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Chapter Six - The Art of Camouflage

Willow entered the Magic Box with the air of someone on their way to their own execution. Her visit to the warlock had been fruitless. He had known why the spell had failed to be released: her love for Tara prevented it. A spell cast in love can only be undone by love. Only if she fell out of love with Tara could she work the counter spell. Or if someone who loved her with her whole heart, someone she loved more than Tara, performed a Ritual of Calling, while Tara performed a Ritual of Releasing, she would be free. Willow's shoulders sagged. It was impossible. She was certain there was no one she loved more than Tara.

Anya greeted her cheerily and she plastered a fake smile on her face. A quick and disappointing search of the shop turned up no sign of Xander, but her smile became genuine when Giles came in from the back. She had spoken to him on the phone, but this was the first time she had seen him in person since he had returned. Willow launched herself across the room and grabbed him in a huge hug.

"It's you! You're really here!" she gushed, and Giles returned her hug warmly, chuckling a bit at her enthusiasm.

"Was I gone that long?" Giles asked.

"It seemed like forever," Willow said solemnly as she pulled away. Giles' concerned frown made her move a bit further away from him; the Englishman sometimes had a way of sensing...

"Willow, are you all right?" he asked softly. Her bottom lip quivered, but she managed to hold herself together.

"I'm hanging in. Tara's going to the hospital. I haven't been able to cure her, Giles. I tried really hard." At the last word her voice broke, and her control not too long after. Giles pulled her into a hug again and let her cry, recognizing that his quiet strength was more soothing than his words would have been. After a few moments she pulled away, still sniffling but managing a smile again.

"I know you did your best, Willow. Sometimes things happen, terrible things...what I'm trying to say is, you mustn't blame yourself," Giles said solemnly.

"You either. For Dawn, I mean. You were great. It’s not your fault she left, Giles."

"I wasn't up to being her parent, I'm afraid," Giles confessed, shadows of self-recriminations in his eyes. Willow shook her head firmly.

"None of us were up to it. We all failed her,” she said, biting her bottom lip. “And, you know, she failed all of us, too. She should have stuck it out."

"She's little more than a child, and she's been through so much."

"Dawn is strong, Giles. Don't forget what she's made of." Cas entered the room and made a beeline for Anya, the two of them sharing a quick but passionate kiss. "That's Anya's new guy, huh?"

"That's Cas Harvey."

"He's kinda cute," Willow observed absently. "What's he like?"

"Come see for yourself," Giles answered, bringing her over and introducing his newest employee. Willow didn't miss the way Anya's hand tightened on her new boyfriend's arm as they exchanged pleasantries. She looked at Giles and rolled his eyes, causing the older man to chuckle. Over Cas' shoulder she saw Xander enter the shop, his expression carefully neutral. Willow could see that slight extra-widening of his eyes that meant he was dreading what he was walking into; it reminded her of the days of high school biology quizzes.

"Xander's here," she said happily. Anya quickly ran over to greet Xander, then both stood there awkwardly for a few moments while they tried to figure out the proper greeting protocol. After a few seconds Anya gave him a quick kiss on the cheek, and Willow saw Cas tense. She grinned inwardly at the obvious signs of jealousy. Xander came over and gave Willow a brief but tender one-armed squeeze. She reached without looking for his hand and held it momentarily, telling him without words that she was there for him. Cas cleared his throat, and Xander gave him a strained but polite smile.

"Xander Harris," he said, holding out his hand. Cas took it immediately in a firm handshake.

"Cas Harvey." After an uncomfortable moment, he continued, "Anya's told me a lot about you."

"Yeah, me too. About you. Good things," Xander added hastily. Cas gave him an amiable grin.

"Yes, good things here, too." The silence this time stretched for more than a moment, and Willow was about to babble something when Xander met Cas' eyes so seriously it made the words die in her throat.

"Anya's a wonderful girl," he said, and they all understood what he was saying, even Anya. *Don't hurt her. Don't mess this up the way I did.* Cas got the message too, and returned the serious look after a quick affectionate glance at his girlfriend.

"She's the most amazing person I've ever met. I'm just so lucky."

