FF: Wanted a Werewolf - 3/8 - B/W/T - PG13

["carrkjar" <carrkjar@xxxxxxxxx>]

Wanted: A Werewolf and a Superman
Part 3
Red Moon Rising, Book III

Author: Frau Hunter Ash 
Copyright © 2002 by Hunter Ash. All Rights Reserved.
Email: carrkjar@xxxxxxxxx Feedback welcome!!
Homepage Addy: http://www.hunterash.com/ 
Disclaimers: The characters and show all belong to Joss Whedon, Fox, 
Mutant Enemy, Kuzui, and God only knows who else. The storyline, 
however, is the sole property of the author. This story cannot be 
sold or used for profit in any way. Copies of this story may be made 
for private use only and must include all disclaimers and copyright 
notices.
F/F romance: the story assumes a loving and sexual relationship 
between people of the same gender and may even include 3 at the same 
time <G>. If this offends or is illegal for you, then please leave.  
Come back when you are older, have an open mind, moved, or changed 
your laws. 
Spoilers: the series starts at New Moon Rising and takes a turn from 
there.
Summary: Werewolf Willow escaped on a full moon: the Gang and the 
witch have to deal with the possible consequences. Willow meets 
someone unusual and makes the decision to run away.
Buffy and Tara get their first introduction to the latest 
threat to Sunnydale while looking for Willow: Adam and a controlled 
Riley.
Rating: PG-13
Pairings: B/W/T, X/A, G/J


Carson climbed into the bed with the witch with a smile. Out of 
respect for his guest, he kept on his shorts and a t-shirt. The 
vampire lost his smile when he looked down and saw the pained look on 
Willow's face and the sweat pouring off of her as she thrashed 
lightly in the grip of a nightmare.

"No," she whimpered and batted at some unseen attacker.

"Hey, Scarlet," Carson said gently and began shaking the girl 
lightly.  

Willow's eyes snapped open and Carson tried to scramble out of his 
bed with a squeak of surprise as the witch raised her hands, pointed 
at him.

"Damnit, wake up!" he shouted, just as a massive burst of energy hit 
him, sending him and the covers flying into the far wall.  

Carson blinked several times as he thanked the dark gods that he no 
longer had to breathe to live because he was certain he had several 
broken ribs.

Willow was sitting up in bed and looking at him with a confused look.

"Hi," he said sarcastically.  

"What happened?" she asked.

"You were having a nightmare and zapped me when I woke you up," he 
explained, trying to unwrap his feet out from the blanket and sheet.

"Oh Goddess," Willow cried and rushed to the vampire, "I'm so sorry, 
are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," he said and winced at the pain in his ribs and 
Willow noticed.

"I hurt you!" she whispered and he heard the terror in her voice.

"Yes, you did and I should have known better," Carson said firmly, 
finally getting to his feet and pulling her up. "I shouldn't have 
gotten in your line of fire; a witch with a nightmare can be deadly."

"I can't let Tara and Buffy see me like this," she whispered as he 
led them both back to the bed and spread out the sheet once more.

"Your lovers?" he asked and Willow nodded, her face miserable.

"You know, you've never asked my name," she said thoughtfully.

"Nope, figured that was your business if you wanted to tell me or 
not, Willow Rosenberg," he grinned. "You'll find on this side of the 
fence most of us don't even remember our real names."

"You knew my name though," Willow said, crawling back into bed with 
the vampire.

"Everyone knows Willow Rosenberg, college student, witch, lesbian and 
girlfriend to slayer and witch. Buffy Summers the Slayer and Tara 
Maclay the witch."

"Everyone knows Buffy's name?"

"No, just a few of us that don't care to go tracking her down," 
Carson explained. "Some of us just want to stay out of her way and 
not force a scene."

"What the hell do I do now?" Willow demanded, more from herself than 
the vampire lying next to her, as she sat up and wrapped her arms 
around her legs. "I killed someone innocent."

"How do you know they were innocent?" he countered.

"What? They were human, that's enough," she clarified her own 
morality issues. "I saw a mental flash from Buffy, I saw the bodies 
in her mind."

"Okay, you killed," Carson leaned up on a hand and elbow. "Deal with 
it somehow."

