"Phases"

Based on the Episode Written by Rob Des Hotel and Dean Batali

The following story is copyright © 2022 by Mark Moore.


At Sunnydale High, Buffy, Tara, and Oz were walking down the hall together.

"So did you like the movie last night?" Tara asked Oz.

"I don't know. T-Today's movies are kind of like popcorn. You know, you forget about them as soon as they're done."

"So you're basically saying you just don't like the Spice Girls?" Buffy guessed.

Oz nodded. "Yeah, pretty much."

Buffy smiled at him. "So tell me what you want, what you really, really want."

"I do remember I liked the popcorn."

Neither Buffy nor Tara knew how to build off that.


That night, Cordelia and Harmony were sitting in Cordelia's father's car in a secluded area of the park and snorting lines of cocaine.

"How are you holding up?" Harmony asked her.

Cordelia nodded. "I'm holding. I was going on two minutes there without thinking about Angel."

Harmony smiled, trying to be cheerful. "Well, there you go." She heard some rustling outside. "Did you hear that?"

"What is it?" Cordelia asked her.

"I thought I heard something."

An instant later, Harmony heard more rustling, louder this time.

"Okay, now I know I heard something."

A hairy arm with a clawed hand punched through the convertible top. Cordelia screamed and made a grab for the keys.

"Get us outta here!" Harmony cried.

The creature on the roof of the car snarled as it reached around for them inside. The keys weren't in the ignition, and Cordelia frantically searched for them on the floor.

Cordelia screamed. "Where are the keys?"

"We should be moving! Let's go!" Harmony yelled.

Cordelia found the keys. "Oh, I got 'em! Got 'em!"

She fumbled with the keys but managed to get them into the ignition and started the car. She put it into reverse and screamed as she gunned the car backward a ways and then slammed on the brakes. The beast tumbled off the back and into a tree. Cordelia got the car in drive and sped away. There was a gaping hole in the ragtop as Cordelia maneuvered back to the road and raced off.


The next day, in the school parking lot, Buffy inspected the hole in the roof.

"And you're sure it was a werewolf?" Buffy got off the car.

Cordelia pretended to think about it. "Well, let's see, um, six feet tall, claws, a big old snout in the middle of his face like a wolf. Um, yeah, I'm sticking with my first guess."

Oz nodded. "Seems wise."

Harmony thought of something. "Oh, oh, and then there was that little thing where it tried to bite us."

Cordelia looked at Harmony. "It was so awful."

"I know."

"Daddy just had this car detailed."

Giles came up behind Buffy with a newspaper.

"So what's the word?" Buffy asked him.

"Well, it seems there were a-a number of other attacks by a wild dog around town." Giles handed the paper to Buffy. "Several animal carcasses were found mutilated."

"You mean...like bunnies and stuff?" Tara asked, and then she was upset. "No, don't tell me."

Buffy looked at Tara reassuringly. "Oh, don't worry. I mean...they might not look it, but bunnies can really take care of themselves."

Tara calmed down and smiled. "Yeah."

Buffy smiled. "Yeah."

Giles took the paper back. "Yes, uh, um, fortunately, no people were injured. Well, for now. But my guess is that this werewolf will be back at next month's full moon."

"What about tonight's full moon?" Tara asked him.

Giles was confused. "Pardon?"

"Well, last night was the night before the full moon. The full moon in tonight: February 11."

Cordelia looked at Tara. "You sure?"

Tara gave Cordelia a look.

"Right. Never mind."

Giles thought about that. "Meaning the accepted legend that werewolves only prowl during a full moon might be erroneous."

Cordelia shrugged. "Or it could be bullshit."

Buffy looked at Giles. "Looks like Giles has some schooling to do."

"Yes, I must admit I-I am intrigued. Werewolves, it's...it's one of the classics." Giles started walking away. "I-I'm sure my books and I are in for a fascinating afternoon." He left.

Buffy, Tara, Harmony, and Cordelia watched him go.

Buffy smirked at Giles' typical behavior. "He needs to get a pet."


Later, in the gym, the class was seated on the bleachers, listening to Litto, the female self-defense coach.

"Sunnydale is becoming more dangerous all the time. And a full moon like tonight tends to bring out the crazies, but, with some simple basics of self-defense, each of you can learn how to protect yourself."

Buffy and Tara exchanged amused smiles.

