Deep in the Heart by Kirk Baldridge

Author’s Notes: For the sake of this story I have made up a Native American tribe, the Iquanni. The reason I did this is so I can have Native American characters, situations, religious practices, and such without getting anything wrong and, I hope, without offending anyone. While I have done some research on the subject, neither the characters nor their histories are based on any particular tribe or culture.

Summary: Willow and Tara make a stopover in Texas, and uncover a dangerous new evil.

It took her a few moments more to realize where she was, and what was going on. That was when she noticed they were no longer moving. She sat up and gazed into the front seat, where Tara was just turning off the ignition and looking over her shoulder with a smile on her face.

Tara glanced at her watch. "Seven in the morning. I thought you might want some breakfast."

"Mmm...good idea." Willow examined her unfamiliar surroundings. "Say, where are we anyway?"

"Texas. More specifically, San Antonio." Tara untied her ponytail and shook the hair out. "You did say you wanted to see the Alamo, didn't you?"

The redhead nodded. "I remember now." She climbed into the front seat and kissed her lover. "So, where were you planning on finding us this breakfast?"

"There's a place open over there," Tara replied, motioning to their right. "That okay?"

They had no particular place to go or deadlines to meet, so they were in no real hurry to leave the restaurant. By the time they got back out on the street the other stores around them had begun to open, so they decided to do a little window-shopping.

They stopped in a bookstore and picked up a few things for the road, and their wandering eventually led them to a store selling boots and other western wear. Willow stared through the window for a moment, then turned to look at Tara. She didn't have to say anything, the blonde just nodded.

When the couple emerged, some time later, they were wearing matching boots and cowboy hats. Willow also had on a brand new, fringed leather jacket.

The blonde shrugged her shoulders. "You're welcome. That's what it's for, right? I mean, there's nothing wrong with splurging every now and then, is there?"

"Not as far as I'm concerned." Willow adjusted her hat and then glanced at her watch. "I should call Buffy. Check and see how everything's going and let her know where we are."

As Willow slid into the booth, Tara crossed her arms and watched the passers-by. After a few minutes the redhead emerged with a funny look on her face.

The couple kept straight faces for as long as they could, and then they burst out laughing.

At first, Tara was a little overwhelmed. Her empathic abilities, under most circumstances, were limited. But in a place like the Alamo it was more than she was prepared for.

They both loved history, and Texas had such a rich, often violent past that was both fascinating and more than a little frightening. As a result they spent most of the day there, taking the tour and going over each of the exhibits in detail. There was such a huge difference between reading about what had happened in books or seeing movies about the subject, and actually being in the place where so many people died.

After a while they decided to leave. But they first stopped by the gift shop and picked up some souvenirs for their friends. As they were putting the bags into the trunk they noticed a young woman wandering among the cars a few rows away. Native American, her long black hair and clothes were mussed and dirty, her eyes wild, and she didn't seem to notice the cars as she bumped into them. She wasn't actually coming at them but as she got closer they started to hear what she was mumbling over and over to herself.

To the redhead, it was an uncomfortable reminder of how Tara had been in after what Glory did to her. She still had the occasional nightmares of seeing the woman she loved incapacitated. Getting a small measure of revenge on the hell-bitch had made her feel so much better.

Tara, however, was more concerned about the young woman's aura. It was dark, fragmented. Something terrible had obviously happened to her, and quite recently. What remained of her aura was fairly bright, indicating a strong and intelligent young woman. She bit her lip.

"I know," said the redhead. "Poor girl. I wish there was some way we could help her."

Tara frowned. "We should. She's in trouble, Will. Her aura, it's like something was torn out of her."

"There are demons and monsters all over, why not in Texas?" Willow shook her head. "But I don't think she's in any condition to tell us what happened to her."

They followed the young woman, being careful not to crowd her, until she stopped by a car that had mirrored windows. When she saw her reflection she started to claw at her face, tears filling her eyes. Willow and Tara got to her then, and grabbed the woman's arms to stop her from hurting herself.

"Can you understand me?" Tara asked. The young woman nodded. "Good. What's your name?"

"Hello Lisa. I'm Tara. This is Willow." Tara put a hand on the young woman's shoulder, pulling it back when she saw her flinch. "Can you tell us what happened?"

"That's all right. Just hold on a second." Tara glanced over her shoulder. "She's almost hysterical. If we don't get her to relax, we'll never be able to figure out what's happened."

