AB/BtVS: Nightmares in Waking Life 73/?
TITLE: Nightmares in Waking Life
AUTHOR: 38gnihsurc
RATING: en.sea.xvii, overall
PAIRINGS: All the pairings from the previous two stories---and some new ones, too
SPOILERS: Up until Micah for AB; the whole TV series for the Buffyverse; Alive at Last and Living Underground.
WARNINGS: A little bit of fur... bdsm... the usuals for Anita's crazy, crazy world.
DISCLAIMER: I don't own anyone---except for any original characters that I whip up to do my bidding ;)
NOTE: This story is a sequel to Living Underground.
Previous chapters: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9-11, 12, 13, 14-5, 16-7, 18-9, 20-1, 22, 23, 24-5, 26-7, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32-3, 34-7, 38, 39-40, 41, 42, 43-44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51A, 51B, 52, 53, 54, 55-6, 57, 58A, 58B, 59, 60, 61, 62-63, 64, 65, 66-7, 68-9, 70, 71>, 72
PART SEVENTY-THREE
Willow checked her reflection in the bathroom mirror and tried not to frown.
The night before had gone fairly well, all things considering. Kennedy accepted that she needed the pard, for reasons passing the witch's understanding, but she hadn't accepted that Willow was where she needed to be. When they left the lupanar, Micah promised that he'd make sure she wasn't alone and that she'd be kept from the Circus until he could trust her to behave. Willow thanked him and went to talk to Kennedy before she went to the house Micah shared with Anita, and the wereleopard hadn't spoken to her very kindly.
"You're so different from the Willow I knew in Sunnydale that I don't know if you can be saved."
Richard assured her that there was nothing in Willow's soul that needed saving---because she was still the strong, pure force of nature that saved all of them---and Willow pretended that he soothed her fears. But, as the day progressed, as she prepared Nathaniel and herself for a night out with Asher to Narcissus in Chains, the slayer's words rang through her head as if they were on loop and she couldn't fight against them as strongly as she would have liked.
She was at the club, and she still hadn't told Asher what was on her mind. She knew he knew something was wrong. She knew he'd push to know what was wrong soon if she didn't admit it to him.
The music was loud and it sang to a part of her that was waking up with every moment she spent there.
"If you are not back in five minutes, I will punish you after I've punished our slave," Asher whispered into her mind, over the shields she was keeping in place to prevent Asher from reading her mind.
Willow blushed. She let him feel how her stomach tightened at his words; he let her feel his laughter.
She sucked in a deep breath and went to open the door. Someone was pushing it open on its other side, startling the redhead, and she laughed nervously when she looked into the face of a couple of the local swans.
"Lupa," the tallest of the two said quietly. "We apologise for---"
"Don't worry about it," Willow murmured. "It's okay. You had no way of knowing I was ready to come out of here." She saw the bruises on her neck. "Are you okay?"
The swanmane put her hand up over the blemishes and nodded quickly. "Yes... yes. I'm fine."
"Really?" Willow asked. "Do you two have a dominant here looking out for you?"
She knew that Donovan Reece once said they were similar to Nathaniel, before he became Anita's animal to call. They were perfect victims and couldn't say 'no.' The last time he was in town, he'd made arrangements with Narcissus that declared they couldn't be alone in the Oba's club unless they were escorted by a dominant who would look after them and help them select partners who would not abuse them. He had said he'd also make the girls agree to it, and for a while, it seemed to be working.
"Yes," the other one said.
"Where is he---or she?"
"He's one of the hyenas. We know him from here."
"Did he hurt you, or did someone else?" Willow asked.
"He... he grabbed me," the first swanmane admitted. "But, I disobeyed him. I deserved it!"
"Where is he?" Willow demanded.
The girls looked at each other nervously but they eventually gave up his position. Willow silently asked Asher to be on the lookout for the dominant who was supposed to be watching the two swanmanes. He assured her that he would; she returned her focus to the scared figures in front of her. She closed the bathroom door and locked it. She didn't want any interruptions.
"What happened?" Willow asked. "Why did you disobey him?" When they hesitated, she growled. "I may be submissive to Asher in here, but I am still Lupa and I'm more dominant than both of you put together."
They whimpered; she sighed. "Girls... please. Tell me what happened. I'm not mad at you, I just want to know why you're not protected right now."
The first girl shivered. "I... Donovan encouraged us to make up rules for ourselves. We have a hard time saying 'no,' but he wants us to be as protected as we can be when he's not here to protect us," she said as she started to explain. "I have a hard time staying in human form when I get too excited---too aroused, too scared, too anything. Swans aren't predators, though, so I don't really worry about hurting anyone. Plus, it's been a long time since I've been that excited. But, still... one of my rules is 'no normal humans.' If I hurt anyone---"
Willow nodded when she stopped talking. "I know. In case you're not being watched as carefully as you should be, you want to know you're not going to hurt anyone who can't handle it."
"Right."
"What happened?"
"Phanes let a man approach me. He's dominant enough, but human. I didn't want to be rude but the more I sat with him at our table---"
"The more you knew you didn't want him around you?" Willow asked. She silently told Asher the hyena's name was Phanes. She watched the swanmanes nod; her eyes filled with tears. "I haven't been alone with him yet, but I don't want to be. He... he wants to make me shift. He's hungry for something... I know that much, but I can't tell what it is."
"Violence," the other swan whispered. "He looks at all of us like we're dirty. Even Phanes. Even the ones who are dancing and walking past our table."
Willow sighed.
"I can't tell Phanes 'no,'" the first swan whispered shakily. "I've never been able to tell him that. He's too dominant, compared to me."
"Who usually comes in here with you?" Willow asked.
"Donovan chooses from the rats, usually," the second one replied. "He and Rafael have some sort of business agreement. I... it has something to do with the fact that Donovan can travel freely on his own. When we stay at Anita's, she sends Zane and Cherry with us. They're not as dominant as we'd like, but they're smart. They can read people really well and they're not threatening because they're a couple. But, they're busy with pard stuff tonight, so she called Narcissus to make sure someone would meet us at the doors."
Willow nodded. "Okay... okay. First, you are coming to my table," she decided. "Secondly, I'm going to ask Asher to send for someone to pick you up."
"Thirdly?"
"Thirdly, I want to talk to Phanes and Narcissus," she said. She saw the swanmanes tremble. She frowned. "No, no, guys... that's not going to happen while you're here. That's after. After I send you back to Anita. Normally, what she did was fine, but if this Phanes guy wants to break the rules set up between you, your king, and other leaders, then he's no good to protect you---and disrespectful to boot. We're going to have to make a short list of people that we can all agree on."
"Thank you," the first one whispered.
Willow drew them into her arms and hugged them both. "It's okay," she assured them. "I promise I'm going to get you out of here, each of you in one piece."
"Thank you," they both mumbled over and over.
"Bring them," Asher told her along their bond. "I will call our security teams now and order someone to the back door. Then, I will make sure they get into their vehicle alright. You have done your part, now it is time for me to do mine."
Willow told them most of what Asher said. They trembled in relief. She released them and let them do what they'd come to the bathroom to do. Willow made a mental note to call Micah---and Donovan, when she found his phone number---to put a better plan into action. When they washed their hands and put themselves back together, Willow unlocked the bathroom door and took their hands as they walked out into the main area of the club.
Asher met them on the outside of the dance floor. She was glad that he did, because a minute later, she saw who she guessed was Phanes as he marched to the swanmanes.
