Chapter Thirty-One
That night, Kellie left for her date with Kevin after telling Buffy where she was going: The Bronze. Buffy decided, just in case, that everyone should help her patrol tonight; patrol was exactly following Kellie to make sure she was okay. However, Buffy was posed with a problem: Dawn couldn't very well go on patrol with them. Darry came up with the prefect answer, Oz would 'baby-sit' her; Oz agreed and wished everyone good luck on their patrolling that night.
After everyone was ready, weapons checked and handed out, the Scooby Gang left the house. Darry looked down at the crossbow in her hands. "Okay, I don't exactly know the whole story because no one told me but I'm starting to get the picture. Are we shooting Kevin? Or Kellie, 'cause I have a problem with that plan." Darry asked.
Buffy shook her head. "Anya and I will fill you in on the story." Buffy said. "But right now we need to head to The Bronze."
The gang (which consisted of Buffy, Willow, Anya, Xander and Darry) headed in the direction of The Bronze. When they were halfway there, they ran into Spike who looked like he was wandering around Sunnydale.
Spike looked at the arsenal that the Scooby Gang carried and frowned. "Where's the party?" He asked.
Darry looked at him. "We're going to the Bronze to stake out some demon activity or something." She said.
Spike nodded. "Count me in." He said, his tone left almost no room for disagreement.
Buffy didn't seem to mind and tossed an extra long-bladed knife to Spike. "Let's go." She said and the group continued to the Bronze.
At The Bronze, Kellie bobbed her head slightly to the music and talked to Kevin, who sat next to her. Kellie felt very at ease with Kevin; probably do to the fact that she didn't have to worry about whether or not he was going to bite her. Kevin was also human so he had been through a lot of things that Kellie had been through so she knew how to relate.
As the band began another set, the guitarist began to play a slow melody and the singer began to sing soothing notes. Other couples at the tables got up and began to dance. Kevin took Kellie's hand and led her onto the dance floor.
Once the song was over, Kevin leaned over and kissed Kellie lightly on the lips. Kellie smiled as he pulled away. The band started up a loud piece; Kellie felt as though she couldn't hear her own thoughts.
"Let's go someplace quieter." Kevin said.
"What?" Kellie asked, she didn't hear a word he said.
"I said let's go someplace quieter!" Kevin yelled, loud enough for Kellie to hear him. She nodded and he led her out the back exit of the Bronze.
Outside, Darry was getting tried of watching steady, and seemingly endless, stream of teenagers go in and out of The Bronze. Not a single one of them was Kellie or Kevin.
Darry turned to face Buffy who was next to her, loading an arrow into the shaft of a crossbow. "Maybe Kevin really isn't a demon and Kellie and Kevin are having a good, normal, time on their date." Darry said.
Buffy looked over at Darry. "Yeah." She said and aimed her crossbow past Darry's left shoulder and fired. Darry ducked and then turned around in time to see a vampire turn to dust behind her. "But you can never be too sure what's lurking in the shadows." Buffy added.
Darry nodded and turned back to Buffy. "Good call." She muttered and loaded her own crossbow just in case.
Suddenly, a scream broke the not so quiet silence. Darry felt her face pale slightly. "That's Kellie." She said to Buffy.
Buffy jumped off the stonewall they had been sitting on and started running in the direction of the scream. Darry followed, as did the other members of the Scooby Gang. Spike brandished his knife, gripping the handle tightly.
In the alley behind the Bronze, Buffy was the first to arrive at the scene; Kellie was on the ground, bleeding from a wound on her arm. She was crying and looked as though she was bewildered at the sight before her. Standing over her was a large, human like, demon with a long tail with spikes all down it. The demon looked slightly like the one Darry-wolf had defended Dawn from when she was a werewolf.
It didn't take Buffy long to guess that the demon was indeed Kevin, just as Anya had suspected.
Spike joined Buffy and Darry's side. "It's a Thag-demon, it can assume human form to lure its prey to spot where it can kill and eat without much trouble or interruption." Spike said and grimaced.
Darry raised her crossbow and pointed it at Kevin/Thag-demon. "Well he just got interrupted." Darry muttered and fired the bolt into Kevin/Thag-demon's leg.
The demon roared and whirled around to face the battle-ready Scooby Gang. Both Darry and Buffy hurriedly put new bolts in their crossbows. The Thag-demon charged at the group; Anya tossed her knife at the demon but it missed him and nearly hit Kellie. Kellie cringed and tried to look away from the battle but couldn't.
Buffy kicked the demon in the jaw and heard a rewarding crack. As the demon stumbled backward, Buffy turned to Darry. "Go make sure Kellie's alright." Buffy said.
Darry nodded and started over to where her cousin was. However, the demon had other ideas. He tackled Darry to the ground and buried his claws into her back. Darry cried out in pain and surprise and realized that she had dropped the crossbow when the demon attacked her.
Darry tried to lift her head to see where she dropped the bow but the demon shoved her head into the dirt. Darry attempted to shove the Thag-demon off her but he over-weighed her because she wasn't a werewolf.
Before Darry had a chance to do anything else there was a sharp 'thwack' and the demon grunted and fall off of her. Darry looked up and saw that a bolt from a crossbow had impaled the demon. Darry looked over and saw that Kellie was holding the crossbow that Darry had lost when she fell. Kellie looked very surprised that she had exactly fired the bolt that had killed the guy she had been on a date with, even if he was a demon.
Kellie looked down at the bow in her hand and then over at the Thag-demon corpse. She dropped the bow and turned around and ran away from the stunned group.
Darry stood up, wincing in pain as she flexed her shoulders. Before anyone could stop him, Spike took off running after Kellie.
"Spike!" Buffy called and started to go after him but Darry stopped her.
"Let him go." She said and winced as she raised her arm to put on Buffy's shoulder.
Kellie ran until she stumbled over something in her way; she fell to the ground, stopping herself with her hands. She had stumbled into the ruins of what looked like an old burned down building. Twisted metal, charred wood and burned stone walls surrounded the place as well as piles of rumble and whatnot.
Kellie began to cry again, her shoulders shaking; she bowed her head and let her hair fall against her face.
She wasn't aware that someone had followed her until that someone dropped onto his knees beside her. She looked up to see Spike, looking semi-worried about her.
Kellie started to turn away from Spike, embarrassed by everything that had happened and everything she had said to him. Spike rested his hand on her shoulder, attempting to comfort her.
Kellie turned to face Spike, feeling the tears stream down her face. "I trusted him, I really did." She sobbed, thinking back to everything Kevin told her and how safe she had felt with him. She began to cry even harder; she buried her face in her hands.
Spike felt empathy for Kellie, after all he had felt betrayed after Drusilla left and after the way Buffy treated him. He embraced Kellie and she fell into his arms, sobbing with her head buried in his chest. Spike hugged her tightly, once again not knowing what to say to her.
"I'm sorry Spike." She said and looked up at him. "Sorry." She repeated.
Spike brushed away a lock of her hair and smiled. There wasn't any need to say anything more because all was forgiven and all feelings were understood. Spike leaned forward and kissed Kellie; Kellie wrapped her arms around his neck and returned the kiss. For now, all was well.
It was Darry who had insisted on leaving Kellie and not going to search for her. She was confident that Spike would find her cousin and make amends. Besides, she was aching in about every part of her body was desperate to get home.
The Scooby Gang headed toward the Summers house, Anya and Xander going toward their own apartment, slowly but surely they finally arrived home. When the trio entered the house, both Dawn and Oz were on the couch watching "Larry King Live". Dawn seemed bored out of her mind but ever so slightly interested because the guy Larry King was interviewing was remotely cute.
At the sound of the opening door, both Dawn and Oz turned around. Dawn smiled when she saw her sister, slightly dirty but nonetheless alive and kicking. However, Darry didn't look like she had had the upper hand in the battle, which she didn't. Oz's face paled when he saw her.
"Are you alright?" He asked and walked over to Darry.
Darry nodded. "Yep, still alive and well just a little worse for wear." Darry said and gave him her best smile.
However, Oz wasn't easily convinced. He looked at Darry's back and grimaced when he saw the punctures.
"It's not that bad really." Darry said, lying through her teeth. "Just a flesh wound."
Once again, Oz wasn't convinced. He gently put his hand on her back and she winced. "You're not okay." He said sternly, not giving Darry room to argue. Oz turned to Buffy. "Where do you keep the first aid kit?" He asked her.
Buffy motioned to the bathroom. "In there." She said.
Darry shook her head. "Don't worry Oz, I can doctor my own wounds. Don't worry." Darry assured him.
Oz wouldn't be shaken; he took her hand and led her into the bathroom. Oz picked up the first aid kit and opened it, pulling out a roll of gauze and bandages. Darry reached into the cabinet and pulled out a washcloth and wet it. She applied it to the wounds on her back, getting her shirt damp but cleaning some of the blood away.
Oz watched her. "You really can doctor yourself." He remarked.
"I've had a lot of practice." Darry told him and took the bandages from him. "You don't have to bandage injuries like this." She told him and put the bandages back in the first aid kit.
"Do you ever bandage anything?" Oz asked her.
Darry nodded and lifted up the bottom of her shirt, where her stomach was still bandaged.
Oz looked at her bandaged stomach and then up at Darry. "What happened?" He asked.
"Little accident. Nothing big." Darry said.
She was surprised when Oz started unwinding the bandages; the three claw marked wound hadn't healed very much since she had bandaged it. "Darry, this isn't just a flesh wound." Oz said, expressing genuine concern for her.
Darry pulled back. "It's nothing really." She said and looked away from him. The truth was, it still hurt and she didn't feel like she deserved his concern.
Oz looked up at her and then took the bandages out of the first aid kit again. "Here." He said and handed them to her. Darry took the bandages and felt the warmth of Oz's hand as she took them.
"Thanks." She muttered and began to wrap them around her stomach. Oz watched until she had wrapped the wound thoroughly; he took the bandages from her and tied them together so it would stay wrapped.
Darry smiled as Oz finished tying the bandages together. She lowered her shirt and put the bandages back in the first aid kit. She put the kit back in the medicine cabinet and looked over at Oz.
"Thanks." She said.
"No problem." He smiled slightly. "Are you ever going to tell me how you got that wound?" He asked.
Darry shrugged. "Maybe but not now." She answered.
Oz nodded. "I can settle with that." He agreed.
The two walked out of the bathroom and joined the others in the living room. Dawn had fallen asleep on the couch so Darry decided to claim Dawn's bedroom for the night.
Buffy nodded. "Xander said he'd get to work on building the attic room for you and Kellie. He said it shouldn't take too long." Buffy told Darry.
Darry nodded. "Good ol' Xander." She said with a tinge of fake affection.
Oz stood up. "Well, I'd better be going. I'll see you tomorrow Darry." He said and bade good-bye to everyone else in the room. Darry watched as Oz disappeared out the front door.
Willow turned to Darry. "Tomorrow's a werewolf night you know." She reminded.
Darry nodded. "I know." She frowned. "Looks like it's chains in the basement for me for the next three days." She said, though she didn't seem to regretful about it.
After that, everyone headed upstairs, except Dawn who was still asleep on the couch. Buffy turned to face Darry. "Should we wait for Kellie?" Buffy asked.
Darry shrugged. "She can find her way back home, and she'll find somewhere to sleep." Darry said, happy that her cousin was finally happy.