"Good idea. We can get a room for the night. Hopefully she'll be calmer in the morning." Tara put her hands on Lisa's shoulder. "We're going to take you someplace quiet, okay?"

Lisa didn't say anything on the way to the motel, and she didn't try to resist as they led her to a room. But once she was inside she seemed to visibly relax. That led the tears to start flowing all over again, and she cried until it became too much for her, and she eventually passed out.

Willow and Tara sat on the other bed and watched her for a while. Once they felt sure she wasn't going to wake up any time soon the redhead went through her jacket, which was slumped over the back of a chair. All she found was a hand-drawn map of an area she didn't recognize and a small card.

"It looks like some kind of ID. Her name is apparently Lisa Two-Feathers. She's a member of a local tribe--the Iquanni. According to this, she's two years younger than we are."

"That figures." Tara sighed. "Well, something obviously happened to her. But she didn't seem to be hurt, at least not physically. Which means whatever happened, it was either emotional, mental..."

"...or mystical," said Willow. "I know. I wish there was...hey! I know a scrying spell we..."

"What? I'm kidding." The redhead frowned. "We have to do something. She's obviously terrified of someone or something. If we're going to help her, we need more information."

"You're right." Tara put an arm around her lover. "I just hope she's better after a good night's sleep."

Lisa thrashed and moaned off and on through most of the night, waking Willow and Tara several times. She did finally settle down, and they were able to get some sleep themselves. When they woke she was in the bathroom, standing in front of the mirror and staring at herself. She had obviously been crying recently, but at least she was no longer trying to hurt herself.

Tara approached the young woman slowly, so as not to startle her. "Are you okay?"

"Do you feel like telling us what happened? It's all right if you don't, but..."

Lisa turned, her eyes puffy and red. "Nothing you can do. Nothing anyone can do. It's too late."

Lisa sat down on the floor of the bathroom, and began pulling at her hair. "So empty. So empty. So..." She took a deep breath and raised her head. "Have you ever heard of a buu-kha?"

"A monster. I thought it was just a story my people told to scare little children."

"Your people?" said Tara. "The Iquanni?" When Lisa's eyes widened, she shrugged her shoulders. "Oh. We, um, saw your ID? I'm sorry, we were just trying to figure out..."

"I think that's a story for another time," said Tara. "Tell us yours. What did this buu-kha do to you?"

Lisa began trembling all over again. "N-No, I can't...it's too..." Her eyes rolled back in her head, and she passed out. Tara grabbed her as she started to slump over.

"Let's get her back to bed," said Tara. "Then, you should go get your laptop out of the car."

"We won't be able to do much for Lisa without more info. I'm going to call Buffy and have the others find out anything they can about buu-khas. They can e-mail the results and we'll go from there."

Willow and Tara headed into the bathroom with the laptop when the e-mail arrived, so they would not disturb Lisa. It turned out Dawn had sent it, since with Willow gone she was the next more computer literate person at the Magic Box.

It's been so boring without you two around. Buffy's been trying to act more big sisterly than usual, and I think Spike's upset about something.

Anyway, I attached a couple of files with the info you wanted. We couldn't find much, but it sounds like this thing is pretty nasty. You guys better be careful.

"Let's see what they sent us." Willow's fingers flew across the keyboard. "It looks like there's a small text file, and a picture. Which do you want to look at first?"

Tara thought about it for a moment. "The text." She leaned over the redhead's shoulder to look at the words that were beginning to scroll across the screen.

Buu-kha is a term in the language of the Iquanni tribe of Texas, which can be loosely translated as soul-eater. According to legend the buu-kha are the disembodied spirits of Iquanni shamans, doomed to forever roam the Earth as penance for some hideous offense to the tribe. As spirits they do not age, nor can one be killed except by the most drastic and impractical of mystical means. They can, however, be contained with a sacred ceremonial spirit jar, provided the proper rituals are adhered to by a caster. Buu-kha consumes the spirit, or soul, of a victim, and become stronger for it. No ultimate goal is known for the entity.

It brought up a photograph of an old clay jar, with faded red markings on the sides and a more elaborate design on the top and around the seal. It looked intact. A caption identified the artifact as an authentic ceremonial jar of Iquanni design, circa 1802.

"At least we've got some idea what we're dealing with," said Tara. "We need more on this buu-kha, though. Will, do you think you could find something on the web?"

"I'll do a cross-check with buu-kha, Iquanni, and the spirit jars. But it could take some time."

