~*~
Chapter 15
~*~

Spike decided to hang back and let Clem and Xander put the drop on Crusader Rabbit. The newly unencumbered vampire had no intention of letting his nemesis in on his possible chipless state. Knowing Xander, he would stake first and question the situation later.

The knight--Brother Melchoir, to be specific--was utterly terrified when Spike flashed his game face accompanied with a convincing growl.

Xander glared at Spike with suspicion and whispered, "Thought you couldn't hurt humans. This dude a demon?"

"Not hurtin’ the soddin Templar, now am I?" Spike retorted. "Bloke's human enough, but there's something more there. I'm thinking magic of some kind. Makes sense…look at the pack of 'em. They look like they just left Saladin's palace or a Monty Python flick. Glory's ancient and these rejects have been chasin’ her all this time? Somethin's not right." Spike knew he'd have to bring up the whole Ben/Glory issue and really wasn't looking forward to the blank slate that was Xander's mind on the best of days.

"Harris, why don't you step outside and keep watch? Don't want any of his mates pokin' about before we get some answers," Spike suggested. Wouldn't do to make the boy think he was trying to get rid of him, but at least he didn't have to keep giving Clem the same information every ten seconds.

"All right. If you need any help convincing him to talk, shout out," Xander said and shot a menacing look at the Knight.

After Xander left the cave where they had taken the captive, Spike turned to the clearly terrified young man. "Now, you and me are gonna have a little talk. You might not believe me, but we both want the same thing here. Glory needs to be put down and I'm just the vamp for the job. But I think you might just know some things that might make that job a bit easier, and more permanent too. You follow me so far, Lancelot?"

"Melchoir," the Knight responded in reflex.

"Not really carin’ here," Spike admitted. "Okay, let's test this out a bit. Glory shares a body with a human--you know that, right?"

Melchoir nodded, seemingly amazed at the vampire’s knowledge. Spike continued, "My guess is you boys don't know who that human is. Correct?"

"Our priests have prayed for divine wisdom that the host be revealed to us, but as yet our Lord has kept the knowledge veiled," Melchoir acknowledged.

"Yeah it's a bitch when that happens. Powers get all tight-lipped but expect you to dance to their tune when you don't even have a clue of the steps…." Spike was on a tangent and Melchoir was clearly confused. "Never mind."

"I know who the host is. Problem is there's magic involved and any human that gets clued in forgets it right away," Spike revealed.

"How can you know the answer to our quest? You are an unclean thing," Melchoir spat. "The Lord would not favor such as you with the answer."

"Yeah, well, you don't look like you've seen the inside of a garden tub in a while either, mate," Spike smirked. "Thing is, when I want answers I go lookin for 'em, not prayin’ and beggin’.

"I've got a suspicion you band of jesters without a joust are a slight bit more than just human. If I'm right, you'll hear what I tell you and not turn around and have a problem with short-term memory." Spike nodded to himself as he saw the knight pale slightly. "Let's start at the beginning then, but do the Cliff Notes version ‘cause I've got a hell bitch in need of serious payback."

"What do you want to know, demon?" spat Melchoir with as much disdain as a terrified person could in the face of a powerful demon with very sharp teeth.

"All of it," Spike demanded. "Where you come from. How Glory time-shares a body with a human. How to kill Glory once and for all. Where you got those nifty swords."

"And how do I know you don't work for Glory?" the knight asked fearfully.

"You're alive, aren't you? You think Glory's identity crisis is so bad she'd need to ask you those questions?" Spike laughed at the look on the knight's face.

Melchoir slumped in his seat and prepared to answer the vampire's questions. If the demon was working for Glory he was as good as dead anyway.

"The Key is the link and the link must be severed, such is the will of God. Only the death of the Key can subvert the will of Glorificus," Melchoir intoned.

"Not gonna happen," Spike said with narrowed eyes and a look of determination. "Keep your yap shut about the Key. What do you know about the nut job, ‘cause I gotta tell ya I've spent the better part of the century with a loose screw and Dru's poster girl for sanity next to Glory."