"What you wanna do is gain advantage of the situation as quickly as possible. Your attacker may have the benefit of surprise. But if you plot ahead, then you can turn that advantage to yourself. By being prepared, you have the power. Okay, everyone get into your assigned groups."

The students all got up from the bleachers and went down to the floor. Larry Blaisdell took off his sweat jacket and went to the table in front of them to check which group that he was in.

Cordelia saw his arm all wrapped up in a bandage just above the elbow. "What happened?"

"Oh, last week, some huge dog jumped out of the bushes and bit me. Thirty-nine stitches. They oughta shoot those strays."

"I've been there, man." Oz held up his finger. "My cousin Jordy just got his grownup teeth in? Does not like to be tickled."

Larry just shook his head and then went over to Theresa Klusmeyer, a girl with long black hair, who was doing stretching exercises.

Larry leaned close to her ear. Theresa!"

Theresa straightened up, startled.

"Be still, my shorts. We're in the same group." Larry chuckled and nodded. "I may have to attack you."

"No, a-a-actually, I think, uh, in our group, there are a few of us."

Buffy joined Theresa. "And I'm one of the few."

Tara and Cordelia joined her. Larry smiled in amusement.


A few minutes later, everyone was lined up and paired off, girls in front, boys in back.

"Okay, everyone, listen up. I wanna show you what to do should you be attacked from behind." Coach Litto looked at Buffy. "In this situation, bend forward, using your back and shoulders to flip the assailant over to the ground." She bent Buffy over to demonstrate.

The other girls all bent over, too. The boys followed Larry's lead and put their arms around the girls' necks. Buffy grabbed Larry's arm and immediately flipped him over hard onto the mats in front of them. Cordelia followed suit with Jonathan, and Tara did likewise with Oz. Larry, Jonathan, and Oz groaned as they lay there. Buffy, Cordelia, and Tara smiled at each other. Coach Litto looked over at them.


Later, in the library, Giles was demonstrating the phases of the moon to Buffy and Cordelia using a large Earth globe with a smaller moon globe attached by a bar. "And, uh, while there's absolutely no scientific explanation for lunar effect on the human psyche, uh, the phases of the moon, uh, do seem to exert a great deal of psychological influence. And th-the full moon is - is - seems to bring out our darkest qualities. Y-You see, uh, the - the werewolf, uh, is such a-a potent e-e-extreme representation of our inborn animalistic traits that it e-emerges for three full consecutive nights: the full moon and, uh, the two nights surrounding it. And it, uh, acts on - on pure instinct. No conscience, uh, uh, predatory, and - and aggressive."

Buffy smiled. "In other words, your typical male."

"Let's not jump to any conclusions."

"I didn't jump. I took a tiny step, and there conclusions were."

"The point is that our Wolfman could also be a-a-a Wolfwoman, or - or anyone who was bitten by a werewolf."

"So then I'm guessing your standard silver bullets are in order here?" Cordelia asked.

"No. No bullets. No matter who this werewolf is, i-it's still a human being, who may be completely unaware of his or her condition."

Buffy nodded. "So tonight we bring 'em back alive."


That night, Buffy, Cordelia, and Giles went to a secluded area of the park. Several cars were parked there with couples making out. The moon was full. Giles walked by some cars, holding his flashlight out in front of him. Buffy and Cordelia met up with him.

"Anything yet?" Giles asked them quietly.

Cordelia nodded, keeping her voice low. "Yes. And you won't believe what I saw. Brittany Podell was making out with Gwen Stadeel, but she goes with Barrett Williams."

Giles and Buffy gave her a look.

"If she ever found..." Cordelia noticed their looks. "No, um, no, no sign of the werewolf. How about you?"

Buffy shrugged. "Uh, the same."

Giles looked around. "I thought we might, uh...I thought we might knock on a few windows, uh, ask if anyone has seen anything yet."

Buffy gave him a look. "Giles, no one's seen anything."

"Oh, yes. No, of - of - of course not, no. Yes." Giles went off to continue looking.

Buffy and Cordelia stared after him a moment and then headed off into the bushes themselves. They separated. Buffy scanned around with her flashlight as she walked into a small clearing. Suddenly, she heard a noise like a latch releasing and yelped as she found herself being pulled up in a net trap.

Below her, a hunter pointed his scoped, double-barreled flintlock up at her and pulled back the hammer. "Gotcha!" He took a closer look at what he'd caught. "What the hell?"

