AN: From this point on I will start addressing some of the things that happened while Buffy was a captive of The Ring. There is nothing too graphic, but plenty is implied. Also, in this Chapter there is a scene between our two main villains being intimate. Again, nothing graphic but be warned it is there. And The Crimson Witch has a bit of a potty mouth.
Warnings and disclaimer in Chapter 1. Enjoy!
"Are you sure you're ready for this?" Joyce asked as she drove the van, glancing out of the corner of her eye to gauge the anxiety of her passenger.
"Yes," Tara said again, barely managing to keep her eyes from rolling.
"It's okay if you're not," Joyce continued. "There's no need to rush this."
"She's right," Willow piped up from the backseat, reaching over to rest her hand supportively on Tara's shoulder. "We wouldn't think any less of you if you're not ready. In fact, I think we should give it another week."
"Is it me you're trying to convince or yourself?" Tara asked. Willow sighed.
"Maybe me, but I just want you to be safe. And I don't want you to think you have to go back to work before you're ready just because we expect you to be fine."
"She's right you know," Joyce agreed. "If you don't think you're ready I will turn this car around right now. I can deal with Anya being my assistant."
"Thank you," she said, reaching up and squeezing Willow's hand, "but I know I'm ready. It's been two months. Ben cleared me to go back to work. But even more importantly, I can feel that it's time." Joyce nodded, reaching out to put her hand on Tara's knee. Tara was basking in the familiar affection around her when a third hand settled on her other shoulder. She looked behind her to find Buffy adding her support. They stayed like that for a few minutes until the traffic picked up and Joyce pulled her hand back to focus on driving.
"If you're sure," she said, smiling at the young woman. "I'll be glad to have you back. But remember, if at any time it gets too much you can always head to The Magic Box, or even call it a day. Anytime."
"Thanks," Tara said, squeezing Willow's hand once more. She felt even more ready with the support of her family.
"And I hope you don't mind me working from The Gallery for a bit," Willow told her. "I think it will be a long time before I let you out of my sight."
"Same," Tara smiled. Although she would never tell them, she was feeling more and more anxious as they neared the store. When they parked, Joyce turned to her one last time.
"Are you sure?" This time she did roll her eyes.
"Positive," she said, giving Willow's hand one more squeeze before getting out of the van. She opened the door for Buffy, helping her operate the ramp while the others gathered up their bags before all of them headed to the store. They let Tara set the pace and didn't mention when she slowed down as they got closer. "I'm ready," she said, mainly to herself as she inserted the key and opened the shop for the first time since the shooting. She held the door for the others as they came in right after her.
"How does it feel?" Willow asked. Tara smiled.
"Liberating," she answered honestly. "I'm taking back control of my life." Willow and Joyce shared a smile before they headed for the office. Buffy dutifully followed behind them. Soon they had Buffy set up, doodling quietly in the office, and the store was open for business. Willow tried to do some of her computer work in the office, but she couldn't help sneaking out to watch her girlfriend in her element. She had never been prouder of the shy witch.
The day passed quickly. Around eleven Xander came to take Buffy to her tutoring session. They ate lunch while they continued working on the layout for their next showcase. Joyce had even begun to searching for new artists and started planning her next buying trip when suddenly the phone rang.
"The Gallery," she answered one handed while they still mapped out different layouts. She listened intently, suddenly dropping the pencil. "What do you mean? They left just after eleven. They should have been there for over an hour by now." Tara and Willow stopped what they were doing, sharing a concerned look before focusing on Joyce. "No, there's no way she backed out. She's been overly excited about getting back to school, so much that she's been almost annoying this last week. She even came to work with me so she would be closer when the time came." She frowned, listening hard. Suddenly she covered up the mouthpiece. "Call Xander," she ordered, before listening again. Willow immediately reached for her phone.
"I'll go check with Anya," Tara said. "She'd know if his plans changed." Joyce nodded. Tara ran for the connecting door.
"Was it too early?" Anya asked distractedly when Tara ran into The Magic Box. "It's nothing to be ashamed of."
"What?" Tara asked, confused, before shaking her head. "No. Did Xander mention any change of plans?"
"No," she replied, giving the witch her complete attention. "He was taking Buffy to her tutoring session." She checked her watch. "They should have another two hours, then he'll bring Buffy back home. Then he said he was done for the day and would have a surprise waiting for me when I got home." Tara nodded and ran back to The Gallery, Anya and Giles following her. She only needed to shake her head.
"No answer," Willow said, putting down her phone anxiously. "But he'd have to turn it off for the class." Joyce didn't look reassured.
