Part Four - Willow
"So Buffy is staying with Lisa at her house?," asked Giles.
"Until sunset. It's easier that way. Try explaining Lisa to Buffy's mom," answered Willow.
"Yes. Perhaps I should offer to let her stay at my place. It would be quieter."
"Only place quieter than this library," said Xander. "And safer," he added after getting a look from Giles.
"Did you sleep alright, Willow? Or were you too nervous with Lisa there?," asked Giles.
"No, I slept pretty good, especially knowing she wasn't hungry. And the pillow fight tired me out too."
"Pillow fight!?," exclaimed Xander.
"I hope I'm not being rude by inquiring about your girl talk, but did you learn anything new from Lisa? Did she remember anything that might help us?," asked Giles.
"No, not really. Buffy gave her that Friendship charm that she found in the sewer. It was hers. Lisa knows a boy gave it to her, someone that she had strong feelings about, but she can only remember his face, not his name. Kinda sad, no?," asked Willow.
"Yes, it is. Very, I might add. But let's discuss Tucker for the moment. Obviously he listed a false address with the school. Why? And where could he be staying?," asked Giles.
"If you hunted vampires as a hobby, would you want them to know where you lived? We could follow him home," suggested Xander.
"And he'd never suspect a thing?," stated Giles.
"We could wear dark glasses," said Xander.
"Oh, very well. Might as well try."
This answer surprised Xander so much he couldn't respond with a joke. Willow just shrugged and smiled at him.
"Of course, this being Saturday and all, we'll have to wait until Monday to follow him home. Can't really follow him home from school if he's not there," said Xander.
"Of course. Meanwhile, why don't we start some research on the Vikings," said Giles.
"The football team?," asked Xander.
Giles lowered his glasses to the end of his nose and looked over them at Xander.
"Oh, you mean the guys with the funny hats and boats with dragon heads on them. I knew that," said Xander.
"There isn't much on Sven in the histories," continued Giles. "He's had a somewhat quiet and uneventful career as a vampire. One clue worth looking into is that his favorite weapon is a spear and not a hammer."
"Why is that important?," asked Willow.
"The Vikings have a long history. The earlier myths differ from the later legends. For instance, Odin, god of death and battle, had a spear as his favorite weapon. Thor, who became popular as belief in Odin waned, had a hammer as his weapon."
"And from that we conclude...," said Xander.
"That Sven prefers the earlier legends. Since he is supposedly superstitious, we might learn what he is afraid of and use that against him."
"Makes sense. About all I remember about the Vikings is a fat lady singing at the end of an opera and the blonde haired, blue eyed Valkyries. Those northern amazons escorted warriors who had fallen in battle to Valhalla, where they had one heck of a party."
"Very good, Xander. You almost have it right. Except that the fat lady singing is usually at the end of a German opera and the Valkyries you mention are typical of the later legends," corrected Giles.
"And the earlier legends say what about them?," asked Willow.
"The earlier Valkyries were wretched creatures who roamed the carnage of a battlefield, drinking blood and feasting on corpses."
"They were vampires?," asked Willow.
"Perhaps, perhaps not. That's always been my belief, but my views on the subject weren't always taken that seriously at the Council meetings."
"Giles, has Sven ever fought a slayer before? Worse yet, has he ever killed one?," asked Willow, concerned. "He has fought a slayer on at least two occasions, but Sven isn't renowned for his courage. He ran off both times after most of his followers were killed. Seems he likes to surround himself with warriors in groups of three, with his two most trusted warriors forming the last group of three with him."
"Why groups of three?," asked Xander.
"I believe it represents the Valknut, or three intertwined rings. That represents Odin's power to cause panic, terror or hesitation in his foes during a fight or courage in his men. Odin's bodyguards were called Beserkers. They didn't believe they could be harmed in battle because Odin would protect them. Believing this, they took incredible punishment in battle before being killed."