"Cordy! Giles!" Buffy yelled.

Giles came running. "Hey!" He saw Cain with his gun. "Whoa!" He held his arms up.

"Hands are good right about there."

"Who - Who are you? What are you doing?" Giles asked.

"The name's Gib Cain. I'm the one with the gun, which means I'm the one who gets to do the interviewing."

"Ahem. Hey, before we get all chummy here, how about we do something about me being in this net thing?" Buffy asked.

Cain hesitated.

Cordelia suddenly arrived next to him and pulled the gun from his hands. She pointed the gun at Cain. "You heard the lady. Release her, asshole."

Cain sighed, pulled out his buck-knife, and cut the rope holding up the net. It fell, and Buffy hit the ground fairly hard.

Giles reached down to untangle the net. "You all right?"

"Yeah." Buffy got up.

"Gotta say, I'm impressed."

Giles looked at Cain. "Excuse me?"

Buffy looked at Giles, then back at Cain.

"Well, it's good to get the fruit while it's fresh."

Giles frowned. "You'd be wise to take that back."

"Hey, what a man and a girl do in Lovers' Lane at night is nobody's busi-"

Giles made a move toward Cain, but Buffy held him back.

"Oh, okay, hey, enough, repulsive brain. It's not what you think." Buffy looked at Giles. "We're hunting werewolves."

Cain laughed.

Buffy shrugged and smiled. "Okay, it's funny if you don't believe in werewolves."

"No, it's funny thinking about you three catching one. I mean...this guy looks like he's auditioning to be a librarian, and, you, well, you're girls."

"Can I shoot him?" Cordelia asked Buffy.

Buffy raised a hand to stop her.

Giles smiled in amusement. "I assure you they're quite capable."

"Uh-huh. Lemme ask you something, sweethearts. Exactly how many of these animals have you taken out?"

"As of today?" Buffy asked.

"I tore a tooth from the mouth of every werewolf that I killed." Cain held out his necklace. "This next one will bring the total to an even dozen."

"So you're just gonna kill it?" Buffy asked, shocked and suddenly overcome with a sense of guilt.

"Well, see, that's the thing. Their pelts fetch a pretty penny in Sri Lanka, and it's a little hard to skin 'em when they're alive."

"Y-You hunt werewolves f-for sport?" Giles asked him.

"No, no, I'm in it purely for the money."

"And it doesn't bother you that a werewolf is a person most days out of the month?" Buffy asked him.

"That's why I only hunt 'em on three days." Cain crouched down to collect the net. "I'd really love to stay and chat, but I'm on a tight schedule. Any idea where else the boys and girls like to get together around here?"

"You're looking for a party?" Buffy asked him.

"No, but the werewolf is. They're suckers for that whole sexual heat thing. Sense it miles away. Since this little doggie ain't here, I guess he found another place." Cain stood up.

Buffy shrugged. "Sorry. Wish I could help you."

"But you don't know shit?" Cain shook his head. "Goddamn, what a surprise." He grabbed his gun from Cordelia and left.

Buffy turned and headed back to her van. Cordelia and Giles followed him.

"Where are we going?" Giles asked Buffy.

"I think I know where to look. We just have to make it there before mein furrier."


Tara was driving home from the store on her scooter. Ahead of her, Theresa was walking home. She passed a house with a fenced-in front yard overgrown with weeds. She heard some rustling and stopped to look around. Seeing nothing, she continued. She heard more rustling and stopped to look again. Something let out a low growl, and Theresa decided it was time to run. She looked back again, slammed into Angelus, and screamed. Tara frowned and slowed her approach, pulling to the side of the road.

"Everything okay?" Angelus twirled a daisy.

"Yeah, I just, uh, I-I thought I heard something...behind me."

Angelus walked around her to have a look, then turned back to her. "No one there."

"Oh. I guess I was wrong. I could have sworn that-"

"It's okay. It can get pretty scary out here, all alone at night."

"Yeah."

Tara got off her scooter and hurried toward them.

"Hey, don't I know you from somewhere? Don't you go to school with Cordelia?"

"Oh, you know Cordelia?" Theresa smiled.

Angelus chuckled. "Yes, I do, very well."

Theresa kept smiling. "Oh."

"Come on, I'll get you home."

"Back off, asshole!" Tara held out her silver crescent moon pendant to Angelus.

Angelus stayed in place.

