Relativity

Prolog

Author: Lexandria

Summery: A distant cousin shows up to live with the Weasleys and gets a job offer from Hogwarts (not who you think)

Author's Notes: Am I insane? YES! I have writer's block on Gateway (my Stargate SG-1/ Yugioh cross) and on my poll, this story got the most votes (one) does no one read the author's notes? Anyway, school's about to start back up again and I haven't finished all my summer work yet… procrastination is key… anyway.. yeah.

Timeline: Uh… wait, I know this one! –Wanders off to check the chapter maps- Uh.. right after Season three of Buffy (I might play around a bit with timelines… if I do, I'll make a note of it –can't remember if she does or not in this fic-) and… hmmm… Year six for Harry Potter…

Disclaimer: I don't own Buffy the Vampire Slayer or Harry Potter, if I did, I'd have no reason to Wright fanfiction!

Key: word – memory/thought

Willow sighed softly as she sat down in the library, alone…or almost alone, Oz was there too, but of course, he wasn't much himself tonight, the night after the full moon. Currently, he was lying in the cage, apparently calm and subdued, but she knew better…the wolf liked to wait, rest, calculate before attempting an escape. He also seemed calmer when she, of all people, watched over him, waited with him for the night to be over.

Unusually, Willow was upset…twin tear tracks stained her cheeks, "you know I love you, right?" Oz's voice whispered in her mind, replaying the events of that after noon.

"uh-huh"

"Then I hope you'll understand...I can't stay here…I can't be with you while I'm like this"

Willow sniffled, and rubbed at the new tears threatening to fall, "b-but why? I t-told you, I don't care about the wolfiness..I…"

"I know…I care about it. I care about you. What would happen if I escaped? If I hurt you...Willow…I couldn't live with myself if I hurt you"

"S-see? You're safe ins-inside the cage… you a-aren't hurting me…" Willow mumbled softly, hiccupping softly and speaking to her boyfriend, whom she loved more than she ever could have imagined. He was so wonderful…quiet most of the time, though not really shy. Observant, that was the word that best described him. Wise and caring and loving. He'd forgiven her for kissing Xander, for cheating on him, for betraying him. She had only known how she loved him when she had almost lost him. She couldn't lose him again.

"I have to leave…I have to find a cure before I can be with you…I can't risk hurting you…I love you more than anything"

She'd cried then…and he had held her, stroked her hair, rocked her until the sobbing stopped and all that was left was hiccups and the soft whimper-moan that sometimes escaped her lips.

"b-but you can't l-leave…please d-d-don't go…or…or I'll go with you! I'll go with you and help you and that way it'll get done faster and…"

"no…I'm leaving so I don't hurt you…you can't come with. Please understand, Willow"

And, in truth, she did. She loved him but a part of her was afraid of the wolf. He'd almost killed her a few times, and because of it, she'd had to shoot him. Abet, it was a tranquilizer gun, but she'd hated having to do it, she'd hated having to run from him.

"When will you c-come back?"

"I don't know, it'll take however long it takes"

That had really scared her. It could be years before she saw him again, how would she know if he was even alive? How would she survive without him? Her heart ached at the thought of being without her Oz. She'd be so lonely without him.

"you have to promise me you won't let me hold you back"

"wh-what do you mean?"

"If you find someone else, I'll understand. I love you and you deserve to be happy. You deserve to be with someone who doesn't have to worry if he'll hurt you, who you don't have to worry about hurting you. Promise me you won't let me hold you back"

It had broken her heart to promise him that. She hadn't wanted to, but…part of her was glad he'd given her the ok…not because she didn't love him, but because it showed how much he loved her. He loved her enough to want her to be happy, no matter what it did to him.

"When I find a cure, I'll come back and…and if you'll still have me…we can begin again…is that all right?"

She'd never had the chance to answer, the moon had started to rise and he'd had to get into the cage to change. She'd waited with him, and she would wait until dawn, when he returned to normal. It was Friday night, date night, or so it was said to be. She never minded waiting with him, keeping him calm. She was best at it, after all.

Now! Now was the time! Flee, escape, hunt…no…not hunt, that was his mate. He had to change her. Yes, that would be good, maim, not kill. He could not kill his mate, he could not…

The beast raged in Daniel Osborn's mind, taking control of everything…and the worst thing was, he would never remember what he did. He remembered his thoughts though. The primitive urgings that pushed at him more and more as the moon waxed and less and less as it waned, they were what scared him the most. The urge to bite Willow, to change her, had been becoming increasingly strong and that frightened him.