"And if Sven controls his followers by hypnosis, and they believe what you just said, then the longer we wait, the more followers he will have," said Xander.
"And the greater the danger to Buffy!," said Willow, finishing Xander's thoughts.
"Yes. We should tell Buffy," agreed Giles. "But let's do a little research first."
Just then the phone rang.
"Willow, would you get that please? There's a couple of volumes I'd like to get before we get started," said Giles.
"Sure."
"Hello?...Yes, this is Willow. Who's this?...Hello? Hello?"
Willow put down the phone slowly.
"Willow, what's wrong?," asked Xander. This got Giles attention.
"Yes, Willow, who was that?"
"I don't know. Must've been a wrong number."
"That's odd. I had a similar call earlier today. Perhaps we should have the service checked," said Giles.
"Wrong number and he knew your name?," asked Xander.
"Oh, I'm not sure he said my name. It was a bad connection. Let's do the reading thing, okay?"
* * *
"Yep, this sure beats reading," said Xander, watching the band play.
"Did you learn anything?," asked Buffy, raising her voice so she could be heard.
"Other than all work and no play makes Xander a dull boy? Nada. There's just not much in the books on Sven."
"I believe that's a duller boy," whispered Buffy to Willow. Surprisingly, Willow didn't laugh or defend Xander. She seemed distracted, absently watching the band.
"What's that?," asked Xander.
"Nothing. Will, when's Oz getting back from last night's gig?," asked Buffy.
"Don't know. Maybe he'll meet us here later," replied Willow, flatly.
"Hey, are you okay? Something bothering you?," asked Buffy. "You don't seem yourself tonight."
"Same old me," replied Willow, not convincing Buffy.
"Lisa, how's your memory? Anything coming back?," asked Xander.
"Not really," shrugged Lisa. "Little things. Nothing...important."
The band started playing a slow song. Xander looked at Buffy, then stood up.
"Would you like to dance?," asked Xander.
"I think I'm going to get a soda," answered Buffy.
"Actually, I was talking to Lisa. I believe I owe her a dance, if my memory...I mean...Lisa?," asked Xander, extending his hand. Lisa smiled and took his hand.
"Oh," said Buffy, embarrassed.
"Sorry, Buffy, but I haven't quite gotten over the last time you and I danced."
"I'm never going to live that down, am I?"
"It will be in my memory as long as I can draw breath," smiled Xander.
"Uh, Xander? Sometimes even after that you can remember things," said Lisa.
"Okay...let's dance!," said Xander, not knowing how to respond to that.
Xander found an open spot on the dance floor and looked at Lisa, then nervously pulled her close. Lisa hesitated at first, but put her head on Xander's shoulder.
"You're wearing Buffy's sweater. Are you still cold or have you not had time to go shopping yet?"
"Yes, I'm still cold. I can't seem to get warm. It's not so bad after..."
"After you eat. It's okay Lisa. I shouldn't have..."
"Shhh. Xander, just hold me. Please?" Xander nodded and they danced.
"Sometimes people surprise you, Will," said Buffy. "Even when you think you know them. Who would've thought that Xander would let her rest her head so close to his neck?"
"Are you worried she might..."
"No. Not at all," answered Buffy, not taking her eyes off the couple. "But I think the sitch bears watching, no?"
"Oh yeah," replied Willow, absently touching the cross that hung from her neck.
The song ended. Xander stepped apart from Lisa but still held her. She was crying.
"Lisa, what's wrong? Did I do something to upset you?"
"No, it's not you," said Lisa, wiping her eyes. "I lied before. I am remembering more. Every day. It's...it's just that I'd forgotten how nice it was to have someone hold me. Thank you, Xander. This really meant a lot to me."
"Your welcome," said Xander, smiling and wiping a tear from her cheek.
"My female instinct is telling me to run to the ladies room to fix my makeup. But it's not like I can look in the mirror, right? I mean, Buffy helped me with it before. And what if there were other girls in there? They might get a little upset at not seeing my reflection."