"Don't forget that," Xander said with a protective look at Anya. His ex-girlfriend was blushing furiously. He grinned at that.

"If I do, she'll remind me," Cas said sincerely, causing Giles, Willow and after a moment Xander to break into laughter. Anya gave her new honey a light kiss of appreciation. The atmosphere had immediately become more relaxed.

"Xander, since you're here, perhaps you could help me with something. There's a shipment in the back that includes a rare sarcophagus-"

"As opposed to the common kind?" Xander asked with a grin. Giles rolled his eyes and continued.

"As I was saying, a rare sarcophagus that I'm afraid is proving quite heavy. I think between you, Cas and myself we should be able to move it."

"Sure, I can flex manly muscles for you Giles."

"Cas has great muscles too," Anya said defensively. At Xander's raised eyebrow and the nonplussed looks of the others, she added more softly, "for lifting sarcophagi and other...things..."

"Willow, could you help Anya mind the shop while we're in the back?" Giles asked smoothly. Anya looked a bit put out, but Willow nodded happily. When the three men had gone to the back she and Anya looked at each other.

"There aren't any customers," Anya observed as if it was somehow Willow's fault. The redhead shrugged.

"So, what needs doing?"

"Nothing...well, some of those shelves over there need straightening. You can do that. I'm going to count the money again."

Willow shook her head as she went over to the shelves. Some of the books had been pulled out of whack. As she reached for the first book, her eyes took on a glazed look. She pulled one out and looked at it, then deliberately dropped it on the floor, smiling at the sound it made. She did it again, only this time slamming the book hard. Anya came over, upset and confused.

"What are you doing?" Anya shrieked.

"May I help you?" Willow asked her politely, then giggled, throwing another book. Anya grabbed her hands to try to stop her.

"What's wrong with you?"

"Shhhh. Did you hear that?" Willow asked in an excited whisper. Confused, Anya let go of her hands. Willow immediately grabbed another book and swung it towards Anya's head, missing her by inches. The former vengeance demon stumbled backwards, losing her balance and landing on her behind. Willow smiled down at her. "The thumping. Isn't it wonderful? The sound of it and the feet...you can't see it, so unlucky for you."

"You've gone over the edge," Anya whispered. Willow jumped on top of her, covering her mouth with one hand as she batted playfully at her head with the other.

"Pay attention. They don't like it when you're lost. You don't see the silver lady...you're late, you're late, you're late..." Willow began applying pressure to Anya's neck with her free hand. The terrified girl tried to buck her assailant off, but Willow was too strong. Then just as suddenly as it had gone Willow's mind snapped back into place. She stared down wild-eyed at what she was doing. "Oh my God...Anya...I'm so sorry," she said, pulling away from the girl and scurrying backwards until she hit the bookshelf. Several more books fell to the shop floor, the sound making both girls jump.

"You're crazy," Anya accused hoarsely, one hand on her throat, the other pointing at Willow. The redhead covered her head with her hands, near tears.

"No, I...I...tell Giles I'm sorry...tell Xander, too...I have to go!" Willow said. She turned and fled before Anya could stop her.

"Willow, wait!" Anya yelled as the door slammed, just as the three men came running out of the back of the shop. Giles was stunned by the fallen books and Anya sprawled on the floor.

"Good Lord, what happened?" he asked, as Cas and Xander ran to help Anya to her feet.

"Willow happened. She's gone all psycho."

"What are you talking about?" Xander demanded.

"Willow...she was throwing books, and she tried to hit me with one and fell down. She started talking all this gibberish, and then she tried to choke me. And then all of a sudden it was like she woke up or something, and then she ran away."

"What sort of gibberish?" Giles asked with a frown.

"Something about thumping, a silver lady...I don't know, it was crazy talk."

"What silver lady?" Cas asked. If any of them had been looking at him at that moment, they would have seen him twitching nervously.

"I honestly have no idea...it was just so...and she tried to kill me!" Anya said emphatically, feeling like they were getting off the main point.

"Willow wouldn't do that. There has to be some other explanation. Giles?" Xander asked desperately, ignoring the hurt look in his ex-girlfriend's eyes.

