Chapter 7: Return to Stonehaven

1990

Dawn wanted to sleep, but couldn't. She had spent the last four nights working on an article for the newspaper she worked for, and she was exhausted. Her entire body was tingling as she felt the first stages of the Change.

She didn't remember who had bitten her. Jeremy, when he had approached the sisters after Dawn's first Change, had said that some memory loss was to be expected. He had approached them explaining that Dawn was now a werewolf and that he would help find out who had bitten Dawn. After six years Jeremy had made no progress on that front and Buffy and Dawn had left for Toronto to begin the new identities they had been setting up before Dawn was bitten.

Dawn would have gone out and allowed the Change to take over. But she didn't for one reason, Buffy was out on patrol. They had found out that Toronto was on a Hellmouth and that demons flocked there, not to the extent of Sunnydale but still enough to warrant that Buffy start patrolling. Dawn usually waited till Buffy was home before she let the Change happen so that Buffy would be with her in case she needed to be sedated.

The tingling sensation spread down her arms and legs. Dawn realized she didn't have any time left to wait for Buffy. She got out of bed, grabbed a pile of clothing and got dressed. She walked out of her room and quietly rapped on Buffy's door hoping that her sister had come home early and she just hadn't heard. When no answer came she entered Buffy's bedroom she quickly scribbled her sister a note and left it on her pillow.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Dawn quickly walked down the street, looking for a quiet place to Change. She monitored the tingling as it raced through her body, as soon as it reached her head she knew she had gone as far as she could. She hurried down a deserted alley and undressed quickly behind a barricade of trash bins and hid her clothes under an old newspaper, hoping a good wind wouldn't blow the newspaper away or that someone wouldn't find her clothes and take them.

Dawn sighed as she let the Change come. Her skin began to stretch out as she tried to block the pain. She dropped to the ground as she doubled over. The Change she had found was never easy. Over the next ten minutes she Changed from human to wolf.

When it was over Dawn stretched and blinked. When she looked around, the world was mutated to an array of colors unknown to the human eye, blacks and browns and grays with subtle shadings that her brain still converted to blues and greens and reds. She lifted her nose and inhaled.

Dawn was grateful that when she was a wolf that she was in control. She remembered that Oz had said he was never in control that he was gone when the wolf took over. She had wondered if he had usually blocked it out when he Changed. It was possible. Though for her she was glad she was in control as that meant she would not be a risk to humans. Still she had to get away from them to be on the safe side especially when she could be mistaken for a large dog and her size would be cause for alarm. So she had to get away to someplace where she could run without worrying about humans. Dawn knew that if she wanted to run she had to go to the ravine. She swung to the northwest.

Nearly a half hour later, Dawn stood at the crest of a hill. Her nose twitched, picking up the vestiges of an illegal leaf fire smoldering in a nearby yard. Below her was sanctuary, a perfect oasis in the middle of the city. Dawn leapt forward, throwing herself off. At last she was running.

And then that's when Dawn heard it. Someone had been tracking her. And as she sniffed she knew just who it was. She turned and walked over to her sister.

"Dawn?"

Dawn lowered her head in the affirmative.

"Thank god, Dawnie," said Buffy. "I was worried when I got home and you weren't there. Then I saw your note. Where are your clothes?"

Dawn pawed the ground spelling out the word alley in the dirt.

"Close to the apartment?" Buffy asked as Dawn nodded. "Okay let's head back that way."

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

In the alley Dawn Changed back and then yanked on her clothes. She looked to her sister. "I tried to wait. But the sensations got …"

"Sorry," Buffy said. "I would have been home sooner but I found a nest of vamps."

"Its okay, Buffy," Dawn said as they walked down the alley. "I still don't understand how I or the Pack are even able to remain in control. Oz always said that the wolf was in control and that he was just gone."

"I know," said Buffy. "Maybe Oz was blocking it out of his memory."

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"Hope you're hungry," Buffy said, swinging a bag of Indian takeout onto the table. When not out Slaying, Buffy had a day job at an Indian takeout place down the block. She took the cartons from the bag and set the table.

After dinner, Buffy went downstairs to the fitness center for some weight-training to burn off the excess Slayer energy. And Dawn switched on the TV. She tended to watch old TV sitcoms that hadn't been on by the time she was old enough to watch tv in years except for on some obscure cable channel. It was nice seeing things first run instead of in rerun. The show she was watching was almost over when Buffy returned.

"Good workout?" Dawn asked.

"Always good," Buffy said. "What are you watching?" She leaned over Dawn's head

"Who's the Boss," Dawn said.

"I remember seeing that as a kid. I was about eleven years old when it went off the air. Which means it's still got two years left to go before its cancelled," Buffy said. She looked back at her sister. "How about a patrol? I'll grab a shower while you finish your show."