"Let's go," the werehyena barked.
"Non," Asher insisted. He looked at the other man. "You have not been adhering to the agreement in place for their protection."
"I'm watching---"
"They said no humans," Willow interrupted. "You're setting them up with one right now---and he doesn't like shapeshifters of any kind. You could get them killed!"
"I'm doing no such thing."
Asher looked at the swanmanes. "Girls, I've called for a ride. Claudia and one of her colleagues are on their way to retrieve you."
The swan with the bruises on her neck burst into tears and hugged Willow close, thanking both her and Asher over and over. Willow and Asher turned to look at Phanes.
"She lies."
"She does not," Willow told the hyena. "What kind of thug are you? Strong but not powerful enough to sense the truth in anyone so submissive? Not powerful enough to read the man who could hurt both of them because he hates our kinds?"
"Mon colibri, enough," Asher murmured. "He knows he screwed up. He hopes we won't tell Narcissus."
"Get the fuck away from me, both of you. Leave the swans and get lost."
Asher chuckled. "You don't scare me, Phanes," he said, laughter in his voice. "How did you get this job? Why do you want it? Are you making money off of these girls by selling their submission to the highest bidder?"
Something shifted in Phanes' eyes. Willow gasped. Asher looked at her. "Take them to the back," he instructed her. "I will be there in a minute."
Willow nodded and hurried the girls into the corridor and towards the series of back rooms where the fire exit was located. She caught the attention of one of the security team charged with keeping Narcissus and the establishment safe, and after they greeted each other, she explained the situation and asked if he could disarm the door so she could get them into the car with Claudia.
"Phanes is a new recruit," the other hyena told Willow. "He follows Narcissus' orders to the letter."
"So if something's not stated explicitly, he wiggles around it?" Willow asked.
The guard nodded.
Willow frowned. "Well, he can't be in charge of the swans anymore."
"Take it up with the bosses, I guess," the guard said. He took them to the door and then he went to a panel, opened it, and flicked a switch. "I'll stand outside. I'll let you know when the car's here."
"Thank you," Willow murmured.
When he was gone, Willow pulled both of the girls into an embrace. "It's going to be okay," she assured them. "We're going to see this through and find a better way to keep you guys safe when you come here to have fun."
"Thank you, Lupa," they both whispered.
"You can call me Willow, you know."
"You're dominant to us," the one with the bruises said.
Willow sighed. She understood; some of the pack still called her 'Lupa,' too.
She saw Asher approach them and she smiled a little. He nodded and went to her side. He kissed her head and put his hands on her hips. Willow watched Phanes try to approach them, but Narcissus appeared and steered the hyena away. Asher rubbed her hips with both of his hands, soothing her with every stroke.
"Where's Nathaniel?"
"With someone I trust," Asher assured her.
"Good," Willow whispered.
The door opened and the security guard told them that Claudia and Clay were in the parking lot. Willow thanked him, as did Asher, and then Willow took the girls to the car; Asher waited from the doorway, watching as Clay climbed into the backseat and let the girls sit on both sides of him. Willow thanked Clay for his help and then went to the driver's side to talk to Claudia. They discussed what happened, and then Willow asked who Rafael usually sent with the swanmanes to keep them safe. Claudia told her a couple of the names and Willow asked if the girls if those wererats were okay guardians. They nodded, snuggled into Clay's body.
"Well, okay," Willow murmured. "I guess we're all gonna have to revisit this," she said to the wererat.
Claudia nodded. "Narcissus is bringing more people into the territory, and that's the Oba's right, but we have to work with them, too, so..."
She trailed off. Willow agreed. "We'll jump off that bridge at the next meeting. I'm going to try to talk to Micah tomorrow, but we'll have to get every leader in on this soon." She sighed. "Thanks for coming, both of you."
"No problem," Claudia replied. "Nice to get out of the Circus sometimes."
Willow smiled. "Okay... see you later?"
"Probably. Have a good night," she said as she put the car into gear.
"Thanks," Willow murmured. She stepped away from the car and went back to the door where Asher was waiting. When she stopped in front of him, he kissed her. "Mmmm," she purred. "Yum."
He chuckled. "Are you in the right frame of mind to continue tonight?"
"Give me a few minutes, and I will be," she replied honestly.
Asher nodded. He reached out and clipped his leash to her collar. "Come back to the table, ma fifille," he crooned.
"Yes, sir," she whispered.
She followed him, walking slightly behind him as he navigated through the crowds. When she saw the table, she saw Nathaniel sitting on the floor next to one of the few hyenas Willow knew Asher trusted enough. She reached out and touched Nathaniel's shoulder; he smiled at her and she smiled back.
"Sit," Asher instructed her. He took something from the hyena; a moment later he passed her the end of a leash that seemed to be connected to Nathaniel's collar, along with the end of her own. "Take these until I return."
She sat and held onto the leashes' loops. Asher took the hyena from the table, thanking him as they talked. When Willow and Nathaniel were alone, the wereleopard rested his head in Willow's lap. Willow smiled and stroked her fingers over his cheek.
"How are you?" she asked him.
"Fine," he whispered.
"Yeah?"
Nathaniel nodded.
She smiled more. "What do you want tonight?"
"To belong to you and our Master tonight," he replied honestly. "I don't need pain... I want it, but I don't need it. I just want to belong, Mistress."
She nodded. "Okay," she whispered. She cleared her throat and then asked: "Did you know what was happening with the swans?"
He frowned. "I'm not surprised... it's never been a perfect system. It sucks, but there really isn't anything else that works."
"Phanes was bringing a human who isn't exactly a friend to them, probably for money," Willow explained.
Nathaniel closed his eyes and sighed. "You're looking out for them, though," he said after a long pause.
"I sent them home with Clay and Claudia," she murmured. "I'll take it to Micah tomorrow... and we'll probably have to take it up with Donovan and the others."
"Thank you," Nathaniel whispered. He hugged her lower legs. "You're very good to all of us."
Willow chuckled. "I'm just trying."
"I know, Mistress. You try like Anita tries. You do your best for everyone under your protection. That's all we can ask."
"Our slave is right, ma fifille," Asher said from behind them. Willow turned to look at him. He was smiling. "You do your best for everyone and we all appreciate it."
He held out his hand. She put the leashes on his palm and he curled his fingers around them. Then, he sat down next to her. He kissed her cheek and shoulder before speaking.
"Will you join me in taking care of our kitten?" he inquired.
Willow nodded. "If you want me there, sir," she whispered.
"I do," he insisted. He smiled and kissed her. "Mon Dieu, I do."
She smiled at him. Her smile faltered when she saw Narcissus approach the table. Asher followed her gaze but didn't let his smile fade away as hers had.
"Bonsoir," Asher said. "Would you like to join us?"
Willow bit back a sigh. It was hard to get into the mood with so many interruptions.
&&&&
Asher finished rubbing lotion into Nathaniel's whip marks before he turned his attention to Willow.
She was still kneeling. She was still mostly dressed, except her chest was bare so Asher was able to adorn her breasts with nipple clamps. The pain had been intense but it faded into a mild buzz somewhere in Willow's mind. He kept her like that since she finished teasing Nathaniel with a knife Asher had brought for that very purpose. She knew it was going to hurt as soon as he removed the little metal contraptions, but she knew that was what Asher wanted. He'd been able to sink her down into her submissive headspace once Narcissus had left them to their own devices, and---even though it wasn't as deep or as long-lasting as she'd wished it could be---she was enjoying it.
