EXPLANATIONS AND THEORIES

DISCLAIMER: I don't own the characters of BTVS or W.I.T.C.H. and I earn no profit in writing this.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This takes place in the same continuity as 'I'm Done' but is not a sequel and stands alone quite well. If you have any comments or preferences, please don't be shy. RandR.

"Panicking isn't going to help, Susan." Dawn tried to calm the older woman.

"What will help?" Susan Vandom demanded. "You tell me my daughter is some kind of magic warrior, and because of it, she's likely been kidnapped or killed, but you're not sure which. What will help at this point?"

"We don't have a lot of facts right now," Dawn Summers responded. "There's no reason to assume the worst. I've called for a little magical assistance. She should be here soon."

"More magic, just what we need," Susan muttered.

"Would you rather wait for the police to start taking you seriously?" Susan winced at the memory and then glared at Maria. "Sorry, but Dawn is right. This really is the best chance we have."

"So you say," Susan shot back. "It was a spell you cast that started this." They had gathered at the Vandom's apartment. Susan was pacing the floor, worried sick. She tried to remain calm and think clearly, but it just wasn't working. There was too much new information on top of the worry. Magic? Demons? The world didn't make sense anymore.

"I have no idea what caused that," Maria insisted. "It couldn't have been the spell. All it was supposed to do was make her aura visible to my eyes, so I could learn if she was a slayer. It should have been no more dangerous to her than…than taking her picture."

"I heard the way she was screaming," Susan said with a shudder. "And that light! I thought she was on fire."

"She wasn't," Danielle reassured her. "Remember, there were no burn marks, no ashes. She was taken somewhere. Question is by who and why?"

"What about Matt?" Dawn asked. "He seems to know something about the local demon scene. Why isn't he here?"

"He said he would check on some things," Susan replied, forcing herself to sit. "I don't know whether to hope he knows what's going on or not. I don't want to think he had something to do with this or that he's been dragging Will into… demon trouble. He seemed like a nice boy."

"I can understand you not wanting Will involved in this life," Dawn said, setting aside the issue of Matt for the moment. "And if being left alone to have a normal life is what the two of you want, we'll leave you alone. Unfortunately, the bad guys might not be so accommodating. I know it sounds harsh, but if my guess about her is right, and someone or something has figured it out, that could explain why you were kidnapped and why she disappeared like that."

Susan stared at the floor for a time, not saying anything. "Even if I get her back safe, things aren't going to be the same, are they? There are things like that… M'fash-whatever out there who'll want to hurt her."

"First," Dawn said, putting a confidence into her voice that she didn't feel, "we are getting her back. Second. Nothing ever stays the same. There are always changes to adapt to. Yeah, if she has started attracting the wrong type of attention, things could get awkward, but you'll adapt, we all do. She'll still be your daughter regardless of whatever else she might be."

OOOOOOOOOO

The conversation with Hay Lin and her grandmother had been awkward and full of surprises for everyone. Elyon was gone; taken prisoner by the hag who had organized the Knights of Vengeance. The Guardians were, once again scattered and not by choice this time. Vacation was the last place any of them wanted to be under the circumstances.

"What about these strangers?" Hay Lin asked. "Do you think they work with the old witch?"

Matt shook his head. "I don't know. I don't think so, though. Weird as it is, I think its just coincidence that Mrs. Vandom and Miss Summers met that way."

"So do we talk to them?" Hay Lin glanced to her grandmother worriedly. "Maybe they know what made Will disappear."

"And maybe, they caused it," Yan Lin responded gently. "We know too little about them to trust. It was a very odd coincidence that Will's mother met them the way she did, and I do not believe it was a coincidence that they were on hand when Will vanished."

"I guess that is unlikely," Matt allowed, "but we don't have a lot of options. We may have to take the risk. I'm not saying we should be entirely up front with them or that we shouldn't take precautions, but they might not be enemies. They might know something that could help us find Will."

For a moment, the old woman said nothing, then sighed. "The Oracle agrees with you."

Matt sat forward, looking hopeful. "You've talked to him? Does he know what happened?"

"Only what you were able to tell me. He cannot divine her-"

"There's a shock," Matt broke in, startling the old woman as he rose and began to pace. "He doesn't know where Will is. He doesn't know who, let alone where the sorceress is. He doesn't know where Elyon is. When was the last time he told us anything useful?"

"Matt!" Hay Lin cried reproachfully. "I'm sure he's trying."

"All he's trying is my patience. Will could be anywhere!"

"She's probably on Meridian. That and Kandrakhar are the only places she's been."

"Then why hasn't she come home yet? She's probably hurt." He turned to Yan Lin. "Is there another way of getting to Meridian without the Heart or Blunk?"