He'd read up on werewolves, as they all had, when it became clear that he was one, though he'd read all he could find, done much more extensive research than most had, with the exception of Giles. Only the two of them of the group knew the bond a werewolf had to its mate. The bond was lifelong, sure, most knew that, but what they didn't know, didn't understand was the wolf's desire to fully be with it's mate. And if its mate was human, it's urge to change it's mate as well.

Now, a mated werewolf was much less dangerous than a lone one. It's only urge would be to protect its mate and hunt, and would be much calmer in the presence of it's mate, as he was currently. But the wolf would want it's mate to be just as it was, and that urge made him more dangerous to Willow than a lone wolf ever could be. He'd decided just the day before, when he and Willow had been cuddling, that he needed to leave. He'd been almost overwhelmed by the impulse to bite her as they were making out, to turn her, and it'd taken his whole will to push that urge back.

The wolf, now, was in control…and it would make Willow wholly his mate…he sprang to life.

Willow jumped awake from her half-dozing state as Oz's body crashed into the cage, he was throwing himself wildly against the door, which had already taken so much abuse from the wolf It was starting to give way. Or, more actually, the clasp holding the lock began to give, it's welding bending and slowly breaking, a few more full-body blows and it clattered to the floor…the wolf was free.

Scrambling back away from the door, Willow bolted for the desk, behind which was the gun was hidden, the wolf, however, countered her move and stalked slowly towards her.

Willow, for her part, was attempting to remain calm. 'Don't panic. Don't panic. Don't panic. Don't panic' ran rapidly though her mind as she edged slowly away from her boyfriend, free hand groping for something to defend herself with. She knew it was almost dawn. If she could just keep him away from her long enough, he should pass out and change back.

With a bump, Willow's back hit the wall of the library, and with a startled squeak, she scrambled sideways and behind a bookshelf, before taking off running. Darting down other rows, trying to stay out of the wolf's line of sight was the only thing on Willow's mind. Well, that and reaching the door and/or gun.

The wolf jumped, toppling over some bookcases, almost squishing Willow and exposing her to him as well as blocking her line of exit. Regardless, she scrambled over the fallen books and debris , though at a much slower pace, giving the wolf ample time to reach her and trap her.

Oz pounced on her, growling softly, parting his massive jaws in preparation for the bite. That one moment of hesitation was all that was needed, however, for dawn's first rays to drown out the moon and render him unconscious.

"He just… h-he just bolted after he w-woke up. He just w-waited to see if I was all right, g-grabbed his cloths, and r-r-ran…" Buffy then comforted her best friend as she completely broke down. Sobbing uncontrollably, hysterical with grief and fear. The adrenalin rush from the attack wasn't helping in the slightest.

While Buffy was busy comforting Willow, Giles and Xander were examining the cage and trying to set the library back to order.

"Hey, G-man, look at this" Xander motioned Giles over, showing the loop of metal where the lock used to hang had been bent back, almost to the point of completely falling off, and thus allowing the, still closed, lock to fall to the ground. Xander retrieved it and handed it to Giles "guess we under-estimated the wolf's strength…"

Xander hated to see Willow so upset. He loved her, she was his best and closest friend, the best type of person. Someone like her didn't deserve to be hurt as she had, though he understood Oz's desire to leave, he couldn't believe he's just left like he did. Attacking Willow and just bolting.

"Xander, could you help me set these bookcases back up?" Giles instructed softly, hoping not to disturb his slayer and her best friend.

Author's Note: ok I SWEAR I was gonna write more than this.. it was gonna be the first chapter but…this seemed a good place to stop… hmm… cliffy anyone? Hehehe I dunno how good this is, really… the idea is there... and I can write so much more next chapter…this was just hard though seriously… very upsetting… -sobs-

School's about to start… meh, I got so much to do…

Anyway, I'm still working on Gateway… but seriously, I'm stuck… -sighs-

I am rather upset only one person voted in my poll… but that's neither here nor there, at least one person cared enough to vote which in itself is gratifying!

And.. I think that's it… I hope to be, you know, posting another chapter up sometime, either in Gateway or here.. but if it's here I SWEAR it will be closer to the length of Gateway's chappies (aprox 11 pages instead of 3 including the authors notes and stuff -ish so ashamed- )