The next morning, Darry was the first to wake up and was already feeling the first signs of werewolf-form. Her sense of smell was stronger so she could smell someone downstairs cooking; it was Kellie, who had gotten in late last night.
Darry headed down stairs and joined her cousin in the kitchen. Kellie was all smiles as she greeted her cousin. "Hey Darry!" She exclaimed and cracked another egg open.
"Morning Kels, I trust everything is right with Spike." Darry said.
Kellie nodded and scrambled the cooking eggs in the pot. "Yep, thanks to you and Oz I think. Spike mentioned that you and he had something to do with his persistence." Kellie said.
Darry raised an eyebrow. "Call it what you will." She said and sat down, wincing at her still sore stomach wound.
Kellie glanced over at her cousin and then over at the calendar; she frowned when she saw the date was Dec. 6. She looked out the window and frowned again when she saw the sun. "Does it ever snow in Sunnydale? In Snowville, the ground would already be covered in snow." Kellie asked.
"I've never been to Sunnydale before now, Kellie, but I'm guessing: no. It never snowed in L.A. and I'm sure it'll never snow here." Darry answered.
Kellie frowned. "But I love the snow, it's the best part of December." Kellie said.
Within ten minutes, the rest of the household was awake and downstairs. Dawn was getting ready for school and complaining about having to sleep on the couch while Darry had her bed. After Dawn left for school, Xander and a few other construction workers arrived to get started on the attic room. Buffy wasn't too happy since the attic was a mess. Without a single thought, she commanded everyone to begin cleaning the attic and putting the things downstairs in the basement.
Darry led the way to the attic, followed by Buffy and Kellie as well as the construction workers. The attic was more of a mess then Buffy would have liked it to be. However, there was no griping as the cleaning began. Darry, already equipped with werewolf strength, and Buffy were able to carry the most things down at one time.
Darry carried a stack of boxes down into the basement, followed by one of Xander's construction worker friends named Mike. As Darry set the boxes down, Mike looked around the basement. His eyes rested on the manacles attached to the floor, ready for werewolf binding.
"Um_did you know you have chains bolted to this floor?" Mike asked and looked over at Darry.
Darry hurriedly thought of what to say. "Yes they, uh, came with the house." Darry answered.
By the time the sun was close to setting, the attic was finally clean and Xander was able to see that there wasn't much construction that needed to be done after all. Kellie, however, demanded that there be windows and shelves built into the walls. Xander promised to return tomorrow and quickly herded the workers out of the Summers house before Darry started to change.
Since Buffy had to patrol, Willow and Kellie offered to baby sit Darry-wolf for the night. Darry changed into her baggiest clothes, which hopefully would survive the transformation, and let Willow chain her to the floor.
As the sun began to set, Darry began to feel the familiar buzz of pre-transformation, even though that transformation was only around ten minutes away.
As the sun set and the moon rose, Darry transformed and became the large werewolf that Willow had tranquillized the last full moon. That same tranquillizer gun rested beside her, just in case.
The werewolf Darry thrashed against her chains, bucking and attempting to pull them lose so she could be free. Kellie seemed slightly shaken by the werewolf's attacks.
"Why is she acting so_violent?" Kellie asked, staring at the thing that was her cousin ten minutes ago.
"She can't help it." Willow said. Darry-wolf howled and bared her teeth at Willow and Kellie.
"She won't hurt us, will she?" Kellie asked.
"No, because she's chained. If she gets loose, I'll tranquillize her." Willow answered.
Kellie seemed to relax a little but Darry-wolf continued to run circles and pull against her restraints. As the night progressed, Darry-wolf got even more 'violent' and nearly got lose once. However, Willow was sure she had everything under control.
Under Sunnydale, the man sat in his throne made of human bones and planned. Humans were easily defeated; the Slayer was a human yet she was impossible to destroy or even wound. She had to have a weakness, everyone had a weakness; except himself, of course. What was hers? That was just what he needed to discover. However, that would not be easy to discover.
Buffy was beginning to think that Spike had been right about everyone laying in wait for a new evil that was coming. And what he said about the vampires getting stupider as they because they were being sired without proper 'teachers' if you could call them that.
She had killed three vampires that night but that was it, not a single thing stirred in the dark. Buffy decided to check on Oz, who had locked himself in one of the older crypts at Shady Hill Cemetery. She didn't have to worry about Darry because Willow and Kellie were pet-sitting Sunnydale's newest werewolf.
Buffy entered the crypt and saw werewolf Oz jumping around in his makeshift cage. When he saw her Oz-wolf howled and lunged at the bars, rattling them.
"Whoa, down boy." Buffy said. She hadn't baby-sat a lot of werewolves but she had never seen a werewolf act like Oz was acting now. Oz seemed more_energized more enraged about something. Buffy dared to go closer to the cage and the wolf nearly went crazy; he tore around the cage, kicking and scratching at the walls and rattling the bars to the cage. Buffy wondered if Darry was behaving in the same way.
Just when Willow thought Darry was calming down, the wolf went crazy again. She had knocked over her water dish in a psychotic spasm and Kellie was going to get the dish, carefully, to refill it went Darry-wolf started to howl and leapt at Kellie.
Darry-wolf clawed at her binds and scratched up the ground as well as the walls. The werewolf would stop for a second, study them and then start the spasms again.
Willow didn't know what to make of it but hoped that there wasn't something wrong with Darry-wolf. Perhaps it was the fact that she hadn't gotten used to being chained up; before she came to Sunnydale, she was never chained up on werewolf nights. Now, however, well now she was; it would take a little getting used too, Willow guessed.
The redhead looked at her watch. "Only a few more hours to go." She said, more to herself then to Kellie, who was nervous after the wolf leapt at her.
Buffy couldn't stay with Oz all night and she regretted that. If the wolf got lose and someone got hurt, Oz would blame himself. However, Buffy had to return home, especially since there was another werewolf taking up residence in her basement at the moment. She also wanted to see if Darry was going as ballistic as Oz was.
Buffy made good time heading back to her house and opened the kitchen door. Dawn was at the kitchen table doing her homework while listening to her Walkman.
Buffy tapped on the table to get Dawn's attention; Dawn took off the headphones and looked at Buffy. Before Buffy could ask any questions or yell at her, Dawn said, "I couldn't hear a word because of Darry downstairs so I had to put on music just to hear myself think."
Buffy listened and could hear Darry-wolf raging downstairs, howling, roaring and clawing. Buffy headed down into the basement and saw Willow and Kellie watched the wolf closely.
Darry-wolf had suddenly stopped her thrashing and sat, like a housedog, with her head cocked to side. Suddenly, she let out a loud howl and sat down again. She cocked her head again and listening, or it looked like she was listening.
Then she began to pull at her chains again, rearing on her hide legs and easily being as tall as Buffy. She swung her huge paws and bared her teeth as she pulled against the chains.
Buffy grabbed the tranquillizer gun off the ground and pointed it at Darry. "What are you doing?" Kellie asked, suddenly at her side.
"I'm going to shoot her, just in case." Buffy said, attempting to reassure Kellie. "It'll just put her to sleep and then we'll all be able to sleep for the remainder of the night."
Buffy pulled the trigger and the dart hit Darry-wolf in the side. The wolf howled and then slowly fell under the dart's affects.
With Darry out, Buffy, Willow and Kellie headed upstairs and joined Dawn at the kitchen table for a late dinner. With dinner over, the four headed upstairs to get some much needed sleep.
In the morning, Darry awoke in a daze and knew she had been tranquillized during the night. However, she was still in chains so she knew that she hadn't gotten away; once again, no memory entered her mind so she was forced to forget the night's events. Darry lifted her head so she could hear upstairs and knew that she was the only one awake; there was a knock on the door.
Darry beat the chains on the floor, hoping to wake someone up because she couldn't get out of the chains herself. There were footsteps upstairs and someone knocked on the door again. Someone called, "Just a minute" and Darry knew it was Kellie.
Kellie opened the basement door and walked down the steps; she picked up a key ring that was hanging on a nail by the door.
"Hey Darry." Kellie said and unlocked her chains.
"Morning Kels." Darry said and rubbed her wrists. "Thanks. Who's at the door?" Darry asked.
"Dunno." Kellie answered. The cousins headed upstairs; Kellie put the key ring back on the nail.
Darry headed upstairs to change clothes and Kellie went to answer the door. It was Xander, alone this time -except for Anya-, carrying a box of tools. Anya was carrying some woods and glass and a ruler.
"Hey Kellie, we brought the stuff for your windows." Xander said and motioned to Anya beside him.
"Yes." Anya said and struggled under the weight.
Kellie smiled. "Great, come on in. I think Darry and I are the only one's awake but that's okay I guess." Kellie said.
Xander and Anya entered the house. "So, how did Darry do last night?" Xander asked.
Kellie shrugged. "I've never seen a werewolf before, so I don't know how they were supposed to act but she was pretty intense, if that's the right word. She was howling and pulling at the chains and finally Buffy had to tranquillize her so she didn't get lose." Kellie answered.
Darry came downstairs, looking like she hadn't spent the night as a werewolf and smiled at Xander and Anya. "Hey guys, you're here early." Darry said.
"Well, I want to get this finished, you know so you guys don't have to sleep on the floor or wherever anymore." Xander said.
"Thanks." Kellie said.
The four went upstairs and into the attic, which actually looked like a room, a very bare room but a room nonetheless. Xander looked around. "Well, I could cut windows in that wall and they'd face the house next door. That's pretty much the only place that they would look pretty good. I can also build like a banister here so it looks like a real stairwell." Xander offered.
Kellie nodded. "Cool." She said. Xander got to work, cutting rectangle shaped holes in the side of the house he had indicated and having Anya help him measure.
Since there was nothing they could do, Darry and Kellie headed back downstairs where Dawn was getting ready for school. Buffy and Willow were talking in hushed tones and Darry didn't bother to ask what they were talking.
Kellie joined Buffy and Willow at the kitchen table and the two stopped talking and gave Darry and Kellie a smile and a 'good-morning'. Darry joined Dawn at the kitchen counter where she was preparing her lunch.
In five minutes, Dawn had left the house, hurrying to join up with Candace to walk to school. Buffy lifted her head when she heard hammering being done upstairs.
"Is Xander destroying my house?" Buffy asked, good-naturedly.
"He's making windows." Kellie said and grinned.
The kitchen door opened and Oz walked in. "Who's making windows?" He asked and walked over to where Darry sat.
Buffy grinned and couldn't help but wonder why no one knocked anymore, they just walked right in.
"Hey Oz." Darry said happily and smiled at him.
He greeted her with a smile as well and sat down beside her. "So, what's up?" He asked everyone.
Buffy shrugged. "Boring day, as usual." She answered.
"It's the nights that make Sunnydale interesting." Kellie said.
"I would have to agree with you." Oz nodded.
"I'm going to visit Spike tonight." Kellie said, out of nowhere, as though she was saying she wasn't watching her werewolf cousin tonight.
"And, as always, patrolling." Buffy said. Willow nodded, indicating that she was going with Buffy tonight, and was going to get someone else to watch Darry-wolf.
"So, who's building?" He asked, looking up toward the attic.
"Xander and Anya are building Kellie and my room." Darry answered.
"So, looks like you two are keeping up permanent residence in Sunnydale." Oz pointed out.