He smiled at her. "How are you feeling, ma fifille?"
"Fine, sir," she replied.
"Do you want me to remove your jewelry?"
"If you'd like, sir," she murmured.
He smiled more. He walked a slow circle around her and then looked at Nathaniel. Willow watched as Asher approached him and touched his back. Nathaniel gave a blissed-out sigh when the vampire touched him,
too relaxed to do anything else. Asher had whipped him to physical and emotional release; the wereleopard was spent, completely, and even Asher was looking more relaxed, too, for having shared the experience with him.
"I wish I could break you down tonight the way I took care of our slave," Asher murmured. "I long to give you what you need."
"I know, sir," she whispered.
"I miss how you shatter when you're riding me, when you're so lost in sensation..." he trailed off and sighed. "Promise me that we'll have that time, soon."
Willow looked up into his eyes. She could taste his hunger for what he was describing. "I promise," she said in a louder voice. "The next time... or as soon as we have some free time, I'm yours."
He smiled. "Vraiment?"
"Yes," she vowed.
"Bon," he murmured. He walked over to her and dropped to his knees. "Then, I will enjoy this moment as much as I can, knowing that there is more to taste in our future."
Willow nodded.
Asher kissed her and cupped her breasts in both of his hands. She whined, but not completely in complaint, as the pain in her nipples flared to life again. Asher chuckled and pulled her close so she was clumsily straddling his thighs and she responded by wrapping her arms around his shoulders. The clamps pressed into his chest and into hers, too, and she moaned and wriggled.
"In a minute, ma fifille," he whispered, "I'll remove the first one."
Willow braced herself for the pain but it didn't matter how prepared she was when he released the first clamp from her right breast. She cried out and Asher swallowed the sound. He removed the second clamp without warning and Asher swallowed the sounds she made then, too. She shuddered when he massaged one of her nipples with his fingers; she moaned when his fingers ducked under her short, pleated skirt. He brought her to climax efficiently, exploiting her most sensitive nerves with ruthless attention, and then he held her as her system leveled off.
"Mmmm," she hummed.
"Je t'aime," he whispered.
"I love you, too," she whispered back.
Asher lifted her up and carried her to the bed where Nathaniel was resting. Willow curled into the wereleopard and Asher pressed himself up behind her.
"How long can we stay?" Willow asked quietly.
"An hour or two at the most," he whispered in reply. "Relax. I'll tell you when it's time to leave."
Willow nodded and closed her eyes.
The phone rang. Willow cursed quietly, making Nathaniel chuckle. Asher kissed Willow's shoulder and eased away from her. He found his phone on the low table by the bed and he was able to answer it on the fourth ring.
It wasn't a good phone call. Willow had trouble hearing Asher's exact words, but she had no trouble making out the panicked tone in his voice. When the call ended, she eased onto her back and braced herself on her elbows.
"What happened?"
"It's time to go home," he muttered. "Nathaniel, we're to bring you to the Circus. Anita and Micah are there already."
"Sure," the wereleopard whispered, swimming up from his submissive mental state relatively quickly. "Is everyone okay?"
"I think so," he replied. "But, Jean-Claude has just received word that a Council member has been assassinated."
Willow gasped. Nathaniel opened his eyes and sat up.
"What?" Willow asked.
"He received a white mask," Asher explained. "The Dragon's spokesperson informed Jean-Claude that Morte D'Amour received a white mask and then caused quite a stir amongst his kiss. Two weeks later, the Council-member was burned to ashes."
Nathaniel frowned. "What does 'caused quite a stir' mean?" he asked.
"He killed many civilians and wereanimals within and without his domain."
"So, that's kind of their thing to police, isn't it?" Willow asked.
Asher shook his head. He sat next to her and rubbed her stomach with his hand. "He did not do this until after receiving the mask. The one relaying The Dragon's message said that some who survived or managed to get word out said it was as if he were of a different mind. He did not act like himself."
Willow rested her head against Asher's thigh, but she kept her eyes rolled upwards so she could see his face.
"Do you think they were involved?" she asked him.
"We have little information at this time," the blond man replied. He reached out and stroked Willow's hair. "Jean-Claude is attempting to learn more. Hopefully, he will know more by the time we return."
Willow sat up completely and looked around for her shirt. Nathaniel found it when he rose a minute later and handed it to her. He, too, started to gather up his clothes. He dressed while Willow dressed, and in a few minutes, the trio was ready to return to their regular, and yet highly irregular, lives.
&&&&
When she saw Richard sitting on a loveseat by himself, Willow left the circle of Asher's arm and rushed to his side. She hugged him and he hugged her back.
"Where's Emily?"
"In Jason's room with some of the other wolves," he replied. He kissed her neck. "Sorry to cut your night short," he said. He lifted his head and looked at Asher, "To both of you. I didn't want to make you leave the club---"
"This is serious, mon ami," Asher interrupted. "I know this is not your doing and I know you do not wish it were your doing. We're fine."
Richard smiled a bit and nodded. Willow turned in her Ulfric's arms and watched as Asher kissed Nathaniel's temple. "Vas-y," he insisted. "Go find your Anita and Micah."
"Thank you, Asher," the wereleopard whispered.
"We'll do it again, soon," the vampire promised. "When we have time, we'll make the evening last much, much longer."
Nathaniel shivered, blushed, and then hurried off for Jean-Claude's room, where Anita was probably staying. Willow chuckled and turned her attention back to Richard. "Why didn't you go with them?" she asked him.
"Wanted to see you first," he replied. He looked at Asher. "Why are they doing this?" he asked.
"They're breaking free of the Council---or that's how it seems," Asher said, shrugging. "That probably means they know our Dark Mother is waking and they're declaring their allegiance to her." He looked at Willow. "I am beginning to believe that unknown source you found---I am beginning to believe their ranks are divided."
"That doesn't exactly tip the odds in our favour---on the Council's side or on her side doesn't mean any of them are on our side," Richard pointed out.
"Non," Asher agreed. "Do you have enough supplies here for you and for your young charge to stay here for a few days?"
Richard nodded. "We packed our bags for a week."
"Good," Willow murmured. She frowned. "Who else is staying here, though, because newbies---like Phanes---"
"What about Kennedy?" Asher asked, cutting her off before she could completely voice her distrust of newcomers to St. Louis.
"She can, because she can't be alone," Willow said. "If Micah and Anita are okay with it. But any new recruits..."
"You should like ma petite," Jean-Claude said as he walked into the room. "Have you two truly bonded?"
Willow smiled and shrugged. "I don't know... but we hung out a bit lately without coming to blows."
Jean-Claude smiled back at her. She went to him because she was drawn to him and because she felt that she was free to act---to a certain point---on that feeling. He took her hands in his and kissed both of her cheeks.
"You always look so relaxed after spending time in a dungeon with mon chardonneret, but this time has not brought that look in its entirety," he commented. "I apologise for disturbing your night out."
"You don't need to apologise," she murmured. "You can't control this. How's it going?"
"Belle Morte has described all she can," Jean-Claude said, frowning. "Anita's talking with Edward now. He wants to bring in reinforcements."
Willow nodded. "So, all leaders don't go anywhere without guards, and... what else?"
"That's what we'll discuss tonight," Jean-Claude replied. He looked at Richard. "You will have some decisions to make, mon ami."
