Following Buffy, he hesitated when she opened the door and began to step into the darkened space beyond. Something was definitely off here, but she seemed to know about it. Sensing his hesitation, she reached back with one leather-clad arm and gently pulled him along. Once inside, he realized that it wasn't completely dark within, just very dim. Strange, multi-colored lights were hanging everywhere, casting an eerie glow about the place. They didn't seem to be plugged in or attached to anything, so he assumed some magic was involved. He paused just inside the doorway, letting his eyes get adjusted to the lights, which turned out to be rather soothing.

Buffy strode purposefully toward a long bar situated off to their left. "Bert! Ernie!" she called out, and the two men working behind the bar glanced up. Oz gasped audibly. They looked completely human save for their glowing eyes; one set red, the other blue. Looking around the bar at the patrons who'd all stopped what they were doing to stare at the newcomers, he realized that they all had strange, luminous eyes of varying colors.

The man with red eyes glowered at Buffy. "I've warned you never to call me that," he growled, stepping forward to face her challengingly across the bar. She laughed and moved closer.

"Whatcha gonna do about it, Bert?" she taunted, and he growled some more, clenching his fists.

Oz came up beside Buffy, concerned that there'd be a fight. Maybe this guy was a snitch like Willy. At this point, a snort was heard from the second man, who approached, wiping his hands on a towel. "Chill," he instructed his coworker, and then glanced mischievously at Buffy. "Kyon, you know better than to goad him. His ego is so fragile." He ducked as the growling man took a half-hearted swipe at his head. "Temper temper," he admonished, clucking his tongue. "Now, Kyon, what can we get for you? And who's the lovely Wolf?"

Oz froze. His escort turned to face him, murmuring comfortingly, and he jumped back when he saw her eyes. Their centers showed all the colors of the spectrum, but had a solid gold ring around them. "Uh, Buff, your eyes…" he muttered.

She smiled and pulled him aside for a brief, whispered conversation. "It's OK. The lights are mojoed to make our real eyes visible."

"But how did they…"

"They can sense the Wolf," she explained. Then, pausing to consider him for a moment, she added, "Pretty…"

"Huh?" he replied eloquently.

"There's a bathroom down back, go check out the mirror," she instructed pointing the way.

He dumbly followed her orders, making his way to the back of the bar. There were two doors, each with a different symbol. He had no idea which one meant 'boys,' so he guessed. It was a single, and empty, so he breathed a sigh of relief before stepping in front of the mirror. Now he understood. The eyes staring back at him were a brilliant silver color. "Interesting," he murmured to no one in particular. When he returned to Buffy's side, he noticed with humor that she was now in animated conversation with the men behind the bar. Seeing him approach, she reached out for him and pulled him close.

"Bertockhim, Ernyatil, this is my good friend Oz," she introduced. At Oz's near-expression, she grinned and whispered conspiratorially, "Just call 'em Bert and Ernie. I do."

"I heard that, Kyon," Bert growled.

"You were meant to, Bert," she replied sweetly, and Oz could tell now that this was a routine exchange for them. He relaxed.

"Kyon?" he asked curiously.

Ernie spoke up, smiling. "We all call her Kyontar. It means 'Goddess of Protection' in the common tongue. What'll you have to drink, young Wolf?"

"Whatever she's having."

Two drinks were plunked down in front of them, and Buffy nudged Oz and headed to the tables. He grabbed their cups and followed behind, looking around curiously at the other occupants of the bar. Clearly none of them were completely human, as they all had eyes that glowed at various intensities. He wondered if silver was only a Werewolf shade; he didn't see any others with his same eye color. Nobody had eyes like Buffy's either. They blazed brighter than the rest, and she was the only one with multiple hues.

Buffy weaved her way gracefully through the tables, smiling and nodding at various patrons. They ranged in appearance from fully human to fully foreign and demonic. Oz noted with some interest that there wasn't any hostility; everyone was either talking or dancing happily enough. His senses seemed heightened in here, so even though he wasn't paying attention to Buffy, he felt it when she stopped next to a table and dropped lithely into a seat. Oz sat opposite her and handed over her drink. She smiled briefly at him before turning her attention to the others already seated at their table.

"Ky!" a young woman exclaimed happily from her seat beside Buffy. She reached out and quickly hugged her. "Long time no see!" She sounded a bit hurt.

"Hey Tay. My bad, I've been wicked busy lately," Buffy replied contritely, and touched the woman's arm apologetically. Tay looked human save for the fact that her skin was a deep purple color, and her ears were elongated and pointed at the tips. Her hair was a shade of purple so dark it was nearly black.

