Chapter One

Disclaimer: none of these characters are mine, but belong to Whedon and co.

Note: this story contains spoilers for the original series.

Once upon a time...

Once upon a time, in an alley of the magic town, when strange shadows wiggle like worms and cry in fell voices that no throat can make, there was a sound akin to that made by a tearing cloth, and out came Amy Madison, in all of her naked glory and in a glorious wrath.

Some time earlier...

Amy Madison was a rat once more. And she had been defeated, once more. The two elements appear to be going hand-in-hand more and more lately, she thought, but did not dwell on it, for she had hard time thinking: she was too angry.

Yes, she was Amy the Rat, but make that Amy the Rat, not Amy the Rat, and the universe seemed to be insisting that it was the other way around, and that was very annoying; in fact, it was so annoying, that Amy did not want to listen to the universe any more.

Instead, she concentrated on the switch in her mind that she used to switch between her human and rat forms – right now it appeared to be jammed. Of course it would be jammed, for Nadira had used magic to switch Amy back into a rat – or was it Magic?

Amy Madison didn't care: she was Amy, maybe Amy the Rat, certainly not Amy the Rat, and the universe could go hang itself if it were to insist otherwise – and the insist it certainly did. Strange thoughts whispered in strange voices in her mind, suggesting that it was appropriate for her to be a rat, for she was a crummy example of a human being to begin with...

Amy did not care. She was not going to be a rat – or the Rat, for that matter – anymore! Maybe she had lost – and she had lost, but so what? She could accept her defeat and move on without having four hairy legs and a hairless tail (not to mention the whiskers on her face that no sane woman would want to have), so there! She was Amy, maybe Amy the Rat, certainly not Amy the Rat.

The thoughts abated, though they still wormed through Amy's mind, suggesting now that per-haps Amy was a rat now for a reason? Maybe there was a lesson that she should learn, or have to learn, and afterwards, when she had learned it, she would become human again, probably with Nadira's help-

Amy did not care about a lesson. Amy did not care about any lesson. All that Amy cared about was becoming Amy once more, with two legs and arms, without any whiskers or body hair...ok, without any excessive body hair, let alone fur. And magic, or Magic, could go hang-

The thoughts abated, but then they continued to worm in through Amy's skull, mind, brain. They whispered that Amy's current predicament was the price for her sins; that this was how the world was going to run from now on – with Amy being a rat, rather than a human and a witch...

Amy did not care. Yes, she was aware that there was a price for everything – yes indeed! But she had no intention of it being her human shape and form. She had spent far too long not being a human, and so she had no intention of being a rat any more – certainly not involuntarily! She did not care what she was going to pay, whom she was going to anger, but she was not going to be a rat anymore! She was going back to being a human! She dug in her metaphorical heels into the allegorical pavement, bucked her loins (in a matter of speaking), and just shoved her mind, her body, her everything into her human shape.

And in an alley of the magic town, when strange shadows wiggle like worms and cry in fell voices that no throat can make, there was a sound akin to that made by a tearing cloth, and out came Amy Madison, in all of her naked glory and in a glorious wrath.

She looked around, took a deep breath, and sighed, (as she looked down onto herself). "There's going to be Hell to pay. There already is a Hell to pay, in a matter of speaking." She paused. "So what do I do know? Oh yes, Nadira!"

There were still strange, alien thoughts in Amy's brain, whispering in wormy voices about magic – or Magic? Amy ignored them – she may not be up to Willow Rosenberg's level (and it seems that she would never be, either), but she still knew things, thank you very much!

And so, buckling her metaphorical loins, but still gloriously naked, Amy Madison went forth to have her revenge...

TBC