"Lisa, you look great. Okay?"
Lisa smiled and nodded.
"You know, when we started dancing I thought for sure that you would tell me to relax, that you don't bite," said Xander, trying to make her laugh. It worked.
"Actually, it crossed my mind. I just couldn't say it. Hey, isn't that Angel talking to Buffy?"
"Yes, it is. Something's up. We'd better head back," said Xander.
"I hate to break up the party, but Angel's got some news," said Buffy to Lisa and Xander.
"I paid a visit to Willy the snitch. He was eager to talk; I didn't even have to beat him up. Seems that there's fewer patrons in his bar lately. Quite a few have been invited to join up with Sven. Willy hasn't seen Sven himself, but he thinks we might find him at the old Morgan warehouse down by the railroad tracks."
"Good old Willy. Motivated by his dearest friend, money. What's the plan?," asked Xander.
"I think Angel, Lisa and I should go pay Sven a visit. First we'll stop by the library, bring Giles up to speed and pick up some supplies. You and Willow can wait there. It's too dangerous for you to come along," added Buffy.
"Danger? Library sounds good to me. You with me, Willow?," asked Xander.
"I'll catch up. I want to hang for awhile, see if Oz shows up."
"Lisa, I shouldn't assume that you'd want to come," said Buffy.
"Assume away. What are we waiting for?"
"Meet you back at the homestead, Will," said Buffy.
Willow waved goodbye. Since the band was on break, she'd thought she call Oz to see if he was at home. Just before she got to the payphone, it rang. Not seeing anyone around who was waiting for a call, she picked it up.
"Hello?...Giles, is that you?...No, Buffy already left...Meet you where?...Isn't that kinda dangerous?...Yes, I'm wearing my cross...You know Buffy's stopping at the library first? I mean, we might beat her there. Can you pick me up here at the Bronze?...Your car is in the shop. Okay, I'll wait for you out in front of the warehouse. Bye."
Willow thought about calling Oz before she left but didn't want to explain everything. She'd call as soon as she got back.
* * *
"Oh, yeah, this was a great idea. Not dangerous at all," said Willow to herself as she walked down the dark street. "This one inch cross I'm wearing will protect me. Not from a mugger, or a dog, or, or...oh, yeah. Great idea. Of course, do I say no? Do I ever say no?"
Willow turned the corner and there it was. She could just make out the name Morgan across the door to the old warehouse. It was dark and Giles wasn't here yet. She walked very slowly towards the door to what was probably once an office. It was open.
"Willow." The voice came from inside the office.
"Giles? Is that you?"
Willow took one more step towards the door and realized that it wasn't Giles.
* * *
"The Morgan warehouse. Quaint, and not without its charms," said Angel.
"Lisa, do you sense another vampire close by?," asked Buffy.
"No."
"Alright then, here's the plan. Angel, look around the main floor. Lisa and I will go upstairs and we'll leave the basement for last. Okay?"
"Sounds good. Be careful," said Angel.
"You too. Lisa, why don't you walk ahead of me. I don't want to turn this flashlight on yet and you can see a lot better in the dark than I can."
The main floor was mostly empty and it didn't take long for Angel to search it. There was no clue that anyone had been there recently. Even the dust was undisturbed. That meant that not even the homeless had taken shelter here, a clue that, Angel knew, could mean there were vampires in the area. The homeless, like rats, seemed to avoid areas where vampires called home.
At the far end of the warehouse was another staircase leading to the basement. There was a light on down there. Not wanting to wait for Buffy, Angel slowly, cautiously descended the stairs. Illuminated by the light of a single, naked bulb, he saw Willow, sitting in a chair. Her mouth was taped over and her hands were tied behind her back with rope.
