"Got it," Willow said as she came out of the ritual. "It's Amy, and she's
in the woods. It's not that far from here."
"Amy?" Xander asked. "But why would she kidnap Dawn?"
"I think she's injured," Willow remarked.
"So you think somebody forced her to perform the spell?" Buffy asked. Willow simply nodded. "Then we better get going, and fast. I doubt whoever went to all this trouble to kidnap Dawn just wants to play a game of Scrabble. Let's go."
With that, the Slayer, the Witch, and Xander were out the door. A moment later, Xander stuck his head in. "Aren't you coming?" Xander asked Anya.
Anya shrugged. "I won't really be of any help," Anya responded. "What am I going to do, stand there and cheer Buffy on?"
"Just come on, Anya," Xander replied. "You never know of what use you could be."
Anya looked as though she was about to refuse, but finally she sighed and gave in. "Oh all right," she said, "but if I get killed, you know I'm going to come back and haunt you for this." And with that, Xander and Anya were off to join Buffy and Willow.
"We got what you wanted, you have the girl," the Leader (formerly Not-Mona) told Doc. "Now give us what we agreed upon. Use the witch to make us immortal."
"I'm afraid there's been a change of plans," Doc responded, pulling a knife from his pocket.
"And those are?" the Leader asked. Instead of responding, Doc just smiled. He lashed out with his tongue, which Dawn couldn't help but think of as that of a frog's. His tongue almost instantaneously wrapped itself around the Leader's head. He then retracted the tongue; the Leader's head snatched off its body and came with it.
Dawn wanted to vomit. Even though the Leader had handed her over to this killer and had abused Amy, she didn't want to see it die such a horrible death. And despite the fact Dawn didn't really have an Aunt Mona, a part of her still felt like the Leader was her aunt. It was nothing like losing her mother, but it still felt like she had lost a loved one just the same.
Seeing their leader killed, the group of Klavlocs, approximately twenty in all, charged at Doc. He leaped over their head, easily avoiding them. Dawn wondered if he was some sort of amphibian demon, as he was even more agile than the Slayer. The battle lasted less than a minute, and when it was all said and done there were twenty dead Klavlocs on the ground.
"Now to start the ritual," Doc remarked, turning back to Dawn.
In the woods, Buffy and the Scoobies looked lost. "How much farther?" Buffy demanded.
"I'm not sure," Willow admitted. "Amy's not holding on to the magicks, so I can't sense her."
"Try harder!" Buffy replied. She couldn't help but feel a sense of déjà vu at their surroundings; it reminded her far too much of the time she, Xander, and Anya had tracked Willow through the woods. At least this time, Willow was on their side.
"Wait a minute, I recognize this spot," Xander said.
"What? How?" Anya asked. "It's the woods. It all looks the same."
"No, look," Xander said, pointing to a carving on a tree of a heart with the initials DC and JB inscribed in it. "I saw this when we were looking for Willow."
"What good will that do us?" Buffy asked.
"After you went chasing after Willow, I was forced to find my way out of the woods, and I remember passing a cabin," he said. "Maybe that's where Dawn is being kept."
"Do you think you can find it again?" Buffy asked.
"I think so, but." He stopped and turned to Willow. "To do so, we'll have to return to the spot where you killed Warren." All four Scoobies were quiet at that moment. Xander pressed on. "Do you think you can handle that?"
"I'll have to be able to," Willow admitted, gazing her eyes at her feet. Buffy admired the witch's courage; she didn't want to return to that spot, either. But if it was the only way to find Dawn, that it had to be done.
"This way," Xander said, leading the path.
Dawn was trapped in a corner of the room, and Doc was slowly approaching with a knife in hand. "You know the drill," he said her. Dawn was surprised to find that it appeared as though he were trying to soothe her. Did he really think she would be happy to let him cut her so long as he was nice about it? "I can't open the Gate without first drawing blood."
Suddenly Doc screamed in pain and he dropped the knife. Dawn saw smoke rising from his hand. He tried to pick the knife up again, but he shrieked again. Something had raised the knife's temperature so much that the demon could no longer hold it. Doc figured out what was going on before Dawn did.
"You!" Doc shrieked at Amy. He leapt over to her and smacked her in the face. "I thought you had already learned not to try to stop me. But you overestimate your own importance. I no longer need you, so there is no point in keeping you alive any longer!"
Just as he had done with the Leader, Doc wrapped his tongue around Amy's head. Before he could snatch it back and decapitate the witch, Dawn picked up the knife (which by now had cooled) and plunged it into Doc's back. He let out another shriek as he turned around and swung at Dawn. She managed to duck under the blow and then knee him in the crotch, doubling him over.
Dawn quickly went to work untying Amy's ropes. She helped the witch up just as their attacked climbed to his feet. He leaped at them, but Amy cast a spell that sent him flying backwards through the wall. Dawn then supported Amy as the two began to run.
They were into the woods. Dawn was running as fast as she could while supporting Amy, which needless to say wasn't very fast. "Is there any way you can perform a spell to hide us from that guy?" Dawn asked the witch.
"I'm too weak now," Amy responded. "I'm drained."
They kept running. After a few seconds, Doc leaped on the two of them, sending them both to the ground. He grabbed Amy and slung her against a tree, knocking her unconscious. He then pinned Dawn to the ground and pulled the knife out of his back.
"Nice try," he said, "but I've had just about enough." He then raised the knife high above Dawn's chest, and then brought it down quickly and swiftly.