Darry smiled. "Looks like." She answered.
By noon Xander was finished doing the windows and the banister that looked 'very' professional. There was, as always, another problem to consider: even if they had a room, Darry and Kellie had no furniture to go in it. The furniture included not having a bed.
"Well, that sorta defeats the whole purpose." Buffy muttered, thinking of the furniture shortage.
Kellie was walking around the room, as though she expected to find a bed somewhere lost in the shadows. "We have to have beds; I'm sick of sleeping on the floor." She moaned.
Anya shrugged. "Maybe there's some place you can buy a bed." She offered.
"Okay, Anya, I know of plenty of places where you can buy a bed but there is the problem of my large debut that I don't have the money to pay off, so I don't have the money to buy two brand new beds and furniture." Buffy said.
"You could always good to a flea market or something." Oz suggested. "I could go check it out later today if you wanted and report back tomorrow." He offered.
"Great, thanks Oz." Buffy said.
"Well, I have to leave, see you guys later." Oz said and left the Scooby Gang, plus Kellie, standing in the new attic room.
The rest of the day passed without event as did the night of werewolf sitting; Willow had talked Anya and Xander into watching Darry-wolf for the night so she could go with Buffy to patrol.
Darry-wolf was as energized, as she was the night before and once again forced her sitters to tranquillize her for their own safety.
Buffy and Willow's patrol was also uneventful; Buffy didn't stake a single vampire because there wasn't a single vampire to be found. So, as the sun began to rise, Buffy and Willow headed back to the Summers house to call it a night.
The next day went along like any other; Oz had been able to find stuff at the flea market to make Darry and Kellie's room more of a room. Once all the stuff had been purchased and returned to the Summers house, Kellie decided to take on the task of arranging things. Kellie had a dresser with a flat top where she could stack odds and ends on. Darry had a night table where she could put things on, if she had things to put.
Once the room was decorated, Oz left and it was once again time for Darry to retreat to the basement for the night. Willow was stuck with wolf-sitting once again; Kellie went to Spike's crypt and Buffy had to patrol Sunnydale. Dawn went over to a friend's house to study for a test so it was just Willow and the werewolf.
Darry-wolf paced the basement for the length of her chains, swishing her tail and flattening her ears. Willow watched the wolf pace back and forth and wondered if she had used all her energy the previous two nights.
Someone opened the basement door and walked down the steps. Willow turned around and was very surprised to see Tara walking down the basement steps, slowly as though she wasn't supposed to be there.
"I heard you had to watch the wolf tonight." Tara said quietly and joined Willow.
Darry-wolf looked up at Tara and swished her tail and rolled her shoulders. "Yeah, I guess so." Willow answered.
"I came to give you some company." Tara explained.
Willow grinned. "There should be another chair around here somewhere." She said.
Tara quickly found the chair and set it beside Willow's chair. Tara studied the werewolf. "The last werewolf I saw tried to eat me." She muttered.
Darry-wolf regarded Tara and then returned to her pacing. Willow watched the werewolf. "Yeah." She muttered, not exactly sure what she meant by those words.
"Is she always this_calm?" Tara asked.
"No, last night she was ripping at her chains and making enough noise to wake up all of Sunnydale. Now she's_different." Willow said.
Darry-wolf paced and swished her tail, sniffing the ground and then sniffing the air. "I hope nothing's wrong with her." Willow muttered.
Buffy ran into Spike and Kellie during her patrol; it was like Kellie and Spike were having a 'romantic stroll' under the light of the full moon.
"Slay anything yet Buffy?" Kellie asked, making conversation.
"Not yet but the night's still young." Buffy said.
"Well, we wouldn't want to get in your way so we'll just be on our way." Spike said. They said their good-byes and Kellie and Spike disappeared down the street.
Buffy watched them go and then continued on her patrol.
Near eleven o'clock, Darry-wolf sat down and stared at Willow and Tara. She sat and just stared at them, as still as a stone statue. Tara was slightly uncomfortable at the still wolf but Willow was curious and confused at her actions.
Darry-wolf continued to sit and stare, not even blinking and or moving her tail.
Spike and Kellie walked to Weatherly Park and sat on one of the park benches to talk and look at the stars. From somewhere in front of the park, the silence was broken by a shrill scream of terror.
Spike and Kellie both stood up, Spike listened again; another scream sounded. Spike and Kellie raced in the direction of the scream.
Spike was shocked (well, as shocked as a vampire could be) by the sight in front of him; a large werewolf (not as large as Darry) was ravaging the body of a woman. There was no doubt in Spike's mind that the woman was dead; what mattered now was telling Buffy about the werewolf.
The werewolf, of whom he thought of, turned its head and growled when it saw Spike and Kellie.
"Kellie, run." Spike commanded and took a step back. The werewolf charged and both vampire and human turned tail and ran as fast as they could. The werewolf roared and ran after them.
"Where are we going Spike?" Kellie asked, looking over her shoulder at her vampire boyfriend.
"Away from him." Spike said and motioned to the werewolf. "We have to get Buffy." Spike added.
The vampire began to out distance Kellie, putting nothing between her and the werewolf. Kellie looked back to see how close the werewolf was; she lost her footing and stumbled.
She cried out in surprise as she hit the ground, causing Spike to turn around. The werewolf roared and ran faster to where Kellie had fallen. Spike hurriedly ran to where Kellie was and scooped her into his arms. The werewolf pounced on the spot where Kellie had been just a second earlier.
Spike began to run again, carrying Kellie so that they could gain more ground away from the werewolf.
The werewolf roared and clawed at the ground and then turned around and went back to the meal it had made of a park visitor.
Once the werewolf disappeared, Spike stopped running and set Kellie back on the ground.
"Come on, we have to find Buffy." Spike said.
The werewolf in the Summers' basement suddenly sprung to life as though it had been given a silent command. Darry-wolf threw herself forward with such force that the chains snapped and pulled out of the ground.
Willow jumped back in surprise and reached for the tranquillizer gun; the werewolf hit Willow with her huge paw and knocked Willow away from the gun. Willow fell to the ground, stunned.
Darry-wolf roared and turned to Tara. Tara began to retreat; Darry-wolf grabbed her with her paws and threw her in the direction where Willow lay. Tara crumpled to the ground beside Willow.
The werewolf charged out of the basement and ran through the Summers' living room. She barraged through the front door and ran down the street, heading away from the neighborhood of Rebello Drive.
Spike and Kellie found Buffy without much trouble.
"Buffy, there's a werewolf lose." Spike said.
Kellie turned to face Spike. "Wait, 'a' werewolf; isn't it Darry?" Kellie asked.
Buffy shrugged. "It might not be." She muttered.
"You mean there are two werewolves?" Kellie asked, surprised and slightly confused.
"Yeah, Oz is a werewolf too." Spike answered.
Kellie scoffed. "Wow, they really are prefect for each other." Kellie muttered.
"Okay, it might be Darry so we need to hurry to my house and make sure everyone is okay." Buffy said.
The trio headed to the Summers house in the neighborhood of Rebello Drive.
When they arrived at the Summers house, it was clear where the werewolf had come from; the front door was ripped off its hinges and the living room was trashed as though something large had run though.
Buffy hurried down into the basement and saw Willow and Tara lying on the ground. Willow looked like she was just coming around; Buffy hurried to her friend's side.
"Willow_Willow are you alright? What happened?" Buffy asked.
Willow lifted her head and blinked her eyes. "What? Oh, Darry_Darry got away." Willow moaned.
"When?" Buffy asked, not knowing why she had asked that question.
"Just a few minutes ago, not more then two though." Willow answered.
"Okay, Willow just stay here and don't move." Buffy said. She went to check on Tara, the girl was all right but unconscious.
Buffy headed upstairs. "Kellie, I need you to stay here and take care of Willow and Tara. When Dawn comes home, tell her to go straight upstairs." Buffy said. She turned to Spike. "It wasn't Darry who you saw; that means Oz is lose too." Buffy said.
Buffy and Spike hurried to Weatherly Park; Buffy knew that the werewolf was still there because there was the sound of barking and growling.
The duo raced in the direction of where the sounds were coming from; Buffy was surprised to see not one but two werewolves in the same spot.
The smaller werewolf was Oz, Buffy guessed, because the larger werewolf had the color of Darry's hair and was the same color of the werewolf who they had met last month.
Darry-wolf was only larger then Oz-wolf by no more then a foot; both wolves were circling each other, growling.
Oz-wolf lunged at Darry-wolf, roaring; Darry-wolf met his assault with teeth bared and claws forward. The two wolves locked claws and paws and began a forceful game of 'shove'. Darry-wolf snapped at Oz's side and knocked the smaller wolf to the ground.
Darry leapt at Oz but the wolf rolled out of the way and Darry tackled the ground instead. Oz rammed Darry's side as the werewolf attempted to stand up. Darry turned around and blocked Oz-wolf's paw that was aimed for her head. She grabbed his paw in her mouth and bit it, causing Oz to howl in pain.
"That's it, I'm stepping in." Buffy muttered. "I wish we brought the tranquillizer gun." She added.
Spike broke a branch off of a nearby tree and held it like a club, for it was thick enough to be one. "Improvise." He said and tossed the club to Buffy.
"I am not beating my friends unconscious." Buffy said.
"If you don't, you won't have many friends by sunrise." Spike said. He and Buffy looked back to the fight raging between the two werewolves; Oz had Darry by the tail and was dragging her around. Darry, however, didn't appreciate being drug around and was clawing at Oz's side.
Buffy knew Spike was right; Darry could kill Oz if she got the chance and Oz could probably do the same thing to her. However, it wasn't going to be easy to deliver the blows to the wolves.
However, it looked like she wouldn't have to when Oz-wolf suddenly yelped in pain and let go of Darry-wolf's tail. The werewolf slumped to the ground, slumbering. Darry-wolf let out a similar yelp of pain and also fell to the ground.
Buffy and Spike turned to look behind them and saw Kellie holding the tranquillizer gun. "You forget this." She said to Buffy.
Kellie joined Buffy and Spike. "What are we going to do with them?" She asked, looking at the sleeping werewolves.
Buffy shrugged. "Nothing. There is no way we could move them; there's also no where for them to go." Buffy said.
"So, we're just going to leave them there?" Kellie asked, looking over at her sleeping werewolf cousin.
"Well, Kellie, they won't be werewolves for much longer; it's almost sunrise." Spike said and looked up at the sky. At the edge of the sky, the sun was barely making the velvet blue a lighter shade.
"So, you're just going to let them wake up and see_well whatever? What is Darry going to say?" Kellie asked.
Buffy shrugged. "Probably the same thing Oz is going to say_whatever that might be." Buffy said.
"I hate to break up this little chat but I'm not a morning bird, remember. I suggest we all get back." Spike said.
The trio headed away from Weatherly Park; Spike went to his crypt and Buffy and Kellie headed back home. On the way, Kellie explained that Dawn had come home and offered to care for Willow and Tara while she took the gun to where Buffy was.
As the sun rose in the sky, Darry opened her eyes and blinked. Her clothes were in absolute tatters; the sleeves hung down past her elbows. Darry sat up, surprised that she wasn't chained up in the Summers basement; she must have gotten lose during the night. She looked around and jumped back slightly when she saw Oz, lying on the ground next to her. His clothes were tattered like hers and his left wrist was torn and bleeding.
