An: Sorry this is only part 1, but there was so much to cover that I ended up over running my normal chapter limits, and there's still so much to cover that I've had to split this one into parts.
Also, for those that have asked. No, there will be no Warframes in this story. Not only would it be overkill, it also wouldn't fit the theme of the story.
Episode 8 – part 1Dawn fidgets in her seat beside Vhesthine impatiently, as she watches the other woman being taken in to see Master Razial. She blinks, Master? Oh right, demon etiquette. Then the spell was broken, and her memories came back, but she's still a succubus. Dawn shakes her head, not a succubus, disguised as a succubus. She has wings…
Once Vhesthine comes back, Dawn asks, "Vhesthine, can we fly with our wings?"
Vhesthine looks at Dawn fondly, "We can, though we use magic to make our bodies light enough for our wings to lift us. That's something you'd need to learn to do yourself. I feel that it wouldn't be good for my health if I didn't warn you about the corrupting effects of channelling magic though."
Dawn looks at Vhesthine confused, "What do you mean, as I've never heard the others talk about that."
Vhesthine sighs, and lifts her hand to look at it, "Have you learnt about the dangers of lead yet?"
Dawn nods, "We did, and why they're trying to stop leaded fuel from being sold."
Vhesthine nods, "It's a bit like that. The energies of the hells seep out of the hellmouths and into the surrounding magic. Clinging to people and releasing. If you're not using magic, then it's like handling a lead figurine, or fishing weight. But as soon as you start using magic, traces of the energy from the hells is left inside you. That energy makes you feel good while it's passing through, but the more that builds up, the more you need to use to feel the same sensation. For those demons who can use magic, we are already so saturated that we cannot hope to channel enough magic to ever feel what mortals do."
Dawn frowns, "But Willow's been using magic for everything, and she seems fine."
Vhesthine turns to face Dawn properly, "And yet she's now being punished for what she did to you and her friends. Or do you think just anyone would be taken to see Master Razial the way she was?"
"Is that really fair on her though?"
"It's as fair to her, as she was to you and her friends."
"Was it really that bad though, I got to experience what it was like to be a succubus for a few hours. And now I'm back."
Vhesthine suddenly looks very serious, and takes Dawn's hands, "Dawn, she killed you. For two hours you were dead. She did the same with Tara and Buffy, as well as the others. If Buffy didn't have whatever it is she has, she'd be dead in truth. How long do you think it would have taken before we had to turn you into a succubus in truth?"
Dawn shivers, "I died?"
Vhesthine nods gravely, "Yes. Your soul would still be there, but you are more than just your soul in a human body. Did you know that Buffy wanted to go and kill Willow for doing that to her?"
Dawn pulls her hands away, and lifts her feet onto the chair, so she can hug her knees, "Buffy wouldn't do that, she's one of the good guys."
Vhesthine brushes the back of her hand down Dawn's cheek, "Dawn. Good guys and bad guys only exist in fiction. Buffy is a good person, which is why she was going to do that. She was also angry, afraid, and upset, because it's happened to her before. I'm sure she's told you, given that I've already worked it out."
"She keeps talking about how she regained her memories a few centuries after… You mean she was like that for centuries?"
Vhesthine nods, "And Willow did that to her again. I don't know why she didn't talk to Buffy about her experiences, but that doesn't matter now."
"That's why Buffy and Tara are in the break room, isn't it."
Vhesthine just nods and turns back to her work. Dawn sits on the chair, hugging her knees, her wings caping around her to hide her from the world as she grapples with subjects that even learned philosophers struggle with.
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A few hours later, a gaunt Willow is led out of the office by Razial. Almost immediately she's assaulted by Dawn, who pulls her into a hug with a cry of "Willow!"
Somehow Willow musters the energy to recoil, "Who are you?"
Dawn reels back as if struck, and then notices Razial, and steps back politely, "I'm sorry Master Razial, I didn't intend to interrupt you."
Razial waves a hand as he turns back to the office, "It is no matter Dawn, you are a human, not a demon. But it is good that you have remembered your lessons."
Dawn smiles at the praise, "Thank you Master Razial."
Willow stares at the young succubus, "Dawn? What did they do to you?"
Dawn turns her attention back to Willow, and does a twirl, "It's a disguise. What do you think, it's cool isn't it. Did you know there's so much etiquette in demon society? I learnt so much when I forgot."
Dawn suddenly stops, and stares at Willow with a touch of fear, "You killed me. Willow how could you do that? I trusted you, and you killed me. I'm glad you're alive, but…"
Willow reaches out, "But you're still alive, you're still here. Dawn…"
She trails off as Dawn runs across the room and through an unmarked door with tears falling from her eyes.