Willow's eyes grew wide when she saw Angel. He put a finger to his lips, letting her know to stay quiet. About ten feet in front of her stood a vampire, luckily with his back to the stairs. His arms were crossed and in his left hand was a small ax. Angel couldn't see anyone else in the room, although there were many wooden boxes lying about.
Angel reached the bottom of the stairs. Finding a rusty nail on the floor, he picked it up and threw it across the room. It was an old trick, but it worked. The vampire looked in that direction. And as he did, Angel tackled him, driving his shoulder into his ribs. The ax fell to the floor as they crashed into a box, breaking it.
The vampire was strong and flung Angel off him, but Angel was quicker and tackled him again before he could stand. Angel took an elbow to the side of his head and his face changed. Now he was mad. He rolled off the vampire and stood, letting his opponent charge him. The vampire never saw Angel draw the stake from his sleeve and impaled himself, turning to dust instantly.
"Hold still, Willow. I'm going to cut the rope," said Angel, reaching for the ax near Willow's feet. His first swing didn't completely sever the cord. Angel raised the ax a little higher this time, trying to get more force behind the blow. But before he could swing the ax, he was knocked to the floor by a kick to his head. The ax slid out of reach.
He hadn't heard his assailant approach and now took another hard kick, this time to the ribs. Angel rolled and lashed out with his foot, tripping his opponent and giving him time to scramble to his feet. But the man who attacked him was already on his feet as well and running towards him.
Willow couldn't believe what she saw. The man who was fighting Angel was Tucker! Was he involved with these vampires, fighting for them? She tried to yell something but her voice was muffled by the tape. Angel and Tucker were fighting hard now, each only able to block some of the others' blows. Tucker seemed to be landing more hits than he was taking.
Willow pulled at the rope around her wrists. She could feel that it was frayed. Holding her breath and squeezing hard, the rope ripped and she was free!
"Willow, run!," yelled Angel, seeing her stand up. Not knowing what else to do, Willow ran, making her way to the stairs.
Tucker jumped back and drew a cross from his pocket.
"You think that'll stop me? I'm not going to let you hurt her!," barked Angel.
"Me hurt her!? What the hell are you talking about? You're the one who was about to hit her with that ax!," answered Tucker.
"Fool! I was cutting the rope that held her!"
"What kind of bull is this? You're a vampire! Since when do the dead help anyone?"
"I'm different. And Willow's my friend."
Tucker hesitated, still not believing Angel.
"What do you mean by different?," demanded Tucker.
Before Angel could reply they were both distracted by a box being kicked over behind Tucker. Tucker glanced behind him, then looked back at Angel. Three vampires were running at them.
"You're going to have to trust me. I'm one of the good guys. They aren't."
There was no time to decide. Drawing a stake from his sleeve, Tucker turned and charged the first vampire, leaping into the air and kicking him down with a blow to the chest.
* * *
Willow had almost made it across the warehouse floor when someone jumped out in front of her. Buffy was barely able to stop herself from staking her friend. Willow hadn't even taken the time to remove the tape from her mouth.
"Ouch!," yelled Willow, ripping the duct tape off.
"Willow! What are you doing here?," exclaimed Buffy.
"No time!," said Willow, gasping for breath. "It's Angel!"
"Angel? What's wrong?," said Buffy, grabbing Willow by the arm.
"Tucker and him are fighting! Tucker saw him in full vamp face and he thought Angel was trying to hurt me. Buffy, he doesn't know about Angel. He's trying to kill him!"
"Where?," said Buffy, trying to remain calm.
"Down the stairs, in the basement," said Willow, pointing behind her.
"You stay here with Lisa. I'm going back this way, it's quicker."
At the bottom of the stairs was a door. It was locked but it was made of wood. Buffy gave it a good kick. It splintered vertically and Buffy burst into the room. Not ten feet in front of her was Angel, lying on his back on the floor. Tucker was leaning over him with a stake in his hand! He looked up at Buffy, very much surprised at her entrance.