Darry stared down at him, too surprised to even think straight. The only thought that was in her head was that Oz must be a werewolf as well.
Oz slowly opened his eyes and looked around, surprised that he wasn't in the confinement of the barred crypt that he usually spent his werewolf nights in.
He looked up and was startled to see Darry looking down at him. He quickly sat up.
"You're a werewolf?" Darry asked, her voice absolutely deadpan so Oz couldn't detect any emotions in her words.
"Uh_let me think about how an I answer that." He paused. "Wait, what are you doing here?" He asked. He looked at her closely and saw that her clothes were baggy and tattered like his. She was also cut and bloody.
"You're a werewolf too, aren't you?" Oz asked. Darry avoided his gaze. "I knew there was something about you." He said with a slight smile.
Darry, however, wasn't in the smiling mood. "Why didn't you tell me?" She asked.
"Why didn't you tell me?" He countered.
Darry narrowed her eyes. "Well, telling someone you're a werewolf doesn't do well in a relationship." She said.
"I think that you're asking me all the same questions that I could be asking you." Oz said.
Darry stood up and glared at him. "You should have told me." Darry said.
Oz stood up as well. "You should have told me, too." He countered.
"Look Oz, you haven't been a werewolf as long as I have, I'm guessing. I've grown up being a werewolf; I've grown up knowing that I was different and knowing exactly why. You obviously haven't; the only people who know you are a werewolf are the only people you know, pretty much. When they found out you were a werewolf, they told you it was okay; I've grown up knowing that it wasn't okay." Darry told him.
Oz took a step toward her. "Darry_" He began but she cut him off.
"Oz, you should have told me; I have lived my life thinking I was one of the only werewolves, if I had known you were a wolf too, it would have been_I don't know_easier." Darry said.
"Darry, I'm sorry." Oz whispered, not knowing what to say.
"I'm not afraid to admit that I have a major trust issue." Darry told him.
Oz took another step toward her. "Why, Darry, you can tell_" Oz said.
Darry shook her head and backed up. "No, I can't." She said and backed up again. Without another word or a glance backward, Darry ran away from Oz, in the opposite direction of the Summers house.
"Darry!" Oz called after her but it was no use. Oz turned and headed in the direction of the Summers house.
Buffy, Willow and Tara were in the kitchen; Dawn had already gone to school. Buffy was beginning to wonder where Oz and Darry were, or at least where Darry was, but she wasn't stressing over it. What she was stressing over was how to pay for a new door.
The kitchen door opened and Oz entered, he looked upset and angry. "Why didn't you tell me Darry was a werewolf?" He asked and didn't bother to shut the door.
Buffy was surprised by Oz's anger; it wasn't normal to see anger, or any emotion for that matter, displayed on Oz's face or features. "Well_I thought it would be better for you two to find out yourselves." Buffy offered, not exactly sure why she never mentioned it.
"Where is Darry?" Willow asked.
"I don't know; you should have told me, Buffy. What, exactly, happened in Darry's past to make her so_guarded?" Oz said, wondering if he was choosing the right words.
Buffy shrugged. "I don't know exactly but her parents were killed by werewolfs. That's all I know." Buffy said.
"Where is Darry?" Willow asked again.
Oz didn't answer but turned to face Willow. "I don't know." He repeated.
Below Sunnydale, the man thought once again. It was coming too soon, he wasn't ready for it. Well, he was ready but it was that damn Slayer in his way that caused him to have his doubts. She had the power to stop him and if she discovered his plans she would indeed stop him. However, once he had the stone no one could stop him. However, the Slayer was still an object that needed gotten out of his path. He closed his eyes and chanted some words in Rumanian: "Invoc mort glob cu flinctei separa."
A pool of white, almost liquid looking light formed in the center of the cavern. A snake like creature slithered out of the pool and then the pool disappeared.
The creature was Eyghida; it had a long snake like body with tiny feet toward the back of its body that were useless to propel its long body. Its head was not snake like, as the rest of its body was, but was almost horse-like; it had a long snout filled with tiny razor sharp teeth. Its eyes were glowing red and headed beneath a 'helmet' that looked like it was made of cement that had dried on the Eyghida's head. Two tiny ears poked up from under the cement helmet and twitched around, listening to every sound in the cavern and under the Earth and above in Sunnydale.
"Eyghida, my fateful one, you must go above ground a find the Slayer; you must destroy her and all she associates with." The man commanded.
Eyghida bowed its horse-like head and slithered out of the cavern, leaving the man alone again.
Once Oz told Buffy in detail everything that had happened between him and Darry, the Slayer became slightly worried. She didn't know a lot about Darry but being a werewolf obviously touched a deep nerve that she never cared to fell. Kellie also became worried about her cousin, even though she knew just about as much about her as Buffy did.
Buffy decided that everyone should search Sunnydale for her; Xander and Anya were called and briefed on the whole situation and agreed to aid in the search. Tara offered to help as well.
Buffy didn't know if it was the best plan but she decided everyone was to split up, except Kellie because she didn't know Sunnydale like everyone else did. Kellie and Buffy started their search together, while everyone else went their own separate ways.
Oz cursed under his breath as the sun began to go down and he, or anyone else, still hadn't found Darry. He looked almost every place he could think of; he was assured because he knew that Buffy and the others would look in the places he had forgotten to look. Oz looked up at the sky again as the bright blue Sunnydale sky began to cry pink and velvet blue with the setting sun.
Night was never a good time in Sunnydale, unless you were a vampire but then again, vampire preyed on humans so it wasn't a good comfort for Oz. He stood in Restfield Cemetery; he had checked almost all of the other cemeteries in Sunnydale, just in case.
Restfield Cemetery was unlike any of the other cemeteries in Sunnydale; Restfield Cemetery was where Buffy and Faith had found the Glove of Myhnegon, looking around the cemetery now Oz didn't doubt it. The cemetery, with its crumbling gravestones and pretty much spooky setting, was a likely place for an evil glove to reside. Thick woods surrounded the cemetery; the cemetery was also on the outskirts of town, making it rather secluded.
Oz doubted that Darry was indeed in this cemetery but he had to check, just to be sure. It seemed as though Darry had disappeared from Sunnydale all together, there seemed to be no trace of her anywhere.
Darry had finally found the most secluded spot in Sunnydale, or so it looked. She sat, her back against the trunk of a large oak tree, in the darkening woods toward the edge of town. It was better, she supposed, that she leave Sunnydale; she hadn't found what she was looking for so there was no reason to stay. She didn't want to become tangled up in the lives of Buffy and Oz and everyone else, even Kellie, because when she did bad things usually happened. It was best just to leave while she was ahead; truth be told, she had planned on leaving earlier but then Kellie had showed up and then Buffy had arranged for her and Oz to meet. Darry wasn't planning on becoming so_attached to Buffy and the rest of the Scoobies. She wasn't one for friends, she didn't like to become attached to anything, least face the consequences that might follow.
It was better this way, to leave Sunnydale now, without having to say goodbye to anyone and to leave while Oz thought that she was angry with him. In some way, she was or had been but she wasn't anymore; it was better to leave like that then to have a tearful goodbye.
In the forest all was silent; or, was silent until the sound of rustling leaves and cracking twigs reached her ears. Darry turned her head in the direction of the sounds and came face to face with a large snake like monster.
Unable to stop herself, Darry let out a scream and attempted to back up. She ran right into the tree trunk, unable to go anywhere.
The snake demon (Eyghida) reared backward in surprise and then glowered at Darry as though he was angry with Darry for causing him to be surprised.
Darry rose slowly and reached for something to defend herself with; no doubt another reminder of the Sunnydale demon population.
Oz was about to leave the cemetery when a scream filled the air. It was more of a scream of surprise then terror or pain. Oz whirled around, knowing that it was Darry.
The scream came from the woods, not too deep but deep enough for Oz to wish that he had a flashlight with him. Even if he had one in the van, he didn't want to waste time going back to get it.
Oz ran into the woods, trying to remember exactly where the scream came from so he could find Darry easily. Oz stopped to pick up a fallen branch, just in case Darry's attacker was a vampire.
Oz stopped we he saw Darry and the latest Sunnydale creature feature; this creature was unlike any Oz had ever seen. The snake reared back and bared its tiny sharp teeth and snapped at the air, as though telling Darry that he would indeed bite her.
Eyghida moved closer to Darry and she held the stick in front of her, showing the snake that she had a weapon. Eyghida leapt forward and snapped the stick out of Darry's hand. Darry's eyes widened in surprise as she drew her hand away.
"Darry!" Oz called from behind her. Darry turned around, surprised and the snake lunged at her. Darry was caught off guard and the snake knocked her to the ground.
Darry cried out in surprise as she hit the ground, stunned for about a second, but that was enough time for the snake to grab her right leg and dig its teeth into it.
Eyghida looked up at Darry, her blood dripping from its mouth. "Slayer's friend." It growled and narrowed its eyes at her.
Darry reached behind her and grabbed a fistful of leaves and flung them at the snake.
Eyghida reared back and then bit Darry's leg again. Darry cried out in pain as the Eyghida dug deeper into her leg. Darry closed her eyes and then opened them. She was surprised to see Oz at her side, with a branch in hand; Oz swung the branch of Eyghida and cracked the branch over its head.
Eyghida howled in pain and reared back, off Darry, and backed up several paces. Oz dropped to his knees beside Darry.
"Are you okay?" Oz asked. Darry nodded and sat up. She looked over at Eyghida who was no longer hurt by Oz's attack.
"Oz, look out!" Darry cried as Eyghida leapt at Oz. Eyghida whipped at Oz with his tail. Oz was knocked away from Darry and into a nearby tree.
"Oz!" Darry cried but her boyfriend was slumped against the tree. Eyghida turned back to face Darry.
"You die, Slayer's friend." Eyghida growled.
Darry was ready when Eyghida charged her; she grabbed the creature's jowls in her hands and cracked the creature's next. Eyghida fell to the ground, not dead because Darry's hadn't fully cracked its neck, but down for the time being. Darry picked up part of the broken branch that Oz had hit Eyghida with and plunged it into Eyghida's chest.
The snake-demon screeched and then died in a flash of white light, disappearing from the forest.
Darry dropped the branch and ran over to where Oz was, he was beginning to come to, shaking his head and blinking his eyes.
"Oz." Darry said and dropped to her knees beside Oz. Oz sat up and looked over at Darry. "Are you alright?" She asked, concern etched on her face.
Oz slowly nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. What about you?" Oz asked.
Darry smiled. "I'm fine. What are you doing here?" She asked.
"Looking for you." He answered. "So is the rest of the Scooby Gang." Oz added.
"Why?" Darry asked.
Oz brushed some dirt off Darry's cheek. "Because we were all worried about you." Oz answered.
Darry was surprised. "Why?" She asked, repeating her earlier question.
"Because you weren't there; this is Sunnydale, if you're not present and accounted for, you could be the next person on the 'missing' list." Oz answered.
Darry smiled, happy that Oz still cared about her after what happened earlier today. She helped him up. "Well, if everyone's looking for me, we'd better go find them and show them that I'm still alive and still staying in Sunnydale." Darry said.
"You were leaving?" Oz asked as the two walked out of the woods.
Darry nodded. "Yes but not anymore." She said.
The two walked to Oz's van, hand-in-hand.