"Call campus security," she spoke into the phone. "I'm on my way." She hung up the phone and looked to Giles. "That was Professor Smith. Buffy and Xander never arrived. He waited for them for over an hour before he got concerned."
"Let's go," Giles declared. They stopped just long enough to turn the 'Closed' signs and lock the doors before they were off. They all piled into Giles's car, Giles driving while Joyce worried in the passenger seat.
"I don't like this," Joyce said over and over. "Something's not right."
"Xander won't let anything happen to her," Giles tried to reassure her, but his assurances abruptly stopped when they saw the flashing lights of the police cruisers.
"Pull over," Joyce ordered, but Giles was already pulling to the side of the road. One group of police officers were pulling out crime scene tape from the trunk of their cruiser while another couple were interviewing a UC Sunnydale Security Guard. Joyce felt her pulse quicken when she saw Detective Kestrel step out of a third vehicle and slowly make his way towards them. They quickly piled out to meet him.
"Word really does travel fast in these small towns," he tried to joke, but it fell flat.
"Tell me she's okay," Joyce begged. He hesitated for a minute before motioning for them to follow.
"Campus security got a call from one of the Professors here. He had a scheduled appointment with your daughter. She never showed. Knowing her physical limitations, he grew concerned when she didn't show and asked security to check around the building, just in case she had some trouble. They found this." He led them around the building to a small parking lot. Buffy's chair lay abandoned and overturned, pushed to the side to get it out of the way. Her bag containing all the books she brought with her was a few feet away. The books flung carelessly around, pages flipping in the wind, while her pens and pencils rolled in every direction. Closer to the chair was the satchel that Xander used to carry all his foreman paperwork around. The van was a few feet away from that. Willow absently looked down, picking up one of Buffy's doodling pencils from where it had managed to roll into the bushes lining the walkway.
"Oh God," Giles exclaimed, paling at the scene.
"It looks like they were abducted as they were heading into the building," the detective told them. "We found this," he reached into his pocket and pulled out an evidence bag. Inside was a dirty rag. "Chloroform. Whoever took them was good. Quick, clean, and in broad daylight. The good news is we haven't found any blood, so it doesn't look like they are hurt. Hopefully they stay that way until I find them." They watched as uniformed officers started putting the crime scene tape up around the parking lot. "That's your van, isn't it?"
"Yes," Joyce answered in shock.
"Do I have your permission to search it?" She nodded. He jolted down a few notes before turning to her. "I know this is a difficult time, but I need to ask you a few questions." She nodded again. "Is there anyone you know of who would want to hurt your daughter or Mr. Harris?" Joyce got a hard look in her eyes. Instead of answering, she spun around and headed back to the car.
"We'll get back to you on that," Giles managed to call out as he followed her. The detective nodded, waving back the officers who stepped up to stop them from leaving. "Joyce?" he asked timidly when she got into the driver's seat of his car.
"Buckle up," she ordered, barely giving them enough time to follow through before she hit the gas and the car sped away.
"Can I ask where we're going?" Giles asked, wincing when she ran a red light.
"We know who took them," she said simply. "The police can't stop them, but we can. It's time we did."
"I would like to point out that foolishly rushing in is only going to get ourselves killed. We need a plan, and more firepower, if we want any chance of surviving." Joyce looked over at that, deflating a little.
"I know," she admitted, "but I can't just stand around waiting for them to make their next move anymore. We need to start planning, and we need to find out where they're holed up. I think Spike has the best chance of finding them."
"So we're not rushing headfirst into our deaths," Anya piped up from the backseat. "Good." Joyce took a deep breath before releasing it slowly. She felt some of her reckless panic leave her and slowed down to a more reasonable speed. Soon they were at the cemetery where Spike's crypt was located. Joyce parked as close as she could then ran off on foot. The other's following behind her.
"Spike! I need your help!" she shouted as she approached. She didn't bother knocking on the door, instead simply barging into the Crypt. "I need you to… Oh my God!" The other's rushed forward at her exclamation, stopping right behind her when they saw vampire Buffy and The Crimson Witch in the throes of passion. They were so engrossed in each other they didn't realize they had an audience, until someone shifted and a beam of light fell on the vampire's exposed tattooed back. She growled and rolled to the side away from the door. At the same time Dark Willow arched her back and exploded in orgasm.
"Was it that amazing for you too baby?" she asked when she came down. She cracked one eye open as she blindly reached besides her, finding a cigarette and putting it to her lips before turning to the interlopers. "Anyone have a light?" she asked the group, smirking at them in a very satisfied way, entirely uncaring about her nudity. "No?" She snapped her fingers and the cigarette lit on its own. She took a long drag before propping herself back against the headboard.