"I don't know how!" Willow growled.  

"Well, the basics of survival are covered: shelter, food, water, 
clothing. Can you get on with your life with your lovers and 
friends, go back to your old life?" he questioned.

"I don't know," Willow admitted. "I'm supposed to go back to school 
and my life as if nothing happened until the next full moon. Let 
them lock me away and pray that something doesn't let the wolf out?"

"What would you do if you didn't go back to them?" Carson 
asked. "The same thing but without your friends and family. Trying 
to survive until the next full moon and finding a place to lock 
yourself up and praying something doesn't let the wolf out."

"Damn," Willow muttered. "I can't win."

"That's why they call them curses, shouldn't have gotten yourself 
bit," Carson smirked.

"I didn't get bit, I took this on myself," Willow muttered.

"What? You have got to be kidding!"

Willow smirked. "Nope, that's what I meant when I said I called it 
to me. Buffy was bitten and I took on the curse to save her."

"Damn, girlfriend!" Carson shook his head. "Now you get to pay the 
heavy cost."

"I figured it was only fair, Buffy has more than enough to deal with 
being the 
Slayer."

"Then go home to her and Tara," Carson suggested. "You guys 
obviously love each other. Let that get you through this."

"I don't know, it's just more of a burden for them," Willow frowned.

"They won't look at it that way," Carson argued. "Did you want to 
dump your boyfriend because he was a werewolf?"

"No, we had to work around it but that wasn't a question," Willow 
explained and then smirked at herself. "Right, I get it, Buffy and 
Tara wouldn't even question getting me through this. Just like I 
didn't second think taking it from Buffy."

"Right, now lets get some sleep and you can go home in the 
afternoon," he suggested and was surprised but pleased when Willow 
laid back down on the bed and snuggled in his arm. "How do you know 
I'm not hungry?" he asked.

"You're warm, you've fed," she said, suddenly sleepy. "Besides, 
you're a gentleman."

"You're correct, damnit," he grinned.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Riley watched the Summers' house closely with unblinking eyes. He 
waited in the shadows for Buffy and the others to leave and followed 
Buffy and Tara as they headed to one of the graveyards.

He clicked his mike twice.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Buffy and Tara stood near the entrance of the crypt and the Slayer 
waited while the witch concentrated and chanted several phrases along 
with some hand gestures. Tara's face lit up with hope and Buffy 
smiled.

"I can see a trail," Tara said softly.

"Lead on then, Indian scout," Buffy grinned, keeping an eye out for 
vampires, demons and any other thing crawling about in the dark.

Tara headed for the far end of the cemetery, heading for the wall 
closest to the woods.

After a half hour of following the trail Buffy felt her heart sinking.

Tara, sensing the change in her lover's energy, turned and looked at 
Buffy with a concerned expression.

"I know where we're headed," Buffy said flatly, her emotions going 
numb. She motioned for Tara to continue following the magickal 
energy trail and felt darkness trying to crowd into her heart and 
mind as things became familiar.

Buffy tried not to whimper when they came upon the clearing. Tara 
looked around in confusion, spotting the torn police tape, the taped 
outlines of where bodies had been found, and the dark stains on the 
picnic table.

"Oh Goddess, t-this is where t-they were, isn't it?" she asked softly.

"Yeah," Buffy nodded, unhappily stuffing her hands in her pocket.

"She was here, Buffy," Tara confirmed, tears beginning to form in her 
eyes.

"Let's go on, we need to find her," Buffy said firmly.

It was close to dawn when they worked their way down into the sewer 
tunnel and found where Willow's energy pattern changed.

"She changed here, Buffy," Tara said as they looked around.

"What are the odds she didn't run into something down here?" Buffy 
pondered, looking around. The sewers were notoriously known for 
harboring vampires, demons, criminals, the homeless and runaways.  
The dark tunnels protected the vampires and demons from the sun and 
the protected the homeless, criminals and runaways from the law.

"Let's hope they were friendly," Tara agreed, beginning to follow the 
new trail.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Riley waited at the grate covering the entrance to the sewer tunnels 
and stood unblinking as Adam moved out of the woods and approached 
him.