He nodded. "I know. I already told Jamil and Shang-Da. They're already thinking about what we can do."
Jean-Claude nodded again. "Bon. Let's sit and wait for the others to return to us."
&&&&
Willow rolled up her yoga mat and looked at Richard. "So...?"
"I don't want to take a sabbatical."
She sighed. "I know. Jean-Claude gave you a week to decide. You can't bring Jamil or Shang-Da into school with you, and you need someone in the school with you now," she reminded him in a quiet voice.
He sighed, too. "Yeah."
It was the next morning. She'd balanced her night at the lupanar with a night at Narcissus in Chains, but Richard had been upset after their discussion of the Council member's assassination, and Willow wanted to calm him down. Asher and Jean-Claude wanted her to calm him down, too---although they didn't voice the sentiment.
So, she offered to take him to yoga.
Their guards, Patrick and Shang-Da, were waiting downstairs in a car. Jamil was taking Emily to the school but would remain there; he and Shang-Da would wait outside the school all day, and Patrick would take Willow back to the Circus.
It wasn't ideal, and it was possible that someone would notice the two guards, but no one was willing to play too fast and loose with Richard's life.
"I love you," she murmured as she stood and tied her mat up.
He sighed again. "I love you, too," he whispered. He looked up into her eyes while fastening a tie around his mat. "I don't want anything to happen to us... I'm a little scared. I don't know how to protect my pack. It's huge. I can't... I can't take them all in, I can't guard them all without giving up my cover. I don't know what to do."
She nodded. She leaned down and kissed his forehead. Acutely aware of Allison the librarian watching them, she forced herself to smile. "We'll figure this out," she assured him.
"I hope you're right."
"Me, too," she replied.
Richard smiled and stood up. "Okay... okay. Let's go get something to eat and then let's meet Emily. She loves staying so close to you, by the way."
"She's a good kid. I care about her a lot."
He nodded. They went to where their socks and shoes were waiting, with everyone else's footwear. When they were done dressing their feet and started putting on their coats, he smiled and said, "You care about a lot of the more submissive among us."
Willow blushed. "Yeah... well. Who talked to you?"
"Anita. She told me you told her we have to revisit agreement that provides the swanmanes' guardians when they go to those clubs."
"Phanes was pimping them out, essentially," Willow explained. "They were scared. I couldn't leave them there to be punching bags for who knows what piece of bigoted---"
"Easy there, Lupa," Richard growled near her ear.
Willow blushed more.
He smiled and kissed her.
She kissed him back and then let him pull her towards the door.
"Breakfast time?" she asked.
"Absolutely," he replied. "We might only have time for a drive-through, but I want as much time as you can give me."
"Let's go get Patrick and Shang-Da," she murmured.
"Alright," he agreed.
He waved to Allison and the other teachers, and then he guided Willow out of the room and out of the building. When they were outside, he wrapped his arm around her shoulders and kissed her temple. She smiled and rubbed his belly.
She saw the guard wolves and smiled at them both; they smiled back at her and fell into step behind them as they walked to the parked car on the other side of the lot.
An envelope was under the windshield wiper. Richard froze when he saw it. Willow looked from him to the paper and saw the fear in his eyes that she'd seen when discussing the blackmail note with him. It was more alive, fluttering in his eyes and chest until she could feel it, too.
"Richard?" Willow whispered.
"Guys, did you see who put that on the car?" Richard asked his guards.
"What?" Shang-Da asked.
"The note. Who put it there?"
Patrick stepped forward and looked at it. "I... aw hell, I don't know. Damn it. We could see the back of the car, but..."
"Carefully take the note," Shang-Da instructed him. "Take it and I'm calling Jamil. We'll walk to the café down the block and we'll wait for him there. He'll take us to school, and Patrick can call a cab for Willow."
"Why?" Willow asked.
"Because if we didn't see who put the note on the car, we don't know if anything else was done to it," the enforcer spoke quietly. He turned his head as a few others left the fitness studio. "Let's go. Now."
Richard nodded, adjusted his hold on his mate, and took off for the sidewalk. The guards followed after Patrick pocketed the note.
"We'll read it when we sit down," Willow murmured. "It's going to be okay."
"I need you to call Micah today," Richard said, not addressing what she said. "I need you to talk to him about a lawyer---for work and for keeping Emily with me for the rest of the year. I need to be ready. I will meet with whoever he thinks is the best for what I'm facing."
"You're not going to pay?" Willow asked. "Asher said he'd give you money for the blackmail---"
"Honestly? I think you've been right about this all along. I shouldn't give whoever this is more power over me."
Touched by his confession and very aware of how drastically his life could change, Willow rubbed his stomach. "I'm going to be standing with you all the way," she promised. "I will not desert you through this, and neither will your pack."
"She's right," Patrick said quietly from his spot behind Willow.
"Thanks, guys," Richard replied. "If it's time to come out of the closet, then it's time. I hate it, I'll hate losing my job---and, yeah, that'll probably happen... but it's time. Wereanimal discrimination's getting worse and I'm starting to feel like I need to stand with my pack. I need to show them---and others---that it's not right to let hate and fear push us around.
"We're citizens, too. We pay taxes, we have families and friends, and we feel the same way everyone else feels."
"Pretty words," Willow commented quietly.
"I mean it, Willow."
She nodded. "I feel the truth in your voice."
"Do you?"
"I do," she murmured. "You and Anita have changed a lot lately. I... I think it's the pentumvirate. I think it's us, finally gluing together the way we need to, in the face of Mommy Dearest."
"She's right again," Shang-Da said.
Richard chuckled sadly. "Yeah... yeah."
They made it to the café a few minutes later. Shang-Da ushered the couple to a table; Patrick charmed a waitress into bringing them juice and four plates of the breakfast special without all the protocol of
taking drink orders, serving them, and then taking food orders. When Jamil and Emily showed up, they were already partway through their meals.
Patrick took out the note and they looked at it as a group.
Despite her level of intelligence and realistic outlook on life, Willow couldn't really believe it, Richard was being blackmailed again; the same amount, in two weeks, or else his secret would be revealed. She sighed and hugged Richard as close as she could without drawing too much attention to them.
"Tonight," she murmured, "you come to me. Anything you want tonight, it's yours."
"Promise?"
"Yeah," she whispered.
He nodded. "I think I just want hold you, but that could change," he said, his brown eyes almost turning amber for a split second.
"Whatever you want," she reiterated.
"Okay."
"I'll go straight to the Coalition office after showering and dressing in real people clothes." She frowned. "Do you have clothes? We didn't open the trunk---"
"I have a change of clothes in my filing cabinet," he interrupted her. "I'll wash up and change when I get there."
She nodded. She kissed his cheek. "Remember that I love you today," she whispered. "Because I do, you know."
"I know," he murmured.
"I'll be back at the Circus when you get home," she assured him. "If you want to call my cell when you get a free moment in the afternoon, I'll be around. I'm not going to Feral Byte today."
"I might call you even if you don't have any information for me," he whispered. "I might just want to hear your voice."
Willow smiled. "That'll be okay," she assured him. "I love hearing from you. Just get through the day and do your best for your students."
"Yes, ma'am."
"I love you, and we'll get through this," she promised him.
"Yeah?"
She nodded and kissed his lips. He kissed her back before hugging her close. No one else said anything, but Willow could feel the support melting off of the rest of the pack that was witness to their Ulfric's pain and distress.