"Where is my daughter?" Joyce asked, finally overcoming her shock. Willow took another drag before tilting her head to the side of the bed. They could hear the vampire trying to cover up as the sun's rays bathed the whole area. Joyce shook her head. "No, not this twisted form of my daughter. Where is my living daughter?"
"Oh come on," Willow shook her head as she took another drag from the cigarette. "Do I come into your house in the early morning hours and throw unfounded accusations around?"
"This is not your house and it's hardly the wee hours in the morning," Giles accused sternly, taking off his suit coat, bunching it up, and throwing it at her. Willow gave a little grunt when it hit her in the stomach. "Now where is she?"
"No idea," she said, stretching out Giles's jacket and rummaging through the pockets. "And I really don't care as long as she isn't dead. It's so much harder to make a vampire from a dead body. Not impossible, just a lot harder." She found his wallet and took out all the money he had, putting it beneath her pillow, before throwing the suit coat back to him. "Now, if you don't mind, we were in the middle of an amazing night of passion, and I think we can keep it up for another few hours."
"Actually I do mind," Willow said sternly. She started chanting and soon sunlight was flowing through the stone walls like they weren't even there. Vampire Buffy screamed, covering herself in all the blankets she could find as she made a mad dash to the hole leading to the second level of the crypt. Dark Willow watched her smoking form go in bewilderment.
"Now that was just rude," she said. She climbed out of bed, crushing the cigarette beneath her bare feet as she stalked towards them. "The only reason you are not dead right now is because I truly missed you and am happy to see you alive. But don't push me." Joyce stared at her for a minute before stepping up right into her face, her eyes never leaving Dark Willow's.
"Where is my daughter!" she demanded again. They stared at each other for a few minutes until Willow finally looked away.
"Oh God," she said as she found some clothes and started putting them on. "I forgot how annoyingly persistent you people were." Once she was fully dressed she returned to the bed, laying down seductively. "I don't know. She's not my concern at the moment. In fact, the only thing I need from her is to keep breathing long enough to cross paths with Drusilla again. And if you keep disrupting their meetings, I might have to do something about it."
"You're manipulating Drusilla," Tara said, staring at her girlfriend's doppelganger in shock. "You're one of the voices in her head. Telling her what to do. Telling her to turn Buffy."
"Like she needs any help to be evil," Dark Willow snorted. "I'm just helping the process along. Of course, it would help if she listened to me all the time. I told her to come back and try again, but she's taking her anger out on all that equipment you rented for your quest. I hope you don't expect to get any deposits back on any of that."
"Why did you come here in the first place?" Giles asked, trying to understand her motivations.
"That is an interesting story," Dark Willow said, pulling out the wad of cash from under her pillow and starting to count it. "Have you ever loved someone who just can't stop saving the world, even if it costs them their own life?"
"Yep," Anya answered, emphatically nodding her agreement. "It gets really annoying at times." Dark Willow grinned at her, passing her a twenty which she pocketed with an apologetic glance at Giles.
"My world was different," Dark Willow began, sitting up straight on the bed. "During this time everything was pretty much the same, except demon attacks were on the rise. No one thought much about it at the time, demon activity always ebbed and flowed. Faith went and put a stop to it, until one time they won."
"Faith was killed?" Joyce asked, her concern obvious. Dark Willow nodded.
"It was truly a sad day. She'd come a long way in her path to redemption, but nobody can win them all. And when one Slayer dies another one is called. Only it didn't happen."
"There was no Slayer?" Anya asked in shock.
"It took the Council a while to figure out," she told them, "and even longer for them to tell us. Since Buffy died our relationship with the Council had been tenuous at best. At first the Council just thought an undiscovered Slayer was called. Then, when they couldn't find her, they thought we had somehow hijacked the calling. By the time they realized no new Slayer had been called, it was too late."
"Too late?" Willow asked. Her counterpart nodded.
"A new group of demons emerged onto the scene. Powerful magic users. The Council tried to stop them. They retaliated by destroying London."
"The Voulard?" Giles asked knowingly.
"Yeah," Dark Willow agreed. "After London the few remaining Watchers finally admitted they needed help. We found out we were in something called the Third Age. There was a prophecy warning about it that the Council managed to fuck up and the world was screwed. No Slayer meant the demons had free reign. Chaos reigned. Countries started collapsing almost every day. Humans started huddling together in defensive groups. It was like five thousand years of progress was destroyed in a single day and we were back in the dark ages, only this time with guns instead of swords." She trailed off, lost in thought.
