The Archer

A/N: Sorry for not updating in a while. I've been busy for a long time now. I'll be gone for another two weeks, I'm going on a retreat to Georgia. Everybody have a great summer and don't get in too much trouble. (A little bit is fine here and there)

Xander, Faith, Willow, Buffy, Angel, Cordelia, Giles, and Oz were gathered inside the library that night. The leather clad Willow was trapped inside the library cage, soundly unconscious.

"When will she wake up," asked Angel.

"Whenever I choose," said Xander.

"How did she get here," asked Cordelia.

"Amy," whispered Willow.

"What," asked Giles.

"Amy and Anya were doing a spell," said Willow, "To get Anya's necklace back."

"Her power center," said Xander with a frown, "She was using Amy to get it back."

"I stopped her," said Willow, "I put my hand in the way."

"And by doing that, you brought her here," said Oz.

"Wait," began Angel, "If you have your vampire spirit within you, then how can she be here?"

"Yeah," said Buffy, "If you found your vampire inside of you, then how can she be here now? Shouldn't she still be inside Willow?"

"Yes," said Xander, "But, that was before the temporal fold. The best way I can describe it is that when the wish was made, that universe, we'll call it the Wishverse for now, was created. It was created through our own universe. It would have been an alternate reality but, there was one thing inside of it that wasn't from its own reality: Cordelia.

"Because Cordelia was there, it basically turned the Wishverse into a…possession, our own world possessed by the spirits of that one. It caused a merge between the two worlds, a merge that existed through us all, even after the spell was undone. Then, I found my vampire inside me. We melded together, formed a union, and that opened up a gateway for more of the Wishverse to come through."

"Then, why haven't they," asked Faith.

"Because, vampire and the rest of…me, I guess, get along. If he fought us and overcame us, then he could probably bring the entire Wishverse back with him. He'd just have to figure out how. This kept things balanced, kept the two worlds hidden from each other…somewhat. Then, this spell was done, and Willow's vampire was separated from herself. It basically caused a complete separation between the two universes."

"All because of…her," asked Willow.

"Yeah," said Xander, "But, here's the tricky part. In the Wishverse, she dies at Oz's hands. Oz is a vampire hunter inside the Wishverse, along with Giles, Larry, and a girl named Nancy. There's no way to avoid it. It happens way too fast. Now, Willow, this is your decision. What do we do with her?"

"…What do you mean," asked Willow.

"You have three choices here," said Xander, "One is to send her back to her own world, and she'll die for sure. Two is to slay her right here and not even bother with sending her back. The third choice is to…return her soul to her."

"Like with me," said Angel.

"Yeah," said Xander, "Believe me, I've thought about each of these choices myself. All four of me, actually."

"Is vampire affecting your judgment," asked Faith with worry evident in her voice.

"Yes," said Xander without hesitation, "If it were my choice, I'd resoul her in an instant. But, then I remind myself, in her world, she's just like any other vampire. Then, I think about our situation. We have two enemies aligned against us. Both are powerful, both are evil, and both have plans of their own. That makes them dangerous. Maybe too dangerous."

"And you think a new source of aid might add favor to our cause," said Giles.

"Yes," answered Xander.

"If you've seen what happens to her," said Faith, "Doesn't that mean that you could change it?"

"The consequences in that reality are too deep to imagine," said Xander, "If I were to prevent Willow from dying, then it could lead to something worse for those people. The possibilities are endless. However, most of them that vampire has chosen to explore tend to revolve around her dying at the Master's hands. Without my fire crystal, I doubt I could actually defeat him."

"Couldn't you take Faith with you," asked Buffy, "I mean, she is a Slayer. If I defeated the Master, then you should be able to with her help."

"The Master is much stronger in this reality, Buffy," said Xander, "Far too powerful. I doubt any one of us could possibly survive against him. Willow, this is your choice alone. I admit right now that, and this is mainly because of my vampire self, I want to see her here, with us, and with a soul. I cannot act soundly in this area, and that is why I am deferring command to you."

"Command," asked Willow.

"Yeah," said Xander, "It's your choice, and it should be your choice. It's what's right."

"…I don't know, Xander," said Willow, "Angel, what was it like…regaining your soul?"