"Sounds good," Dawn said as Buffy headed to the bathroom.

It was at that moment that the phone rang. Dawn stood and walked across the room. She had almost reached it when the answering machine picked it up. "Dawn? Buffy? It's Jeremy." She stopped in midstride. "Please call me. It's important. It's urgent, Dawn, Buffy. You two know I wouldn't call if it wasn't."

"Dawn?" Buffy asked as she opened the bathroom door.

"It was Jeremy. He said it was important," Dawn said. "I was about to answer it when the machine got it. I'll call him back while you finish your shower."

"Okay," Buffy said.

Dawn picked up the phone and dialed the numbers from memory. It rang four times, and then the answering machine picked up. The voice on the recording was Clay's and she hung up before she heard the entire message. At one time Dawn and Buffy both thought it had been Clay who had bitten her, especially when she had been dating Clay at the time. But if that had been the case they were sure Jeremy would have told them.

An hour later as they did a small mini patrol Buffy asked what Jeremy had wanted. Dawn admitted that she hadn't been able to get in touch with him, but promised to keep trying.

The next morning after breakfast, Buffy went downstairs to get the newspaper and Dawn called again and got the answering machine.

When Buffy came back, Dawn was hovering over the phone, glaring down at it as if she could mentally force Jeremy to pick up. "Still no answer?" she said as Dawn shook her head. "That's unlike Jeremy. Maybe we should go to Stonehaven. See what's wrong."

Dawn knew that Buffy wouldn't leave Toronto if she didn't truly believe something was wrong. "Okay. Get us a flight. If I haven't reached him by noon we'll fly to Syracuse and get a cab to Stonehaven and find out what is wrong."

Each time Dawn called the only reply she got was the click of the answering machine. And so after lunch they took a cab to the airport.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

When the plane landed at the airport in Syracuse, Dawn tried calling again with only the answering machine in response. This time she left a message of two words, "We're coming." Then they got their bags and then got a cab that would take them to Stonehaven.

"Is this it, miss?" the driver asked as he stopped the car sometime later.

Buffy and Dawn looked out the window and saw they were at the front gates of Stonehaven. They could see that Clay was sitting in the grass at the side of the gate.

"We'll get out here," Dawn said.

"Uh-uh. No can do, miss. It's not safe. There's something out there."

Buffy and Dawn thought he was referring to Clay.

"We've been having ourselves some trouble in these woods. Wild dogs by the looks of it. One of our girls from town was found not too far from here. Butchered by these dogs. Buddy of mine found her and he said—well, it wasn't nice. You two just sit back and I'll unlatch that gate and drive you up."

"Wild dogs?" Buffy repeated, certain she'd heard wrong. Jeremy and the Pack had never been a threat to humans before. If that had changed she would have to consider the possibility of having to slay them.

"That's right. My buddy found tracks. Huge ones. Some guy from some college said all the tracks came from one animal, but that can't be right. It's gotta be a pack. You don't see—" The driver's eyes went to the side window and he jumped in his seat. "Jesus!"

The sisters noticed what had startled the driver, Clay stood at Dawn's window grinning at her.

He reached for the door handle as the driver put the car in gear.

"It's okay," Dawn said. "He's with us."

The door opened. Clay ducked his head inside. "You two getting out or just thinking about it?" he asked.

"They're not getting out here," the driver said, twisting back to look over the seat. "If you're fool enough to be wandering around these woods at night, that's your problem, but I'm not letting these young ladies walk god-knows-how-far to that house back there. If you want a ride up, unlock the gate for me and get in. Otherwise, close my door."

Buffy opened her door and slid out as did Dawn so that Clay would not cause a scene with the driver. The cab driver rolled down his window to stop them, and Buffy dropped a fifty on his lap. Clay slammed the other door and headed for the front walk. The driver hesitated, and then sped off.

As Buffy and Dawn approached him, Clay stepped back to watch them as he grinned. "Welcome home, darling."

"Are you the welcoming committee?" Buffy asked. "Or has Jeremy finally chained you up to the front gate where you belong?"

"Slayer, how I've missed you, too," he said.

Buffy shook her head. Clay had never called her by her name. They walked down the quarter-mile lane to the house as Clay followed and inside. Both sisters threw their overnight bags to the floor and headed for the study, expecting to find Jeremy reading by the fireplace.

The room was empty.

"I called," Dawn said. "Why wasn't anyone here?"

"We were here," Clay said. "Around, anyway. You should have left a message."

"I did. Two hours ago," Dawn said.

"Well, that explains it. I've been out by the gate all day waiting for you two, and you both know Jer never checks the machine," Clay said.

