When Buffy returned home, two of her closest friends, Xander Harris and
Anya Emerson, were with Willow.
"I stopped by Mona's hotel, there's nobody there," Buffy exclaimed. "Wherever they went, it wasn't there."
"How could you two not even realize she wasn't your aunt?" Anya asked. "Don't you two even know who you're related too?"
"An, honey, not now," Xander responded.
"No, she's right," Buffy answered. "How did this happen? I have memories of her being in my life in LA. How could they not be real?" The question made a light bulb go off on her head. "The monks," she said. "Maybe not them, but it's the same thing. Mona altered reality, made us think she was our aunt."
"I don't think so," Willow responded. "I don't believe reality was altered. If Mona was strong enough to do that, she would have simply altered it so there was a record of her filing for custody of Dawn."
"So if she wasn't altering reality, how did she make us think she was our aunt?" Buffy asked.
"Could she have maybe altered their memories, Will?" Xander asked. "Just simply implanted thoughts into their head to make it seem as if they knew her the whole time?"
"It's possible," Willow suggested, "but why would she go to all the trouble? And what does she want with Dawn?"
"And what about the policemen?" Xander asked. "How did she have them on her side? Or were they a spell too?"
"No, they weren't," Willow said. "I would sense the magical residue if they were just an illusion of Mona's. They were real."
"Maybe not," Anya suggested. "They very easily could have been Klavloc demons."
"Klavloc demons? What are those?" Xander asked.
"They're shape shifters," Anya explained. "They usually travel in a pack. They're generally non-violent, but if you pay them enough money they'll do just about anything for you. They have the ability to look and sound like anyone. You could walk right by them in broad daylight and not even realize it."
"But why would Klavloc demons help Mona kidnap Dawn?" Willow asked.
"Because Mona is a Klavloc demon, too!" Buffy suddenly realized. "When she was trying to convince us to let her take Dawn, she commented that she was afraid Dawn would be killed by a Klavloc." The rest of the gang looked stunned at this revelation. She turned to Anya. "Do Klavloc demons have any special abilities?" she asked. "Are they magical in nature?"
"Not really," Anya answered. "They just change shape."
"So if Mona really was a Klavloc demon, than whoever sent them here must have some access to magic," Xander said. He turned to Willow. "Is there any way you can sense where the magic came from?"
"The ritual I used to find out about Dawn," Buffy suggested. "I can use that and see if a spell has been cast on me, and that will lead me to whoever cast it."
"That won't work," Anya replied. "If a spell was cast on you, you won't be able to see it. Somebody else would have to do the ritual."
"I'll do it," Willow chimed in.
"Let's get to it."
Dawn was beginning to suspect something was wrong. For one thing, Mona hadn't said a word the entire trip. For another, she was pretty sure it was unusual for two of the policemen to be riding in the backseat while the rest followed. She wanted to question her aunt, to see what was going on, but she kept her mouth shut.
They rode in silence a bit more when the male policeman in the back started to complain. "My face is getting all itchy," he muttered. Dawn glanced in the rearview mirror and saw him scratching away at his face so roughly that she wouldn't be surprised if he had scratches all over his face when he pulled away his hands. "Can we please dispose of these disguises?" he asked.
"I don't see why not," Mona replied. "We have what we're after."
Dawn, still glancing in the rearview mirror, let out a squeal of terror when the faces of the policemen melted away, revealing bumpy gray faces with red eyes. She turned to her aunt to tell her there were demons in the backseat, when she realized her aunt had become a demon as well.
"What's going on here?!" Dawn asked.
"Please be quiet," the demon formerly known as Mona replied. It was wearing the same attire Mona had been wearing, but it no longer looked or sounded like her aunt. Dawn wasn't entirely sure if the demon was male or female; it certainly didn't fill out Mona's dress the way it had as a human. "We're almost there."
Dawn did as she was told, watching every turn they made. She wished he had been paying more attention; when the first opportunity presented itself, she was going to bolt, and she wasn't sure if she could find her way home. All she knew was she wasn't going to stay with these monsters much longer.
The car eventually pulled over on the side of the road, and the police cars stopped behind it. Dawn wasn't the least bit surprised to realize that all of the policemen were the same type of demons as the creature pretending to be her aunt.
