Chapter 16: A Fallen Brother

*****England*****

Scott, Malia, and Lydia finished up their dinner with Ethan and Jackson before catching their late train to Italy. They discovered the train came every few hours, so they decided to take the eight o'clock one. They had about an hour window to introduce Ethan and Jackson to the slayer hours in London, so they took a cab. Ethan sat up front while Malia and Lydia squeezed in between the two wolves.

Malia had to be restrained from stabbing the driver with her claws as they nearly died three times before they made it the slayer house. The traffic in London was insane, but their driver was even crazier. It was like traffic rules didn't even exist in this country.

"Where did you learn to drive?" Lydia asked as they untangled themselves. Scott threw open the door and Malia rolled out.

The cabby grinned. "Welcome to London, sweetheart," he said. Ethan had already scanned his card, so they didn't bother giving him a tip.

"Sorry," Jackson said. "I should have warned you. Cabbies are a bit on the insane side here."

Too close to the road, Lydia jumped back as a tourist bus came barreling down the lane. "They're not the only ones. Walking is definitely safer," Lydia said.

"If I'd maimed him a little, he might drive better in the future," Malia growled.

Scott laughed and grabbed her hand, pulling her close for a kiss. "None of that, babe," he said. "You don't want blood on your new outfit."

Malia was somewhat mollified as they went toward the slayer house door.

Tires squealed, and they turned to see what the commotion was about. A dark colored SUV with tinted windows opened a door, and a person rolled out of it. They were so focused on it that they neglected to see the car behind it. A man wearing a ski mask had a rifle and took aim.

Ethan instinctively moved in front of Scott as the bullets pummeled his body.

Lydia used her voice and let out a cry, the sound wave flipped the car. Slayers came pouring out of the building.

"What the hell?" Kennedy asked as she saw Jackson holding Ethan while Malia had covered the girl thrown out of the SUV. "Is that Susie?"

Malia looked down and hardly recognized the battered face of Susie. "I think so," she said.

"Call an ambulance!" Jackson cried as Scott tried to stop the blood pouring out of Jackson.

"The shooter is trying to escape," Lydia called, pointing to the overturned car.

"Get him, Dad!" Malia called out as Peter made his presence known, pouncing on one of the two guys crawling out of the overturned car.

Slayers moved quickly to grab the other guy, trying to escape.

Sirens were heard as the police made their way to the public crime scene.

"We've got to get Ethan inside," Scott said.

"He needs a hospital!" Jackson screamed.

"A regular hospital can't treat a werewolf," Scott reminded him.

"We have trained medical inside along with some witches," Kennedy said.

Scott and Jackson began standing, holding on to Ethan. A slayer stepped in to help Jackson with the larger half of his body.

Lydia looked at Kennedy. "How are we going to explain that overturned car?" she asked.

"Your wolves can stop a car?" Kennedy asked in surprise as she moved down the steps, kicking the large curb-side trashcan into the road, to explain the flipped car.

"I'm not sure, but they didn't do that," Lydia said. "I did."

"How?" Kennedy asked in surprise.

"Her voice is a weapon," Malia said, watching as the two attempted murderers were dragged over to them.

"Who are you?" Kennedy snarled, getting in front of the closest one.

"Hunters," Peter said.

"How do you know?" Kennedy asked, looking at the two men.

"They don't smell supernatural. Why else would they shoot a wolf and beat up but not kill a slayer?" he asked.

"Who are you?" Kennedy asked Peter.

"He's my stalker," Malia said, glaring at Peter.

"I'm her father," Peter said, holding out his hand. "I'm Peter Hale. Your slayer Buffy is dating my nephew."

Kennedy looked at Malia in surprise. "You didn't say you were cousins with Buffy's new man," she said.

Malia shrugged. "I barely know Derek since I was raised alone in the forest, trapped in my coyote form after my birth mother murdered my sister and adopted mother when she failed to kill me. I didn't know anyone until about three years ago," she said. "Derek was gone when I turned human again, so I don't think of him as my family just like that man is not my father."

The police arrived, breaking up the discussion. Kennedy looked and saw that the wolves were nowhere to be seen, so they made it inside. She took a deep breath as she prepared to explain what happened to the Scotland Yard.

Giles was directing their guest to take Ethan's large form to the dining room where they placed him on the big table.

Scott saw the black inky lines spread onto Ethan's body from each entry wound and looked up in fear. "The bullets were laced with wolfs bane," he said.

Ethan had been shot five times, which would be hard to survive without being poisoned. It didn't look good for him.

*****Beacon Hills******

Willow was feeding Oz's adorable baby while Oz took his morning shower. How could she love a baby so much who wasn't even hers?

The redheaded baby flashed her a smile as he took another bite of oatmeal. Will enjoyed playing in his food a bit too much, so they always fed him before allowing him to practice with the spoon. That way, they'd know he got some of the food inside him.

When Oz came into the kitchen wearing pants and no shirt, he was toweling his hair dry. Willow noted the changes in his physique since the last time she'd seen him naked. It had been nearly five years now, and he was much more muscular and compact than he'd been before. His hair was no longer colored but was his normal red shade. Her pulsed raced as she gazed at him in wonder—a revelation hit her. She couldn't stop the words from coming out of her mouth.

"Oz, I love you," she said simply, handing Will his spoon.

Oz stopped drying his hair and looked at the woman, who had at one time been his entire world. His smile reached his eyes. "I love you, too, Will," he said.

"I-I mean, I love you like I always did," she blurted out. "I'm not as gay as I thought."