"Hmm. Yes. I believe there is." She left the room for a few minutes and returned with a cloth wrapped object. "This should do the trick." Carefully unwrapping it, she lay a very familiar book on the table before them. Hay Lin took a step back.

"What's that doing here?"

"I got it from the book store after Cedric kidnapped Elyon. It is mystically linked to a counterpart on Meridian, forming an inversion point between the worlds, and will transport you there."

"I remember," Hay Lin sighed looking at the book, "and wasn't that a fun visit? Come on Matt. Let's go see what we can find out." She took his hand

"Wait. I should call Mrs. Vandom first, let her know we're going to be looking for Will." He pulled out his cell phone and dialed Will's home number. "Hello? Mrs. Vandom?"

OOOOOOOOOO

"Oh Matt! Thank goodness! Have you found Will? Do you know what happened?"

"Not yet, but we have a place to start looking. I wanted to check in and let you know you wouldn't be able to reach me for a while. Any word from those girls?"

"They're here now. They say that they cast a spell to try to learn something about Will." Out of the corner of her eye she saw Maria stiffen, but Dawn put a hand on her shoulder. "They wanted to look at her aura or something to find out if she was a slayer."

"What's a slayer?"

"Some kind of magic fighter who kills demons. They insist the spell was harmless though, like taking her picture."

"Hmm. I'll pass that along. What are they doing?"

"They've called for someone who knows more about magic. Matt, maybe you should bring your friend here. I don't think they meant any harm. Maybe if we put our heads together, we can figure out what happened."

"Maybe, but Will's been gone for hours. She could be hurt. I don't think we can delay searching for her. I'll call as soon as we get back."

OOOOOOOOOO

He closed the phone and turned to Yan Lin. "What's a slayer?"

The old woman shrugged. "No idea. What did she say?" Matt related the conversation to them. "Odd. There are old stories about demons and chosen warriors, but I always thought they were campfire stories or corruptions of tales of former guardians."

"Looks like that's not the case. Sounds like they could be the good guys. It doesn't change anything, though. We still have to get going."

"Right," Hay Lin nodded. "Come on." She took his hand and they both grabbed the book.

OOOOOOOOOO

"I'm not sure that was a good idea," Maria ventured. "How much do you know about Matt's friends?"

"A little less than I know about you," Susan admitted.

Maria glanced away from Susan, unable to meet her eyes for a moment. "Okay. Good point. We are trying, but I just want you to be safe. We still don't know why you were kidnapped."

"What we do know," Dawn broke in, "is that Matt knows more than he's saying." She sighed. "I didn't say anything before because I hoped to avoid making you aware of… our problems. He didn't show up to rescue you alone. There was a demon with him of a type I've never seen before. That demon used a mystical artifact to open some sort of dimensional rift." She had Susan Vandom's attention. "The demon that kidnapped you was working on commission. He was hired to kidnap both of us. We know they were separate contracts, but that's all we know. The M'Fashnik isn't being very forthcoming." She sighed. "I'm sorry I didn't say so sooner, but Matt asked me not to, and I wanted him to come forward about it himself."

"What was the demon with Matt doing?"

"The M'Fashnik had arrived with another demon, some kind of troll like creature. The only reason I got out was that it opened the wrong door. Matt's friend, he called himself Blunk, dropped the A/C vent on the thing's head and knocked it out. Then he took the big creature away through the rift before Matt let you out. He had intended that you never see any of that."

"But he did come there to rescue me," it was a statement.

"Oh, yes. That was his motivation. I'm just not sure about his friends."

"Not all demons are evil, but it's better to be cautious," Maria told her.

"I've known some perfectly nice demons," Dawn assured her. "My sister knew a couple she trusted enough to baby-sit me when I was young. This Blunk guy could be harmless, but Maria is right. It is better to be careful."

Before Susan could decide how to respond to this, there was a knock at the door and she went to answer it. A redheaded woman waited outside, smiling. "Hi. Susan Vandom?"

"Yes."

"I'm Willow Rosenberg. Dawn called me."

"Um, yes, come in. She says you can help find my daughter." The redhead gave her a quizzical look.

"Dawn didn't give me a lot of details, just said that it was urgent." It didn't take long for her to get caught up, with each of those present describing events as they saw them. Willow sat back on the couch and thought carefully for a moment. "Weird. The spell certainly didn't do that! Not directly anyway."

"What do you mean, 'not directly'?" Susan asked, still having trouble with the entire idea of magic.

"I'll need to have a magical looksee at the scene, but it could be the locator spell triggered something that was already in place, like a booby-trap."