"They went down there?" the hybrid human/demon/cyborg asked, pointing 
to the grate.

"Yes," Riley nodded. "What have you done to me?" he managed to 
question.

"I merely activated your implants," Adam said impatiently, easily 
lifting the grate.

"Implants? They wouldn't do that to their soldiers," Riley protested.

"Of course they would," Adam said easily. "Just like they use drugs 
to enhance your strength, stamina and reflexes. The implant that is 
controlling you is right here," Adam said, pointing at Riley's 
breastbone. "It connects into your neuro-system. Makes controlling 
your movements easy. It also hooks into the mind control implant."

"What do you want?" Riley questioned, struggling against the control 
of the hybrid.

"To fulfill our destiny, you are the first generation soldier of the 
future, I am the third and the prototype for the next level," Adam 
explained as he pointed to the ladder and Riley Finn began descending 
into the tunnel. "I am going to take things to the next level by 
creating an entire army of those like me. Instead of being prodded, 
poked, tested and kept in a lab for the rest of my life, I'm going to 
prove by example."

"That's not what Mother wanted," Riley argued as Adam followed him 
down the ladder.

"The student has outgrown the teacher," Adam shrugged. "We'll take 
over Sunnydale and force the demons and humans to work for us and 
prove our superiority."

"What about the Slayer, she'll fight you," Riley frowned.

"Us, brother, us," Adam corrected. "That's why we're going to take 
her out now, pre-emptive strike."

Riley continued to frown as they followed Tara and Buffy.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

"Willow!" Carson hissed harshly in the witch's ear.  

Willow was awake instantly at the intensity in his voice.

"There's someone coming up the ladder, someone activated my trip 
alarm," he whispered. "Get your clothes and let's go!"

"I've got an idea, get against the wall, quick!" she instructed, 
thrusting her feet into the sneakers Renfield had brought her. She 
grabbed up the sweatshirt and quickly pulled it on.

She joined him against the wall and closed her eyes, concentrating as 
they heard sounds of someone climbing the ladder leading from the 
sewer tunnels into the crypt.

"Don't move or breathe," Willow whispered.

"I don't have to breathe," Carson muttered and tried not to squeak as 
his hands and feet faded out of sight and both of them became 
invisible.

Willow opened her eyes as the grate opened and a crossbow appeared 
from below. A familiar hand and head followed as Buffy entered the 
crypt, followed by Tara.

Carson's eyes widened at the sight of the Slayer in his crypt as 
Buffy's eyes quickly scanned the room, looking for danger. After a 
moment, the Slayer relaxed and helped Tara the rest of the way up the 
ladder and into the room.

"She's not here unless she's under the bed," Buffy muttered.

Tara glanced around the room while Buffy explored. Her mind taking 
in the empty fast food bags and water bottles.  

"The trail ends here, Buff," Tara said with a puzzled frown.  

"Could she have erased it somehow?" Buffy asked.  

"I don't know, probably," Tara said, looking around and stopped, 
hesitating on the spot where Willow and Carson stood. Willow held 
her breath and Tara's eyes moved on. "Buff, what is this place?"

"Someone's lair, a vampire with company," Buffy said, continuing to 
look around.

"Why do you say that?"

"No food or food storage but empty fast food bags and bottled water," 
Buffy reasoned. "Someone who doesn't need food suddenly has someone 
around who does."

"Willow," Tara nodded. "Why would a vampire take Willow in, unless 
he's holding her against her will."

"I don't think so, she would have yelled for help," Buffy said 
thoughtfully.

"Buffy, what will we do when we find her?" Tara asked, sitting down 
on the edge of the bed.  

Buffy walked over and wrapped her arms around Tara, gently stroking 
her hair after dropping the crossbow on the bed.

"I don't know, honestly," Buffy admitted.

"Her trail showed us she was at the killing," Tara cried 
lightly. "Her worst fear was killing someone innocent or hurting one 
of us."

"We'll deal with it somehow," Buffy said softly. "As long as Walsh 
and the Initiative don't get their hands on Willow again, we can face 
anything."

"Do you think they'll come back here?'

"Maybe, we'll stake out the place tonight and see if anything comes 
back," Buffy said.