The demons led her several feet into the woods before they eventually came upon a cabin. Not-Mona shoved Dawn inside, causing the youth to fall to the ground as she did. Not-Mona turned a light on, and Dawn was startled to see a young woman tied to a chair. Despite the fact the woman had been bloodied and beaten, Dawn recognized her.
"Amy!" Dawn called out.
Amy Madison lifted her head and looked at Dawn. Dawn couldn't help but notice that Amy looked defeated. Apparently these monsters had beaten her, but for what? And then, as Amy's magic-fueled dark eyes returned to normal, she understood.
Not-Mona wasn't Mona because Mona didn't exist. Her Aunt Mona was only a figment of her imagination, and apparently Buffy's as well. Then it hit Dawn; Amy must have performed a spell to make them believe they had always had an aunt. She wanted to scream at Amy, but when she glanced at the witch again, she realized that Amy had been an unwilling pawn in this. It didn't appear as though she had tricked Dawn and her sister on purpose.
"Where is the Master?" Not-Mona (The Leader) asked Amy. When Amy didn't answer immediately, it struck her. "Where?!" it demanded.
"Out back," Amy breathed. Dawn could tell the witch was in intense pain. Apparently the witch had put up quite the struggle, but there was only so much she could take. Amy had been a witch far longer than Willow, but she didn't have anywhere near the power to take on these demons. Dawn wasn't entirely sure Willow could have defeated them either.
There were several moments of silence before someone entered the room. Dawn let out a gasp of surprise to see Doc. Appearing to be nothing but an old man, she knew Doc was a lot more powerful than her looked. He was some type of demon. From what she understood, he had been impaled and lived. She thought Spike had killed him, but apparently having been thrown off a tower several thousand feet in the air hadn't been enough to kill the demon either.
"I take it by the look on your face you recognize me," Doc smiled. "Not that it really matters."
"What do you want with me?" Dawn asked.
Doc laughed. "Foolish girl," he replied. "Do you think just because the Beast is dead that you're of no use to me? You're still the Key, and I have use of you. I'm not sure how the gates of hell were closed when you're still alive, but I assure you that when I'm through with you, you will be very much dead."
"I stopped by Mona's hotel, there's nobody there," Buffy exclaimed. "Wherever they went, it wasn't there."
"How could you two not even realize she wasn't your aunt?" Anya asked. "Don't you two even know who you're related too?"
"An, honey, not now," Xander responded.
"No, she's right," Buffy answered. "How did this happen? I have memories of her being in my life in LA. How could they not be real?" The question made a light bulb go off on her head. "The monks," she said. "Maybe not them, but it's the same thing. Mona altered reality, made us think she was our aunt."
"I don't think so," Willow responded. "I don't believe reality was altered. If Mona was strong enough to do that, she would have simply altered it so there was a record of her filing for custody of Dawn."
"So if she wasn't altering reality, how did she make us think she was our aunt?" Buffy asked.
"Could she have maybe altered their memories, Will?" Xander asked. "Just simply implanted thoughts into their head to make it seem as if they knew her the whole time?"
"It's possible," Willow suggested, "but why would she go to all the trouble? And what does she want with Dawn?"
"And what about the policemen?" Xander asked. "How did she have them on her side? Or were they a spell too?"
"No, they weren't," Willow said. "I would sense the magical residue if they were just an illusion of Mona's. They were real."
"Maybe not," Anya suggested. "They very easily could have been Klavloc demons."
"Klavloc demons? What are those?" Xander asked.
"They're shape shifters," Anya explained. "They usually travel in a pack. They're generally non-violent, but if you pay them enough money they'll do just about anything for you. They have the ability to look and sound like anyone. You could walk right by them in broad daylight and not even realize it."
"But why would Klavloc demons help Mona kidnap Dawn?" Willow asked.
"Because Mona is a Klavloc demon, too!" Buffy suddenly realized. "When she was trying to convince us to let her take Dawn, she commented that she was afraid Dawn would be killed by a Klavloc." The rest of the gang looked stunned at this revelation. She turned to Anya. "Do Klavloc demons have any special abilities?" she asked. "Are they magical in nature?"
"Not really," Anya answered. "They just change shape."