"Amy?" Xander asked. "But why would she kidnap Dawn?"
"I think she's injured," Willow remarked.
"So you think somebody forced her to perform the spell?" Buffy asked. Willow simply nodded. "Then we better get going, and fast. I doubt whoever went to all this trouble to kidnap Dawn just wants to play a game of Scrabble. Let's go."
With that, the Slayer, the Witch, and Xander were out the door. A moment later, Xander stuck his head in. "Aren't you coming?" Xander asked Anya.
Anya shrugged. "I won't really be of any help," Anya responded. "What am I going to do, stand there and cheer Buffy on?"
"Just come on, Anya," Xander replied. "You never know of what use you could be."
Anya looked as though she was about to refuse, but finally she sighed and gave in. "Oh all right," she said, "but if I get killed, you know I'm going to come back and haunt you for this." And with that, Xander and Anya were off to join Buffy and Willow.
"We got what you wanted, you have the girl," the Leader (formerly Not-Mona) told Doc. "Now give us what we agreed upon. Use the witch to make us immortal."
"I'm afraid there's been a change of plans," Doc responded, pulling a knife from his pocket.
"And those are?" the Leader asked. Instead of responding, Doc just smiled. He lashed out with his tongue, which Dawn couldn't help but think of as that of a frog's. His tongue almost instantaneously wrapped itself around the Leader's head. He then retracted the tongue; the Leader's head snatched off its body and came with it.
Dawn wanted to vomit. Even though the Leader had handed her over to this killer and had abused Amy, she didn't want to see it die such a horrible death. And despite the fact Dawn didn't really have an Aunt Mona, a part of her still felt like the Leader was her aunt. It was nothing like losing her mother, but it still felt like she had lost a loved one just the same.
Seeing their leader killed, the group of Klavlocs, approximately twenty in all, charged at Doc. He leaped over their head, easily avoiding them. Dawn wondered if he was some sort of amphibian demon, as he was even more agile than the Slayer. The battle lasted less than a minute, and when it was all said and done there were twenty dead Klavlocs on the ground.
"Now to start the ritual," Doc remarked, turning back to Dawn.
In the woods, Buffy and the Scoobies looked lost. "How much farther?" Buffy demanded.
"I'm not sure," Willow admitted. "Amy's not holding on to the magicks, so I can't sense her."
"Try harder!" Buffy replied. She couldn't help but feel a sense of déjà vu at their surroundings; it reminded her far too much of the time she, Xander, and Anya had tracked Willow through the woods. At least this time, Willow was on their side.
"Wait a minute, I recognize this spot," Xander said.
"What? How?" Anya asked. "It's the woods. It all looks the same."
"No, look," Xander said, pointing to a carving on a tree of a heart with the initials DC and JB inscribed in it. "I saw this when we were looking for Willow."
"What good will that do us?" Buffy asked.
"After you went chasing after Willow, I was forced to find my way out of the woods, and I remember passing a cabin," he said. "Maybe that's where Dawn is being kept."
"Do you think you can find it again?" Buffy asked.
"I think so, but." He stopped and turned to Willow. "To do so, we'll have to return to the spot where you killed Warren." All four Scoobies were quiet at that moment. Xander pressed on. "Do you think you can handle that?"
"I'll have to be able to," Willow admitted, gazing her eyes at her feet. Buffy admired the witch's courage; she didn't want to return to that spot, either. But if it was the only way to find Dawn, that it had to be done.
"This way," Xander said, leading the path.
Dawn was trapped in a corner of the room, and Doc was slowly approaching with a knife in hand. "You know the drill," he said her. Dawn was surprised to find that it appeared as though he were trying to soothe her. Did he really think she would be happy to let him cut her so long as he was nice about it? "I can't open the Gate without first drawing blood."
Suddenly Doc screamed in pain and he dropped the knife. Dawn saw smoke rising from his hand. He tried to pick the knife up again, but he shrieked again. Something had raised the knife's temperature so much that the demon could no longer hold it. Doc figured out what was going on before Dawn did.
"You!" Doc shrieked at Amy. He leapt over to her and smacked her in the face. "I thought you had already learned not to try to stop me. But you overestimate your own importance. I no longer need you, so there is no point in keeping you alive any longer!"
Just as he had done with the Leader, Doc wrapped his tongue around Amy's head. Before he could snatch it back and decapitate the witch, Dawn picked up the knife (which by now had cooled) and plunged it into Doc's back. He let out another shriek as he turned around and swung at Dawn. She managed to duck under the blow and then knee him in the crotch, doubling him over.
Dawn quickly went to work untying Amy's ropes. She helped the witch up just as their attacked climbed to his feet. He leaped at them, but Amy cast a spell that sent him flying backwards through the wall. Dawn then supported Amy as the two began to run.
They were into the woods. Dawn was running as fast as she could while supporting Amy, which needless to say wasn't very fast. "Is there any way you can perform a spell to hide us from that guy?" Dawn asked the witch.
"I'm too weak now," Amy responded. "I'm drained."
They kept running. After a few seconds, Doc leaped on the two of them, sending them both to the ground. He grabbed Amy and slung her against a tree, knocking her unconscious. He then pinned Dawn to the ground and pulled the knife out of his back.
"Nice try," he said, "but I've had just about enough." He then raised the knife high above Dawn's chest, and then brought it down quickly and swiftly.