TBC...
AUTHOR: 38gnihsurc
RATING: en.sea.xvii, overall
PAIRINGS: All the pairings from the previous two stories---and some new ones, too
SPOILERS: Up until Micah for AB; the whole TV series for the Buffyverse; Alive at Last and Living Underground.
WARNINGS: A little bit of fur... bdsm... the usuals for Anita's crazy, crazy world.
DISCLAIMER: I don't own anyone---except for any original characters that I whip up to do my bidding ;)
NOTE: This story is a sequel to Living Underground.
Previous chapters: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9-11, 12, 13, 14-5, 16-7, 18-9, 20-1, 22, 23, 24-5, 26-7, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32-3, 34-7, 38, 39-40, 41, 42, 43-44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51A, 51B, 52, 53, 54, 55-6, 57, 58A, 58B, 59, 60, 61, 62-63, 64, 65, 66-7, 68-9, 70, 71>, 72
PART SEVENTY-THREE
Willow checked her reflection in the bathroom mirror and tried not to frown.
The night before had gone fairly well, all things considering. Kennedy accepted that she needed the pard, for reasons passing the witch's understanding, but she hadn't accepted that Willow was where she needed to be. When they left the lupanar, Micah promised that he'd make sure she wasn't alone and that she'd be kept from the Circus until he could trust her to behave. Willow thanked him and went to talk to Kennedy before she went to the house Micah shared with Anita, and the wereleopard hadn't spoken to her very kindly.
"You're so different from the Willow I knew in Sunnydale that I don't know if you can be saved."
Richard assured her that there was nothing in Willow's soul that needed saving---because she was still the strong, pure force of nature that saved all of them---and Willow pretended that he soothed her fears. But, as the day progressed, as she prepared Nathaniel and herself for a night out with Asher to Narcissus in Chains, the slayer's words rang through her head as if they were on loop and she couldn't fight against them as strongly as she would have liked.
She was at the club, and she still hadn't told Asher what was on her mind. She knew he knew something was wrong. She knew he'd push to know what was wrong soon if she didn't admit it to him.
The music was loud and it sang to a part of her that was waking up with every moment she spent there.
"If you are not back in five minutes, I will punish you after I've punished our slave," Asher whispered into her mind, over the shields she was keeping in place to prevent Asher from reading her mind.
Willow blushed. She let him feel how her stomach tightened at his words; he let her feel his laughter.
She sucked in a deep breath and went to open the door. Someone was pushing it open on its other side, startling the redhead, and she laughed nervously when she looked into the face of a couple of the local swans.
"Lupa," the tallest of the two said quietly. "We apologise for---"
"Don't worry about it," Willow murmured. "It's okay. You had no way of knowing I was ready to come out of here." She saw the bruises on her neck. "Are you okay?"
The swanmane put her hand up over the blemishes and nodded quickly. "Yes... yes. I'm fine."
"Really?" Willow asked. "Do you two have a dominant here looking out for you?"
She knew that Donovan Reece once said they were similar to Nathaniel, before he became Anita's animal to call. They were perfect victims and couldn't say 'no.' The last time he was in town, he'd made arrangements with Narcissus that declared they couldn't be alone in the Oba's club unless they were escorted by a dominant who would look after them and help them select partners who would not abuse them. He had said he'd also make the girls agree to it, and for a while, it seemed to be working.
"Yes," the other one said.
"Where is he---or she?"
"He's one of the hyenas. We know him from here."
"Did he hurt you, or did someone else?" Willow asked.
"He... he grabbed me," the first swanmane admitted. "But, I disobeyed him. I deserved it!"
"Where is he?" Willow demanded.
The girls looked at each other nervously but they eventually gave up his position. Willow silently asked Asher to be on the lookout for the dominant who was supposed to be watching the two swanmanes. He assured her that he would; she returned her focus to the scared figures in front of her. She closed the bathroom door and locked it. She didn't want any interruptions.
"What happened?" Willow asked. "Why did you disobey him?" When they hesitated, she growled. "I may be submissive to Asher in here, but I am still Lupa and I'm more dominant than both of you put together."
They whimpered; she sighed. "Girls... please. Tell me what happened. I'm not mad at you, I just want to know why you're not protected right now."
The first girl shivered. "I... Donovan encouraged us to make up rules for ourselves. We have a hard time saying 'no,' but he wants us to be as protected as we can be when he's not here to protect us," she said as she started to explain. "I have a hard time staying in human form when I get too excited---too aroused, too scared, too anything. Swans aren't predators, though, so I don't really worry about hurting anyone. Plus, it's been a long time since I've been that excited. But, still... one of my rules is 'no normal humans.' If I hurt anyone---"
Willow nodded when she stopped talking. "I know. In case you're not being watched as carefully as you should be, you want to know you're not going to hurt anyone who can't handle it."
"Right."
"What happened?"
"Phanes let a man approach me. He's dominant enough, but human. I didn't want to be rude but the more I sat with him at our table---"
"The more you knew you didn't want him around you?" Willow asked. She silently told Asher the hyena's name was Phanes. She watched the swanmanes nod; her eyes filled with tears. "I haven't been alone with him yet, but I don't want to be. He... he wants to make me shift. He's hungry for something... I know that much, but I can't tell what it is."
"Violence," the other swan whispered. "He looks at all of us like we're dirty. Even Phanes. Even the ones who are dancing and walking past our table."
Willow sighed.
"I can't tell Phanes 'no,'" the first swan whispered shakily. "I've never been able to tell him that. He's too dominant, compared to me."
"Who usually comes in here with you?" Willow asked.
"Donovan chooses from the rats, usually," the second one replied. "He and Rafael have some sort of business agreement. I... it has something to do with the fact that Donovan can travel freely on his own. When we stay at Anita's, she sends Zane and Cherry with us. They're not as dominant as we'd like, but they're smart. They can read people really well and they're not threatening because they're a couple. But, they're busy with pard stuff tonight, so she called Narcissus to make sure someone would meet us at the doors."
Willow nodded. "Okay... okay. First, you are coming to my table," she decided. "Secondly, I'm going to ask Asher to send for someone to pick you up."
"Thirdly?"
"Thirdly, I want to talk to Phanes and Narcissus," she said. She saw the swanmanes tremble. She frowned. "No, no, guys... that's not going to happen while you're here. That's after. After I send you back to Anita. Normally, what she did was fine, but if this Phanes guy wants to break the rules set up between you, your king, and other leaders, then he's no good to protect you---and disrespectful to boot. We're going to have to make a short list of people that we can all agree on."
"Thank you," the first one whispered.
Willow drew them into her arms and hugged them both. "It's okay," she assured them. "I promise I'm going to get you out of here, each of you in one piece."
"Thank you," they both mumbled over and over.
"Bring them," Asher told her along their bond. "I will call our security teams now and order someone to the back door. Then, I will make sure they get into their vehicle alright. You have done your part, now it is time for me to do mine."
Willow told them most of what Asher said. They trembled in relief. She released them and let them do what they'd come to the bathroom to do. Willow made a mental note to call Micah---and Donovan, when she found his phone number---to put a better plan into action. When they washed their hands and put themselves back together, Willow unlocked the bathroom door and took their hands as they walked out into the main area of the club.
Asher met them on the outside of the dance floor. She was glad that he did, because a minute later, she saw who she guessed was Phanes as he marched to the swanmanes.