That night, Kellie left for her date with Kevin after telling Buffy where she was going: The Bronze. Buffy decided, just in case, that everyone should help her patrol tonight; patrol was exactly following Kellie to make sure she was okay. However, Buffy was posed with a problem: Dawn couldn't very well go on patrol with them. Darry came up with the prefect answer, Oz would 'baby-sit' her; Oz agreed and wished everyone good luck on their patrolling that night.
After everyone was ready, weapons checked and handed out, the Scooby Gang left the house. Darry looked down at the crossbow in her hands. "Okay, I don't exactly know the whole story because no one told me but I'm starting to get the picture. Are we shooting Kevin? Or Kellie, 'cause I have a problem with that plan." Darry asked.
Buffy shook her head. "Anya and I will fill you in on the story." Buffy said. "But right now we need to head to The Bronze."
The gang (which consisted of Buffy, Willow, Anya, Xander and Darry) headed in the direction of The Bronze. When they were halfway there, they ran into Spike who looked like he was wandering around Sunnydale.
Spike looked at the arsenal that the Scooby Gang carried and frowned. "Where's the party?" He asked.
Darry looked at him. "We're going to the Bronze to stake out some demon activity or something." She said.
Spike nodded. "Count me in." He said, his tone left almost no room for disagreement.
Buffy didn't seem to mind and tossed an extra long-bladed knife to Spike. "Let's go." She said and the group continued to the Bronze.
At The Bronze, Kellie bobbed her head slightly to the music and talked to Kevin, who sat next to her. Kellie felt very at ease with Kevin; probably do to the fact that she didn't have to worry about whether or not he was going to bite her. Kevin was also human so he had been through a lot of things that Kellie had been through so she knew how to relate.
As the band began another set, the guitarist began to play a slow melody and the singer began to sing soothing notes. Other couples at the tables got up and began to dance. Kevin took Kellie's hand and led her onto the dance floor.
Once the song was over, Kevin leaned over and kissed Kellie lightly on the lips. Kellie smiled as he pulled away. The band started up a loud piece; Kellie felt as though she couldn't hear her own thoughts.
"Let's go someplace quieter." Kevin said.
"What?" Kellie asked, she didn't hear a word he said.
"I said let's go someplace quieter!" Kevin yelled, loud enough for Kellie to hear him. She nodded and he led her out the back exit of the Bronze.
Outside, Darry was getting tried of watching steady, and seemingly endless, stream of teenagers go in and out of The Bronze. Not a single one of them was Kellie or Kevin.
Darry turned to face Buffy who was next to her, loading an arrow into the shaft of a crossbow. "Maybe Kevin really isn't a demon and Kellie and Kevin are having a good, normal, time on their date." Darry said.
Buffy looked over at Darry. "Yeah." She said and aimed her crossbow past Darry's left shoulder and fired. Darry ducked and then turned around in time to see a vampire turn to dust behind her. "But you can never be too sure what's lurking in the shadows." Buffy added.
Darry nodded and turned back to Buffy. "Good call." She muttered and loaded her own crossbow just in case.
Suddenly, a scream broke the not so quiet silence. Darry felt her face pale slightly. "That's Kellie." She said to Buffy.
Buffy jumped off the stonewall they had been sitting on and started running in the direction of the scream. Darry followed, as did the other members of the Scooby Gang. Spike brandished his knife, gripping the handle tightly.
In the alley behind the Bronze, Buffy was the first to arrive at the scene; Kellie was on the ground, bleeding from a wound on her arm. She was crying and looked as though she was bewildered at the sight before her. Standing over her was a large, human like, demon with a long tail with spikes all down it. The demon looked slightly like the one Darry-wolf had defended Dawn from when she was a werewolf.
It didn't take Buffy long to guess that the demon was indeed Kevin, just as Anya had suspected.
Spike joined Buffy and Darry's side. "It's a Thag-demon, it can assume human form to lure its prey to spot where it can kill and eat without much trouble or interruption." Spike said and grimaced.
Darry raised her crossbow and pointed it at Kevin/Thag-demon. "Well he just got interrupted." Darry muttered and fired the bolt into Kevin/Thag-demon's leg.
The demon roared and whirled around to face the battle-ready Scooby Gang. Both Darry and Buffy hurriedly put new bolts in their crossbows. The Thag-demon charged at the group; Anya tossed her knife at the demon but it missed him and nearly hit Kellie. Kellie cringed and tried to look away from the battle but couldn't.
Buffy kicked the demon in the jaw and heard a rewarding crack. As the demon stumbled backward, Buffy turned to Darry. "Go make sure Kellie's alright." Buffy said.
Darry nodded and started over to where her cousin was. However, the demon had other ideas. He tackled Darry to the ground and buried his claws into her back. Darry cried out in pain and surprise and realized that she had dropped the crossbow when the demon attacked her.
Darry tried to lift her head to see where she dropped the bow but the demon shoved her head into the dirt. Darry attempted to shove the Thag-demon off her but he over-weighed her because she wasn't a werewolf.
Before Darry had a chance to do anything else there was a sharp 'thwack' and the demon grunted and fall off of her. Darry looked up and saw that a bolt from a crossbow had impaled the demon. Darry looked over and saw that Kellie was holding the crossbow that Darry had lost when she fell. Kellie looked very surprised that she had exactly fired the bolt that had killed the guy she had been on a date with, even if he was a demon.
Kellie looked down at the bow in her hand and then over at the Thag-demon corpse. She dropped the bow and turned around and ran away from the stunned group.
Darry stood up, wincing in pain as she flexed her shoulders. Before anyone could stop him, Spike took off running after Kellie.
"Spike!" Buffy called and started to go after him but Darry stopped her.
"Let him go." She said and winced as she raised her arm to put on Buffy's shoulder.
Kellie ran until she stumbled over something in her way; she fell to the ground, stopping herself with her hands. She had stumbled into the ruins of what looked like an old burned down building. Twisted metal, charred wood and burned stone walls surrounded the place as well as piles of rumble and whatnot.
Kellie began to cry again, her shoulders shaking; she bowed her head and let her hair fall against her face.
She wasn't aware that someone had followed her until that someone dropped onto his knees beside her. She looked up to see Spike, looking semi-worried about her.
Kellie started to turn away from Spike, embarrassed by everything that had happened and everything she had said to him. Spike rested his hand on her shoulder, attempting to comfort her.
Kellie turned to face Spike, feeling the tears stream down her face. "I trusted him, I really did." She sobbed, thinking back to everything Kevin told her and how safe she had felt with him. She began to cry even harder; she buried her face in her hands.
Spike felt empathy for Kellie, after all he had felt betrayed after Drusilla left and after the way Buffy treated him. He embraced Kellie and she fell into his arms, sobbing with her head buried in his chest. Spike hugged her tightly, once again not knowing what to say to her.
"I'm sorry Spike." She said and looked up at him. "Sorry." She repeated.
Spike brushed away a lock of her hair and smiled. There wasn't any need to say anything more because all was forgiven and all feelings were understood. Spike leaned forward and kissed Kellie; Kellie wrapped her arms around his neck and returned the kiss. For now, all was well.
It was Darry who had insisted on leaving Kellie and not going to search for her. She was confident that Spike would find her cousin and make amends. Besides, she was aching in about every part of her body was desperate to get home.
The Scooby Gang headed toward the Summers house, Anya and Xander going toward their own apartment, slowly but surely they finally arrived home. When the trio entered the house, both Dawn and Oz were on the couch watching "Larry King Live". Dawn seemed bored out of her mind but ever so slightly interested because the guy Larry King was interviewing was remotely cute.
At the sound of the opening door, both Dawn and Oz turned around. Dawn smiled when she saw her sister, slightly dirty but nonetheless alive and kicking. However, Darry didn't look like she had had the upper hand in the battle, which she didn't. Oz's face paled when he saw her.
"Are you alright?" He asked and walked over to Darry.
Darry nodded. "Yep, still alive and well just a little worse for wear." Darry said and gave him her best smile.
However, Oz wasn't easily convinced. He looked at Darry's back and grimaced when he saw the punctures.
"It's not that bad really." Darry said, lying through her teeth. "Just a flesh wound."
Once again, Oz wasn't convinced. He gently put his hand on her back and she winced. "You're not okay." He said sternly, not giving Darry room to argue. Oz turned to Buffy. "Where do you keep the first aid kit?" He asked her.
Buffy motioned to the bathroom. "In there." She said.
Darry shook her head. "Don't worry Oz, I can doctor my own wounds. Don't worry." Darry assured him.
Oz wouldn't be shaken; he took her hand and led her into the bathroom. Oz picked up the first aid kit and opened it, pulling out a roll of gauze and bandages. Darry reached into the cabinet and pulled out a washcloth and wet it. She applied it to the wounds on her back, getting her shirt damp but cleaning some of the blood away.
Oz watched her. "You really can doctor yourself." He remarked.
"I've had a lot of practice." Darry told him and took the bandages from him. "You don't have to bandage injuries like this." She told him and put the bandages back in the first aid kit.
"Do you ever bandage anything?" Oz asked her.
Darry nodded and lifted up the bottom of her shirt, where her stomach was still bandaged.
Oz looked at her bandaged stomach and then up at Darry. "What happened?" He asked.
"Little accident. Nothing big." Darry said.
She was surprised when Oz started unwinding the bandages; the three claw marked wound hadn't healed very much since she had bandaged it. "Darry, this isn't just a flesh wound." Oz said, expressing genuine concern for her.
Darry pulled back. "It's nothing really." She said and looked away from him. The truth was, it still hurt and she didn't feel like she deserved his concern.
Oz looked up at her and then took the bandages out of the first aid kit again. "Here." He said and handed them to her. Darry took the bandages and felt the warmth of Oz's hand as she took them.
"Thanks." She muttered and began to wrap them around her stomach. Oz watched until she had wrapped the wound thoroughly; he took the bandages from her and tied them together so it would stay wrapped.
Darry smiled as Oz finished tying the bandages together. She lowered her shirt and put the bandages back in the first aid kit. She put the kit back in the medicine cabinet and looked over at Oz.
"Thanks." She said.
"No problem." He smiled slightly. "Are you ever going to tell me how you got that wound?" He asked.
Darry shrugged. "Maybe but not now." She answered.
Oz nodded. "I can settle with that." He agreed.
The two walked out of the bathroom and joined the others in the living room. Dawn had fallen asleep on the couch so Darry decided to claim Dawn's bedroom for the night.
Buffy nodded. "Xander said he'd get to work on building the attic room for you and Kellie. He said it shouldn't take too long." Buffy told Darry.
Darry nodded. "Good ol' Xander." She said with a tinge of fake affection.
Oz stood up. "Well, I'd better be going. I'll see you tomorrow Darry." He said and bade good-bye to everyone else in the room. Darry watched as Oz disappeared out the front door.
Willow turned to Darry. "Tomorrow's a werewolf night you know." She reminded.
Darry nodded. "I know." She frowned. "Looks like it's chains in the basement for me for the next three days." She said, though she didn't seem to regretful about it.
After that, everyone headed upstairs, except Dawn who was still asleep on the couch. Buffy turned to face Darry. "Should we wait for Kellie?" Buffy asked.
Darry shrugged. "She can find her way back home, and she'll find somewhere to sleep." Darry said, happy that her cousin was finally happy.