"So where is he?" Buffy asked.

Clay shrugged. "Dunno. I haven't seen him since he brought out my dinner a few hours ago. He must have gone out."

The sisters didn't have to check the garage to know that Jeremy going out meant that he had Changed and went for a run.

"Out?" Dawn said. "Well then, we'll just have to find him."

Dawn and Buffy headed for the door as Clay stepped in front of them. "He'll be back soon. Sit down and we'll—" he said.

The Summers sisters sidestepped Clay and walked out of the house as he followed at their heels. They walked through the walled garden to the path leading into the forest. When the trail disappeared into the undergrowth, Dawn paused and sniffed the air, she found nothing. At that moment the sisters realized that Clay was not following them any longer.

"Clayton!" Dawn shouted.

A moment later the reply came back in a crashing of distant bushes. He was off to warn Jeremy. Dawn slammed her hand into the nearest tree trunk. "I should have expected Clay wouldn't let us intrude on Jeremy's privacy that easily," she said.

Dawn and Buffy tried to push through the undergrowth. But found it impossible to make any headway, so they found a clearing and Dawn prepared for the Change. "I'll be back as soon as I can. Head back on to the house. I'll meet you there."

Buffy nodded as she watched her sister disrobe and hand her the clothes. "Okay," she said as she turned to head back in the direction of the house.

The Change was rushed, making it awkward and torturous and afterward Dawn had to rest, panting on the ground. She then got to her feet, and closed her eyes and inhaled the smell of Stonehaven. She darted out of the thicket to the well-worn path.

A howl pierced the night; not musical night singing, but the urgent cry of a lone wolf, blood calling to blood. Dawn closed her eyes and felt the sound vibrate through her. Then she threw back her head and responded.

The bushes crackled behind Dawn and she whirled around to see Clay in wolf form. He caught her forequarters and knocked her onto her back. When Dawn snapped at him, he pulled back. Standing over her, he whined and prodded her neck with his nose, begging her to come play with him.

Dawn grabbed his foreleg between her jaws and yanked him off balance. As Clay fell, she leapt atop him. They tumbled into the thick undergrowth, nipping and kicking and fighting for the top position. Just as he was about to pin her, she wriggled free and leapt away. They circled each other. He inched closer and rubbed his flank against hers. Clay stepped back and crouched, leaving his hindquarters high. Dawn hunkered down as if preparing to meet his attack. When he pounced, she sprang to the side and started to run.

Clay tore after Dawn and they raced through the forest. Then, just as Dawn was circling back toward the front of the property, a shot exploded the peace of the forest. Dawn skidded to a stop.

A shot? Had she really heard a shot? She knew that werewolf hunters, let alone normal hunters rarely came onto Stonehaven, after all the boundaries were clearly marked. Besides the Pack were careful when it came to kills, they didn't go after humans, just animals such as deer or rabbit. Something the wolf could chase and kill. Which meant werewolf hunters rarely even came to Stonehaven as it they had no idea that a werewolf pack lived in the area. It was supposed to be safe.

Another shot rang out. Dawn swiveled her ears. Curiosity got the better of her and she turned and headed north to solve the mystery. She'd barely gone three yards when Clay leapt in front of her. He growled warning her off. Dawn put her ears back and snarled. He blocked her path. Dawn narrowed her eyes and glared at him. She threw herself at him. He met her in mid-leap, knocking the wind from her. When Dawn regained her senses, she was lying on the ground with Clay's teeth locked on the loose skin behind her head. He growled and gave Dawn a rough shake. She got to her feet and he butted her backside with his muzzle.

Dawn turned to give Clay an indignant glare. He butted her again, driving her in the opposite direction. She went along with it for nearly a quarter mile, then swerved to the side and tried an end run around him. But he didn't let her get far when he jumped on top of her, causing her to skid into the dirt. Again he herded her back to the house, nipping at her back legs if she showed signs of slowing.

When they reached where she'd Changed, Clay finally left her alone as he loped off. Dawn sighed and made her Change. "Clay, Buffy has my clothes. I told her to meet me at the house."

"I figured something would happen," Buffy said as she stepped into the clearing. "When I heard the howls, so I stayed close." She handed the clothes to Dawn and her sister yanked them on.

Then Dawn followed by Buffy strode out from the clearing. Clay was there, arms crossed, waiting.

"Where are your clothes?" Buffy asked Clay.

"Elsewhere," he said. "In another clearing, deeper in the forest."

"What the hell were you doing?" Dawn shouted.

"Me? Me? I wasn't the idiot running toward men with guns," Clay said.

"Guns?" Buffy looked at her sister with concern.

"Where the hell was your head at, Dawn?" Clay continued ignoring Buffy's concern for Dawn.