"Let's go home and try again tonight," Tara agreed.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

"I'm sorry about earlier, Joyce Mom," Xander said.

"It's alright, Xander," Joyce said as Anya grabbed the coffee tray 
from her. "Everyone is upset and worried."

"I didn't mean we should kill Willow," he continued, his voice almost 
cracking.  

"I know that, it's just an impossible situation," Joyce 
agreed. "We'll just have to get through it one day at a time."

"Yes, Mrs. Joyce," Anya agreed.

The three of them looked up at a knock on the door. Joyce started 
for the door and Giles stuck his head in.

"May I come in?" he smiled at Joyce.

"Of course, Rupert," she smiled in return. "Any news?"

"No, I'm afraid not," he said. "Spike says there's been no word 
among the demons and vampires. No one at school has seen her and 
Brad says nothing coming into the police either."

"Damn!" Xander said wearily.  

"I don't know how much more we can all take, Giles," Joyce said 
softly.

"I know, I know," he wrapped his arms around Joyce.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

"What the hell was that all about?" Carson demanded when he could see 
his body again.

"I don't know," Willow frowned. "I wanted to hear what they were 
thinking before showing myself."

"Then why wait?" he asked.

"Do you know about the Initiative?" Willow asked.

"Yes, most every demon, werewolf, vampire and daemon in town knows to 
stay clear of those damned military types," Carson nodded.

"Do you know what they do to the ones they capture?"

"Well, I know they put some damned chip in Spike's head and neutered 
him," Carson grinned.

"Do you know what they do with werewolves?" she asked.

"Yeah," he said softly. "I saw a werewolf they let loose after they 
were done with him. He was totally nuts and became this homeless 
guy. Kept jumping at shadows and talking to himself. On nights of 
the full moon he'd crawl into the sewers and changed. He would howl 
all night and throw himself into walls, holding his head."

"They put a chip in his head, it sends a signal to his ears like a 
dog whistle," Willow explained. "I was captured by the Initiative."

Carson sat down in the chair, hard.  

"Your nightmares," he ventured.

"Yes. To make a long story short, in three days they nearly drove me 
insane and tortured me physically, I can't risk that again," Willow 
said softly.  

"How did you get out and when?"

"Two days ago, first day after the full moon, Buffy and my friends 
rescued me, destroyed the Initiative center and ran them out of town, 
or so we thought," Willow said bitterly.

"Wow, you haven't even started recovering from that let alone going 
through your first kill," Carson commented.

"Yeah, none of us have," Willow said sadly. "Now I have to leave."

"Why? Your friends are going crazy without you."

"You heard them, the Initiative is still in town," Willow 
explained. "I can't take the chance. They know about me."

"What's your plan then, aren't they the government?"

"I've got friends who can help with a new identity but I have to get 
out of Sunnydale," Willow explained, tears starting to fall from her 
eyes.  

"Willow," Carson said gently. "You can't leave Buffy and Tara."

"I have to," Willow argued. "All of my friends risked their lives to 
rescue me a couple of days ago, I can't risk that again."

"You keep saying that," Carson snapped. "Maybe you should ask them 
if they're willing to risk it."

"I'm not willing to risk them anymore," Willow countered. "Buffy is 
the Slayer, life is dangerous enough for her and my friends without 
adding me being a werewolf and taking on the government."

"Okay, you have a very distinctive look when you get stubborn don't 
you?" Carson grinned.

Willow began blushing and Carson laughed.

"Alright, what is your plan?"

"Get out of town, I think I can get lost in Los Angeles," Willow said.

"Got room for a vampire?"

"You? What about Renfield?" Willow asked.

"He'll be fine; he can take over the place after your Slayer realizes 
we're gone. I can't stay here now the Slayer knows this is 
occupied," Carson shrugged. "I can help you make some contacts in 
LA."

"Okay, let's get out of here before they come back on surveillance 
duty," Willow suggested and Carson grabbed a couple of backpacks and 
threw one at Willow.

"Pack the best books, they have an X on the inside cover," he 
instructed and the bookworm grinned in appreciation. "What's the plan 
after that?"