Melchoir drew a deep breath and began to explain about the origins of the current big bad. "Glorificus ruled with two other hell gods in a demon dimension. They were despots of the worst kind, doling out suffering and despair. Their power was equal at first, but the Beast's power grew far beyond her brothers. Her desire to punish, to bring misery had no parallel. Her brothers looked upon her and trembled. They knew it was but a matter of time before she would no longer be willing to share her power. A great battle ensued. In the end, they defeated the Beast…barely. She was exiled. Sent to this lower plane and banished from her kingdom."

"Yeah, yeah, sounds all Wagnerian. Cut to the chase. How'd she get in Good Dr. Ben Casey?" Spike asked impatiently.

The knight was completely unsure of Spike's meaning, but he did fully understand the intent. "A newborn male was created to be her prison. Glorificus was to be trapped within this mortal, forced to live and eventually die. The mortal prison is her only weakness."

"So I was right, kill Benny and get Glory as a two-for-one!" Spike was excited that it might be just that simple. "So where do you lot fit in, and make it the quick version."

"When the brother hell gods first opened the portal to our dimension, they appeared before our mighty army of God. We were committed to freeing the Holy City from the heathen Scaracen, but our priests quickly realized a more urgent need stood before us. It was our priests that formed the boy child to house the Beast. The babe grew slowly and powerful magic was used to increase our lifetimes as well to guard the Beast and its mortal prison as well as the Key to the openings. Over the centuries there was discord, division. The child was stolen away, never to be found again, its identify lost to the ages. Another group of priests left our number. They are the ones that became the keepers of the Key. They had the misguided idea that the Key could be harnessed for good. The Key must be destroyed; it is the only way. We have since dedicated our lives and pledged our very souls to locate the child and destroy it, and sever the Key as well." Melchoir was breathless after the telling.

"Keep that up and there'll be a severin’ of your head from your shoulders," Spike promised. "Go on with the story."

"The Key opens the gates that separate dimensions. The Beast will use its power to return home and exact vengeance on her siblings and all her peoples," Melchoir warned.

"Fine, let the bitch go home," Spike began, only to have the knight interrupt him.

"No, no!! Once the Key is activeated, it will open ALL the portals. The walls separating realities will crumble. All the dimensions will bleed into each other. The entire Universe will fall into chaos, darkness and pain forever! This is why we are pledged to stopping this abomination," Melchoir ranted, wide-eyed with fervor.