Tara kept her eyes fixated on him. "Theresa, get on my scooter. I'll drive you home."

Theresa quickly went and sat on Tara's scooter. Tara slowly backed up, then she turned, ran, got onto her scooter, started it up, and tore off down the road, Theresa holding onto her.

"Who was that guy?!" Theresa asked Tara.

"Angelus! He's a vampire! Stay away from him!" Tara warned her.


Buffy parked her van in the alley outside the Bronze. They saw patrons fleeing for their lives.

Giles looked at Buffy from the back seat. "Looks as though your hunch was right."

"Who could resist Sunnydale's own house of hormones?" Buffy opened the door and got out.

Cordelia opened the passenger door and got out. They made a dash for the door as it was about to be shut by the bouncer.

"Coming through!" Buffy yelled.

She and Cordelia rushed through the door. The door was closed on them, and they looked back at it as it slammed shut with a thud. They slowly stepped into the main area and looked around. The place had been trashed by the panicked people. Tables and chairs were lying everywhere; spilled drinks were splattered on the floor. Buffy saw a shadow behind a bead curtain and made for it. As she walked, she took off her backpack and pulled out a chain. She entered the restroom and backstage area. Buffy saw the bead curtain that led to the stage office swinging. She climbed the few steps and went in. She went through another door to the stage. The chain was wrapped around her forearm, ready to use against the werewolf. Slowly, she stepped out onto the stage.

When she'd passed the drums, the werewolf came out from behind the stage curtains, snarling. Buffy spun around to face it and dropped her backpack. She quickly unraveled a length of chain from her arms and got ready. She threw the chain out, and it wrapped itself perfectly around the werewolf's neck. It began to struggle and yank at the chain, pulling Buffy into and over the drums. The chain fell from the werewolf's neck, and it made a dash for a window. The werewolf crashed through and out into the alley.

"Cordy!" Buffy yelled.

Cordelia ran over to the window and looked out. There was no sign of the werewolf.

"It's gone!" Cordelia called.


Later, the Bronze employees were back and began to straighten things up. Buffy put her chain back into her backpack as Cain watched.

"You let it get away."

"I didn't let it do anything. I had the chain around its neck."

"Chain? What were you gonna do, take it for a walk?"

"I was going to lock it up."

"That's beautiful." Cain approached her. "This is what happens when a woman tries to do a man's job."

"Pipe down, motherfucker!" Cordelia yelled at him, angry. "She did the best that she could!"

Buffy got up and put on the backpack as Giles came up behind Cain.

"Now, you look here, Mr. Cain. This girl risked her life trying to capture a beast that you haven't as yet been able to find." Giles took his bag off his shoulder.

"Uh-huh. And Daddy's doing a great job carrying her bag of milk bones."

Giles threw down his bag but restrained himself.

Cain stepped closer to Buffy. "You know, sis, if that thing out there harms anyone, it's going to be on your pretty little head. I hope you can live with that."

Buffy stared him down. "I live with worse than that. You don't wanna fuck with me."

Cain shook his head. "First, they tell me I can't hunt an elephant for its ivory..." He turned and left. "Now, I've gotta deal with People for the Ethical Treatment of Werewolves."

"Pillock!" Giles exclaimed under his breath. "Right, let's move out. He grabbed his bag and went.

Buffy and Cordelia followed right behind.


They went back to the park. After patrolling for a while, Buffy and Cordelia headed back toward Buffy's van.

"Giles?" Cordelia asked.

When they didn't see anyone in it, they ran up to it.

"Giles!" Buffy yelled. She reached the open window and looked in.

Giles woke and sat up in the back seat. "Uhh!" He took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes.

Buffy smiled. "We didn't see you there. I thought something had happened."

"Oh, no, I'm, uh..."

Buffy opened the driver door and got into the van. Cordelia opened the passenger door and got into the van. A newscast was playing on the radio.

Giles yawned. "I'm okay. I'm just, um, fine...uh, just, uh, I'm, uh..." He paused. "Uh, any sign of the, uh, werewolf?" He put his glasses back on.

Buffy shook her head. "No. I'm guessing you didn't see anything either from that vantage point of having your eyes closed."

"It's, uh, it's, it's, uh, gonna be light soon, so we'd better-"

"Wait." Buffy turned the radio's volume up.

