Ch.4 The Wrong One

"Draco lac hrathis, Tapparich." The large demon became very concerned. He was just informed that his daughter would not shed her human disguise. He grunted in annoyance, and went looking for his daughter. He found her in one of the tents, studying up on Mok'Tagar. "What is the meaning of this?" he demanded in his own language. He knew she was fluent enough to carry on a conversation. "What do you mean, Father?" she questioned. She didn't remember doing anything wrong.

No, she'd been nothing but obedient since she got here. He raised his hand, demanding silence. "I've been told you won't remove your disquise. Is this true, daughter?" The anger in his tone demanded an immediate answer from his charge. She shook her head in fear. "I don't know what you mean," she said, her voice shaky. He wasn't buying it. "You know our customs, Sheria. As long as you are human, you disgrace our clan." She was still confused, but she listened as he continued. "Have you not thought what could happen if a rival clan saw the high elder's daughter running around in human form?" he questioned.

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Buffy shook her head. She had no understanding of Mok'Tagar politics. As it happened, she had been in a child-like state ever since Kathy had stolen her soul. She had the comprehension ability of a three year old, and the attention span of a five year old. There was no way she was going to grasp such matters, but the demon didn't know that. Up until this point, Buffy was in a monkey see, monkey do type of understanding. She had viewed her current surroundings with a kind of enchantment. At the same time, there was something telling her she didn't belong here. She just couldn't put her finger on it.

By now, Tapparich's yelling had attracted a crowd. Among the observers was Krath, her teacher of the language. "Show your true form, daughter," her father demanded. She had never been more confused. "What do you mean, Father?" she asked, her voice slightly more fearful. He slammed his hand down on a table. "You know very well what I mean!" he roared. She backed herself into a corner as he advanced. There was nowhere to go. She hadn't been afraid since she got here, but that changed in the blink of an eye.

The demon reached down and tugged on Buffy's face. He was expecting a mask to come off, exposing her Mok'Tagar form. He was surprised when he couldn't do it. In fact, all he seemed to be doing was causing the girl pain. He stopped, revealing a slight cut on her forehead from one of his nails. He turned to his subjects. "What is the meaning of this?" he demanded angrily. Krath stepped forward. "With all due respect, milord, I think it's possible we have the wrong person." Every demon in the gathering was quiet as Tapparich considered this.

Tapparich could not figure out how that could be possible. The girl had no soul, a clear sign that she was Mok'Tagar. And their language was too complicated for a mere human to grasp with such clarity as Buffy had. Krath continued. "There is a ritual I know of that allows one of our kind to steal the soul of another being." It was only then that Tapparich realized he'd been played. He remembered seeing another girl in the room, who had a Mok'Tagar's face. He'd dismissed her, having detected a soul. If he had not been so furious with his daughter's disobedience, he might have been proud of her. "Open a portal to the human world," he commanded.

Kathy came to in Giles' apartment. She tried to rise, only to realize that she could not move. "Where am I?" she asked. Willow glared at her. "How could you do that to Buffy?" she demanded angrily. Kathy shook her head. "I'm sorry, ok. I fled my dimension to go to college. Mok'Tagar aren't allowed to go to the human world." Willow approached her, an angry look on her face. "So what, you figured you'd steal someone's soul?" Kathy shook her head no. "That wasn't the plan at first."

Willow cooled down slightly. "What changed?" she asked. She was still mad as hell that someone would do this to her best friend. "I thought I'd escaped unnoticed. Then, a few nights before I met Buffy, I ran into some of my kind. I managed to get away, but I knew it wouldn't last." Willow almost felt sorry for her. She herself had a great appreciation for academics, having been on the honor roll throughout high school.

"I really didn't want to do that to Buffy," she continued. "But it was necessary." That one remark made Willow lose any sympathy she might have had. Xander had been silent witness to the conversation, and moved to stop Willow from doing anything rash. His concern was unneeded. Willow had no intention of killing her. They still had to get Buffy's soul out of her. "Oh good, then you understand." As much as Kathy hated to admit it she did. She'd have to face her father sooner or later.

She chose later. "I won't go back," she stated. Willow really didn't care, as long as Buffy got her soul back. "That's your problem," she retorted. Kathy dropped all pretense. "I'm gonna get free, and then you're all gonna die." There was a certain darkness to her tone. Spike walked in to the room as she said this. "Oh, good. I could use round two," he said with a laugh. Kathy struggled in her chains, to no avail.