The next morning, Darry was the first to wake up and was already feeling the first signs of werewolf-form. Her sense of smell was stronger so she could smell someone downstairs cooking; it was Kellie, who had gotten in late last night.
Darry headed down stairs and joined her cousin in the kitchen. Kellie was all smiles as she greeted her cousin. "Hey Darry!" She exclaimed and cracked another egg open.
"Morning Kels, I trust everything is right with Spike." Darry said.
Kellie nodded and scrambled the cooking eggs in the pot. "Yep, thanks to you and Oz I think. Spike mentioned that you and he had something to do with his persistence." Kellie said.
Darry raised an eyebrow. "Call it what you will." She said and sat down, wincing at her still sore stomach wound.
Kellie glanced over at her cousin and then over at the calendar; she frowned when she saw the date was Dec. 6. She looked out the window and frowned again when she saw the sun. "Does it ever snow in Sunnydale? In Snowville, the ground would already be covered in snow." Kellie asked.
"I've never been to Sunnydale before now, Kellie, but I'm guessing: no. It never snowed in L.A. and I'm sure it'll never snow here." Darry answered.
Kellie frowned. "But I love the snow, it's the best part of December." Kellie said.
Within ten minutes, the rest of the household was awake and downstairs. Dawn was getting ready for school and complaining about having to sleep on the couch while Darry had her bed. After Dawn left for school, Xander and a few other construction workers arrived to get started on the attic room. Buffy wasn't too happy since the attic was a mess. Without a single thought, she commanded everyone to begin cleaning the attic and putting the things downstairs in the basement.
Darry led the way to the attic, followed by Buffy and Kellie as well as the construction workers. The attic was more of a mess then Buffy would have liked it to be. However, there was no griping as the cleaning began. Darry, already equipped with werewolf strength, and Buffy were able to carry the most things down at one time.
Darry carried a stack of boxes down into the basement, followed by one of Xander's construction worker friends named Mike. As Darry set the boxes down, Mike looked around the basement. His eyes rested on the manacles attached to the floor, ready for werewolf binding.
"Um_did you know you have chains bolted to this floor?" Mike asked and looked over at Darry.
Darry hurriedly thought of what to say. "Yes they, uh, came with the house." Darry answered.
By the time the sun was close to setting, the attic was finally clean and Xander was able to see that there wasn't much construction that needed to be done after all. Kellie, however, demanded that there be windows and shelves built into the walls. Xander promised to return tomorrow and quickly herded the workers out of the Summers house before Darry started to change.
Since Buffy had to patrol, Willow and Kellie offered to baby sit Darry-wolf for the night. Darry changed into her baggiest clothes, which hopefully would survive the transformation, and let Willow chain her to the floor.
As the sun began to set, Darry began to feel the familiar buzz of pre-transformation, even though that transformation was only around ten minutes away.
As the sun set and the moon rose, Darry transformed and became the large werewolf that Willow had tranquillized the last full moon. That same tranquillizer gun rested beside her, just in case.
The werewolf Darry thrashed against her chains, bucking and attempting to pull them lose so she could be free. Kellie seemed slightly shaken by the werewolf's attacks.
"Why is she acting so_violent?" Kellie asked, staring at the thing that was her cousin ten minutes ago.
"She can't help it." Willow said. Darry-wolf howled and bared her teeth at Willow and Kellie.
"She won't hurt us, will she?" Kellie asked.
"No, because she's chained. If she gets loose, I'll tranquillize her." Willow answered.
Kellie seemed to relax a little but Darry-wolf continued to run circles and pull against her restraints. As the night progressed, Darry-wolf got even more 'violent' and nearly got lose once. However, Willow was sure she had everything under control.
Under Sunnydale, the man sat in his throne made of human bones and planned. Humans were easily defeated; the Slayer was a human yet she was impossible to destroy or even wound. She had to have a weakness, everyone had a weakness; except himself, of course. What was hers? That was just what he needed to discover. However, that would not be easy to discover.
Buffy was beginning to think that Spike had been right about everyone laying in wait for a new evil that was coming. And what he said about the vampires getting stupider as they because they were being sired without proper 'teachers' if you could call them that.
She had killed three vampires that night but that was it, not a single thing stirred in the dark. Buffy decided to check on Oz, who had locked himself in one of the older crypts at Shady Hill Cemetery. She didn't have to worry about Darry because Willow and Kellie were pet-sitting Sunnydale's newest werewolf.
Buffy entered the crypt and saw werewolf Oz jumping around in his makeshift cage. When he saw her Oz-wolf howled and lunged at the bars, rattling them.
"Whoa, down boy." Buffy said. She hadn't baby-sat a lot of werewolves but she had never seen a werewolf act like Oz was acting now. Oz seemed more_energized more enraged about something. Buffy dared to go closer to the cage and the wolf nearly went crazy; he tore around the cage, kicking and scratching at the walls and rattling the bars to the cage. Buffy wondered if Darry was behaving in the same way.
Just when Willow thought Darry was calming down, the wolf went crazy again. She had knocked over her water dish in a psychotic spasm and Kellie was going to get the dish, carefully, to refill it went Darry-wolf started to howl and leapt at Kellie.
Darry-wolf clawed at her binds and scratched up the ground as well as the walls. The werewolf would stop for a second, study them and then start the spasms again.
Willow didn't know what to make of it but hoped that there wasn't something wrong with Darry-wolf. Perhaps it was the fact that she hadn't gotten used to being chained up; before she came to Sunnydale, she was never chained up on werewolf nights. Now, however, well now she was; it would take a little getting used too, Willow guessed.
The redhead looked at her watch. "Only a few more hours to go." She said, more to herself then to Kellie, who was nervous after the wolf leapt at her.
Buffy couldn't stay with Oz all night and she regretted that. If the wolf got lose and someone got hurt, Oz would blame himself. However, Buffy had to return home, especially since there was another werewolf taking up residence in her basement at the moment. She also wanted to see if Darry was going as ballistic as Oz was.
Buffy made good time heading back to her house and opened the kitchen door. Dawn was at the kitchen table doing her homework while listening to her Walkman.
Buffy tapped on the table to get Dawn's attention; Dawn took off the headphones and looked at Buffy. Before Buffy could ask any questions or yell at her, Dawn said, "I couldn't hear a word because of Darry downstairs so I had to put on music just to hear myself think."
Buffy listened and could hear Darry-wolf raging downstairs, howling, roaring and clawing. Buffy headed down into the basement and saw Willow and Kellie watched the wolf closely.
Darry-wolf had suddenly stopped her thrashing and sat, like a housedog, with her head cocked to side. Suddenly, she let out a loud howl and sat down again. She cocked her head again and listening, or it looked like she was listening.
Then she began to pull at her chains again, rearing on her hide legs and easily being as tall as Buffy. She swung her huge paws and bared her teeth as she pulled against the chains.
Buffy grabbed the tranquillizer gun off the ground and pointed it at Darry. "What are you doing?" Kellie asked, suddenly at her side.
"I'm going to shoot her, just in case." Buffy said, attempting to reassure Kellie. "It'll just put her to sleep and then we'll all be able to sleep for the remainder of the night."
Buffy pulled the trigger and the dart hit Darry-wolf in the side. The wolf howled and then slowly fell under the dart's affects.
With Darry out, Buffy, Willow and Kellie headed upstairs and joined Dawn at the kitchen table for a late dinner. With dinner over, the four headed upstairs to get some much needed sleep.
In the morning, Darry awoke in a daze and knew she had been tranquillized during the night. However, she was still in chains so she knew that she hadn't gotten away; once again, no memory entered her mind so she was forced to forget the night's events. Darry lifted her head so she could hear upstairs and knew that she was the only one awake; there was a knock on the door.
Darry beat the chains on the floor, hoping to wake someone up because she couldn't get out of the chains herself. There were footsteps upstairs and someone knocked on the door again. Someone called, "Just a minute" and Darry knew it was Kellie.
Kellie opened the basement door and walked down the steps; she picked up a key ring that was hanging on a nail by the door.
"Hey Darry." Kellie said and unlocked her chains.
"Morning Kels." Darry said and rubbed her wrists. "Thanks. Who's at the door?" Darry asked.
"Dunno." Kellie answered. The cousins headed upstairs; Kellie put the key ring back on the nail.
Darry headed upstairs to change clothes and Kellie went to answer the door. It was Xander, alone this time -except for Anya-, carrying a box of tools. Anya was carrying some woods and glass and a ruler.
"Hey Kellie, we brought the stuff for your windows." Xander said and motioned to Anya beside him.
"Yes." Anya said and struggled under the weight.
Kellie smiled. "Great, come on in. I think Darry and I are the only one's awake but that's okay I guess." Kellie said.
Xander and Anya entered the house. "So, how did Darry do last night?" Xander asked.
Kellie shrugged. "I've never seen a werewolf before, so I don't know how they were supposed to act but she was pretty intense, if that's the right word. She was howling and pulling at the chains and finally Buffy had to tranquillize her so she didn't get lose." Kellie answered.
Darry came downstairs, looking like she hadn't spent the night as a werewolf and smiled at Xander and Anya. "Hey guys, you're here early." Darry said.
"Well, I want to get this finished, you know so you guys don't have to sleep on the floor or wherever anymore." Xander said.
"Thanks." Kellie said.
The four went upstairs and into the attic, which actually looked like a room, a very bare room but a room nonetheless. Xander looked around. "Well, I could cut windows in that wall and they'd face the house next door. That's pretty much the only place that they would look pretty good. I can also build like a banister here so it looks like a real stairwell." Xander offered.
Kellie nodded. "Cool." She said. Xander got to work, cutting rectangle shaped holes in the side of the house he had indicated and having Anya help him measure.
Since there was nothing they could do, Darry and Kellie headed back downstairs where Dawn was getting ready for school. Buffy and Willow were talking in hushed tones and Darry didn't bother to ask what they were talking.
Kellie joined Buffy and Willow at the kitchen table and the two stopped talking and gave Darry and Kellie a smile and a 'good-morning'. Darry joined Dawn at the kitchen counter where she was preparing her lunch.
In five minutes, Dawn had left the house, hurrying to join up with Candace to walk to school. Buffy lifted her head when she heard hammering being done upstairs.
"Is Xander destroying my house?" Buffy asked, good-naturedly.
"He's making windows." Kellie said and grinned.
The kitchen door opened and Oz walked in. "Who's making windows?" He asked and walked over to where Darry sat.
Buffy grinned and couldn't help but wonder why no one knocked anymore, they just walked right in.
"Hey Oz." Darry said happily and smiled at him.
He greeted her with a smile as well and sat down beside her. "So, what's up?" He asked everyone.
Buffy shrugged. "Boring day, as usual." She answered.
"It's the nights that make Sunnydale interesting." Kellie said.
"I would have to agree with you." Oz nodded.
"I'm going to visit Spike tonight." Kellie said, out of nowhere, as though she was saying she wasn't watching her werewolf cousin tonight.
"And, as always, patrolling." Buffy said. Willow nodded, indicating that she was going with Buffy tonight, and was going to get someone else to watch Darry-wolf.
"So, who's building?" He asked, looking up toward the attic.
"Xander and Anya are building Kellie and my room." Darry answered.
"So, looks like you two are keeping up permanent residence in Sunnydale." Oz pointed out.