"I go to my parent's place and get the car," Willow began. "I wait 
until Buffy and the rest leave for the evening, grab my clothes and a 
few things from home and pick you up somewhere and we go to LA."

"Sounds good, I got friends we can stay with until you get on your 
feet," Carson said easily.  

"Why are you going with me?" Willow asked.

"You're running on denial, anger, and shock," he commented. "You'll 
need a friend when you collapse."

Willow, wanting to avoid the topic suddenly, merely nodded.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Buffy and Tara headed for the nearest ladder leading to the upper 
world only to find it blocked by a huge monster and an expressionless 
Riley.

"Uh, Buffy," Tara said softly, starting to back up slightly.

"Uh, yeah," Buffy agreed, taking in the size, apparent strength and 
confidence of the creature and Riley's dead eyes.

The two young women turned to run when Tara squeaked and fell to the 
slimly ground in convulsions with two Taser spikes in her back, wires 
trailing to Riley's electric stun gun.

"Tara!" Buffy screamed and grabbed a chair without a seat someone had 
thrown into the sewer and broke it into pieces. One piece she shot 
at Riley, knocking the gun out of his hand and with another she 
whacked at the wiring and pulled the darts out of Tara.

"Impressive, quick thinking, quick reflexes, enhanced strength," the 
creature commented as Riley stood motionless.  

"Yeah, and mine comes naturally," Buffy quipped, trying to get Tara 
to her feet and giving up as Adam suddenly dashed forward, moving 
faster than Buffy thought he could with his size. The Slayer barely 
turned to face the monster and took a backhand blow to her jaw, which 
sent her flying across the tunnel and sliding down the cold stone 
wall.

Adam was on her before Buffy could even shake her head and then 
grabbed her by the throat. Buffy clawed at his arm uselessly as he 
lifted her off the ground, slowly tightening his grip.

"Over so quickly," he commented as she gasped for air. "Even the 
mighty Slayer is helpless before my strength and speed."

"You want power?" someone asked behind him.

Adam glanced back in time to see Tara facing him with both hands 
raised. He dropped Buffy and turned to face the witch as she chanted 
and concentrated. The creature suddenly began howling in pain as 
flames enveloped him.

As he batted at his blistering demon skin, Tara ran forward and 
ducked under his wild flailing arms to grab Buffy and drag her away 
from Adam. As he dropped to the slimy floor, the two women stumbled 
to their feet and began to run down the tunnel past Riley.

Buffy stopped and waved her hand in front of her ex-boyfriend's face 
and frowned when he didn't even blink.

"Come on," Tara urged as Adam began to stand up, the flames 
extinguished.

Buffy followed her lover up the ladder, still coughing from the 
choking.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Buffy was in a miserable mood by the time she and the gang 
got back from watching the tomb all night. Xander and Anya had 
volunteered to watch the ladder in the sewer tunnel, Xander armed 
with a Glock automatic pistol and Anya with a shotgun. They figured 
that a head shot to whatever had attacked Buffy might just take the 
creature down.
	
Buffy and Tara watched the outside entrance to the tomb. By 
dawn everyone was tired and suffering from frazzled nerves.  

Giles had stayed behind to contact Agents Mulder and Scully 
and go over the files from the Initiative. He updated them about the 
cyborg hybrid that Buffy and Tara had run into.

"I've been going through those files," Mulder said after 
Giles gave the FBI agent Buffy's description of her attacker. "That 
sounds like the thing Professor Walsh was experimenting with but she 
was nowhere near ready to activate."

"Well, it was with Riley Finn and apparently had mental 
control over Riley, that tells me it's from the Initiative," Giles 
explained.

"I agree," Mulder responded. "Listen, from what our techs 
here tell us, they don't think it's possible to make something like 
this. This is straight out of Frankenstein."

"Well, you and I both know that your techs don't think 
werewolves exist either," Giles countered.

"Right," Giles could almost hear Mulder smiling over the 
phone. "If she got this thing activated, it's deadly. Enhanced 
strength, rapid reflexes, infra-red sight in one eye, extremely thick 
skin, a CPU processor in his head and the heart is protected by 
metal."

"Any suggestions on taking this thing down?" Giles asked with 
a frown.