"At first," said Angel, "You don't remember anything. Then, it all comes back…at one single instant. You see every life you've taken, every ounce of pain you've caused to every single being you've ever met, and it all comes back…right then."

"How were you…mentally," asked Xander.

"…Distraught," said Angel, "Deranged."

"I don't want to bring that kind of pain on anyone," said Willow, "But, you make a good point on needing someone to help us. But, still, let's just say I decide to return her soul, that doesn't necessarily mean that she'll be good. It might even mean that she'll get worse. Is there some way that we could help her before hand?"

"…Meditation," said Xander, "Vampire, hyena, soldier, and I could teach her more through meditation than any other form of education conceived."

"You're not actually going to do this, Willow," asked Cordelia, "I mean, this is the vampire you. Think of all the consequences that could come out of keeping her here."

"At least then she'll stand a chance," said Xander, "The damage done by the spell is beyond repair. If it weren't, then I'd suggest coming to a compromise like vampire and I did, but the defect is that you wouldn't have two more spirits to keep your vampire in check."

"Angel," said Giles, "What is your opinion?"

"…I don't know," said Angel, "I mean, I see the logic in Xander's point of view. On the other hand, what right do we have to force her to regain her soul. She's not from here. In her own world, she dies. I think we should let it remain that way."

"I've got to admit, I'm with Angel on this one," said Cordelia.

"Yeah," said Buffy, "I think he's right."

"I admit, I hate seeing such a potential ally go to waste," said Giles, "But, still, she doesn't belong here. It's the right thing to do."

"Oz," asked Willow as she turned to her boyfriend.

"…Send her," he answered.

"…Faith," asked Xander.

"I'm with them," said Faith, "I understand you, Xander, but…she doesn't belong here. She belongs there."

"…She goes back," said Willow, her resolve-face showing bright.

Xander sighed and nodded, conceding to their point. He could feel vampire's disappointment at their decision, and his outright anger at it. However, he was not raging against the other three. He was angry, but…it was more like the kind of anger that goes along with acceptance.

Xander sidestepped as vampire charged at him, his fangs bared, ready for the kill.

"You could have saved her," shouted vampire.

It was after Willow had done the spell, along with Amy and Anya, to send the vampire version of herself home. Vampire had received the shock head first, completely unprepared. He had accepted it at first, but then, he had struggled against every single bar that Xander had placed to gain control and stop it from happening. Now, in the aftermath, vampire wanted vengeance.

"I couldn't have," said Xander, "Remember? We agreed to let her choose. It was the right thing."

"You should have fought harder," snarled vampire.

"You're hurt," said soldier, "You're upset."

"You're damn right I am," yelled vampire, "She was my love! We loved each other!"

"She would have dumped you the moment she found out about what happened to you," snarled hyena, "Are you blind? She didn't care about you! All she cared about was the blood and the gore! And you provided it. She would have kicked you to the curb if it weren't for the fact that you were just as evil as her. And for the fact that you were in the Master's favor."

"How do you know that," asked vampire.

"We know," said soldier, "You left the gate open the second you returned. We took a peak. We saw the truth."

"You loved her," said Xander, "That's a fact we three share. And, in some perverse way, she loved you. But, we all know for a fact that she would lose you once you lost power. She was evil. There's no such thing as love with evil things."

"…She would have loved me if she had a soul," said vampire.

He sat down in the field, his head bent down. The other three gathered around him. They each of them knew this sort of pain. Pain from the heart was much more merciless than the pain from being beaten in battle, than losing your pack, or by being pushed aside by your friends. It was the pain from realizing that the person you loved so didn't truly love you.

"I was the same," whispered vampire, "God, I hate this. I wish none of this had ever happened."

"You wish you'd never had been saved from destruction," asked hyena.

"Then, I wouldn't have to go through this pain," said vampire.

"Just think," said soldier, "If you did die, then think of how much you would have missed. Think of the fact that you never would have gotten to see her again, even if it was for that brief moment."

"She didn't love me," said vampire.

"Neither did you," said Xander, "You two were evil, and held no true love. You weren't like Spike and Drusilla, and Dru dumped Spike because he made the tactically sound decision."

"You no longer see things in black and white," whispered hyena, "You see things in a horribly ugly mesh of gray. It's called life. Welcome to it."