Title: From the Darkness into the Light

Author: Dark Topaz

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Rating: R (just to be safe)

Pairing: D/Willow

Genre: VHD/ BtVS

Disclaimer: anyone familiar I don't own

Feedback: Yes please

Summary: At the showdown with Glory while they lost a slayer they gained a hunter and more.

Author's Note: Takes place during Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust and season five of Buffy, Tara and Willow didn't start dating. the writers block has been broken

Chapter 5

Willow stood in front of her bedroom mirror and took in the changes she had undergone. Aside from her hair her eyes had lightened to a very pale green she also felt a tugging towards any solid surface around her, the floor, table, that ugly lamp she inherited from her great Aunt Sasha. There was also a dim muttering in the back of her head that sounded like a man. Granted she had already done this, but it was better then thinking about the fallout that had occurred when Buffy came to.

Flash Back

Anya's statement seem to defy physics as it echoed throughout the crowded living room prompting several reactions. Charlette blushed a bright red and buried her face in Mier's chest Mier in turn looked at Anya as though she where something he had found sticking to the bottom of his shoes. Willow found her self sharing a look of disbelief with D, granted his was portrayed solely by minute muscle twitches, but she could read it all the same. Mashiera was giving Xander a look of sympathy that the young man returned with one of disbelief. Giles was cleaning his glasses and muttering under his breathe. Dawn was trying to contain her giggles, while Buffy was starting to come around. " Buffy." the young teen shrieked, gathering the attention of the rest of the rooms occupants. " Come on open your eyes." Dawn pleaded as the rest of the scoobies gathered around her.

" This can not be heaven." was the first thing out of the blonde's mouth.

" Nope, sorry you are still an active member of this mortal coil." Giles replied as he ghosted his hand over the crown of her head.

" How are you feeling?" Willow asked, as looked at Buffy from behind the blonde's head causing the blonde to get a face full of hair before it crawled its way off of her.

" I feel off for some reason like something important is missing." Buffy replied as she pulled herself up. " And how long have I been out any way."

" A couple of hours why?" Xander asked as he kneeled by the coffee table.

" Because I remember Willow having a lot less hair." Buffy replied as she tried to pull herself up and finding herself struggling to do it. " What is wrong with me?"

" You are no longer a slayer." Willow said. " When you jumped into the portal you sacrificed the part that Dawn had been made from, the slayer."

" What are you talking about Willow?" Buffy snapped as she turned to look at the red fully. " And what are you wearing, god don't tell me you summoned your vampire self again."

" No, Buffy vamp Willow wasn't summoned." Xander explained as moved closer to the blonde trying to draw her attention away from Willow. " Willow made a deal with, well with something to get help in the final show down with Glory."

" So she is possesed." Buffy said with a final tone of voice.

" Not quite it was more like she was enhanced." Giles replied as he started to rub the lens of his glasses. " Similar to what happened to you when you where called."

" So now she is a slayer." Buffy stated as if that explained everything.

" No, she has become something else entirely." Giles said as he turned his gaze back towards Willow. The newest members had moved to flank her and stood in a ready stance incase the former slayer took it upon herself to attack.

" What are you talking about?" Buffy asked as she pulled herself up into a sitting position. " And who are they." She said as she tried to jump to her feet only to stumble backwards.

" Easy Buffy, you don't have that healing factor any more." Xander cautioned as he moved to help rearrange herself.

" Don't be ridicules, Xander." Buffy snapped as she tried to slap his hands away. " I will be fine once what ever drugs I was given wears off."

End of Flashback

"And that was the beginning of the end." she muttered to herself as she turned away from the mirror to face the group that had escaped with her to her room after Buffy's big blow up. The new people whom she shall from now on refer to as the Hunters were some what clustered together around her bed with D being on the out most fringe. The rest of the scoobies were starting to start filtering upstairs as they got driven off by Buffy.

" So were are we going to put you guys?" Willow asked as she started wandering over towards them. " I mean you are more then welcome to stay here but I don't think that is really practical in the long run."

" Well did any of those creatures we just fight have any lairs?" Maishira asked.

" Well Glory had a rather high end apartment." Willow replied as what Maishira was suggesting actually dawned on her. " And I know of a couple Vampire nests that we had marked for hunting before this thing with Glory reached a head." she continued as she moved over to her computer her hair trailing a head of her pushing at the power buttons on the computer and the printer, they didn't do anything but they were pushing on them none the less. " I should be able to access the maps and such from here." She continued as she set to work pulling up the needed files. " Why don't one of you go down and explain to the others what we are going to be doing?" Willow asked absent mindedly not really paying attention to whether or not she was going to get an answer. The hunters took that as their cue and went off to prepare themselves for the coming hunt.

As the hunters were forming their plans and preparing to carry it out, the scoobies were still trying to convince Buffy of what had transpired.

" Alright one more time." Xander sighed as he sat on the coffee table in front of Buffy resisting the urge to take the blonde by the shoulders and try an shake some sense into her, or at least shake the denial out of her. " Things were going south for us during the fight against Glory. More and more demons were coming through the portal then we were killing them. Willow prayed to her goddess for strength and aid and her goddess answered." Xander explained pausing for a moment to be sure Buffy was keeping up with him. " In return for aid the Goddess asked that Willow take in a group of hunters, champions that had sworn themselves to her service. One of those champions died before the Goddess could claim her, so the Goddess took that poor woman's essence and placed it into Willow." He said pausing to make sure he still had the slayers attention. " They made use of the different portals that were opening to enter our world. But even with their help we were still out numbered. That is when you threw your self from the tower in order to close the portals, but instead of taking your life it took the slayer essence." He paused once again making sure that he had Buffy's attention because this is were he had lost her the last four times that he tried to explain it. " As such you are no longer the Slayer and Willow and the hunters have been placed in charge of the hellmouth."

" Ok, see now I know your making that up." Buffy said her voice showing just how sure she was of this statement. " Even if I was no longer the slayer, there was no way that Willow would have been given leadership over me." This statement was meet with muffled laughter from the living room doorway.

" And what would make you think that we would follow you." a cultured voice asked. Every body turned to face the man that had spoken, it was Meir, the tall elegant albino vampire stood framed in the doorway with a look of bored disdain. " Even if the Goddess had asked us to follow you, your actions since you have awakened would have insured that we wouldn't." he continued as Mishera moved to his left and D shifted to his right showing their agreement with Meir's statement. The three of them cut quite the figure standing there, there appearance and clothing gave them a truly otherworldly air.

" Your actions have been more like that of a pampered landowners daughter, then of a leader." D murmured.

" More like prey then predator." Maishra added as he bestowed them with a feral grin showing just how much the thought of such a hunt would please him.

" Did you require something?" Giles asked trying to draw there attention from the disturbing turn it had taken.

" Willow asked us to inform you that we are going scavenging." Mashira replied. " We will try to return before sunrise but we give no promises." he added as he turned and headed back upstairs with the others following his lead silently.