"Let's go," the werehyena barked.
"Non," Asher insisted. He looked at the other man. "You have not been adhering to the agreement in place for their protection."
"I'm watching---"
"They said no humans," Willow interrupted. "You're setting them up with one right now---and he doesn't like shapeshifters of any kind. You could get them killed!"
"I'm doing no such thing."
Asher looked at the swanmanes. "Girls, I've called for a ride. Claudia and one of her colleagues are on their way to retrieve you."
The swan with the bruises on her neck burst into tears and hugged Willow close, thanking both her and Asher over and over. Willow and Asher turned to look at Phanes.
"She lies."
"She does not," Willow told the hyena. "What kind of thug are you? Strong but not powerful enough to sense the truth in anyone so submissive? Not powerful enough to read the man who could hurt both of them because he hates our kinds?"
"Mon colibri, enough," Asher murmured. "He knows he screwed up. He hopes we won't tell Narcissus."
"Get the fuck away from me, both of you. Leave the swans and get lost."
Asher chuckled. "You don't scare me, Phanes," he said, laughter in his voice. "How did you get this job? Why do you want it? Are you making money off of these girls by selling their submission to the highest bidder?"
Something shifted in Phanes' eyes. Willow gasped. Asher looked at her. "Take them to the back," he instructed her. "I will be there in a minute."
Willow nodded and hurried the girls into the corridor and towards the series of back rooms where the fire exit was located. She caught the attention of one of the security team charged with keeping Narcissus and the establishment safe, and after they greeted each other, she explained the situation and asked if he could disarm the door so she could get them into the car with Claudia.
"Phanes is a new recruit," the other hyena told Willow. "He follows Narcissus' orders to the letter."
"So if something's not stated explicitly, he wiggles around it?" Willow asked.
The guard nodded.
Willow frowned. "Well, he can't be in charge of the swans anymore."
"Take it up with the bosses, I guess," the guard said. He took them to the door and then he went to a panel, opened it, and flicked a switch. "I'll stand outside. I'll let you know when the car's here."
"Thank you," Willow murmured.
When he was gone, Willow pulled both of the girls into an embrace. "It's going to be okay," she assured them. "We're going to see this through and find a better way to keep you guys safe when you come here to have fun."
"Thank you, Lupa," they both whispered.
"You can call me Willow, you know."
"You're dominant to us," the one with the bruises said.
Willow sighed. She understood; some of the pack still called her 'Lupa,' too.
She saw Asher approach them and she smiled a little. He nodded and went to her side. He kissed her head and put his hands on her hips. Willow watched Phanes try to approach them, but Narcissus appeared and steered the hyena away. Asher rubbed her hips with both of his hands, soothing her with every stroke.
"Where's Nathaniel?"
"With someone I trust," Asher assured her.
"Good," Willow whispered.
The door opened and the security guard told them that Claudia and Clay were in the parking lot. Willow thanked him, as did Asher, and then Willow took the girls to the car; Asher waited from the doorway, watching as Clay climbed into the backseat and let the girls sit on both sides of him. Willow thanked Clay for his help and then went to the driver's side to talk to Claudia. They discussed what happened, and then Willow asked who Rafael usually sent with the swanmanes to keep them safe. Claudia told her a couple of the names and Willow asked if the girls if those wererats were okay guardians. They nodded, snuggled into Clay's body.
"Well, okay," Willow murmured. "I guess we're all gonna have to revisit this," she said to the wererat.
Claudia nodded. "Narcissus is bringing more people into the territory, and that's the Oba's right, but we have to work with them, too, so..."
She trailed off. Willow agreed. "We'll jump off that bridge at the next meeting. I'm going to try to talk to Micah tomorrow, but we'll have to get every leader in on this soon." She sighed. "Thanks for coming, both of you."
"No problem," Claudia replied. "Nice to get out of the Circus sometimes."
Willow smiled. "Okay... see you later?"
"Probably. Have a good night," she said as she put the car into gear.
"Thanks," Willow murmured. She stepped away from the car and went back to the door where Asher was waiting. When she stopped in front of him, he kissed her. "Mmmm," she purred. "Yum."
He chuckled. "Are you in the right frame of mind to continue tonight?"
"Give me a few minutes, and I will be," she replied honestly.
Asher nodded. He reached out and clipped his leash to her collar. "Come back to the table, ma fifille," he crooned.
"Yes, sir," she whispered.
She followed him, walking slightly behind him as he navigated through the crowds. When she saw the table, she saw Nathaniel sitting on the floor next to one of the few hyenas Willow knew Asher trusted enough. She reached out and touched Nathaniel's shoulder; he smiled at her and she smiled back.
"Sit," Asher instructed her. He took something from the hyena; a moment later he passed her the end of a leash that seemed to be connected to Nathaniel's collar, along with the end of her own. "Take these until I return."
She sat and held onto the leashes' loops. Asher took the hyena from the table, thanking him as they talked. When Willow and Nathaniel were alone, the wereleopard rested his head in Willow's lap. Willow smiled and stroked her fingers over his cheek.
"How are you?" she asked him.
"Fine," he whispered.
"Yeah?"
Nathaniel nodded.
She smiled more. "What do you want tonight?"
"To belong to you and our Master tonight," he replied honestly. "I don't need pain... I want it, but I don't need it. I just want to belong, Mistress."
She nodded. "Okay," she whispered. She cleared her throat and then asked: "Did you know what was happening with the swans?"
He frowned. "I'm not surprised... it's never been a perfect system. It sucks, but there really isn't anything else that works."
"Phanes was bringing a human who isn't exactly a friend to them, probably for money," Willow explained.
Nathaniel closed his eyes and sighed. "You're looking out for them, though," he said after a long pause.
"I sent them home with Clay and Claudia," she murmured. "I'll take it to Micah tomorrow... and we'll probably have to take it up with Donovan and the others."
"Thank you," Nathaniel whispered. He hugged her lower legs. "You're very good to all of us."
Willow chuckled. "I'm just trying."
"I know, Mistress. You try like Anita tries. You do your best for everyone under your protection. That's all we can ask."
"Our slave is right, ma fifille," Asher said from behind them. Willow turned to look at him. He was smiling. "You do your best for everyone and we all appreciate it."
He held out his hand. She put the leashes on his palm and he curled his fingers around them. Then, he sat down next to her. He kissed her cheek and shoulder before speaking.
"Will you join me in taking care of our kitten?" he inquired.
Willow nodded. "If you want me there, sir," she whispered.
"I do," he insisted. He smiled and kissed her. "Mon Dieu, I do."
She smiled at him. Her smile faltered when she saw Narcissus approach the table. Asher followed her gaze but didn't let his smile fade away as hers had.
"Bonsoir," Asher said. "Would you like to join us?"
Willow bit back a sigh. It was hard to get into the mood with so many interruptions.
&&&&
Asher finished rubbing lotion into Nathaniel's whip marks before he turned his attention to Willow.
She was still kneeling. She was still mostly dressed, except her chest was bare so Asher was able to adorn her breasts with nipple clamps. The pain had been intense but it faded into a mild buzz somewhere in Willow's mind. He kept her like that since she finished teasing Nathaniel with a knife Asher had brought for that very purpose. She knew it was going to hurt as soon as he removed the little metal contraptions, but she knew that was what Asher wanted. He'd been able to sink her down into her submissive headspace once Narcissus had left them to their own devices, and---even though it wasn't as deep or as long-lasting as she'd wished it could be---she was enjoying it.
