonde climbed in and then settled Willow's head on her lap. Her head was ringing from the pounding she took from the two Fyarls, but that took second place to the worry about her witch. She stroked the soft red hair in silence hoping that the girl would be fine come morning like she promised Xander. The ride back to the school was quiet. Everyone was still in a bit of a daze as the van pulled in. Simon held on to River and Kaylee as they followed Buffy to her room where Buffy laid Willow on her bed. He untangled himself from his wife and sister and moved to the bed and stood next to Buffy.
"Do you want me to take a look at her?" He placed a hand on her shoulder and waited.
"No, she's just wiped out. The magicks she worked were pretty heavy. She should be good after a solid 8 hours sleep." Buffy tried to school her features and take the worry out of them when she looked over her shoulder. The movement caused her to wince and she cursed the stone like fists of the demons.
"Then at least let me get you cleaned up and if you need stitches..." Simon nodded to River who went to the bathroom in search of a towel and something to hold warm water. She came out a few moments later with the things she knew her brother would need. "Come on. Come sit and let me fix you up."
Buffy grudgingly left Willow's side and sat on the desk chair. Simon crouched in front of her and gently wiped at the crusted, dark blood along her face and jaw. It came off in chunks and turned the water a rusty brown color. He was surprised when the blood was finally washed off to find only four shallow cuts.
Buffy smiled at his confusion and mumbled, "Slayer healing. I heal quicker than most. It'll be gone by morning."
"Oh." Simon got up and handed the bowl off to River. "We're going to go back to our rooms. Will you be okay?"
"I'll be fine." Buffy assured the doctor letting him see a smile she surely didn't feel at the moment. "Thanks again."
Simon nodded and ushered his two girls out of the room all three bidding a good night to the slayer. She let out a breath of relief as the door clicked shut. Hobbling over, she clicked the lock in place and made sure it was secure before turning to Willow. She moved to the redhead and covered her with the comforter. She then hazarded a glance down at her muck and dirt crusted clothes. Making a face as she peeled the items off, she threw them in a heap by her trash can. Taking one last look at Willow, she shuffled into the bathroom.
Once there, a look in the mirror revealed some serious bruising to her back and she made her way over to the shower. Adjusting the nozzle spray to its most forceful setting, she turned it on to the hottest temperature she could take. Stepping in, she turned her back to the hard spray. It felt great on the knots that had formed after the demons were trying to make her a permanent fixture in the ground. The speed and strength of the Fyarl's attack had surprised her and she had taken some nasty hits which she suspected hadn't stopped when she lost consciousness. The heat and pressure of the water felt good despite the protests from the bruises that marked her body.
It was there in the solitude of the bathroom that as per Buffy ritual she broke down and cried letting the water mix with tears. She was sore and more than likely had a few cracked or bruised ribs. The fear that had gripped her as she watched Willow collapse was the most draining. She couldn't believe her friend had taken such a huge risk. Buffy berated herself for not following her instincts on waiting to get back up and bigger weapons. She stayed in the shower until the water ran cold. Turning the faucet off, she stepped out and wrapped herself in the robe hanging on the back of the bathroom door.
Buffy flipped the lights off as she walked in to the bedroom and noticed Willow curled up on the left side of the bed. The slayer slipped in underneath the sheets and watched her friend sleep. She was still thinking about how much of a risk the witch took performing the spells she did. Since leaving Sunnydale, Willow only practiced on esbats and sabats or when she was called in by the coven to find a new slayer. There was also the healing spells she did, but that was more energy focusing than actual spell workage; what Willow did tonight was the biggest piece of mojo the blonde had seen her work since Sunnydale. Buffy's face was creased with worry for her friend. She didn't know how Willow would be when she woke up. Yawning, Buffy absentmindedly formed into Willow's back as the sun began to filter through the curtains and drifted off to sleep.