The redhead nodded. "It's apparently a hold-over from the days when the Native Americans lost their land. They never got an official reservation like some of the other tribes across the country, so the Iquanni arranged to have their people taken care of another way. You know, medical records, birth dates, stuff like that. So long as they're registered, the Iquanni are more or less protected by the law."

Tara chewed on her lip for a moment. "What about the other Iquanni? What did you find on them?"

"Here we go." Willow read down the list. "There's Samuel Moon, a doctor with a pretty lucrative practice. John Lonewolf owns a service station just outside of town. And then there's Michael and Starr Blackwoode, a married couple who live in an apartment downtown."

"Mark White-Crow. He's a historian and archeologist, working with the Native American Preservation Society, and...hey. Check it out, Tara." Willow pointed to the screen. "He's been missing for over a week." She glanced up at her lover. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

"That he found one of those spirit jars and made the mistake of opening it?" Tara nodded. "Does it say where he was working? Maybe we can check it out."

"I wish. That sort of thing's usually kept pretty top-secret for security reasons, and I doubt they're have it listed anywhere." Willow raised her head. "I think we should find the other Iquanni, and warn them."

Tara arched an eyebrow. "Of what? That they could in danger from a vengeful spirit? I can't see anyone, besides us, taking that very seriously, can you?"

"Maybe Lisa can help. She's from around here. She may even know some of these people."

Lisa was standing on the other side of the door, with her eyes glazed over and her jaw slack. She wasn't moving and was barely breathing.

Willow leaned closer. There was a strange darkness surging within the young woman's eyes. Not the blackness of dark magick she knew so well, but something else. "Hey..."

Inky black ooze began to gush out of Lisa's mouth, nose and ears. It was a solid thing, and as it flowed between and around Willow and Tara they felt a chill. They shuddered.

The darkness took shape behind them. They turned to see a tall, humanoid figure wearing what appeared to be a long black robe. They could not see any facial features beneath its black hood.

"You have what I need. Tell me how to find the other Iquanni, and I will not harm either of you."

Willow's crossed her arms and shook her head. "You don't scare us you know. Do you have any idea how many guys like you we've fought, and beaten, over the years?"

"You have a sharp tongue, child." The entity raised its arm, baring its skeletal mockery of a human hand. "Let us see if your soul is as strong."

Tara sensed a growing mystical energy surging in and around the buu-kha's hand. She had never felt anything as dark or sinister, and it chilled her to the bone. "Willow..."

"What?" The redhead turned to her girlfriend just as the entity reached her. Its hand plunged into her chest with little effort, and no damage to her shirt or skin. Her eyes widened.

"Willow, NO!" Screaming, Tara threw herself at the buu-kha, but it casually backhanded her and sent her flying into the bathroom mirror. It shattered, and she slid to the ground, blissfully unconscious.

The entity removed its hand from Willow's chest, clutching a vaguely human-shaped quantity of what appeared to be wispy white smoke. Gasping, the redhead slumped to the ground, her body still twitching, while the entity drew what it had taken from her into its hood.

"Thank you, witch. That was a delightful treat." It chuckled. "And I thank you for the information concerning the other Iquanni. I am fortunate it was foremost on your mind." It stepped over Willow and Lisa, passed through the front door as if it wasn't even there, and disappeared into the darkness.

When Tara woke up she felt bruised all over, and sore in places she didn't want to think about. She sat up with a groan and looked around. Willow lay in a crumpled heap on the floor nearby.

"No! Willow!" She crawled over to the redhead and checked her pulse. It was weak but steady, and she breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank the Goddess. Will? Can you hear me?"

The redhead didn't stir, but Lisa did. She sat up, and put a hand to her head. "What's going on? Where am I?" She saw Tara. "Who are you?"

"My n-name is Tara Maclay. W-We...this is my girlfriend, W-Willow Rosenberg. W-We w-were trying to help you." She shook her head. "Goddess, I can't believe this happened."

The blonde collected herself before she tried to speak again, and managed to get her stutter under control. "Do you...what's the last thing you remember?"

"I was with Professor White-Crow," Lisa replied. "On a dig. We were examining artifacts. That's last thing I can remember clearly. Except, I did see you two somewhere, and you were being really nice to me, but..." She shook her head. "What happened to me?"

"It makes sense," Tara said quietly. "The buu-kha must have been trying to control your body. Using you to take it to the other Iquanni." She began absently stroking Willow's hair. "That's why you were so disoriented. It was in your mind, but it couldn't manipulate you completely."