"No harm, no foul," she grinned, and then leaned in secretively. "You still taking those classes?" she whispered.

Buffy squirmed a little and glanced around the table to see who'd heard. "Shh! That's supposed to be our little secret!" Her face began to turn an interesting shade of red. "And yes, I'm still taking them. Now shush!"

Tay waved her hands in submission. "Sorry! But hey, I've got good news. I passed all my college courses!"

"Woohoo!" Buffy cheered. "Does this mean you're done?"

"Not yet. One more semester's worth. Then I'll officially be a college graduate!" She grinned happily.

Buffy gave her a hug. "That's great. At least one of us will earn a degree…" She gave a long-suffering sigh.

Tay giggled. "Whatever, Drama Queen. You're all saving-the-world chick. That's huge. College schmollege."

"Says the girl that only takes breaks from whining endlessly about homework to list off the billion-and-one ways that having a degree makes your life better," Buffy quipped.

"To each her own," Tay replied, sipping at her drink. She turned her head to stare at Oz. "So, who's the puppy?" Everyone at the table stopped their conversations to regard him somewhat suspiciously.

Buffy reached out to lay a palm against Oz's forehead and his throat, finally taking his hand in hers. She seemed to be marking him, and he greatly appreciated her gesture in light of all the intense staring. Apparently it worked, because everyone except Tay turned back to his or her drink. "Play nice," she ordered Tay. "This is Oz, an old friend of mine who's in town visiting. Oz, this is Tay."

Oz held out his hand and they shook in greeting. "Nice to meet you," he murmured.

"Oooh, nice Wolfie!" Tay winked saucily at him and held his hand a moment too long.

Buffy smacked her lightly. "Down girl! He's my Wolfie." She exchanged a look with Oz, who nodded and smiled gently to show that he wasn't insulted by her move.

Tay politely changed the subject. "So, if I know my all-work-and-no-play pal, you're here on business, not pleasure?"

Buffy sighed and cleared her throat to get everyone's attention. "Tay's right. I'm here on business, too."

The bar fell silent, each patron noting her serious expression, and one young male their age spoke up. "Is this about the Kuunchadri?" He looked around nervously as all eyes fell on him. His face shifted suddenly to reveal the spiky, blue visage and red eyes of a Brachen demon. With effort, he shifted back.

"Yes, this is about the Kuunchadri," Buffy replied gently, but firmly. "They're still a threat, I haven't found a nest yet. Any news?"

The Brachen spoke up. "Pan didn't come home last night."

Buffy, strangely enough, giggled at this. "Sandri, that's not exactly headline news. I think you could count on one hand the number of times he has come home at night. Are we forgetting the amorous inclinations of our dear Pan?"

They shared a bemused smile before Sandri's face grew serious again. "I know, but when I left to come here, he still hadn't been home."

Another figure seated at their table spoke up. This one was fully demonic, with green and gray spotted, leathery skin and three rows of jagged ridges jutting out of his head. "It's Thursday night. Panchadu always comes to our Thursday night gatherings," he pointed out gruffly.

"He's right, Ky," Tay chimed in.

Buffy stood up abruptly and started pacing back and forth in agitation. "OK, is there anyone else missing?"

The members of the adjoining tables looked around speculatively. Clem stood up, looking uncomfortable at the number of faces staring intently at him. "It's hard to tell. Out of everyone that comes regularly to Thursdays, Pan's the only one missing. But there are lots of others that it's harder to keep track of."

"And since they don't come, they might not know about the Kuunchadri," a woman warned from beside Clem. Her hair was a mass of blue snakes that writhed around her, hissing as she spoke.

"Right," Buffy said, settling into battle mode, not noticing the admiring glances she drew from the crowd. "Several things need to happen here. First off, we need to get the word out that we're holding a meeting tomorrow night at eight o'clock." She paused and called out for Bert and Ernie to join them. "Is it cool if we have it here?" They both nodded solemnly. "OK, will someone from each district volunteer to help out?" After a long moment of contemplative silence, six figures stepped forward. "Thanks guys," Buffy said appreciatively.

"It is my pleasure," a large, lumbering Gargoth demon replied. "What would you have us do?"

"Get the word out to your district about the meeting. Make sure everyone comes. Also, organize a way for them to check in with you every 24 hours. Then, check in with Bert and Ernie. That way we can get a jump on it if anyone else goes missing."

"It is agreed, Kyontar," the Gargoth stated, and the other volunteers nodded.