"The power supply for his CPU and adrenaline pumps is at the 
base of his spine, you might be able to break it, or crush his head 
in a vice like in the Terminator," Mulder suggested.

"That bad?" Giles asked softly.

"Yes, he could be only slightly less dangerous," Mulder 
answered. "How's Willow?"

"Uh, well," Giles hesitated. "She's missing, actually."

"What?" Mulder demanded on the other end of the phone and 
Giles winced. "When? How?"

"Well, that earthquake we had loosened the cell door and the 
werewolf escaped," Giles explained. "We know she's alive and hiding."

"Why would she hide from you, Giles?" Mulder demanded.

"Uh, she thinks she killed someone innocent," Giles admitted.

"Did she?" Fox Mulder asked softly.

"There is evidence that it was possibly Willow but there's 
also some confusion," Giles said.

"Send everything you got to Scully and me, we'll see what we 
can figure on this end," Mulder insisted.

"Alright, thank you," Giles said with a sigh of relief.  

"What is it that bothers you about it?" Mulder asked.

"There are two victims, a teenage male and female. It looks 
like the male and female were killed by two separate creatures," 
Giles explained.

"Could it be a different werewolf, a pair of them or a demon?"

"Yes, any of those are possible except that Buffy and Tara 
tracked Willow's magickal trail to the scene. She was there that 
night and when they connected with her the next morning she was 
confused and covered in blood," Giles expanded.

"Oh God," Mulder muttered softly. "Do you have a bite 
pattern for Willow?"

"No, we didn't have a chance. We only had her back two 
nights," Giles' voice was threatening to crack.

"Wait a minute, all those tests the Initiative did, I bet 
they have a bite pattern for the werewolf," Mulder grumbled and Giles 
could hear him clicking on his computer keyboard. "Send me what 
you've got, I've got a bite pattern for Willow as a werewolf."

"Thank you, Mulder," Giles said again.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

"Well, your Slayer was a little disappointing but that witch 
was most entertaining," Adam said calmly. When Riley didn't respond, 
Adam pressed several keys on his small hand-held computer and Riley 
blinked and glared at the cyborg.

"Buffy will figure out a way to stop you," Riley snapped, 
struggling to move but unable to move more than his head.

"I doubt it," Adam dismissed the soldier's ranting. "The 
Slayer is very predictable; she is clever but relies heavily on her 
friends in her duties. Remove her friends and family and she will be 
weak."

"What?" Riley asked, disbelief in his voice.

"Logic, brother," Adam said casually. "Find your enemy's 
weakness and exploit it. Buffy Summers' weakness is her reliance and 
loyalty to her friends. Mother often commented on it in her notes 
about the Slayer."  

"Why did you kill Mother?" Riley demanded.

"A mistake, I admit," Adam said easily. "I wasn't 
functioning properly yet when she entered the room."

"What the hell do you want?" Riley snapped.

"To prove that I am the future of the military," Adam 
responded. "To do that, I will take over Sunnydale with very little 
help and show what can be accomplished by a super soldier. Then I 
will oversee the limited construction of others like me and the 
research onto the next level."

"I'll find a way to break this damned control," Riley promised.

"Accept your destiny," Adam suggested. "You were Mother's favorite 
among the soldiers. Your intelligence pleased her greatly. "First 
we cut off the head of the enemy, then we attack the other body 
parts. I'm not sure what to do about the witch, though."

"Giles, you want to kill Giles," Riley deduced.

"Yes, " Adam nodded. "I wonder if the girl is a half demon."

"Who? Tara? She's normal," Riley frowned.

"Then she was using magick?" Adam questioned.

"Yes, she's a witch, so is Willow Rosenberg, her girlfriend."

"Witch, that isn't logical. Magic defies the laws of science," Adam 
complained.

"A lot of things I saw with Buffy and her group defy logic," Riley 
agreed.

"We shall eliminate their unstable influence in this town," Adam 
promised.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Buffy threw herself down on the sofa and curled up in Tara's arms as 
Giles came out of the kitchen with a cup of tea in his hands.

"I take it by your expressions that no one came back to the crypt 
last night," he commented as Joyce walked up behind him and under his 
arm as it wrapped around her shoulder.  