Vhesthine stands up and opens the door to the reception, "Miss Rosenberg, I believe it is time for you to leave. And believe me, I would kill you myself for making Dawn face those truths today. However, Master Razial has already claimed you. I hope you come out of your apprenticeship a better person than you are now. Otherwise, you won't survive a month without his protection."
Willow shuffles out of the reception, and listlessly walks down the stairs, and out of the factory. As Vhesthine closes the door Razial appears behind her, "She cannot claim my protection, or admit to her apprenticeship with me. The Slayer saw to that. Mind your tongue about it in future."
Vhesthine snaps into an upright position and turns around smartly, "Yes Master."
Razial wave a hand, "Relax Vhesthine, you are too valuable to punish for ignorance." Before vanishing again.
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Willow slumps into her dorm room, strips off her clothes, and slumps on her bed. Only then does she notice the difference in colour between her torso and her arms. Grabbing her dressing gown and shower supplies, she slips out of the dorm room to the communal shows.
An hour later and she comes back with clean hair, and skin mostly the same colour all over. Slumping back on the bed, she looks at Amy, who's busy chewing on a toilet roll tube, "Hey Amy, how was your night? Same as normal huh? I wish I could say the same. Did you know that nightmare manure explodes if you use magic too close to it? Me neither. It also tastes really bad, like a peanut butter and grass sandwich, with a side order of cockroaches. Do you know what's worse? I couldn't use any magic, for like six weeks. Six weeks! That's how long it took me to catch up after I-I stopped throwing up or blowing myself up. You don't understand me do you. I wish I knew how to turn you back to human… Wait, I've got it. Revelate."
Willow clutches her chest, and falls over sideways as her magic seizes up inside her. Tears form in her eyes, and her legs twitch as she finds herself unable to make any sound until her magic eases. Once it does, she pushes herself unsteadily into a sitting position, "I guess it's not going to be tonight, huh."
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Buffy softly opens the door to Dawns room, to see Dawn crying softly under the covers of her bed. Padding across the carpet, she sits on the edge of the bed and puts her hand on Dawn's shoulder.
"Why did she do it? Why did she kill us?"
Buffy takes a deep breath, and lets it out slowly, "I don't think she wanted to Dawnie. I think she made a mistake and it went too far and affected you."
Dawn turns over to look at Buffy, "Then why did she want to kill you or Tara?"
Buffy gently brushes the hair out of Dawn's face, before kissing her on the cheek and putting her hand back on her shoulder, "I don't think she did. I think she wanted to fix us, to take away our pain. To have her old Buffy back."
"But I like this Buffy, though you need to learn how to have fun properly."
Buffy smiles, "I know you do Dawn, but the old Buffy was Willow's friend for a very long time. She was also so very innocent in so many things. Many of those things were painful when they happened."
"So, wouldn't taking away that pain be a good thing?"
Buffy takes a deep breath, "As long as it's not the good sort of pain."
Dawn props herself up on their elbow, "There's a good sort of pain?"
Buffy nods, "If you talk to some people, there's more than one sort of good pain. But the pain I'm talking about is the pain that teaches you something. Like when you get something wrong in our spars and I tag you. Or when you do something that hurts someone else, and they leave, or they tell you off. That's good pain, as it teaches us life lessons."
"Is that like when Vhesthine told me that I died for two hours?"
Buffy nods, "Indeed, though I'd have probably waited until you were older and more able to handle the revelations that caused. As that's getting into the nature of existence, and other things that are easy to say, but hard to understand. If you still want to know, I can write out some scenarios for you to work through and think about."
Dawn goes silent for a little while, just as Buffy thinks she's falling asleep again, she asks, "Buffy, is it wrong that I think I liked being a succubus?"
Buffy strokes her, "Not at all Dawn. Just remember that you've only had a couple of hours in a controlled situation. You don't know any of the struggles they face, or how the fact they can't survive on human food affects them. Or would affect you. If it's something you'd like to learn more about first hand, then I'm happy for you. However, I would rather you didn't go hunting until you're at least 18, preferably older."
"Buffy," Dawn says sleepily, "do you ever wonder what it would be like to be something else?"
Buffy leans down and kisses Dawn on the temple, "Not anymore Dawn, not anymore."
Buffy sits there for a couple more minutes while Dawn falls back to sleep. Then she goes downstairs to make herself a hot milk.
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Tara looks up from where she's nursing a hot chocolate, the saucepan still warm on the stove.
"Can't sleep?"