On her third stride Buffy kicked the weapon out of Tucker's hand and connected with a right punch to the side of his face as he was standing. Thrown back against the wall, Tucker raised his arms to defend himself. Mistakenly thinking he was about to attack, Buffy rushed him. In close quarters Tucker couldn't easily deflect her blows and had to block her jabs and kicks.
Tired from the previous fight, Tucker couldn't hold up against Buffy's strength. She didn't realize he was only defending and not attacking. Buffy got a vicious jab into his left side and could hear a rib or two crack. With the wind knocked out of him, Tucker dropped his arms. Buffy finished him off with a brutal kick to his head and he hit the wall again, sliding to the floor, blood flowing from his nose. Even then Buffy drew her arm back for another punch.
"Buffy! No!," screamed Angel as he grabbed her arm.
"Angel?"
"Didn't you hear me yelling? What are you doing?"
"No, I...what do you mean? He was trying to kill you!"
"No. He saved my life. He was helping me up."
"What! But...but I saw him! He was leaning over you with a stake in his hand!," protested Buffy. "And Willow said she saw you two fighting."
"We were. Until I explained to him who I was. Then we were jumped by three of Sven's boys. Buffy, he's a hell of a fighter. One of them was holding me and I was about to be staked, until he..."
"Oh my god! Tucker, I'm so sorry." Buffy took a step towards him and he raised his arms over his head. Buffy stopped. "Tucker, I didn't know."
Angel knelt down beside Tucker.
"You really wailed on him, Buffy. We might need to get him to a hospital."
"No. No doctors," said Tucker through clenched teeth. "Too many questions."
"Tucker, how many fingers am I holding up?," asked Angel.
"Which one of you wants to know?" "Buffy, come here. Let's try to get him on his feet. I don't think we should stay here any longer than we have to."
Buffy and Angel started lifting Tucker by his arms.
"Time out. Not yet," protested Tucker. "Just give me a minute. If I stand up now I'll probably lose my dinner. Oh, this is going to hurt in the morning."
"Are you dizzy?," asked Buffy.
"Big time."
"Tucker, you may have a concussion. We need to get you to a doctor," said Buffy, trying to convince him.
"No. Wouldn't be the first time. And there's nothing they can do for cracked ribs either except tape them up. Been there, I can do that."
"Tucker, I had no idea. I thought you were trying to kill Angel. I'm so sorry."
Tucker looked at Buffy, then looked at Angel.
"Lucy, you got some splainin' to do. Like why does the slayer have a vampire for a boyfriend?"
"You know I'm the slayer?"
"I do now. You were holding back on me in the gym. I knew it. Even so, I didn't realize how strong you were. Of course, if I knew you were going to attack me I might've put up a better fight."
Buffy didn't say anything but looked very upset.
"Now I'm sorry. Put in your place I would've done the same thing. And the element of surprise be damned, you still would've kicked my ass."
This made Buffy smile.
"Don't sell yourself short. You gave me a good whuppin'," said Angel.
"Angel, I don't know how to say this, so I'll just blurt it out. Is the sight of this much blood going to upset you in any way?," asked Tucker, wiping his hand across his upper lip.
"No, you've got nothing to worry about. But if it will make you feel better, I'll move back some."
Tucker looked at Angel and tried to focus but he was still a little blurry.
"No. If she can trust you that's good enough for me. Let's try that standing up thing now."
They got him to his feet but Tucker still had to steady himself by leaning on Angel.
"Still dizzy?," asked Buffy.
"Oh yeah."
"Let's get you back to the library. On the way you can splain to me why you hunt vampires in your spare time. You're good, but still, sooner or later you're going to get yourself killed," said Buffy.
"Why? Simple revenge." And saying that, Tucker collapsed between Angel and Buffy.
"Angel, we need to get him back to Giles. Run ahead and get Lisa and Willow. I'll carry him. I owe him that much. Hurry!"