Joyce looked at Buffy and Tara with concern. Neither one had slept 
more than a few hours in a week since Willow had been taken by the 
Initiative. Even after getting her back the full moon had 
interrupted any kind of a decent sleep pattern for everyone.

"No, nothing, not even a rat," Tara complained. "Her trail ended in 
the crypt, it was as if she disappeared there."

"What would interrupt a magickal trail like that," Giles pondered.

"If she was unconscious?" Joyce suggested but Giles shook his head.

"No, it would still be there," he muttered as they sat down across 
from Buffy and Tara.

"I can't think unless she thought to erase her trail magickally but 
I'm not sure how to do that," Tara commented.

"Can either of you make contact yet? Maybe she's asleep?" Joyce 
suggested.

"No, we tried while we were waiting and again just before coming 
home," Buffy muttered. "She's still blocking us, alive, but blocking 
us."

"It just doesn't make sense," Joyce complained. "We talked; I know 
how much she loves you both."

"She's so scared of something that she's blocking it," Tara mumbled.

"You two go up and get some sleep," Joyce suggested. "I'm going to 
call Theresa Santiago today and see what we can do about this 
semester for you three; I don't want the three of you failing because 
of all of this."

"Thanks, Mom," Buffy mumbled and helped Tara up from the sofa and 
headed for the stairs.  

Buffy frowned when they started past Willow's room and stopped.  

"What is it, Buff?" Tara asked as the Slayer opened the redhead's 
door slowly.

"I don't know, I don't remember the closet door being open when we 
left," Buffy commented and walked into Willow's room. Her tired mind 
tried to register what was wrong with the room.

"Oh no!" Tara cried and rushed to the bed, grabbing up a sheet of 
paper and began reading.

Buffy knew what the note was. When she had run away, she left a 
similar note for her friends and mother. At least Willow was kind 
enough to do that, she thought as she looked around and noticed 
Willow's laptop computer, a few books and some of the witch's clothes 
missing.

"Buffy!" Tara whispered, trying not to break into tears again.

Buffy understood, it seemed like all they did recently was cry and 
they were both tired. The Slayer took the note without a word and 
read through it quickly.


"Gang; I'm sorry to do this. I can't stay in Sunnydale with the 
Initiative still in town. I won't endanger you by getting caught by 
them again and I won't endanger you with the wolf either. I know I 
didn't hurt Tara but I could have. I also figured out that I killed 
someone as the wolf. 

"I'm not going to kill myself, even though I probably should and end 
the risk to the rest of the world. Guess I'm not that brave 
anymore. I'm leaving town for a while. I can't let the government 
get a hold of me again. I could be brave enough to kill myself 
before that happens again.

"Buffy, Tara; I know you're not going to understand this. I don't 
quite understand it myself. I love you both more than my own life 
but I can't stay and keep endangering you both. I need you both so 
much and I know I'm going to be lost without you but I can't risk 
hurting you or having you hurt because of me. Please, let me go and 
be happy together. Willow."

"Oh God, Will," Buffy muttered and sat down heavily on the bed. Tara 
gently took the note from her and headed back downstairs.

Buffy stared at the frame on Willow's nightstand and realized it was 
empty. The picture of her, Tara and Willow was missing.

"Don't give up on us yet, Will," Buffy whispered, mentally sending 
out all the love she could through their connection.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Carson, in the back seat of her parent's car, heard Willow whimper 
and sat up. He kept the blanket over his head and made sure to stay 
out of the sunlight coming into the car.

"You okay?" he asked.

"Yeah, just something tugging on the heart-strings," Willow said 
softly.

"You can go back to them," he suggested.

"Not with men in white coats looking for me," Willow said firmly. "I 
can't take that again. They can make it without me."

"Not likely but you're the driver," Carson muttered and lay back down.

Willow hoped that the Highway Patrol wouldn't take an interest in the 
car with towels blocking out all the windows but the driver's side 
and windshield. It would be hard to explain why the guy in the 
backseat couldn't get out of the car on a nice sunny California 
winter day.

"I love you too, Buffy," Willow whispered and continued driving.