Buffy shakes her head, "Dawn woke me. She was crying."
Tara shakes her head, "I don't blame her, I was too. What about you, how are you doing?"
Buffy looks at the pan for a long moment, before getting some milk and putting the pan back on a low heat. One she has, she sits down at the table and puts her head in her hands.
"I almost killed everyone earlier."
Tara holds a hand out, "No you didn't, you did everything you could to protect us."
Buffy shakes her head, "I did, and I didn't even know I was doing it until it was too late for me."
Tara shakes her head, "I don't understand."
Buffy shudders as she thinks back, "BunnyGirl she was a name I invented a few hours after they wiped my memories the first time. I still remembered the exercises that they'd taught us before, for controlling the void inside us. But back then, they weren't second nature to me. So I had to keep concentrating on them to keep them going. When I awoke, and I couldn't use my implants, I assumed that I was in a virtual simulation, and stopped the exercises. I didn't even know any of the techniques they'd taught us for using our void abilities, as they didn't want us using them on them.
"There are devices that would help, but I don't know how to make them. I mean, I do, just not with the technology available here, in this time. And there's a couple of bits I'd need to figure out to put all the components together."
Tara mutters a couple of words, and Buffy's slightly chocolatey milk serves itself, along with some marshmallows from the cupboard, "I thought using magic like this was bad."
Tara shakes her head, "No, using too much magic is bad. This is a special moment, and you didn't need to interrupt it to rescue your milk."
Buffy smiles, "Thank you."
"Why can't you make this device?"
"Because it's made from Void conductive components and crystals. The only source I knew of, being sentient corpses. Even if I had those components, I couldn't put them together, as I don't think it's possible to make components like that. Void the only thing I've seen even remotely compact enough is the device I found while I was under a temporal effect. Deimos depths, I forgot about that." Buffy hurries out of the room, and returns with two security tags stuck together. "I might be able to do it if I can find out how this was made. But I'll need a lot of equipment for it."
"Is it metal work?"
Buffy sighs, "Loosely, very loosely."
"Then show it to your boss, he might be able to help you, or point you in the right direction."
Buffy sighs, "I'll make an appointment to speak to him later today. I want to call the school in the morning and tell them that Dawn's still recovering from collapsing. But I don't know if I should."
Tara reaches across the table, and grabs Buffy's hand reassuringly, "If you think she needs it, then it's the right thing to do. Goddess knows, I could use the break myself."
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The next morning, Willow wakes up gradually and, for a moment, wonders if she's dreaming. Then Amy squeaks, and she wakes up with a gasp, the last 6 weeks coming back in a rush. Sitting in the middle of her floor is the evidence, in the form of her still soiled clothing. Getting up to get some clean clothes, she stops as she spots a letter written on papyrus, sitting on the metal tray she used last night, six weeks ago.
Apprentice,
This is shoddy and ill thought-out work. I expect better of my apprentices.
See me in my office at 4pm, and bring your college schedule.
Razial.
Willows heart starts beating faster, as something she thought was a fever dream caused by lack of food, was in fact real. She really signed a contract in her own blood. She can't even claim to be unwilling, as she willingly signed it to avoid worse fates.
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Begrudgingly, Willow makes her way up the stairs of Mikes Machining, and through the reception door. There she walks past Buffy, who is booking an appointment to talk to Razial about something. Walking through the office door, she stops abruptly as Razial looks at her with an expression filled with menace.
"Apprentice. You are both tardy, and lacking manners. In future, you will exercise common courtesy before entering my office. I will also dock your pay if you are late again. Now take a seat."
Willow swallows hard, before quickly taking her seat. Razial holds out his hand, "Schedule."
Willow fumbles through her bag, before pulling out a sheet of paper, "I printed it out for you."
"Master."
"What?"
"You are my apprentice, I am your master. Use it when we are alone." Left hanging is the or else.
Willow mind flashes back to the manure, and she quickly nods, "Yes master."
Razial nods, "Better. I see you have late classes Tuesday and Thursday. You will not be required to work during those times. Instead, you will work all day Saturday instead. Every other day, I expect to see you here at 4pm. Do not be late."
Willow blurts out, "But I…" Then subsides when he raises his hand and a spark of magic goes between his thumb and finger, "Yes master. May I ask what I will be doing Master?"
Razial nods and pulls out three quartz crystals, "First of all, I will be teaching you a spell to see magic. In particular, it will allow you to see how tainted the magic is. Then, you will show me that you can infuse a crystal with magic. If there is time, you may ask me any questions about the magic you already know, or things I've taught you. At 5pm, you will start earning your pay by infusing crystals with magic until you are able to reliably produce the middle quality crystals. Until then, for every middle quality crystal you produce, you will get a $20 in your next paycheque. If you ever make a top quality crystal, I will pay you a $5,000 bonus. Any questions before we begin?"