"New Crusade with a bit of immortality tossed into the mix," Spike mused aloud. "Baby god's a big boy now. Key's not the issue. I'm gonna kill the 'looks good for his age' doctor and you're gonna go wherever anachronisms like you go," Spike vowed.

~~~

Giles, Willow and Buffy returned to the Summers house in near silence. Willow was drained of more than just her borrowed power. She felt like she could sleep for a month and still be tired. They had stopped by the hospital to visit Tara. Willow was relieved to hear that early tests were promising for a complete recovery for her lover.

Giles had been livid when told of just how Willow managed to summon the massive power she had used to attack Glory. He had not been blind to Willow's misuse of magic but had no idea the girl had the potential for such dangerous use of forces.

Willow tried to excuse herself to get the sleep she still craved, but the Watcher was not about to let the night’s activities go unremarked.

"Willow, surely you cannot expect me to sit idly by while you delve into the black arts willy-nilly!" he huffed. "Magic is highly dangerous and you know that well. I have made the mistake of relying on your natural abilities and your growing knowledge in the past. That was my error. Clearly it is too perilous to allow you anywhere near books of magic. Do we even have any left for research purposes, or did you drain them all?"

Willow was in tears. "I'm so sorry, Giles. I just acted on instinct. I thought I'd lost Tara forever and Glory had to pay. I know it was wrong to use magic like that, to go to the darkest magic and try to use that to win the fight. I know magic is dangerous. I've messed up enough spells to know that I have lots to learn if I want to control it right."

"NO, you do NOT have it to learn. I am decided that the only thing for you is to keep as far away from magic use as possible." Giles sighed then added, "You can never have it purged from you. Once embraced, it becomes a part of who you are. The use, however, must stop and stop now. To allow further use of magic by you would be tantamount to giving a nuclear bomb to a five-year-old!"

Anne had been listening to the entire conversation, as well as the brief description given to Dawn by Buffy of what transpired at the hell god's home. Mrs. Pratt's mind was working overtime as she pondered all she was hearing and the incidents she had been troubled over ever since she was introduced to magic and its use.

Anne understood the fears Mr. Giles was experiencing to cause his harsh comments but she was worried that the emphasis was being placed in the wrong area. She decided that it might be best to voice her opinion.

"Oh no, it is not the magic that is the danger, the problem is a flaw in the person." Anne noticed some angry looks from Willow's enablers and a guilty look from Willow herself. She hurried to explain before they shut out her opinion.

"You see, it is just like my William. Both Willow and William are lovely people who have no idea how special and wonderful they are. They feel weak and non-essential and have often been the innocent victim of bullies. Those experiences have only reinforced their view of their lack of worth.

"William became a vampire and found himself with tremendous power and, unfortunately, the accompanying belief that he was fated to be evil no matter what his heart might say otherwise. All of that power went to purposes that were far beneath the man he is. It was not the power
itself but his view of what sort of individual he was and had to be. He is learning new ways now.

"In Willow's case, she discovered a wonderful natural gift, a way to tap into an enormous amount of power and manipulate the natural order of things. Willow feels safe in exercising this power because she believes that she is using it for the greater good or, at the very least, for benign purposes.

Anne looked pointedly at a mollified Xander and asked, "Did you not tell me of a time when Willow used magic in a spell to force her will to be done?" Xander nodded sheepishly as Willow blushed brightly. "She did not intend harm, but harm was done nonetheless. Indeed, as I heard the story, I was surprised nothing tragic and irreversible took place!"

Willow ventured a question, "Does that mean that I'm a bad person and that's why the magic goes to a bad place even when I'm trying to do good?"

Anne smiled gently and sought to reassure the chastened girl, "No, child! Of course not! You are a charming and sweet girl filled with the best of intentions. The problem is your fears. You are afraid you cannot help Buffy unless you have some form of supernatural power to offer and that is simply not true. Your intelligence and judgment are of immeasurable value. Your use of magic can be quite helpful in its place, but it is not the reason for your importance in this great war between good and evil you so bravely fight.


Anne decided to make another observation, "You also seem to have some difficulty trusting others to make decisions for themselves. One example is your reluctance to accept that Xander loves Anya. I have heard you offer the use of your magic power to alter that relationship
and can see from your eagerness the offer is more because you disapprove of the relationship than to smooth over an argument between them. You must curb the desire to make things bend to your will, no matter how well meaning you may be. People have the right to make their own choices, their own mistakes. It is how we learn."

"But if you love someone and can make sure they don't make a mistake, why let them get hurt?" Willow looked genuinely puzzled.

"In the first place, you can not know that YOUR view is the correct one. You are powerful, but you are NOT the Almighty," Anne said but gently. "Your job as a friend is to love and support your loved ones as they make their journey through life. If they ask your advice, by all means be honest, but it is not your place to make their choices.