He smiled at her. "How are you feeling, ma fifille?"
"Fine, sir," she replied.
"Do you want me to remove your jewelry?"
"If you'd like, sir," she murmured.
He smiled more. He walked a slow circle around her and then looked at Nathaniel. Willow watched as Asher approached him and touched his back. Nathaniel gave a blissed-out sigh when the vampire touched him,
too relaxed to do anything else. Asher had whipped him to physical and emotional release; the wereleopard was spent, completely, and even Asher was looking more relaxed, too, for having shared the experience with him.
"I wish I could break you down tonight the way I took care of our slave," Asher murmured. "I long to give you what you need."
"I know, sir," she whispered.
"I miss how you shatter when you're riding me, when you're so lost in sensation..." he trailed off and sighed. "Promise me that we'll have that time, soon."
Willow looked up into his eyes. She could taste his hunger for what he was describing. "I promise," she said in a louder voice. "The next time... or as soon as we have some free time, I'm yours."
He smiled. "Vraiment?"
"Yes," she vowed.
"Bon," he murmured. He walked over to her and dropped to his knees. "Then, I will enjoy this moment as much as I can, knowing that there is more to taste in our future."
Willow nodded.
Asher kissed her and cupped her breasts in both of his hands. She whined, but not completely in complaint, as the pain in her nipples flared to life again. Asher chuckled and pulled her close so she was clumsily straddling his thighs and she responded by wrapping her arms around his shoulders. The clamps pressed into his chest and into hers, too, and she moaned and wriggled.
"In a minute, ma fifille," he whispered, "I'll remove the first one."
Willow braced herself for the pain but it didn't matter how prepared she was when he released the first clamp from her right breast. She cried out and Asher swallowed the sound. He removed the second clamp without warning and Asher swallowed the sounds she made then, too. She shuddered when he massaged one of her nipples with his fingers; she moaned when his fingers ducked under her short, pleated skirt. He brought her to climax efficiently, exploiting her most sensitive nerves with ruthless attention, and then he held her as her system leveled off.
"Mmmm," she hummed.
"Je t'aime," he whispered.
"I love you, too," she whispered back.
Asher lifted her up and carried her to the bed where Nathaniel was resting. Willow curled into the wereleopard and Asher pressed himself up behind her.
"How long can we stay?" Willow asked quietly.
"An hour or two at the most," he whispered in reply. "Relax. I'll tell you when it's time to leave."
Willow nodded and closed her eyes.
The phone rang. Willow cursed quietly, making Nathaniel chuckle. Asher kissed Willow's shoulder and eased away from her. He found his phone on the low table by the bed and he was able to answer it on the fourth ring.
It wasn't a good phone call. Willow had trouble hearing Asher's exact words, but she had no trouble making out the panicked tone in his voice. When the call ended, she eased onto her back and braced herself on her elbows.
"What happened?"
"It's time to go home," he muttered. "Nathaniel, we're to bring you to the Circus. Anita and Micah are there already."
"Sure," the wereleopard whispered, swimming up from his submissive mental state relatively quickly. "Is everyone okay?"
"I think so," he replied. "But, Jean-Claude has just received word that a Council member has been assassinated."
Willow gasped. Nathaniel opened his eyes and sat up.
"What?" Willow asked.
"He received a white mask," Asher explained. "The Dragon's spokesperson informed Jean-Claude that Morte D'Amour received a white mask and then caused quite a stir amongst his kiss. Two weeks later, the Council-member was burned to ashes."
Nathaniel frowned. "What does 'caused quite a stir' mean?" he asked.
"He killed many civilians and wereanimals within and without his domain."
"So, that's kind of their thing to police, isn't it?" Willow asked.
Asher shook his head. He sat next to her and rubbed her stomach with his hand. "He did not do this until after receiving the mask. The one relaying The Dragon's message said that some who survived or managed to get word out said it was as if he were of a different mind. He did not act like himself."
Willow rested her head against Asher's thigh, but she kept her eyes rolled upwards so she could see his face.
"Do you think they were involved?" she asked him.
"We have little information at this time," the blond man replied. He reached out and stroked Willow's hair. "Jean-Claude is attempting to learn more. Hopefully, he will know more by the time we return."
Willow sat up completely and looked around for her shirt. Nathaniel found it when he rose a minute later and handed it to her. He, too, started to gather up his clothes. He dressed while Willow dressed, and in a few minutes, the trio was ready to return to their regular, and yet highly irregular, lives.
&&&&
When she saw Richard sitting on a loveseat by himself, Willow left the circle of Asher's arm and rushed to his side. She hugged him and he hugged her back.
"Where's Emily?"
"In Jason's room with some of the other wolves," he replied. He kissed her neck. "Sorry to cut your night short," he said. He lifted his head and looked at Asher, "To both of you. I didn't want to make you leave the club---"
"This is serious, mon ami," Asher interrupted. "I know this is not your doing and I know you do not wish it were your doing. We're fine."
Richard smiled a bit and nodded. Willow turned in her Ulfric's arms and watched as Asher kissed Nathaniel's temple. "Vas-y," he insisted. "Go find your Anita and Micah."
"Thank you, Asher," the wereleopard whispered.
"We'll do it again, soon," the vampire promised. "When we have time, we'll make the evening last much, much longer."
Nathaniel shivered, blushed, and then hurried off for Jean-Claude's room, where Anita was probably staying. Willow chuckled and turned her attention back to Richard. "Why didn't you go with them?" she asked him.
"Wanted to see you first," he replied. He looked at Asher. "Why are they doing this?" he asked.
"They're breaking free of the Council---or that's how it seems," Asher said, shrugging. "That probably means they know our Dark Mother is waking and they're declaring their allegiance to her." He looked at Willow. "I am beginning to believe that unknown source you found---I am beginning to believe their ranks are divided."
"That doesn't exactly tip the odds in our favour---on the Council's side or on her side doesn't mean any of them are on our side," Richard pointed out.
"Non," Asher agreed. "Do you have enough supplies here for you and for your young charge to stay here for a few days?"
Richard nodded. "We packed our bags for a week."
"Good," Willow murmured. She frowned. "Who else is staying here, though, because newbies---like Phanes---"
"What about Kennedy?" Asher asked, cutting her off before she could completely voice her distrust of newcomers to St. Louis.
"She can, because she can't be alone," Willow said. "If Micah and Anita are okay with it. But any new recruits..."
"You should like ma petite," Jean-Claude said as he walked into the room. "Have you two truly bonded?"
Willow smiled and shrugged. "I don't know... but we hung out a bit lately without coming to blows."
Jean-Claude smiled back at her. She went to him because she was drawn to him and because she felt that she was free to act---to a certain point---on that feeling. He took her hands in his and kissed both of her cheeks.
"You always look so relaxed after spending time in a dungeon with mon chardonneret, but this time has not brought that look in its entirety," he commented. "I apologise for disturbing your night out."
"You don't need to apologise," she murmured. "You can't control this. How's it going?"
"Belle Morte has described all she can," Jean-Claude said, frowning. "Anita's talking with Edward now. He wants to bring in reinforcements."
Willow nodded. "So, all leaders don't go anywhere without guards, and... what else?"
"That's what we'll discuss tonight," Jean-Claude replied. He looked at Richard. "You will have some decisions to make, mon ami."