Willow swallows hard and licks her lips, "Master, what will the crystals be used for?"
"A good question. The middle quality crystals I sell to magic users and demons around the world for use in rituals that require large amounts of magic. As they provide a their magic without the caster needing to channel tainted magic through them. The highest quality crystals are used almost exclusively in major cleansing rituals, where a large source of virtually untainted magic is needed to wash away deep levels of demonic taint from the subject."
Willow's eyes widen in fear and surprise, "Taint?" Razial stares at her until she adds, "Master?"
"Yes, taint. Who taught you magic? A demon?"
Willow shakes her head, "No Master. I taught myself with Giles help."
"Then he was an idiot. Stay here."
Razial gets up and leaves to inform Vhesthine that he is not to be disturbed for the rest of the shift.
When he returns, he touches Willows shoulder, and the two of them disappear.
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When they reappear, they are inside an extravagant workshop that has been set up in an unadorned cream room with strip lights running across the ceiling to provide light. Willow looks around her with a slack jawed expression as she sees shelves of magical tomes, reagents, and supplies for casting spells.
"Apprentice, pay attention."
Willow's gaze snaps to Razial, who has walked across the room to an empty workbench. Hurrying she catches up with him.
"All magic comes from the different dimensions of the hells, and other planes. How it gets to the earth is a different subject that you may research in your own time if you wish. Magic flows through all things, and exists in all things. Though without those planes, magic would not exist on Earth, as Earth does not have its own magic. As such, all magic is tainted by its origin. When a practitioner channels magic, that taint flows through them, and some of it sticks to them. Over time, this taint will fall away on its own, as does the casters built up resistance to magical overuse."
Taking a piece of chalk from a container hanging under the workbench, he quickly draws a complex equation on the surface. This is the formula that can be used to calculate how much magic a person can use before they burnout from magical overload. This is their natural aptitude, this is their accumulated taint, and this is the amount of magic they're channelling. With the exceptions of Necromancy and Summoning, every other method of casting magic has come up with some way to purify the magic they are using, and reduce the amount of taint they accumulate." Willow raises her hand, "Yes apprentice?"
"Why those two? Master."
"Because the caster also taints magic. This is why traditions that often practice unprotected casting, like witchcraft, usually say that magic should only be used for good things, and sparingly at that."
Willow tentatively ventures, "Master, why is taint bad in magic, if it allows you to use more magic before burning out?"
Razial throws the chalk on the workbench, "Because, you stupid child, taint makes mortals feel good. But the more taint you have, the more magic you need to use in order to feel good. Before long, you find yourself in a cycle that almost always ends in death, and occasionally will result in the person fully embracing the taint in the magic, and leaving their humanity behind."
Willow swallows, "I can control it Master."
Razial angrily steps into her space, "Really? Is that why it took you six weeks to do a job that should have taken at most a day? Is that why you had to choose between being my apprentice, exile, or death?" Razial conjures a dagger, which points itself at Willow's heart, "I am a business demon. I make investments in people and things, and then reap the reward when those investments bare fruit. I put the apprenticeship down as an option for you because I saw talent that could become great if nurtured. Yet, when I tell you the facts about magic, your first response is to assume you're different from every other human on the planet. Tell me, was I wrong about your talent and intelligence? Should I just drive this dagger home and wash my hands of you?"
Willow steps back, and the dagger follows her, pricking into her breast just above her heart. Once more she is faced with the stark reality of life, and once more she chooses to live, "I'm sorry Master. I-I will try to do better."
Razial backhands her across the room, "You will learn the basics even if I have to send you to muck out the nightmares every week. I do not need another demonic spellcaster, as they cannot purify magic. If you ever allow your taint to permanently grow to that level, I will kill you and use your soul and organs as spell components. Do you understand?"
Willow nods helplessly from the floor as she holds her bruised jaw and bleeding lip.
"Now, come back here, pay attention, learn, and demonstrate these lessons. Take notes if that would help."
By the end of the lesson, Willow is exhausted mentally, physically, and magically. So much so, that she forgets to ask about Amy.
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After work, Buffy is doing her rounds in the cemeteries on her way home when she hears a disturbance in an alleyway. With a sigh, she turns off the road and follows the sounds of bargaining.
As she walks up behind two burly men that have a couple of civilians cornered, she sighs, "Right, imagine that I said something witty to catch your attention. Now, give the lady back her purse, and go. I've just had a long shift at work, and we all just want to get home."