"Don't give me that crap," Dawn said. "I wouldn't leave the property and you know it. I was just curious. I'm back an hour and you're already testing the waters. How far can you push me, how much can you control—"

"Those hunters were on the property, Dawn." Clay said.

"You are sure?" Buffy asked. "On Jeremy's land?"

Clay nodded. "He should be inside now. Go talk to him." He turned and headed into the woods to find his clothing.

Dawn and Buffy walked into the house thinking of what the driver had said about wild dogs. There were no wild dogs near Stonehaven. Nor did wild dogs kill humans. Which meant only one thing, a werewolf. The sisters knew it wouldn't be Jeremy or Clay, so who was it? When they entered the study, they found Jeremy hadn't returned. So they decided to wait.

"So you both have come back … finally," a voice said ten minutes later. Buffy and Dawn turned to see that Jeremy stood in the doorway. He looked around. "Where's Clay?" he asked.

"Went to get his clothes," Buffy said. "He and Dawn had Changed."

"I heard shots in the back forest," Dawn said.

"I've been trying to contact you two for three days," Jeremy said ignoring Dawn's statement for the time being on the shots.

"We were busy," Buffy said. "You know the life of a Slayer, Jeremy."

"I understand that, Buffy, and I wouldn't call if it wasn't important. If I do call, you two answer. That was the arrangement," Jeremy said.

"Correct, that was the arrangement," Dawn said. "Past tense. Our arrangement ended when Buffy and I left the Pack."

"When you two left the Pack? And when did this happen? Forgive me if I missed something, but I don't recall any such conversation," Jeremy said.

"Jeremy, since Dawn and I are immortal," Buffy said as she tried to explain for the umpteenth time since he had learned of their immortality, "we will outlive even you and your increased lifespan. For that reason we can't be part of the Pack for more than a few years. The deal was that if you did not find out who bit Dawn within a few years, we would have to leave before suspicions were aroused on why we weren't aging. And when we left, that was it."

Clay walked in the room carrying a tray of cold cuts and cheese. He laid it on the desk and looked from Dawn and Buffy to Jeremy.

Jeremy continued. "So Dawn, Buffy, you both are no longer part of the Pack then?"

"Correct," the Summers sisters said together.

"Then you two are one of them—mutts?" Jeremy asked.

"You saying I'm a mutt, Jer?" Buffy asked as she got up into his face. "I wasn't even bitten, remember? The only reason I was officially part of the pack because of my being the Slayer and because of Dawn."

"Of course he isn't, Slayer," Clay said before looking at Jeremy. "And of course they aren't, Jer."

"Well, which is it?" Jeremy asked. "Pack or not?"

"Come on, Jer," Clay said. "You know they don't mean it."

"We had an arrangement, Dawn, Buffy. I wouldn't contact you unless I needed you both. Well, I need you both now," Jeremy said.

"You need us for what?" Buffy asked. "To take care of a trespassing mutt? When we left the deal was you would take care of the mutt's that came close to Stonehaven yourself, so I would not have to come back. Anyways what's going on that's so damned important you need us?"

Jeremy turned and headed for the door. "It's late. I've called a Meet for tomorrow. I'll tell you both everything then. Hopefully you both will feel less confrontational after a good sleep."

"Whoa!" Buffy said as she grabbed Jeremy's arm and tightened her grip to remind him of what she was. "We dropped everything to come here. We skipped out of work, paid for airline tickets and a cab from Syracuse. We raced here as fast as we could because no one was answering the damned phone. Dawn and I want to know why we're here and we want to know now. If you walk out that door, we're not going to promise you'll find us here in the morning."

"So be it," Jeremy said. "If you two decide to leave, have Clay drive you to Syracuse."

"Yeah, right," Dawn said. "We'd be more likely to get to the airport by thumbing a ride with the local psychopath."

Clay grinned. "You forget, darling. I am the local psychopath."

Jeremy said nothing, just stood there and waited for Buffy to release his arm. When she did he left the room.

"Arrogant son-of-a-bitch," Dawn muttered as Clay shrugged. "What the hell do you want?"

Clay grinned. "You. What else?"

"Where? Right here? On the floor?" Buffy asked, shocked. Clay was up to his old tricks was he?

"Nah. Not that. Not yet. Just the same old thing I always want. Dawn and you here for good," Clay said. He knew the Slayer in Buffy made her an Alpha and that she saw Dawn whether she knew it or not as part of not only her family but her pack. And for that reason, he knew that Buffy would not leave Dawn, unless Dawn wanted her to. He looked back at Dawn. "I'm glad you're home, darling. I missed you."

Dawn nearly tripped over her feet running from the room as Buffy followed her.