Oz laughed. "You were always mine, Will," he said. He sat down in the chair next to her and picked up her hand. He kissed it. "I'm not ready to put my late wife aside yet, though. It still hurts too much."

"I understand," Willow said. And she did. Tara's death ripped her apart, so she could imagine what Oz was feeling.

"Wait for me?" he asked.

Willow nodded. "Of course," she said, giving him a warm smile.

The front door open, and they both looked up. Willow stood up, surprised. "Dawn? What in the world are you doing here?" she asked.

"The little turd insisted she wasn't going to spend another day away from Big Sis," Faith said, appearing behind her.

"Oh, my God! Is that your son?" Dawn squealed, her eyes latching onto the feeding baby.

"That's my Will—William, named after his maternal grandpa," Oz said with a grin.

Dawn hugged Willow and gazed down at the baby. "We've never had a baby before," she said in awe. "He has red hair." Will looked up at her and grinned, showing her his two front teeth. "Wow! That smile is a weapon!"

"Does Buffy know you're here?" Willow asked, looking between the two girls.

Faith shrugged. "Doubtful. I told Dawnie to call her, but she said it was better to be a surprise," she said. She headed to the coffee pot on the counter.

"If I'm already here, she won't say no," Dawn said smugly. "Where is she?"

"She doesn't live here," Willow said. "She is at Derek's."

Faith looked surprised. "She's already shaking up with her wolf-boy?" she asked.

"He's no boy," Willow said with a smirk. "Wait until you see him."

"He's hot, huh?" Faith asked, grinning.

"That's too tame of a word," Willow said.

Oz looked at her curiously. "You actually noticed?" he asked her.

"Just 'cause I sometimes have sex with girls don't mean I can't appreciate a well put together man," she said, giving him cheeky grin as she looked at his own bare form.

"She's got a point," Faith said, checking out Oz. "You look pretty damn fine yourself, Oz."

Oz stood. "I guess I should go get dressed," he said.

"Don't do it on my account," Faith said, smirking.

Willow pulled out her cell. "I better call Buffy and tell her to get over here," she said, looking down at her phone. "Oh, I have like three missed calls from Giles. Do you know what's going on?"

"My phone is still turned off from the plane," Faith said, looking at Dawn.

"Like anyone would call me if something big was going on," she scoffed.

"Should I call Buffy or Giles first?" Willow asked.

"Buffy," Faith said as Dawn said, "Giles."

"Buffy it is," Willow said, pushing number three on her speed dial. Xander was still number one.

"Willow, did you speak to Giles?" Buffy asked in greeting.

"No, I just saw three missed calls. What's going on?" Willow asked.

"There was an attacked at the London house. Hunters tried to gun down Scott and beat up one of the slayers really bad—she's in a coma," Buffy said grimly.

"What? Who?" Willow asked.

"Susie," Buffy supplied. "Scott's okay, but his friend Ethan got shot five times. The bullets were laced with wolfs bane. Can you help them? The witches there haven't been able to stop the spread of the poison. Giles figures he has less than an hour before it hits his heart."

"I will try," she said. "Come to the house. Faith and Dawn are here." She hung up before Buffy had a chance to reply.

"Is everything okay?" Dawn asked.

"Buffy will be here soon, but I have to go to London—Scott needs me," Willow said.

"How can you get there in time to be any help?" Oz wondered.

Willow looked at Dawn. "Can you donate?" she asked.

Dawn sighed. "Fine," she said. "My blood opens portals when combined with Willow's magic."

"Cool," Oz said.

"Your room is at the top of the stairs on the left, by the way," Willow said.

Dawn grinned. "Really? I have my own room already?" she asked.

"Buffy wanted you to have space here—she always planned on bringing you here. She was just going to wait until the semester was over," Willow said. "I got to call in at school and grab my supplies."

"I'll call Mrs. Martin," Oz offered. "I can cover your classes."

"Thanks, Oz," she said. She kissed the baby and looked up at Faith. "Help, Oz, clean up the baby, okay?"

Faith looked horrified. "Me? What do I know about babies?" she asked.

"Don't drop him, and you'll be fine," Willow said, flashing a smile.

"If you'll watch him for a few minutes, I'll make the call for Will and get dressed," Oz said to Faith.

"What do I do?" Faith asked, panicked.

"Just don't let him jump out of the highchair," Oz said without cracking a smile.

Faith's eyes widened. "He can do that?" she asked.

"Not so far, but there's a first time for everything," Oz said, allowing a grin to show on his face. Then he turned and left the room.

Dawn laughed at Faith's helpless look and ran up the stairs to check out her new room.

Several minutes later, Willow knocked on the room, carrying a small bowl and something else. "I need three drops," she said. "I got this diabetic needle stabber. It'll be easier for you."

Dawn sighed. "Stupid mystical blood. I can't open portals myself, but you can use my blood to do it," she said.

"I can teleport short distances, but it takes so much out of me," Willow said. "This way, I can get there right away."

Dawn nodded and held out her finger. Less than five minutes later, Willow was walking through the portal and into the London slayer house.

Scott, Malia, Lydia, and Jackson showed various degrees of surprise when a circle opened up in the dining room. It grew in size until Willow walked through it.

Ethan was fading fast. They'd removed the bullets and given him blood, but the poison was almost at his heart.

If Willow couldn't do something soon, he would die.

*****Chapter End*****

I should be able to wrap this story up in a few more chapters. Review if want to see something happen before I end it.