"Police say that the incident was apparently connected to the animal mutilation which occurred last night. The coroner's office has identified the body as that of Sunnydale High School student Larry Blaisdell, age seventeen. The authorities ask that anyone with further information..."

"Buffy, Cordelia, we're gonna get this thing. We have another whole night."

Buffy and Cordelia looked at him.

"There's nothing more we can do now. It's nearly sunrise. That werewolf won't be a werewolf much longer."


A few hours later, inside the school library, Buffy paced, Tara was sitting at the table with Giles behind her, and Cordelia was leaning against the counter.

Buffy was frustrated. "I can't believe I let that thing get away. Cain was right. I shoulda killed it when I had the chance."

Oz came in. "Killed what?"

"Uh, the, uh, the werewolf. It - It - It was out last night."

"Is everybody okay? Did anyone get bitten or - or scratched?" Oz asked.

Tara shook her head. "No, we're fine."

"Gladness."

Cordelia looked at him. "Yeah, but he got someone. Larry."

"'Got' as in..."

"He's dead."

"Oh, I'm sorry."

"And I coulda stopped it." Buffy sat next to Tara at the table and pounded the table with her fist in anger. "God damn it!"

Cordelia sighed. "He was an asshole, but-"

"But he didn't deserve to die." Buffy looked at Cordelia.

Cordelia looked at Buffy sadly.

Giles cleared his throat. "Well, we - we have one more night."

"Another night?" Oz asked.

Buffy nodded. "Oh, yeah. Believe me, I'm gonna give that wolfie something to howl about."

"Hmm."

Cordelia walked over to the table. "But while we hang here doing nothing, there's a human werewolf walking around out there, probably making fun of us."

Tara looked at her. "But there's really no way to tell who it is."

Cordelia shrugged dismissively. "Oh, sure there is. Giles knows shit." She closed her eyes. "I'm a big, bad wolf. I'm on the prowl." She sniffed. "I'm sniffing, I'm snarling, I'm a slobbering predator, I'm..." She opened her eyes. "Wait a second! It's right in front of us. It's obvious who I am. I'm Theresa! Larry was always hitting on her! Perfect motive!"

Buffy thought about that. "Larry was awfully gleeful about tormenting Theresa."

Giles shook his head. "Still, that doesn't necessarily mean that-"

"I'm gonna go talk to her. Gonna force a confession out of her." Cordelia started to leave.

"Hold on. We need to cover our bases. Tara, um, check the student files. See if anybody else fits the profile. Uh, Buffy?" Giles asked.

"Where are we going?" Buffy asked him.

"I-If none of that works, I think I may have an alternative." Giles went into his office.

Buffy got up and followed Giles.

Cordelia looked at Oz. "Are you okay?"

"What?"

"You kind of knew Larry."

"Oh, yeah, I, uh, I'm trying not to think about it. It's...It's a lot."

Tara smiled at him. "It is. But we can do stuff to help. Sometimes, it feels good to help."

"Uh-huh."

"Well, like...looking up stuff. I'm gonna be doing that most of the night. You could help me."

"I can't. Um, uh, I'm busy."

"Oh."

"I...I gotta go." Oz jogged out of the library.

Tara watched him go, confused about his behavior. Then she looked at Cordelia. "Cordy, I don't think Theresa's the werewolf. Last night, while you and Buffy were going after it, I saved her from..." She fell silent.

Cordelia raised an eyebrow. "From who?"

"Angelus."

Cordelia reflected for a moment. "She could have died. If I had just killed him at the mall..."

Tara put a hand on Cordelia's hand.


A while later, Tara was 'Net-surfing on her laptop.

Buffy walked out of Giles' office and went over to her. "So what's the scuttlebutt? Anybody besides Theresa fit our werewolf profile?" She sat on the table.

"There is one name that keeps getting spit out. Aggressive behavior, run-ins with authorities, about a screenful of violent incidents."

"Okay, most of those were not my fault. Somebody else started 'em. I was just standing up for myself."

Tara looked up at Buffy and smiled. "I know, sweetie."

Buffy bent down and kissed Tara on the lips.

Tara looked back at her laptop. "I'll keep looking." She went back to work.

Buffy looked at the clock on the wall. "Maybe later?"

Tara checked the time in Windows. "Oh, shit, yeah. Thanks." She shut down her laptop, stood up, and put her laptop in its case.

Buffy slid off the table, and Tara followed her as she got her stuff for class.