"So if Mona really was a Klavloc demon, than whoever sent them here must have some access to magic," Xander said. He turned to Willow. "Is there any way you can sense where the magic came from?"
"The ritual I used to find out about Dawn," Buffy suggested. "I can use that and see if a spell has been cast on me, and that will lead me to whoever cast it."
"That won't work," Anya replied. "If a spell was cast on you, you won't be able to see it. Somebody else would have to do the ritual."
"I'll do it," Willow chimed in.
"Let's get to it."
Dawn was beginning to suspect something was wrong. For one thing, Mona hadn't said a word the entire trip. For another, she was pretty sure it was unusual for two of the policemen to be riding in the backseat while the rest followed. She wanted to question her aunt, to see what was going on, but she kept her mouth shut.
They rode in silence a bit more when the male policeman in the back started to complain. "My face is getting all itchy," he muttered. Dawn glanced in the rearview mirror and saw him scratching away at his face so roughly that she wouldn't be surprised if he had scratches all over his face when he pulled away his hands. "Can we please dispose of these disguises?" he asked.
"I don't see why not," Mona replied. "We have what we're after."
Dawn, still glancing in the rearview mirror, let out a squeal of terror when the faces of the policemen melted away, revealing bumpy gray faces with red eyes. She turned to her aunt to tell her there were demons in the backseat, when she realized her aunt had become a demon as well.
"What's going on here?!" Dawn asked.
"Please be quiet," the demon formerly known as Mona replied. It was wearing the same attire Mona had been wearing, but it no longer looked or sounded like her aunt. Dawn wasn't entirely sure if the demon was male or female; it certainly didn't fill out Mona's dress the way it had as a human. "We're almost there."
Dawn did as she was told, watching every turn they made. She wished he had been paying more attention; when the first opportunity presented itself, she was going to bolt, and she wasn't sure if she could find her way home. All she knew was she wasn't going to stay with these monsters much longer.
The car eventually pulled over on the side of the road, and the police cars stopped behind it. Dawn wasn't the least bit surprised to realize that all of the policemen were the same type of demons as the creature pretending to be her aunt.
The demons led her several feet into the woods before they eventually came upon a cabin. Not-Mona shoved Dawn inside, causing the youth to fall to the ground as she did. Not-Mona turned a light on, and Dawn was startled to see a young woman tied to a chair. Despite the fact the woman had been bloodied and beaten, Dawn recognized her.
"Amy!" Dawn called out.
Amy Madison lifted her head and looked at Dawn. Dawn couldn't help but notice that Amy looked defeated. Apparently these monsters had beaten her, but for what? And then, as Amy's magic-fueled dark eyes returned to normal, she understood.
Not-Mona wasn't Mona because Mona didn't exist. Her Aunt Mona was only a figment of her imagination, and apparently Buffy's as well. Then it hit Dawn; Amy must have performed a spell to make them believe they had always had an aunt. She wanted to scream at Amy, but when she glanced at the witch again, she realized that Amy had been an unwilling pawn in this. It didn't appear as though she had tricked Dawn and her sister on purpose.
"Where is the Master?" Not-Mona (The Leader) asked Amy. When Amy didn't answer immediately, it struck her. "Where?!" it demanded.
"Out back," Amy breathed. Dawn could tell the witch was in intense pain. Apparently the witch had put up quite the struggle, but there was only so much she could take. Amy had been a witch far longer than Willow, but she didn't have anywhere near the power to take on these demons. Dawn wasn't entirely sure Willow could have defeated them either.
There were several moments of silence before someone entered the room. Dawn let out a gasp of surprise to see Doc. Appearing to be nothing but an old man, she knew Doc was a lot more powerful than her looked. He was some type of demon. From what she understood, he had been impaled and lived. She thought Spike had killed him, but apparently having been thrown off a tower several thousand feet in the air hadn't been enough to kill the demon either.
"I take it by the look on your face you recognize me," Doc smiled. "Not that it really matters."
"What do you want with me?" Dawn asked.
Doc laughed. "Foolish girl," he replied. "Do you think just because the Beast is dead that you're of no use to me? You're still the Key, and I have use of you. I'm not sure how the gates of hell were closed when you're still alive, but I assure you that when I'm through with you, you will be very much dead."