AUTHOR'S NOTE As of last night, this story is completely typed up, so there shouldn't be any more delays with posting. Thanks for your patience!
DISCLAIMER I own nothing from either X-Men or Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
They came back inside three hours later, dripping wet, freezing, and exhausted. Even with Oz's help, Pyro, Kitty, and Theresa were no match for the Iceman and Colossus. Nevertheless, everyone was smiling when they came inside.
Jean met them with a raised eyebrow. "Somehow I don't think those puddles are going to clean up themselves," she said.
Oz stepped forward. "Don't worry about it. I'll clean it."
Flashes of Willow assaulted her mind every time Oz looked at her. She smiled wanly. "No, I'll take care of it. The professor would like to speak with you."
A weight settled across Oz's shoulders as the fun of the afternoon evaporated in the face of the memory of why he was there. He nodded. "Is he in his office?"
"Yes," Jean said.
Oz trudged through the mansion, his good mood gone. Professor Xavier would show him the tape. He would see the monster that he feared so thoroughly. And then he would not be able to deny the horrible things that he knew he was capable of.
He paused outside the door and took a deep breath before going inside. Professor Xavier was waiting for him. "How was the snowball fight?"
"We lost," Oz said with a small smile and a shrug.
Xavier chuckled. "I suppose that is to be expected. Are you ready to watch the recording?"
Oz sat heavily in one of the armchairs. "So much for beating around the bush."
"You would rather not see it?"
"It's not that," Oz said. "It's that…" He trailed off, unsure of how to explain it. Xavier waited patiently. "I've never seen the wolf," Oz said. "I've never been conscious of being the wolf. But if I watch that tape, it won't just be like a bad dream anymore." He could feel his face burn. "It will be real."
The older man nodded thoughtfully. After a moment, he repeated, "So shall we watch it?"
Oz nodded. Xavier took a remote control out of his desk drawer and at his press of a button, the screen on the far wall snapped on. A moment later, the image appeared.
He was speechless as he watched himself in wolf form violently attacking anything in his path. It was such unrestrained viciousness. It made him feel sick. "That's me," he finally choked.
"Unfortunately, that's true," Xavier said.
They lapsed back into silence, the only sound being the crashes and growls on the tape. Oz clenched his fist tighter and tighter until his fingernails dug painfully into his palm. Finally he said, "I want it gone." He looked at the Professor. "I want it out of me or I want it buried so deep that it will never be able to get out."
Xavier nodded and stopped the tape. "I understand. But I must confess, Oz, I don't know exactly how to help you do that. I have some ideas, but I would like to speak with someone who has far more supernatural knowledge than I do first. I don't know of anyone."
The desire to quell the wolf won out over his hesitance to mention anything about anyone in his old life. "I know a guy. You got a phone?"
…
The ringing of the phone interrupted lunch in the small and cluttered apartment. Among the clattering of silverware, the man ran into the living room to pick up the receiver. "Hello?"
"Hello. Is this a Rupert Giles?"
Giles frowned and took off his glasses. "Yes. Who is this?"
"My name is Professor Charles Xavier. I'm calling from Westchester, New York. You see, I run a school here for gifted youngsters."
"Yes?" Giles asked as he sat down.
"It's a school for young mutants," Xavier said. "We offer them a safe haven in which to learn and refine their powers."
Confused, Giles wondered if this man had the right Rupert Giles. "I see."
Xavier chuckled. "I'm sorry. All of this must seem quite out of left field to you."
"A little," Giles admitted.
"Well, a young man came to see me recently for help with an unusual mutation. He has been staying with us here but I'm afraid it is not the sort of mutation I am familiar with."
"And you think I can help you?" Giles asked.
Xavier said, "Actually, he referred me to you. A friend of yours, I believe. Oz?"
Giles sat up, suddenly alert. "Oz is there with you?"
"Yes."
He jumped up from the couch and ran for his calendar. "Professor Xavier, Oz is very dangerous right now. Have you somewhere to lock him up?"
Xavier sounded amused. "Yes, yes, Mr. Giles, don't worry. His condition of being a werewolf is the reason he came to us to begin with."
Giles breathed a sigh of relief. "Good."
"But I have never come across a werewolf before," Xavier admitted. "My knowledge concerning mutation is extensive, if I do say so myself, but the supernatural is something that I know nothing about. I thought perhaps you might shed some light on the subject?"
"Of course," Giles said. "What has Oz told you?"
There was a pause and Giles heard muffled voices. "Is – is Oz there with you?" he asked.
"Yes," Xavier answered. "Would you like to speak with him?"
"Please."
He heard the noise of the telephone being transferred before a familiar voice said, "Hey."
"Oz!" Giles said. "Are you all right?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. The mutants here are cool." Oz paused. "How's Willow?"
Protective indignation rose in Giles and he replied coolly, "Not too good. When she found that your bandmate had packed your belongings for you, she took it very hard."
Oz's voice sounded pained. "Well do me a favor and don't tell her where I am."
"Not a problem." But the anger was draining away. Giles sighed. "Oz, if you want them to help you cure the lycanthropy, then they have to understand that it is something curable."
"What do you mean?"
"The mutations that Professor Xavier and the others have are written into their genetic codes," he explained. "They aren't curable because they're a part of the mutants themselves. But lycanthropy is a supernatural disease. And just like any other disease, it has the potential to be cured. They are probably looking at it all wrong."
Oz responded with his characteristic, "Hmm."
Giles heard the tell-tale echoing of voices coming toward his front door. "Oz, the others are on their way here. I think it best if I hang up with you before they come banging in my front door."
Oz chuckled sadly. "Fair enough. Thanks for the help."
"Of course. Good luck."
The line went dead. Giles hung up the phone mere seconds before his front door was thrown open.