The man holding the bag just looks back at Buffy, before dismissing her. This causes Buffy to just sigh before walking forward and grabbing his arm to pull it into a lock. When he yelps in pain, she stops sharply as she doesn't feel the resistance she expected, "What the hell Lady!".
"Huh? This is just a boring mundane mugging? I didn't think those happened here. Look, are you guys new here?"
Whatever the couple say is drowned out by the mugger she's holding screaming, "My arm!"
Releasing the arm Buffy points at the alleyway she came from, "Now git!" Turning back to the couple, she again asks, "Are you new to Sunnydale?"
The woman nods nervously, while the man says, "Yes, we moved her for our retirement. Our kid works in LA."
Buffy nods, and hands the woman her purse, "Well, there are some survival rules that are pretty unique to this city. So, during the day tomorrow, you should speak to your neighbours and ask them to demonstrate the Sunnydale welcome. Also, stay away from empty areas like the street out there."
Whatever Buffy was about to say next is cut off when Spike launches himself at one of the muggers, and then screams in pain. At which point all of the civilians flee. Buffy turns to him with her hands on her hips, "Are you done now?"
Spike staggers to his feet, "Ugh, I thought they were vampires."
"Well, they weren't, for once they were human muggers. Now, why are you here?"
"What? A no sympathy for the guy with a migraine?"
Buffy shakes her head, "Come on, you didn't hit your head that hard."
"Not that. You know, the stupid bloody chip in my head."
Buffy looks at him blankly, "Nope, first I've heard of it."
"The one the government put there when the Initiative grabbed me while you were dating Riley?"
"Still no clue."
Spike ventures, "The one that stops me from attacking humans?"
Buffy shrugs, "Sucks to be you then. You could always crash a gambling den and steal all the kittens. Or you could ask me for a full contact spar."
Spike looks her up and down, "Is that an offer?"
Buffy throws her hands in the air, "Is that all you can think about? What next, sending me dick pics over the internet? If you're that pent up, go and find a succubus or something."
Spike looks confused, "What dick pics?"
Buffy waves her hand airily, "Just some random fuckers who think it's the best way to get a woman's attention."
Spike shakes his head, "That's not the point, you can't keep leading me on like this. I saw the way you looked at me yesterday."
"You mean yesterday when you were an idiotic civilian that I was trying to keep alive yesterday?"
"Hey, I wasn't idiotic."
"Look Spike. I! Am! Not! Interested! How many times to I have to say it?" Buffy turns and starts walking to the next cemetery.
Spike calls after her, "You're a bloody tease, you know that don't you. Get a guys motor running, then bam, ice queen."
Buffy just shakes her head as she walks away, and also makes a note to start carrying a knife.
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The next morning, Anya wakes up abruptly to the soft sound of the front door opening. Rolling out of bed, she pads into the kitchen and is about to grab a knife when Xander's voice calls out, "Hey Honey, I'm home!"
Instead, she flies through the apartment to the front door, and tackles Xander in a hug, "Xander, I've missed you. Now, come on, you have your manly duties to perform."
Xander just stands there as Anya tries to pull him to the bedroom, "Anya, I'm not human anymore."
Anya turns back with a huff, "Of course you're not. Now come on, Magic Box can handle a day without opening. A girl has needs you know."
"But I'm hideous."
"Alexander Harris, I only care about two things in this relationship, one that it's with you. And two, that you don't abandon me to go chasing after other hussies. Now, come on, I've got a month long itch that needs to be scratched." Anya turns away to try and drag him along again.
With a growl of frustration, Xander lets go of his human transformation and stands there in his 8 foot tall guise, three protruding eyes in a triangular position set in a pebbly chitinous shell just above his beak. Arms and tentacles poke out of a body covered with fish scales, "Anya, this is me, I'm a monster."
Anya turns back, "Ohh, tentacles, and you have suckers, I've heard good things about those. Come on, lets test them out."
Several hours later, a thoroughly exhausted, and confused, Xander is lying on the bed. His three eyes pointing in different directions, the bottom eye gazing lovingly at the blond hair of the woman sleeping on his softer chest, "Xander."
"Yes?"
"What kept you?"
"My new family wouldn't let me go until I stopped trying to kill myself. That didn't happen till yesterday, last month, or something like that. Do you know what's happened to my crew?"
"Oh, Frank, Freddy, or something has been looking after it, they think you were a victim of the burnings and are in a coma."
"Oh, I should call them."
Anya grabs a tentacle, "Not today you don't, you can wait until after the weekend."