"Try not to let him sleep," warned Angel. Buffy nodded in agreement. She sat Tucker down and cradled his head in her arm.
"Tucker, wake up. Come on now, you can sleep later, I promise," she said, lightly slapping his face. Tucker moaned.
"Hey, Tucker, wake up. We've got to go now."
"Julie? Julie, is that you?," whispered Tucker.
Buffy was so surprised that she almost dropped Tucker. She saw the cross that hung from his neck but now was curious about the other chain. Pulling it free from his shirt, she looked at the mate to the Friendship pendant that Lisa wore around her neck. On the back were inscribed the letters J and T.
"Julie Weber. Tucker Jenkins. Oh boy, this is not good. What a night. Can it get any worse?"
Just then Angel came running back down the stairs.
"Buffy! Lisa and Willow...they're gone!"
"It just got worse."
* * *
"Giles!," yelled Buffy, bursting through the library doors.
"Giles?," said Buffy, coming to a stop. Behind her Angel carried Tucker in and gently laid him down on one of the large tables.
"Xander? Where is everybody?"
Buffy heard a low moan coming from Giles' office and ran in there. Giles was lying on the floor, one hand holding the back of his head. He moved his hand to look at it. There was blood on it.
"Giles, what happened? Where's Xander?," said Buffy, kneeling down.
"I'll be alright, I think. And thanks for asking."
"I'm sorry. How are you doing?," she asked as Angel stood behind her in the doorway.
"I'll be fine. There were six of them, I think. It happened so fast. They didn't ask anything of us nor did they say what they wanted. I was hit with the blunt end of an ax and I don't remember much after that."
"You think they took Xander?," asked Buffy.
"If he's not here, then yes, most likely. Buffy, there's a first aid kit in my desk drawer. Would you get it for me, please?"
"Of course."
"I don't believe in coincidence. This was planned," said Angel.
"I agree," said Buffy. "But what would they want with Xander and Willow?."
"Willow is missing as well?," asked Giles.
"And Lisa," said Buffy, putting a gauze cloth to the back of Giles' head. "Hold that. The bleeding has almost stopped. Angel and Tucker were attacked by Sven's friends. Willow got away. I told her to stay with Lisa, but now they're both gone."
"Wait. Tucker? Why was he at the warehouse?," asked Giles, sitting up.
"I don't know yet. But he's in the rough shape in the next room," said Buffy.
"They worked him over pretty good?," asked Giles, grabbing the first aid kit.
"Not exactly," said Buffy, looking away.
"Giles, what was Willow doing at the warehouse? I thought she was coming back here with you?," asked Angel, changing the subject for Buffy.
"I never saw her or spoke to her. Buffy, help me up. I want to take a look at Tucker."
"What would Sven want with Xander and Willow," asked Buffy, thinking out loud as they moved into the other room.
"Friends of the slayer. He's playing mind games with you, Buffy. I know the game. Know how it's done," said Angel coldly. "They saw you with them, the other night. But not Giles. That's why they didn't take him."
Giles was about to break open the smelling salts when Buffy stopped him, putting her hand over his.
"Giles, there's two things you have to know before you bring him around. First, I did this to Tucker."
Giles glanced at Tucker, then quickly looked back at Buffy, his mouth open in surprise.
"I lost it. I thought he was trying to kill angel. That's not an excuse. There is no excuse. I...I'm sorry."
"We'll deal with that later. Let's help him first."
"Good. But now the other thing you need to know. Before he blacked out, he called me Julie. He thought I was Julie. Tucker is wearing the other half of that Friendship pendant I found, the one Lisa is wearing now. We can't tell him, Giles. He doesn't know she's dead."
"Maybe. But perhaps he does. Did that occur to you? For now, though, until we're sure, we won't mention it. You're going to have to tell him eventually, you know."
"I know," agreed Buffy. "He didn't want a doctor involved. Said something about too many questions. Angel, get him a glass of water, okay? Maybe Giles can give him a pain killer."