"One of the more successful holdouts was Sunnydale. Giles managed to rally the townsfolk. We were able to keep the Big Bads out and keep the place safe. Until Buffy came." She lit another cigarette, relishing in the sensations before continuing. "It was a shock to see her. We all thought she had died fighting Azeroth. Then she tried to kill us." She took another hit. "We stopped her, and I tried to restore her soul."
"And lost yours," Joyce said. She nodded.
"In the chaos she managed to slip away," Dark Willow continued. "She learned from her mistakes. Instead of trying to get us all at once, she started targeting individuals. Giles was the first. I figured it out and rushed to his side, but when I got there Buffy already had him. She was torturing him, had been for hours. He was screaming, begging me to help him." She turned to look directly at the Watcher. "I was starting the spell when a stray thought entered my mind. Tara screaming for Giles to help. Only he wasn't fast enough." She paused to regard the Watcher momentarily. "The thought only distracted me for a second, but it was long enough. Buffy killed him. And I didn't do anything to stop it."
"But you didn't help her," Tara reasoned.
"No," Willow agreed, "but I didn't stop her either. I waited for the guilt but it never came." She smiled evilly. "Do you know how liberating it is not to care? It was like I was reborn. Suddenly every dark, guilty pleasure I've ever denied myself was mine to take. And I took them all, including your daughter." She looked at Joyce. "Of course, she had to kill the rest of you. I helped simply to make it quick, as opposed to the hours of torture she wanted to inflict on each one of you. A mercy killing from me." She paused, relishing the strained atmosphere. "Joyce and Dawn were first. It was easy. All of their protectors gone. I snapped your neck before Buffy could drain you. You're welcome by the way." Joyce looked at Giles in confusion. "Anya and Xander, they were the challenging ones. Anya took off as soon as she realized what was happening, dragging Xander with her."
"That sounds like something I would do," Anya admitted. Dark Willow smiled at her seductively.
"It pissed us off when we finally caught up to them, but I still made it quick. With all of Buffy's ties to humanity gone we were able to return to Sunnydale and be free. It became one of the safest places on earth. We kept it safe from demons and humans alike for years. Until the Voulard came." She got quiet. "I knew it was a fight we couldn't win. She did too. But she couldn't run away.
"After she died I devoted my life to figuring out a way to get her back. I figured out the Voulard were the ones behind The Ring, the most profitable black market service in the world, and I also realized its roots went back before everything went to Hell. I also realized I could go back in time and make one small change and everything would be good again. And so I did." She finished her cigarette before standing and moving to Joyce. "You see, in my timeline, Hank Summers had some car trouble on the night his boss retired. By the time he got to the party, his boss was already in the back room fucking the brains out of his daughter. By the time they were done and came back to the party, he was in another room fucking someone else's daughter. They never saw each other and he never turned informer.
"I figured if I got him to the party a little sooner and he saw his precious, innocent daughter performing for all those lusting men, he would do something stupid, like save his daughter, and Buffy would kill the Voulard before the prophecy could be fulfilled. Buffy would still get turned by Drusilla, I would still lose my soul trying to save hers, and I would go back to my little corner of heaven that the Voulard would not invade because the few that survived would still be underground." She laughed crazily. "I didn't think he'd have the balls to bring down the whole organization and fuck everything up."
"And you've been trying to get your future back on track ever since," Giles said.
"I hate chaos," Willow growled. "I make one little change and suddenly the world is sunshine and unicorns again." She flopped back on the bed. "And now you know my evil plan. Of course, it's nothing you haven't already figured out, except maybe the why."
"You know it will never work," Willow said confidently. "I will never lose my soul trying to restore Buffy's, even if Drusilla manages to turn her."
"Yeah," Dark Willow grudgingly admitted. "We figured that one out, though we're not sure how you did. It doesn't matter though. There's more than one way to steal a soul. In fact, I was going to let you do the dirty work of losing it for me. You see, only you, Willow, can stop me. And the only way you can do that is to become me."
"We'll find another way," Tara said assuredly.
"It pains me to admit you already have," Dark Willow responded, "which is why I have to do this." She snapped her fingers and Willow disappeared in a flash of light. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have some funny business I need to finish." When nobody moved she sighed and snapped her fingers again. Everyone blinked away, appearing in Joyce's living room.
"Where have you been?" Faith asked, storming over to them as if they just walked in the door. "The police have been trying to get a hold of you. They say Buffy and Xander were abducted." She looked around at their shell shocked faces. "Where's Willow?"