He nodded. "I know. I already told Jamil and Shang-Da. They're already thinking about what we can do."
Jean-Claude nodded again. "Bon. Let's sit and wait for the others to return to us."
&&&&
Willow rolled up her yoga mat and looked at Richard. "So...?"
"I don't want to take a sabbatical."
She sighed. "I know. Jean-Claude gave you a week to decide. You can't bring Jamil or Shang-Da into school with you, and you need someone in the school with you now," she reminded him in a quiet voice.
He sighed, too. "Yeah."
It was the next morning. She'd balanced her night at the lupanar with a night at Narcissus in Chains, but Richard had been upset after their discussion of the Council member's assassination, and Willow wanted to calm him down. Asher and Jean-Claude wanted her to calm him down, too---although they didn't voice the sentiment.
So, she offered to take him to yoga.
Their guards, Patrick and Shang-Da, were waiting downstairs in a car. Jamil was taking Emily to the school but would remain there; he and Shang-Da would wait outside the school all day, and Patrick would take Willow back to the Circus.
It wasn't ideal, and it was possible that someone would notice the two guards, but no one was willing to play too fast and loose with Richard's life.
"I love you," she murmured as she stood and tied her mat up.
He sighed again. "I love you, too," he whispered. He looked up into her eyes while fastening a tie around his mat. "I don't want anything to happen to us... I'm a little scared. I don't know how to protect my pack. It's huge. I can't... I can't take them all in, I can't guard them all without giving up my cover. I don't know what to do."
She nodded. She leaned down and kissed his forehead. Acutely aware of Allison the librarian watching them, she forced herself to smile. "We'll figure this out," she assured him.
"I hope you're right."
"Me, too," she replied.
Richard smiled and stood up. "Okay... okay. Let's go get something to eat and then let's meet Emily. She loves staying so close to you, by the way."
"She's a good kid. I care about her a lot."
He nodded. They went to where their socks and shoes were waiting, with everyone else's footwear. When they were done dressing their feet and started putting on their coats, he smiled and said, "You care about a lot of the more submissive among us."
Willow blushed. "Yeah... well. Who talked to you?"
"Anita. She told me you told her we have to revisit agreement that provides the swanmanes' guardians when they go to those clubs."
"Phanes was pimping them out, essentially," Willow explained. "They were scared. I couldn't leave them there to be punching bags for who knows what piece of bigoted---"
"Easy there, Lupa," Richard growled near her ear.
Willow blushed more.
He smiled and kissed her.
She kissed him back and then let him pull her towards the door.
"Breakfast time?" she asked.
"Absolutely," he replied. "We might only have time for a drive-through, but I want as much time as you can give me."
"Let's go get Patrick and Shang-Da," she murmured.
"Alright," he agreed.
He waved to Allison and the other teachers, and then he guided Willow out of the room and out of the building. When they were outside, he wrapped his arm around her shoulders and kissed her temple. She smiled and rubbed his belly.
She saw the guard wolves and smiled at them both; they smiled back at her and fell into step behind them as they walked to the parked car on the other side of the lot.
An envelope was under the windshield wiper. Richard froze when he saw it. Willow looked from him to the paper and saw the fear in his eyes that she'd seen when discussing the blackmail note with him. It was more alive, fluttering in his eyes and chest until she could feel it, too.
"Richard?" Willow whispered.
"Guys, did you see who put that on the car?" Richard asked his guards.
"What?" Shang-Da asked.
"The note. Who put it there?"
Patrick stepped forward and looked at it. "I... aw hell, I don't know. Damn it. We could see the back of the car, but..."
"Carefully take the note," Shang-Da instructed him. "Take it and I'm calling Jamil. We'll walk to the café down the block and we'll wait for him there. He'll take us to school, and Patrick can call a cab for Willow."
"Why?" Willow asked.
"Because if we didn't see who put the note on the car, we don't know if anything else was done to it," the enforcer spoke quietly. He turned his head as a few others left the fitness studio. "Let's go. Now."
Richard nodded, adjusted his hold on his mate, and took off for the sidewalk. The guards followed after Patrick pocketed the note.
"We'll read it when we sit down," Willow murmured. "It's going to be okay."
"I need you to call Micah today," Richard said, not addressing what she said. "I need you to talk to him about a lawyer---for work and for keeping Emily with me for the rest of the year. I need to be ready. I will meet with whoever he thinks is the best for what I'm facing."
"You're not going to pay?" Willow asked. "Asher said he'd give you money for the blackmail---"
"Honestly? I think you've been right about this all along. I shouldn't give whoever this is more power over me."
Touched by his confession and very aware of how drastically his life could change, Willow rubbed his stomach. "I'm going to be standing with you all the way," she promised. "I will not desert you through this, and neither will your pack."
"She's right," Patrick said quietly from his spot behind Willow.
"Thanks, guys," Richard replied. "If it's time to come out of the closet, then it's time. I hate it, I'll hate losing my job---and, yeah, that'll probably happen... but it's time. Wereanimal discrimination's getting worse and I'm starting to feel like I need to stand with my pack. I need to show them---and others---that it's not right to let hate and fear push us around.
"We're citizens, too. We pay taxes, we have families and friends, and we feel the same way everyone else feels."
"Pretty words," Willow commented quietly.
"I mean it, Willow."
She nodded. "I feel the truth in your voice."
"Do you?"
"I do," she murmured. "You and Anita have changed a lot lately. I... I think it's the pentumvirate. I think it's us, finally gluing together the way we need to, in the face of Mommy Dearest."
"She's right again," Shang-Da said.
Richard chuckled sadly. "Yeah... yeah."
They made it to the café a few minutes later. Shang-Da ushered the couple to a table; Patrick charmed a waitress into bringing them juice and four plates of the breakfast special without all the protocol of
taking drink orders, serving them, and then taking food orders. When Jamil and Emily showed up, they were already partway through their meals.
Patrick took out the note and they looked at it as a group.
Despite her level of intelligence and realistic outlook on life, Willow couldn't really believe it, Richard was being blackmailed again; the same amount, in two weeks, or else his secret would be revealed. She sighed and hugged Richard as close as she could without drawing too much attention to them.
"Tonight," she murmured, "you come to me. Anything you want tonight, it's yours."
"Promise?"
"Yeah," she whispered.
He nodded. "I think I just want hold you, but that could change," he said, his brown eyes almost turning amber for a split second.
"Whatever you want," she reiterated.
"Okay."
"I'll go straight to the Coalition office after showering and dressing in real people clothes." She frowned. "Do you have clothes? We didn't open the trunk---"
"I have a change of clothes in my filing cabinet," he interrupted her. "I'll wash up and change when I get there."
She nodded. She kissed his cheek. "Remember that I love you today," she whispered. "Because I do, you know."
"I know," he murmured.
"I'll be back at the Circus when you get home," she assured him. "If you want to call my cell when you get a free moment in the afternoon, I'll be around. I'm not going to Feral Byte today."
"I might call you even if you don't have any information for me," he whispered. "I might just want to hear your voice."
Willow smiled. "That'll be okay," she assured him. "I love hearing from you. Just get through the day and do your best for your students."
"Yes, ma'am."
"I love you, and we'll get through this," she promised him.
"Yeah?"
She nodded and kissed his lips. He kissed her back before hugging her close. No one else said anything, but Willow could feel the support melting off of the rest of the pack that was witness to their Ulfric's pain and distress.
TBC...