"I also find it hard to believe that Willow's taken leave of her senses so suddenly," Giles said, then seeing Anya's betrayed glance, added, "Perhaps...possession of some kind? We'll need to research this carefully."

"Great. You guys research. I'm gonna go find Will. She could be in trouble," Xander said, running out the door before anyone could object. Anya sighed, looking at Cas.

"Guess we should clean up Willow's mess before we figure out why she's wacky," she said bitterly. Cas frowned.

"I thought she was your friend," he noted, crouching down to retrieve some of the fallen volumes.

"I thought so too. But I guess she's only my friend when she's not crazy or possessed or whatever."

"We should start looking in the Transdimensional Codices..." Giles began as the phone rang. He picked it up while still scanning the bookshelf for the texts he needed. "Magic Box, your one stop...Good Lord! Dawn! Are you alright? Where are you?"

Anya froze, listening intently, and Cas did likewise, looking puzzled, but Giles said nothing more illuminating than a few 'Dear-Lord's and a number of 'I-see's. By the time he hung up the phone he was as pale as Anya had ever seen him. She grabbed his sleeve impatiently.

"Well? Is she okay?"

"She's...yes, she sounded well," Giles said, his expression glazed over. He stared at nothing for a moment, and Anya was just about to slap him when his eyes snapped back into focus. He abruptly reached for his car keys, his movements jerky with haste. "I must go."

"Go? Now? But Willow, possessed psycho-killer thing research, remember?" Anya cried.

"Yes, do go on without me," Giles answered absently as he fled the shop nearly at a run, leaving Anya and Cas to stare at each other in shock.

"Does this happen a lot?" Cas asked mildly as his girlfriend began a full-fledged meltdown.

"I can't believe this!" Anya practically shouted. Cas winced at the loudness of the noise in the empty shop, then shrugged.

"I guess not. So what do we do now?" he asked. She stared at him for a moment, then looked around at the lack of customers. They were completely alone.

Anya stalked to the front of the store, locked the door, turned the sign to 'Closed' and ran back to where Cas was still standing. She threw herself into his arms, kissing him for all he was worth. All Cas could manage was a squeaky exclamation.

"Oh."

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Willow ran into her dorm room and slammed the door behind her, panting. She stared at the door for a moment, then hurriedly locked it, pulling the chain.

*They'll have to lock me up. It's the only answer...Giles can put me in a cage like we did with Oz only it won't be for a few days a month but forever...* She reached for the phone and called the Magic Box, shaking so badly she could barely hold the phone. After a moment she got the machine. She stared at the phone in shock for a moment before dropping it back on the receiver and collapsing on the floor, her trembling legs no longer willing to hold her.

"Oh God," she sobbed. "What do I do? What can I do?" Willow's eyes searched her room for the answer. *Tara. Tara's coming back here, I have to tell her...* A small piece of pink paper on her desk caught her eye. She pulled herself to her feet and walked over there, dread in her heart. It was a note from Tara, saying that she needed to get some matters settled and had to make a quick overnight trip, that she was with someone who was aware of her situation and that she didn't want Willow to worry.

*She's trying to protect me from herself. God, you could choke on the irony,* Willow thought, crumpling the note into a small ball and flinging it in frustration. She heard something when it landed that gave her sudden inspiration. *I'm almost out of time. I hope this works, for everyone's sake. I need to tell them...they have to stop me.*

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Spike stirred from his slumber with a languorous stretch and a sigh. Such a deep sleep was rare for him these days; he almost always had dreams. Nightmares, he should call them, but he wouldn‘t. There was something just...wrong about an evil vampire having nightmares. He would often wake up screaming, and the bot would come and soothe him, holding him until he was able to sleep. He frowned. He had been too hard on it earlier, really. It tried hard, and it had been a great comfort to him. Not its fault that it could never equal the original. Not its fault that sometimes it caused him more pain than pleasure.

He absently reached to the other side of the bed and sat straight up when his hand hit air, then sheet. He gasped aloud at the sight that greeted his suddenly wide-awake eyes.

"Oh, no," he moaned to no one. For the Buffybot was gone.

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