Tara and Buffy walked out of the library.

Buffy stopped at her locker and reached for the combination lock. She worked the combination, opened her locker, took off her pack, and stuck her pack in her locker. She closed her locker, stopped, and considered.

"What is it?" Tara asked her.

"Nowhere in any of the reports did it say anything about him being mauled." Buffy looked at Tara. "I mean...they were linked to the animal attacks, so we just assumed werewolf."

Tara thought about that. "Vampire?"

"Possibly. After school, I'm gonna go to the funeral home to check it out."

"Okay. I'll see you later. Cordelia asked me to look over her history homework before class. I think that means I might have to do it."

"Okay." Buffy puckered her lips.

Tara kissed Buffy on the lips and then walked away.


After school, Buffy and Cordelia went to the funeral home. Larry was laid out in his coffin with a scarf around his neck.

Buffy pulled it back and saw the bite. "Shit."

"So that's good, right?" Cordelia asked her. "I mean in the sense of the werewolf didn't get her, and..."

Buffy gave her a look.

Cordelia felt ashamed. "No. There is no good here."

"No good. Instead of not protecting Larry from the werewolf, I was able to not protect him from something just as bad." Buffy went over to the guest register and looked at all of the signatures. "He had a lot of friends." She took the pen and added her own.

Theresa walked into the room. "Oh. Sorry, I didn't realize anyone else was here."

"Were you and Larry close?" Cordelia asked her.

Theresa walked over to them. "No, not at all. In fact, I found him really annoying. Still...no one deserves this. To be murdered. Y'know?"

Buffy lowered her eyes. "Yeah. I know."

Theresa took the pen from Buffy and signed her own name in the guestbook, then she offered the pen to Cordelia. "Anyway, I just came to pay my respects, and, holy shit, Larry's a vampire."

Larry sat up, looked over at them, and growled. Buffy and Cordelia turned around and saw him hop out of the coffin. Buffy lunged at Larry, grabbed him, and tried to wrestle him to the floor, but Larry threw her down instead. He dove after Cordelia and tried to pin her, but Cordelia rolled him over and got on top. She made a quick grab for a wooden easel holding a flower wreath and broke off a leg. She was about to thrust it into Larry's chest.

"Angel sends his love."

Cordelia was caught off guard by that and hesitated a moment. Larry kicked Cordelia's arm and sent the stick flying away. He punched her in the face, knocking her to the floor. Buffy was on her feet again and ran at him. He grabbed Buffy by the shoulders, wrestled her onto her back, and pinned her. Buffy struggled to keep him at bay.

Standing behind him, Theresa grabbed the easel and jammed one of its legs through Larry's back, striking his heart. He fell on top of Buffy, dead. Buffy shoved him off her and stared up at Theresa. Theresa tossed the easel aside and offered a hand. Buffy took it. Theresa pulled Buffy to her feet.

Buffy smiled. "Thanks."

Theresa smiled. "No problem."

"Hey, listen, I teach a class at my house. It's about self-defense and also fighting vampires and other monsters. You interested?"

"Maybe. You think I have potential?" Theresa asked.

Buffy nodded. "I think you do." She turned to look at Cordelia. "Cordy..."

"Angel." Cordelia got to her knees.

Buffy leaned down to her and offered a hand. "Are you okay?"

Cordelia took her hand. "This isn't happening." She pulled herself up and hugged Buffy. "He's gonna keep coming after me."

Buffy hugged Cordelia gently. "Don't let him get to you. He's not the same guy you knew."

Cordelia pulled back a bit and looked at Buffy. Buffy looked back kindly. Cordelia let go and walked out. Buffy and Theresa went after her.


Tara walked over to the front door of Oz's house and knocked. She waited a while and then knocked again. No response. She continued knocking insistently. Eventually, the door opened. Oz was standing there.

"Tara! What are you doing?" Oz asked her.

"I came to see if you were okay. You'd left pretty abruptly."

"Tara, this is not a very good time." Oz doubled over in pain and hugged his chest. "Get outta here!"

She stared at him, confused. He fell to the floor and began to rapidly grow hair and mutate into a werewolf. Oz's fingers grew longer and hairier. Oz moaned in pain.

Tara stared at him in horror. "Oh, fuck."

Oz the werewolf leaped to his feet and growled at her. She screamed and jumped backward, away from him. She turned and started to run back to her scooter. She got on, put the key in the ignition, and drove off. Tara drove as fast as she could.