Darry smiled. "Looks like." She answered.
By noon Xander was finished doing the windows and the banister that looked 'very' professional. There was, as always, another problem to consider: even if they had a room, Darry and Kellie had no furniture to go in it. The furniture included not having a bed.
"Well, that sorta defeats the whole purpose." Buffy muttered, thinking of the furniture shortage.
Kellie was walking around the room, as though she expected to find a bed somewhere lost in the shadows. "We have to have beds; I'm sick of sleeping on the floor." She moaned.
Anya shrugged. "Maybe there's some place you can buy a bed." She offered.
"Okay, Anya, I know of plenty of places where you can buy a bed but there is the problem of my large debut that I don't have the money to pay off, so I don't have the money to buy two brand new beds and furniture." Buffy said.
"You could always good to a flea market or something." Oz suggested. "I could go check it out later today if you wanted and report back tomorrow." He offered.
"Great, thanks Oz." Buffy said.
"Well, I have to leave, see you guys later." Oz said and left the Scooby Gang, plus Kellie, standing in the new attic room.
The rest of the day passed without event as did the night of werewolf sitting; Willow had talked Anya and Xander into watching Darry-wolf for the night so she could go with Buffy to patrol.
Darry-wolf was as energized, as she was the night before and once again forced her sitters to tranquillize her for their own safety.
Buffy and Willow's patrol was also uneventful; Buffy didn't stake a single vampire because there wasn't a single vampire to be found. So, as the sun began to rise, Buffy and Willow headed back to the Summers house to call it a night.
The next day went along like any other; Oz had been able to find stuff at the flea market to make Darry and Kellie's room more of a room. Once all the stuff had been purchased and returned to the Summers house, Kellie decided to take on the task of arranging things. Kellie had a dresser with a flat top where she could stack odds and ends on. Darry had a night table where she could put things on, if she had things to put.
Once the room was decorated, Oz left and it was once again time for Darry to retreat to the basement for the night. Willow was stuck with wolf-sitting once again; Kellie went to Spike's crypt and Buffy had to patrol Sunnydale. Dawn went over to a friend's house to study for a test so it was just Willow and the werewolf.
Darry-wolf paced the basement for the length of her chains, swishing her tail and flattening her ears. Willow watched the wolf pace back and forth and wondered if she had used all her energy the previous two nights.
Someone opened the basement door and walked down the steps. Willow turned around and was very surprised to see Tara walking down the basement steps, slowly as though she wasn't supposed to be there.
"I heard you had to watch the wolf tonight." Tara said quietly and joined Willow.
Darry-wolf looked up at Tara and swished her tail and rolled her shoulders. "Yeah, I guess so." Willow answered.
"I came to give you some company." Tara explained.
Willow grinned. "There should be another chair around here somewhere." She said.
Tara quickly found the chair and set it beside Willow's chair. Tara studied the werewolf. "The last werewolf I saw tried to eat me." She muttered.
Darry-wolf regarded Tara and then returned to her pacing. Willow watched the werewolf. "Yeah." She muttered, not exactly sure what she meant by those words.
"Is she always this_calm?" Tara asked.
"No, last night she was ripping at her chains and making enough noise to wake up all of Sunnydale. Now she's_different." Willow said.
Darry-wolf paced and swished her tail, sniffing the ground and then sniffing the air. "I hope nothing's wrong with her." Willow muttered.
Buffy ran into Spike and Kellie during her patrol; it was like Kellie and Spike were having a 'romantic stroll' under the light of the full moon.
"Slay anything yet Buffy?" Kellie asked, making conversation.
"Not yet but the night's still young." Buffy said.
"Well, we wouldn't want to get in your way so we'll just be on our way." Spike said. They said their good-byes and Kellie and Spike disappeared down the street.
Buffy watched them go and then continued on her patrol.
Near eleven o'clock, Darry-wolf sat down and stared at Willow and Tara. She sat and just stared at them, as still as a stone statue. Tara was slightly uncomfortable at the still wolf but Willow was curious and confused at her actions.
Darry-wolf continued to sit and stare, not even blinking and or moving her tail.
Spike and Kellie walked to Weatherly Park and sat on one of the park benches to talk and look at the stars. From somewhere in front of the park, the silence was broken by a shrill scream of terror.
Spike and Kellie both stood up, Spike listened again; another scream sounded. Spike and Kellie raced in the direction of the scream.
Spike was shocked (well, as shocked as a vampire could be) by the sight in front of him; a large werewolf (not as large as Darry) was ravaging the body of a woman. There was no doubt in Spike's mind that the woman was dead; what mattered now was telling Buffy about the werewolf.
The werewolf, of whom he thought of, turned its head and growled when it saw Spike and Kellie.
"Kellie, run." Spike commanded and took a step back. The werewolf charged and both vampire and human turned tail and ran as fast as they could. The werewolf roared and ran after them.
"Where are we going Spike?" Kellie asked, looking over her shoulder at her vampire boyfriend.
"Away from him." Spike said and motioned to the werewolf. "We have to get Buffy." Spike added.
The vampire began to out distance Kellie, putting nothing between her and the werewolf. Kellie looked back to see how close the werewolf was; she lost her footing and stumbled.
She cried out in surprise as she hit the ground, causing Spike to turn around. The werewolf roared and ran faster to where Kellie had fallen. Spike hurriedly ran to where Kellie was and scooped her into his arms. The werewolf pounced on the spot where Kellie had been just a second earlier.
Spike began to run again, carrying Kellie so that they could gain more ground away from the werewolf.
The werewolf roared and clawed at the ground and then turned around and went back to the meal it had made of a park visitor.
Once the werewolf disappeared, Spike stopped running and set Kellie back on the ground.
"Come on, we have to find Buffy." Spike said.
The werewolf in the Summers' basement suddenly sprung to life as though it had been given a silent command. Darry-wolf threw herself forward with such force that the chains snapped and pulled out of the ground.
Willow jumped back in surprise and reached for the tranquillizer gun; the werewolf hit Willow with her huge paw and knocked Willow away from the gun. Willow fell to the ground, stunned.
Darry-wolf roared and turned to Tara. Tara began to retreat; Darry-wolf grabbed her with her paws and threw her in the direction where Willow lay. Tara crumpled to the ground beside Willow.
The werewolf charged out of the basement and ran through the Summers' living room. She barraged through the front door and ran down the street, heading away from the neighborhood of Rebello Drive.
Spike and Kellie found Buffy without much trouble.
"Buffy, there's a werewolf lose." Spike said.
Kellie turned to face Spike. "Wait, 'a' werewolf; isn't it Darry?" Kellie asked.
Buffy shrugged. "It might not be." She muttered.
"You mean there are two werewolves?" Kellie asked, surprised and slightly confused.
"Yeah, Oz is a werewolf too." Spike answered.
Kellie scoffed. "Wow, they really are prefect for each other." Kellie muttered.
"Okay, it might be Darry so we need to hurry to my house and make sure everyone is okay." Buffy said.
The trio headed to the Summers house in the neighborhood of Rebello Drive.
When they arrived at the Summers house, it was clear where the werewolf had come from; the front door was ripped off its hinges and the living room was trashed as though something large had run though.
Buffy hurried down into the basement and saw Willow and Tara lying on the ground. Willow looked like she was just coming around; Buffy hurried to her friend's side.
"Willow_Willow are you alright? What happened?" Buffy asked.
Willow lifted her head and blinked her eyes. "What? Oh, Darry_Darry got away." Willow moaned.
"When?" Buffy asked, not knowing why she had asked that question.
"Just a few minutes ago, not more then two though." Willow answered.
"Okay, Willow just stay here and don't move." Buffy said. She went to check on Tara, the girl was all right but unconscious.
Buffy headed upstairs. "Kellie, I need you to stay here and take care of Willow and Tara. When Dawn comes home, tell her to go straight upstairs." Buffy said. She turned to Spike. "It wasn't Darry who you saw; that means Oz is lose too." Buffy said.
Buffy and Spike hurried to Weatherly Park; Buffy knew that the werewolf was still there because there was the sound of barking and growling.
The duo raced in the direction of where the sounds were coming from; Buffy was surprised to see not one but two werewolves in the same spot.
The smaller werewolf was Oz, Buffy guessed, because the larger werewolf had the color of Darry's hair and was the same color of the werewolf who they had met last month.
Darry-wolf was only larger then Oz-wolf by no more then a foot; both wolves were circling each other, growling.
Oz-wolf lunged at Darry-wolf, roaring; Darry-wolf met his assault with teeth bared and claws forward. The two wolves locked claws and paws and began a forceful game of 'shove'. Darry-wolf snapped at Oz's side and knocked the smaller wolf to the ground.
Darry leapt at Oz but the wolf rolled out of the way and Darry tackled the ground instead. Oz rammed Darry's side as the werewolf attempted to stand up. Darry turned around and blocked Oz-wolf's paw that was aimed for her head. She grabbed his paw in her mouth and bit it, causing Oz to howl in pain.
"That's it, I'm stepping in." Buffy muttered. "I wish we brought the tranquillizer gun." She added.
Spike broke a branch off of a nearby tree and held it like a club, for it was thick enough to be one. "Improvise." He said and tossed the club to Buffy.
"I am not beating my friends unconscious." Buffy said.
"If you don't, you won't have many friends by sunrise." Spike said. He and Buffy looked back to the fight raging between the two werewolves; Oz had Darry by the tail and was dragging her around. Darry, however, didn't appreciate being drug around and was clawing at Oz's side.
Buffy knew Spike was right; Darry could kill Oz if she got the chance and Oz could probably do the same thing to her. However, it wasn't going to be easy to deliver the blows to the wolves.
However, it looked like she wouldn't have to when Oz-wolf suddenly yelped in pain and let go of Darry-wolf's tail. The werewolf slumped to the ground, slumbering. Darry-wolf let out a similar yelp of pain and also fell to the ground.
Buffy and Spike turned to look behind them and saw Kellie holding the tranquillizer gun. "You forget this." She said to Buffy.
Kellie joined Buffy and Spike. "What are we going to do with them?" She asked, looking at the sleeping werewolves.
Buffy shrugged. "Nothing. There is no way we could move them; there's also no where for them to go." Buffy said.
"So, we're just going to leave them there?" Kellie asked, looking over at her sleeping werewolf cousin.
"Well, Kellie, they won't be werewolves for much longer; it's almost sunrise." Spike said and looked up at the sky. At the edge of the sky, the sun was barely making the velvet blue a lighter shade.
"So, you're just going to let them wake up and see_well whatever? What is Darry going to say?" Kellie asked.
Buffy shrugged. "Probably the same thing Oz is going to say_whatever that might be." Buffy said.
"I hate to break up this little chat but I'm not a morning bird, remember. I suggest we all get back." Spike said.
The trio headed away from Weatherly Park; Spike went to his crypt and Buffy and Kellie headed back home. On the way, Kellie explained that Dawn had come home and offered to care for Willow and Tara while she took the gun to where Buffy was.
As the sun rose in the sky, Darry opened her eyes and blinked. Her clothes were in absolute tatters; the sleeves hung down past her elbows. Darry sat up, surprised that she wasn't chained up in the Summers basement; she must have gotten lose during the night. She looked around and jumped back slightly when she saw Oz, lying on the ground next to her. His clothes were tattered like hers and his left wrist was torn and bleeding.
