Chapter 13

Tara extended her hands before her, slightly upwards, her open palms pointing to the creature's face. She squeezed her eyes shut and reached for the magic that bubbled continuously just below the surface. "Fulgere!" A bright flash of white light, almost like a camera's flash magnified ten times in intensity, appeared between the girl's hands and the beast who had once been her uncle, temporarily blinding him. He rubbed vigorously at his eyes with the back of his curled, oversized hands, as if that would bring his vision back to normal.

Blindly, he who was once David Maclay slashed out where he'd last seen Tara, talons whistling through empty air. From behind him now, the Wiccan gestured with one hand, again palm facing the creature, but pointing slightly downwards. "Corruere!" A glowing green burst of light gathered in her hand, then flowed rapidly to the demon, twining around his legs. Blinking against the dark spots floating before his eyes, he spun and dove for the witch. At least, that was what he'd intended to do. Instead, the light seemed to solidify, tangling his legs and causing him to throw his balance off. Arms wheeling, he crashed face-first to the floor.

A loud rapping on the walls came directly after the crash. "Keep it down over there! It's 10:30!" a muffled voice shouted irately.

"Whoa. Tara's a witch!" Xander said, slightly surprised, from the living room, where the Scoobies stood frozen watching Tara deal out magical energy that none of them had been fully certain she'd actually had.

Faith let out what sounded like a chuckle. "Thank you, Captain Obvious. Looks like she's kickin' some ass in there, too!"

The demon reached out a clawed hand and grabbed Tara by the ankle. With a fierce yank, he brought Tara bone-jarringly to the floor as well. "You worthless little witch. You honestly think you can hurt me with your light flashes and your foolish tricks? All of this, it's nothing." His breath was hot on her face, and involuntarily she cringed away from him. "So, I disgust you too?" he laughed bitterly. "Just wait until it happens to you. But your family will take care of you. Yes. Like they took care of me!"

He couldn't blame the girl – even he hated himself, what he'd become. At least now Beth would still have a mother, even if it meant a nearly eternal exile into this monstrous form. The one thing he hated most of all was what he would become, they had told him, those two shining beings he had pleaded with for his wife's life. Such was the price, they had said, if she was to live. And it had been slowly killing him, to see her life drain away, seeing what it was doing to Beth, their only child. He hadn't thought of what that would mean, having to live the rest of his life like this. And not a natural life, either. The beasts had ten times the life of the oldest men, at least. His grasp on his former self slipped a little more with each passing day as the murderous ways of the demon he had become took hold.

When Steven had sent him to retrieve Tara, he had first kept a clear mind about it. The girl needed to be with her family, and so it would be. He tracked her to this place, though, and that was where things began to change. He obviously could no longer be seen during the day, but had gathered enough information, seen enough from the darkened alleys, places that smelt of death and things more monstrous that even he now was. He knew who the girl, as he had gradually come to think of his niece as the demon's nature became more assertive, associated with. And when he saw one of them late at night, her homo little witch friend, he'd at first intended merely to question him. Find out a few things. That hadn't ended well … he hadn't even ended up asking a single question, the demon's rage fueling him to injure, but he finally reigned the impulse in. Even now he could feel his claws raking over flesh, his gigantic fists cracking and battering the small body of a young man who never even saw the monster coming. And what sickened him the most was that part of him had liked it.

He had been striving for this, the day when he would catch the girl, subdue her, and return her to Steven, to her home. To the family he knew he could no longer be a part of. Then she would be where she belonged, not out here with her freak-show friends, doing witchcraft and who knows what else. It had become his single-minded purpose, now, the thing that filled his days. No matter how far he slipped from what he once was, he would do this thing for his brother. He would put their family back together. And if there was anything left of him that remembered who he had been by then, he would remove himself far from his former life, those he cared for, to protect them from the demon he had willingly become to give his wife another chance to live.

On the bed, Willow stirred. She tilted her head, and saw the demon that had knocked her out pressing down over Tara threateningly. "Tara! No! Get away from her!" She picked up the bedside lamp and threw it as hard as she could, and it hit dead center on the thing's back, expelling the air from its lungs in a great cough.

Buffy finally managed to move from the living room, stepping in over Tara and kicking the monster under the chin. Its head snapped back sharply, and it rolled to the side, struggling to remain conscious. Faith rushed in behind it, quickly grabbing either side of the demon's head. "Wait, no!" Tara called out, but it was too late. The younger Slayer had already snapped the beast's neck, killing it instantly.

~~

"I know I could have done something," Tara repeated sullenly. The rest of the Scooby gang had headed back to their respective homes for the night, but Willow had stayed. They had already told the Rosenbergs that was where she would be tonight, but even if they hadn't, Willow would have stayed anyway. Both girls were in their pajamas, sitting together on Tara's bed. The room had been completely cleaned and Buffy, Faith, and Angel had gone to take care of the demon's body, something that was apparently quite a regular occurrence. Neither of the witches could sleep, not really, so they sat up together talking.

Willow shook her head, gently lifting Tara's chin. "I'm telling you, that was big magic, Tara. That wasn't just your garden-variety glamour. He was a demon more than he was your uncle. Why else would he want to hurt you?" Tara frowned, anguish showing clearly on her expressive features. Willow gently took the blonde witch into her arms, now without a moment's hesitation. "I'm so sorry for what happened to him. But I really think nothing we could do could have changed him back. I know that it doesn't make it any better," she sighed, running her slender fingers through that soft golden mane, "but I don't think he was happy in the slightest. Being turned into a demon? Probably not the most pleasant of things to happen to someone."

Tara wrapped her arms around Willow's small waist, snuggling as closely as she dared. And that's the future I have to look forward to. Becoming a monster, having it eat away at the person I am now. With a sigh, she began, "I wish things were different. I wish … I wish I could, I don't know, change things."

Willow's hands hesitated a moment before continuing their course through her hair. The redhead leaned down and whispered into her ear, "What would you change?"

Tara pulled slightly back, her face close to Willow's. "Only one or two things," she whispered. She ached to kiss Willow, right here and now, let everything go away and sort itself out later. But if there was to be anything between them, she couldn't force it. She had to let Willow choose what she wanted first.

The other girl smiled gently, almost lost in those gorgeous but sad blue eyes. She leaned in and placed a soft kiss on Tara's forehead. "It'll be okay, somehow. I know it will."