Buffy grabbed a flyer from the wall and quickly wrote a number on its blank side. Then she tacked it back up. "This is my cell. Call me anytime. I mean it."

Tay stepped forward, a worried expression on her face. "What're you gonna do?" If she knew the Slayer, there would be danger involved.

"I'm gonna find Pan." Her voice brooked no argument. "Plus, Oz and I have a little plan cooked up. Add one Kuunchadri and stir."

"Lemme guess. Your grand plan involves whips and chains?"

"What?" Buffy sounded shocked. "Not all my plans involve torture, I'll have you know."

Oz chuckled. "But Buff, that is our plan."

"I rest my case," Tay exclaimed victoriously. "You and the big, bad Wolfie have fun with your little S&M scheme." She waved them off.

"Tay!" Buffy stepped forward threateningly, but Tay surprised her by gathering her into a hug.

"Just be careful, Kyon," she whispered.

The Slayer smiled grimly. "You know me."

"Yah, that's the problem…"

"Don't go anywhere alone, OK? You're in danger here, too." She raised her voice again to address everyone. "That goes for all of you. Use the Buddy System! That's an order." She grinned to take the sting out.

"Ay Ay, Mistress Ky," Tay saluted smartly.

Buffy growled at her and grabbed Oz's hand, pulling him toward the exit. "Later Bert, later Ernie," she called out.

Bert growled and Ernie swatted his ass with a towel. "Bye, Kyon dear, be careful. Nice to meet you, Master Zebinchak."

They stepped out into the night, Oz following Buffy's lead as they returned to the street and took a left. They were both silent, Buffy trying to figure out the best way to accomplish everything she needed to, and Oz contemplating all the new and strange things he'd been introduced to tonight. He glanced at Buffy, noting that her eyes were back to their normal hazely-green.

"What was that place," he asked finally, his curiosity getting the better of him.

"Hmm?"

"I mean," he struggled to explain. "It felt odd, safe, but I'm not sure why. Plus the whole glowy eye thing."

She smiled. "That sums it up pretty well. The glowy eye thing is a specialty of Bert and Ernie's."

"Do all Werewolves have silver eyes?"

"Nope. Here's what they told me. The mojo causes you to temporarily merge with your beast; it sorta eases the internal dissonance that all demon hybrids have. That's why your senses were heightened and you found the lights soothing. So it's more accurate to say that OzWolf has silver eyes. The eyes of the last Wolf I saw there were yellow."

"And the other?" Oz asked. "I've never been to a bar, for any species, that felt so mellow and comforting."

"I'm sorta surprised that in all your Wolfie worldliness you haven't come across this before," Buffy said honestly.

"Remember the whole repression thing?"

"Oh right. It's a safe haven. A few years ago I happened upon this bar in L.A. called Caritas. That's where I learned about sanctuary spells. So I hooked Bert and Ernie up with the Host of Caritas, a.k.a. Lorne. Basically, no violence of any kind can take place in the bar."

"That's some major mojo," Oz commented.

"No kidding. It can only be done by Furies."

He processed this and then ventured another question. "What's the Kuunchadri?"

Buffy sighed heavily. "There's a common demonic tongue that was developed to help the different species communicate. In that tongue, the Kuunchadri means the Destructors. Legend has it the Destructors will come at the end of this world, and wipe the slate clean by eliminating all forms of life. The way will be made for the Old Ones to return and a new world to be formed. These new demons are an unknown, unnamed threat --- and their goal seems to be wiping the Sunnydale slate clean. I doubt they're the actual Destructors, but it's an accurate name to give them. And Oh My God, I'm channeling Giles." She took a deep breath.

"Buff, you're not at all stuffy or British," Oz reminded her comfortingly.

She stared plaintively at him. "Just promise you'll stop me if I start wearing tweed."

"Deal," he said, watching her carefully. There was a heavy moment of silence, and then Oz spoke again. "I like it."

"Like what?" she asked, confused.

"The bar. I felt…comfortable there." He furrowed his brow.

Buffy smiled brilliantly. "To be honest, I feel more comfortable there than in a normal bar," she said quietly.

"I can tell. It was nice to see," he replied.

She stared at him for a long moment, trying to figure him out. Snapping out of it, she pounced. "So, Wolfie, last time I saw you, your picture was in the dictionary next to 'laconic.' And here you are, dare I say it, practically babbling! What's the what?"

"Would you believe me if I told you tonight is a first?" he asked.

She giggled. "You gonna turn back into The Taciturn Man at midnight?"

Smiling, he answered, "Hopefully without the subsequent loss of shoe. This is my only pair."

"I'll see what I can do," she promised.