Darry stared down at him, too surprised to even think straight. The only thought that was in her head was that Oz must be a werewolf as well.
Oz slowly opened his eyes and looked around, surprised that he wasn't in the confinement of the barred crypt that he usually spent his werewolf nights in.
He looked up and was startled to see Darry looking down at him. He quickly sat up.
"You're a werewolf?" Darry asked, her voice absolutely deadpan so Oz couldn't detect any emotions in her words.
"Uh_let me think about how an I answer that." He paused. "Wait, what are you doing here?" He asked. He looked at her closely and saw that her clothes were baggy and tattered like his. She was also cut and bloody.
"You're a werewolf too, aren't you?" Oz asked. Darry avoided his gaze. "I knew there was something about you." He said with a slight smile.
Darry, however, wasn't in the smiling mood. "Why didn't you tell me?" She asked.
"Why didn't you tell me?" He countered.
Darry narrowed her eyes. "Well, telling someone you're a werewolf doesn't do well in a relationship." She said.
"I think that you're asking me all the same questions that I could be asking you." Oz said.
Darry stood up and glared at him. "You should have told me." Darry said.
Oz stood up as well. "You should have told me, too." He countered.
"Look Oz, you haven't been a werewolf as long as I have, I'm guessing. I've grown up being a werewolf; I've grown up knowing that I was different and knowing exactly why. You obviously haven't; the only people who know you are a werewolf are the only people you know, pretty much. When they found out you were a werewolf, they told you it was okay; I've grown up knowing that it wasn't okay." Darry told him.
Oz took a step toward her. "Darry_" He began but she cut him off.
"Oz, you should have told me; I have lived my life thinking I was one of the only werewolves, if I had known you were a wolf too, it would have been_I don't know_easier." Darry said.
"Darry, I'm sorry." Oz whispered, not knowing what to say.
"I'm not afraid to admit that I have a major trust issue." Darry told him.
Oz took another step toward her. "Why, Darry, you can tell_" Oz said.
Darry shook her head and backed up. "No, I can't." She said and backed up again. Without another word or a glance backward, Darry ran away from Oz, in the opposite direction of the Summers house.
"Darry!" Oz called after her but it was no use. Oz turned and headed in the direction of the Summers house.
Buffy, Willow and Tara were in the kitchen; Dawn had already gone to school. Buffy was beginning to wonder where Oz and Darry were, or at least where Darry was, but she wasn't stressing over it. What she was stressing over was how to pay for a new door.
The kitchen door opened and Oz entered, he looked upset and angry. "Why didn't you tell me Darry was a werewolf?" He asked and didn't bother to shut the door.
Buffy was surprised by Oz's anger; it wasn't normal to see anger, or any emotion for that matter, displayed on Oz's face or features. "Well_I thought it would be better for you two to find out yourselves." Buffy offered, not exactly sure why she never mentioned it.
"Where is Darry?" Willow asked.
"I don't know; you should have told me, Buffy. What, exactly, happened in Darry's past to make her so_guarded?" Oz said, wondering if he was choosing the right words.
Buffy shrugged. "I don't know exactly but her parents were killed by werewolfs. That's all I know." Buffy said.
"Where is Darry?" Willow asked again.
Oz didn't answer but turned to face Willow. "I don't know." He repeated.
Below Sunnydale, the man thought once again. It was coming too soon, he wasn't ready for it. Well, he was ready but it was that damn Slayer in his way that caused him to have his doubts. She had the power to stop him and if she discovered his plans she would indeed stop him. However, once he had the stone no one could stop him. However, the Slayer was still an object that needed gotten out of his path. He closed his eyes and chanted some words in Rumanian: "Invoc mort glob cu flinctei separa."
A pool of white, almost liquid looking light formed in the center of the cavern. A snake like creature slithered out of the pool and then the pool disappeared.
The creature was Eyghida; it had a long snake like body with tiny feet toward the back of its body that were useless to propel its long body. Its head was not snake like, as the rest of its body was, but was almost horse-like; it had a long snout filled with tiny razor sharp teeth. Its eyes were glowing red and headed beneath a 'helmet' that looked like it was made of cement that had dried on the Eyghida's head. Two tiny ears poked up from under the cement helmet and twitched around, listening to every sound in the cavern and under the Earth and above in Sunnydale.
"Eyghida, my fateful one, you must go above ground a find the Slayer; you must destroy her and all she associates with." The man commanded.
Eyghida bowed its horse-like head and slithered out of the cavern, leaving the man alone again.
Once Oz told Buffy in detail everything that had happened between him and Darry, the Slayer became slightly worried. She didn't know a lot about Darry but being a werewolf obviously touched a deep nerve that she never cared to fell. Kellie also became worried about her cousin, even though she knew just about as much about her as Buffy did.
Buffy decided that everyone should search Sunnydale for her; Xander and Anya were called and briefed on the whole situation and agreed to aid in the search. Tara offered to help as well.
Buffy didn't know if it was the best plan but she decided everyone was to split up, except Kellie because she didn't know Sunnydale like everyone else did. Kellie and Buffy started their search together, while everyone else went their own separate ways.
Oz cursed under his breath as the sun began to go down and he, or anyone else, still hadn't found Darry. He looked almost every place he could think of; he was assured because he knew that Buffy and the others would look in the places he had forgotten to look. Oz looked up at the sky again as the bright blue Sunnydale sky began to cry pink and velvet blue with the setting sun.
Night was never a good time in Sunnydale, unless you were a vampire but then again, vampire preyed on humans so it wasn't a good comfort for Oz. He stood in Restfield Cemetery; he had checked almost all of the other cemeteries in Sunnydale, just in case.
Restfield Cemetery was unlike any of the other cemeteries in Sunnydale; Restfield Cemetery was where Buffy and Faith had found the Glove of Myhnegon, looking around the cemetery now Oz didn't doubt it. The cemetery, with its crumbling gravestones and pretty much spooky setting, was a likely place for an evil glove to reside. Thick woods surrounded the cemetery; the cemetery was also on the outskirts of town, making it rather secluded.
Oz doubted that Darry was indeed in this cemetery but he had to check, just to be sure. It seemed as though Darry had disappeared from Sunnydale all together, there seemed to be no trace of her anywhere.
Darry had finally found the most secluded spot in Sunnydale, or so it looked. She sat, her back against the trunk of a large oak tree, in the darkening woods toward the edge of town. It was better, she supposed, that she leave Sunnydale; she hadn't found what she was looking for so there was no reason to stay. She didn't want to become tangled up in the lives of Buffy and Oz and everyone else, even Kellie, because when she did bad things usually happened. It was best just to leave while she was ahead; truth be told, she had planned on leaving earlier but then Kellie had showed up and then Buffy had arranged for her and Oz to meet. Darry wasn't planning on becoming so_attached to Buffy and the rest of the Scoobies. She wasn't one for friends, she didn't like to become attached to anything, least face the consequences that might follow.
It was better this way, to leave Sunnydale now, without having to say goodbye to anyone and to leave while Oz thought that she was angry with him. In some way, she was or had been but she wasn't anymore; it was better to leave like that then to have a tearful goodbye.
In the forest all was silent; or, was silent until the sound of rustling leaves and cracking twigs reached her ears. Darry turned her head in the direction of the sounds and came face to face with a large snake like monster.
Unable to stop herself, Darry let out a scream and attempted to back up. She ran right into the tree trunk, unable to go anywhere.
The snake demon (Eyghida) reared backward in surprise and then glowered at Darry as though he was angry with Darry for causing him to be surprised.
Darry rose slowly and reached for something to defend herself with; no doubt another reminder of the Sunnydale demon population.
Oz was about to leave the cemetery when a scream filled the air. It was more of a scream of surprise then terror or pain. Oz whirled around, knowing that it was Darry.
The scream came from the woods, not too deep but deep enough for Oz to wish that he had a flashlight with him. Even if he had one in the van, he didn't want to waste time going back to get it.
Oz ran into the woods, trying to remember exactly where the scream came from so he could find Darry easily. Oz stopped to pick up a fallen branch, just in case Darry's attacker was a vampire.
Oz stopped we he saw Darry and the latest Sunnydale creature feature; this creature was unlike any Oz had ever seen. The snake reared back and bared its tiny sharp teeth and snapped at the air, as though telling Darry that he would indeed bite her.
Eyghida moved closer to Darry and she held the stick in front of her, showing the snake that she had a weapon. Eyghida leapt forward and snapped the stick out of Darry's hand. Darry's eyes widened in surprise as she drew her hand away.
"Darry!" Oz called from behind her. Darry turned around, surprised and the snake lunged at her. Darry was caught off guard and the snake knocked her to the ground.
Darry cried out in surprise as she hit the ground, stunned for about a second, but that was enough time for the snake to grab her right leg and dig its teeth into it.
Eyghida looked up at Darry, her blood dripping from its mouth. "Slayer's friend." It growled and narrowed its eyes at her.
Darry reached behind her and grabbed a fistful of leaves and flung them at the snake.
Eyghida reared back and then bit Darry's leg again. Darry cried out in pain as the Eyghida dug deeper into her leg. Darry closed her eyes and then opened them. She was surprised to see Oz at her side, with a branch in hand; Oz swung the branch of Eyghida and cracked the branch over its head.
Eyghida howled in pain and reared back, off Darry, and backed up several paces. Oz dropped to his knees beside Darry.
"Are you okay?" Oz asked. Darry nodded and sat up. She looked over at Eyghida who was no longer hurt by Oz's attack.
"Oz, look out!" Darry cried as Eyghida leapt at Oz. Eyghida whipped at Oz with his tail. Oz was knocked away from Darry and into a nearby tree.
"Oz!" Darry cried but her boyfriend was slumped against the tree. Eyghida turned back to face Darry.
"You die, Slayer's friend." Eyghida growled.
Darry was ready when Eyghida charged her; she grabbed the creature's jowls in her hands and cracked the creature's next. Eyghida fell to the ground, not dead because Darry's hadn't fully cracked its neck, but down for the time being. Darry picked up part of the broken branch that Oz had hit Eyghida with and plunged it into Eyghida's chest.
The snake-demon screeched and then died in a flash of white light, disappearing from the forest.
Darry dropped the branch and ran over to where Oz was, he was beginning to come to, shaking his head and blinking his eyes.
"Oz." Darry said and dropped to her knees beside Oz. Oz sat up and looked over at Darry. "Are you alright?" She asked, concern etched on her face.
Oz slowly nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. What about you?" Oz asked.
Darry smiled. "I'm fine. What are you doing here?" She asked.
"Looking for you." He answered. "So is the rest of the Scooby Gang." Oz added.
"Why?" Darry asked.
Oz brushed some dirt off Darry's cheek. "Because we were all worried about you." Oz answered.
Darry was surprised. "Why?" She asked, repeating her earlier question.
"Because you weren't there; this is Sunnydale, if you're not present and accounted for, you could be the next person on the 'missing' list." Oz answered.
Darry smiled, happy that Oz still cared about her after what happened earlier today. She helped him up. "Well, if everyone's looking for me, we'd better go find them and show them that I'm still alive and still staying in Sunnydale." Darry said.
"You were leaving?" Oz asked as the two walked out of the woods.
Darry nodded. "Yes but not anymore." She said.
The two walked to Oz's van, hand-in-hand.