In the library, Giles opened a gun case, undid the straps, and pulled out the stock. He grabbed the barrel and scope assembly and clicked them into place.

Buffy and Cordelia walked up behind him.

Buffy sighed. "Sorry we're late. we had to do some unscheduled slayage in the form of Larry."

Giles stopped his assembling to look at them. "He's a vampire?"

Cordelia nodded. "Was. Angel sent him to me. A little token of his affection."

"Cordelia, I'm so sorry."

Cordelia held up her hand. "Not now, Giles. We can all have ourselves a good cry after we bag us a werewolf."

Giles plugged in the laser sight and held the tranquilizer gun up to check the scope. He checked the trigger mechanism of the gun. "All set." He grabbed a dart. "Let's go find this thing." He started out.

Buffy and Cordelia followed him.

"One question: how exactly do we find this thing?" Buffy asked.

Tara barged into the library. "It's Oz! It's Oz!"

"Wh-What's Oz?" Buffy asked her.

"The werewolf."

"Are you certain?" Giles asked her.

Tara nodded frantically. "He - He changed right in front of me."

"Where is he now?" Buffy asked her.

"I dunno. I eventually stopped and noticed he wasn't following me. In the woods, maybe."

They all started out of the library.

"I put enough Phenobarbital in this thing to sink a small elephant. It should be enough for a large werewolf." Giles grabbed his coat from the counter and held the door open for the girls.


Buffy drove them to the woods. They got out of the van and searched. Soon, they found what they were looking for. The werewolf was approaching a pile of meat that Cain had left out for him.

Cain cocked his flintlock's hammer back and lifted it to his shoulder. "That's it. Let me see you. Come on, suppertime."

The werewolf was on top of the bait now.

Cain took aim. "Good doggy. Now play dead."

He was about to pull the trigger when Buffy kicked him from the side. He fell to the ground, and his gun fired wild. The werewolf looked up from its meal at the commotion. Buffy grabbed Cain's gun and wrestled him for it. She flipped the rifle over, and he followed, landing on his back and letting go of the gun in the process. As he tried to get up, Buffy swung the butt of the rifle around and knocked him down and out. The werewolf came at her, and she ducked his lunge. The werewolf grabbed Buffy and lifted her off her feet. She pushed him back using Cain's gun to keep from being bitten. Giles tried to get a clear shot, but the werewolf turned and held Buffy up between them.

"Careful!" Tara told him.

Giles couldn't get a clear shot. "Damn it!" He kept looking for an opening but was quickly getting frustrated.

Buffy raised the rifle high and smashed it down on the werewolf's head. It dropped her and fell back, stunned. It quickly got up and swiped at her, knocking the gun from her hands. Then the werewolf shoved Buffy away and right into Giles, Cordelia, and Tara, bowling them over. It started to come at them. Tara scrambled for the tranquilizer gun and brought it up to bear. The werewolf charged, and Tara pulled the trigger. The dart hit it in the chest, and it staggered backward a bit before falling over, unconscious.

Tara silently offered the gun back to Giles, unnerved.

"You saved us." Giles took the gun from Tara.

Cordelia hugged Tara, who started shaking. Tara hugged her. Buffy walked over to get Cain's gun.

Cain got to his feet and straightened his coat. "No wonder this town's overrun with monsters. No one here's man enough to kill 'em."

"Oh, I wouldn't be too sure of that."

Cain turned to see Buffy with his flintlock. She grabbed the end of the barrel and bent it into a nice arc right in front of him and then thrust it at him. He looked at her in astonishment.

"How about you let the door hit you in the ass on the way out of town?" Buffy suggested.

Cain made a move to go but stopped to give her another look. She stared back at him, and then he left. Buffy, Cordelia, and Tara looked down at Oz the werewolf.

"You think it'll be okay?" Cordelia asked.

The three girls looked at Giles.

"He'll be a little sore in the morning, but...he'll be Oz."


The next day, at Sunnydale High, Cordelia, Tara, and Buffy walked past the trophy case and into the lounge.

"This is all so weird. I mean...how are we supposed to act when we see him?" Cordelia asked.

Buffy shrugged. "Well, it's gotta be weird for him, too. Now that we know so much."

Cordelia shook her head. "All I know is I'll never be able to look at him the same again."

Tara looked at her. "He's still a human being. Most of the time."