"Someone booby-trapped my daughter?" Susan sounded incredulous, which Willow could understand. It was a stretch, especially for someone who was still skeptical about magic.

"You're having a hard time with all of this, aren't you? Would you like to see proof of magic?"

"That would be a beginning," Susan admitted. "Going to pull a rabbit out of a hat?"

Willow rolled her eyes. "I think I can do better." She glanced around the room and saw a small vase with a single rose that Dean had given her. "May I?" Susan nodded. "This is a simple meditation exercise, but it should do." Willow concentrated. The flower rose out of the vase and came to float in front of Susan, glowing slightly. One by one, the petals were stripped from the rose until only the stem was left and the petals floated around it as if they were planets orbiting their star. "Will that do?"

Susan nodded mutely.

"I'm gonna have a look at the scene and see if I can figure out what happened." She rose and went to the window when Dawn waved her over.

"Right down there. We didn't find any traces remaining, no ash or anything like that, which suggests a transportation spell of some sort." Willow nodded thoughtfully.

"Let's get started then." From the large purse she'd arrived with, she removed several candles and two small jars. She glanced down at the carpet. "Mmm. You'd probably prefer it if we did this in the kitchen." Working quickly, with the ease of long practice, she made a circle on the floor, and set the candles at seemingly random points around it. "Maria? I'll need you to anchor me. I'm taking a little trip to the astral plane."

Susan didn't know what to expect, but found that she was under-whelmed by the spectacle. After joining hands across the circle, both chanted for a bit before passing out. She turned to Dawn. "This is supposed to help?"

"Not all magic is flashy. I know how it must look," Dawn tried to sound reassuring, "but they know what they're doing."

"I hope so."

For twenty minutes, neither girl stirred, although, Willow would occasionally murmur something indistinguishable. Then, both sat up, looking somewhat puzzled. "That was… odd." Willow scrambled to her feet. "Okay. I didn't expect that, but it doesn't alter the situation."

"What?" Susan demanded. "What is it?"

Taking a deep breath, Willow began to explain. "It was the locator spell that hurt her, but not for the reason any of us guessed. It somehow interacted badly with her own magic, causing a kind of… feedback for lack of a better word."

"Her own magic? Will doesn't have any magic!"

"But she does," Willow insisted. "I've never seen anything quite like it, either. Its part of her, woven through her very being. It looks like it should be dormant, though, at least on its own."

"What do you mean?" Dawn asked before Susan could.

"Does Will have any… special possessions? Something she always keeps with her? Maybe a bit of jewelry, a ring or a necklace?"

Susan was confused, but considered the question. "Yes, actually. She's got this necklace she wears. Kind of pretty, but a bit gaudy. I'm not sure where she got it, but it's just a bit of cheap costume jewelry."

"It's serving as some kind of amplifier and at the same time, channeling energy into her from an outside source. I'm not sure of the details. The only thing that's clear is that that girl is carrying around a heckuva lot of mojo."

"That…that can't be right," Susan protested. "Will's not a witch or anything."

"Probably not," Willow agreed. "This is something entirely different. It explains… well sort of… what happened. Think of it like a bad drug reaction. Doctors always tell you not to mix certain types of medication. Well, it's the same with magic."

"So why did she disappear? Where is she?"

"That," Willow admitted, "I don't know. She used the amulet she carries to open a spatial fold and slip away. I couldn't track her."

"But it was something she did herself, right?" Dawn asked. Willow nodded. "So she probably thought she was under attack and escaped. She wasn't kidnapped, she went on her own."

"So where is she now?" her mother demanded. "Why hasn't she come home?"

"She may be recovering from the effect of the spell," Willow suggested. "From what I could sense, and what Maria and Danielle said, it must've hurt a lot. She probably transported herself somewhere safe to recover."

"I hope that's the case," Susan nodded, "but I still want to find her as soon as possible."

"I'm sorry," Willow said sincerely, "but I have nothing to go on. There are an infinite number of dimensions and even narrowing it down could take weeks. I'm sure she won't stay away that long."

"I don't seem to have many options," Susan gritted out. "I can't do anything but hope that Matt finds her. He said he would be out of touch for a while, that he was going to look for Will."

"He can create rifts?" Willow asked.

"Or get his little demon friend to do it for him," Dawn answered. She sighed. "We really don't know enough. This is all just speculation, and I'd still like to know more about that pixie who throws lightning bolts."

Willow looked curiously around the group at that, but decided not to ask. "One thing at a time," she advised. "There may be something we can do." She turned to Susan. "Magic can leave traces behind, echoes, residue; depends on the type and concentration. I might be able to learn more about Will's magic if I do a little testing here in your apartment. I just need to find the right way to 'look' around."