"Please know that I do understand the temptation you feel," Anne admitted. "If I had your power, I might well be tempted to use it to find a way to take William and return to our own time, to prevent his murder. If I were to do that, however, how much else might change? Didn't Buffy herself tell me that William helped her to defeat Angelus a few years ago? What if he were not here to assist her? I have not the wisdom to decide what is the right thing and the power would be used only to satisfy my desires."

Willow nodded slowly, Anne's words making sense to her as she thought over spells she had nearly cast in the past with just such thinking. "I get it. Power can corrupt and no one knows everything."

"Precisely!" Anne beamed with approval. "Do you also see that until you realize the responsibility that comes with your power and until you accept that you do not require that power to be useful and needed you are in danger of using this gift in a way never intended? It was
inevitable you would need to deal with this issue at some point.

"Tara's attack was an understandable inducement to use your power against this Glory. I think that more harm than good came of it, however." Anne noticed the puzzled looks on several faces and explained, "Imagine how much more helpful it would have been to have Glory ignorant of your potential power against her. That element of surprise is lost now and Glory will be better prepared if she sees that you are going to use your gift against her. In return for this loss, you gained nothing really except to anger this demon further. From what I heard from Mr. Giles, you have also put yourself in danger by going to an evil source to increase your power for the attack. Fighting evil with evil is never a sound plan."

Buffy had to agree with that last part. Willow had been truly scary with her black veiny look and kick-ass power. "Is that why Will turned all black-eyed girl? That was some major wig worthy stuff there and Anya says all those books are just blank pages now." Buffy turned to Willow and added, "She says you're going to owe Giles forever for ruining what she called, 'irreplaceable merchandise that was totally priceless', but I don't think Giles is going to charge you though."

Xander spoke up with a memory that the conversation had brought up. "That first major spell Willow ever did was the one to put Angel's soul back. Oz told me Willow sat up in bed and started rattling off a bunch of stuff in some foreign language. He said her eyes went all black and it was like she was possessed or something. Cordy had nightmares for a week!"

Giles nodded and took off his glasses, preparing for a good rub as the implications set in. "Good Lord, I can only imagine the power that flooded into Willow at that time. This infusion only increased that imbalance I fear."

"Well," Anne continued, "it does no good to lock the barn behind the horse. Neither Willow nor William can divest themselves of the power they harbor. So it is up to us to help them to channel it properly. They must understand it is to be used sparingly lest it corrupt them.
They both have far more to offer in this fight than just their supernatural gifts."

"That may be true, but I fear we will need their strengths and powers when we go up against Glory," Giles reminded Anne.

"Yes, but it should be in a well-conceived plan of action and with others to monitor how the power is used, in my opinion," Anne replied. "They both need a more realistic view of themselves, too, if they can ever hope to make responsible decisions on when and how to unleash the powers they possess.

Anne was silent for some time, debating whether or not to mention the rest of her thought. Finally she decided to be in for a penny as well as a pound and spoke again. "The same argument can be used about slayers, I think. Buffy is filled with power, but she seems to have a clear view of its purpose thus far.

Anne looked over at Dawn who was dozing in the corner. "Dawn was telling me just yesterday that there is a second slayer, one who misused her power and now languishes in prison, unable to use those powers for good. She was not clearsighted, but unstable. The problem was not the power but the person who was using it. It is in the character. Willow and William will both be fine; they just need guidance.

Anne smiled at Giles and offered a sly suggestion, "I believe YOU might be the very one to train and guide Willow once this Glory is dealt with. If I am not mistaken you have experience in such matters. I believe you could be a good mentor for William as well, if you would consider it."

Time enough later to mention to Mr. Giles that she had read of the exploits of one Ripper Giles in some of the journals he had inadvertently loaned to her. If anyone could get Willow on the right path, a Watcher who had gone down that same wrong one was the man for the job.

"If you don't mind, I really need to sleep now. A year of snooze would be of the good," Willow beseeched. "I swear I won't do a thing without a full out consultation from now on. I'm not running away from what I did and I DO get why it was stupid and wrong. But I can't undo it." Willow looked at Giles imploringly. She then looked at Anne, "I also get what you're trying to tell me. I admit I'm all insecure gal. Yeah, I need to work on that, especially if I'm gonna be
walking around with a time bomb in me from now on. You gave me lots to think about. Thank you."

Willow gently touched Anne’s hand as she passed her on the way towards the stairs and the promised bliss of slumber and whispered another, quite sincere, "thank you." It was wonderful to have someone care enough to be honest, clearsighted enough to see the situation and yet still compassionate enough to understand.

"Yes, get some rest. Tara will likely be released tomorrow and it won't do for her to be worried over you as she continues to recover," Giles said.

"Besides, you're still my big gun and I want my big guns in top form," Buffy added. She wondered how her other gun, Spike, was recovering. She prayed there would be time for them all to get ready before Glory attacked again.