Buffy took off her jacket to make a pillow to put under Tucker's head. Giles administered the smelling salts and he quickly opened his eyes.
"Tucker, you're in the library at school. This is Giles. He's...he's my Watcher."
Giles stared at Buffy.
"He knows I'm the slayer."
Giles nodded.
"How do you feel?," asked Giles.
"Been better. Been worse, too. Got a little bit of a headache but I'm not as dizzy as I was before."
"Here, drink some water," said Giles, taking the glass from Angel. "And take these, it'll help your head," said Giles. "They're just non-aspirin pain killers," he added, noticing Tucker hesitate.
"Thanks."
"Here's an ice pack. Might want to hold it to the side of your face. That's a nasty looking bruise," said Angel.
"Tucker, what were you doing in that warehouse tonight?," asked Buffy, not ready yet to talk about what she did to Tucker.
"Hunting down a vampire. Goes by the name of Sven. I assume that's the black hat that you're chasing, too?"
"Yeah, that's him. But what are you doing hunting vampires? I'm the slayer. You knew I was in Sunnydale before you came here, didn't you?"
"Yes. I'll tell you my story. Everything. But first you have to answer me one question."
"Shoot."
"What makes Angel different? He's a vampire. And I guessed right that you two are more than friends. I don't get it."
"I have a soul. The others don't," replied Angel simply.
"How?"
"A curse. A gypsy curse, put on me so I would suffer for all that I have done. The others have no remorse, no conscience. But I remember everything. I haven't fed on a human since then."
"How long?," asked Tucker.
"About a hundred years."
Tucker nodded and sat up.
"Well, where do I start? Buffy, I told you that a couple of years ago my parents were killed in a car accident. That wasn't entirely true. Sven had not only killed them but had made them like he was. I trapped them in their car during daylight and set fire to it."
"Tucker, wow! How did you...it must've been hard," said Buffy. "I can't imagine what you felt then."
"I gave them peace. They weren't my parents anymore. They would have killed me that very night. I basically dropped out of school and trained myself, driven by only one need. I will kill Sven or die trying."
"And I'll help you, I promise," said Buffy. "So that's why there were no ashes left in the car. Oh, sorry, we did a little checking up on you after I saw you stake a vampire one night."
"Understandable. There's not much more to tell. I tracked Sven here and followed one of his vampires to that warehouse last night. If I had known you were the slayer, I would have sought you out. I only knew there was one here, not who. Oh, and this scar on my neck is a gift from Sven. Almost had me until I pulled a cross out and drove him off me, but I was too weak to follow him."
"I didn't think you father was a carpenter. Next time try something like...you were bit by a puppy."
"That's a new one," agreed Tucker.
"Tucker, who's Julie? You called out her name before you passed out," asked Buffy.
"She...we were a couple once. Very close. But I drove her away because of my obsession with revenge. She couldn't handle it, didn't want to believe vampires existed."
"So you haven't seen her in a while?"
"No. Why do you ask?," countered Tucker, getting uncomfortable talking about her.
"I'm sorry, it's really none of my business. I shouldn't have asked," answered Buffy quickly.
"No problem."
"Buffy, can I have a word with you?," asked Giles. They walked back into his office. "Has it occurred to you that Lisa may have taken Willow? We were warned that she might turn against you."
"I can't accept that, Giles. She has a soul. She wouldn't willingly hurt me."
"If she was hypnotized she may not have had free will. What do we tell Tucker?," asked Giles, concerned.
"Nothing. Not yet. I need time to think."
Just then the phone rang. Buffy grabbed it before Giles could pick it up.
"Hello?" Buffy listened but didn't say anything. She looked at Giles and put the phone down. Angel and Tucker came to the door of the office.
"That was Sven. He said that if I want to see my friends alive again, I'm to come to the docks by pier one after sunset tomorrow. And he asked if I knew how to play fox and geese!"
End of Part Four
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