"I told you, my name is Tara." She shook her head. "Look, something happened to you. Something you probably won't believe. There was this...entity, called a buu-kha..."

"Oh God! I remember now. The spirit jar." Lisa began to tremble. "Professor White-Crow, he was trying to tell me the buu-kha didn't exist. H-He opened it, and..." Tears streamed down her face. "It killed him, right in front of me! They're supposed to steal souls, but instead it murdered him and then...it turned on me. I saw it, reaching for me...and that's the last clear thing I remember."

Tara nodded. "I'm sorry for your loss. But why were you there? We read the reports, and there was no mention of your being a part of his expedition."

"I wasn't. Officially. Professor White-Crow came to the school asking for volunteers. I'm an art major but also a history minor, and I thought it'd be fun. I grew up hearing the same stories he did, but neither one of us thought the buu-kha were really real. He said they were just myths."

"We get that all the time," said Tara. "You'd be surprised how many fairy tales and legends are true." She kissed Willow on the forehead. "I-I think...it took her soul."

"Neither do I." Lisa shook her head. "I'm sorry. Professor White-Crow was the expert, not me."

Tara was fighting back tears. "You'll be all right, Will. I promise. I'll make it all better."

"All right. I want you to tell me everything you know about the buu-kha. I don't care how trivial it is. I don't care if it's fairy-tales or tribal legends. I'm going to stop this thing..."

"I'm not by myself." Tara sat down beside Willow and stroked her hair. "But until she wakes up I am on my own, and I need to be prepared before we go after it."

Lisa sighed. "Okay." She sat down on the other bed. "My grandfather told us the stories over and over again, but I never believed any of them." Her brow furrowed. "He used to say the buu-kha came about, because our shamans developed a taste for the darkness they saw in the souls of our tribespeople. In order to heal they would draw the darkness into themselves. Eventually, it poisoned them. When they died their own souls were bound to the earth, and they were forced to wander in search of the souls they needed to become whole."

"The buu-kha are spirits of a sort themselves. For the most part they are insubstantial creatures. But one of our lesser-known tales says they can become solid if they consume enough souls."

Tara nodded. "That figures. I knew there had to be some reason why it does what it does. Willow was right. The intelligent ones always have an agenda."

"You don't seem too phased by all this," said Lisa. "Have you guys seen things like this before?"

"It's in California and it's where we're from. Sunnydale is right on top of a Hellmouth, which is sort of a magnet for all kinds of evil. Vampires, demons, we've got it all."

"I'm not sure. Maybe. If you kill it, I suppose what its stolen might go back to the people they came from. But I don't know how you'd go about killing a spirit."

The redhead was disoriented, and she put a hand to her forehead as she tried to collect herself. She felt so cold and lost, and a moment later when she tried to sit up she realized she couldn't. That was because an arm had been draped across her chest, half-pinning her to the bed.

Willow turned to see Tara curled up beside her, fast asleep. "Hey." She nudged the blonde. "Wake up."

"That's me." The redhead frowned as she sat up too. "But do me a favor and stop yelling, would you? My head is pounding, and I feel like I'm going to be sick."

"Goddess, I'm sorry. I'm sorry I didn't move faster. Maybe I could have done...something."

Tara watched her close the door with a stunned expression on her face. She wasn't used to her girlfriend being so brusque. She opened her mouth and closed it again. "Will..." She walked up and knocked on the door. "Are you okay? Willow?"

There was no response from the other side of the door, except for the sound of running water.

"Willow? Answer me. Please?" When there was still no answer Tara tried the knob, and was surprised to find it locked. Willow never locked the door unless she was really upset about something. "Will, come on. We need to talk about what happened."

"No," cried a muffled voice. "We don't!" The distinct sound of a shower curtain being pulled, signaled an abrupt end to the conversation.

Tara sighed. She hadn't thought to check her lover's aura before she locked herself in the bedroom. Now, she'd just have to wait until Willow decided to come out. The blonde shook her head, turning when she heard the door of the motel room opening.

Lisa came in, carrying several bags from a nearby fast food restaurant. "Hey." She glanced at the empty bed. "Is she awake?"

"She was so...cold, and distant." Tara began to rub her arms. "I'm scared. If the buu-kha really did steal Willow's soul, what does that mean for the woman I love?"

Lisa and Tara were sitting on a bed, the former eating, when Willow emerged from the bathroom wearing only a towel. Without looking at or saying anything to them the redhead walked over to her bag, picked it up and put it on the other bed. She opened it, then dropped her towel to the floor and proceeded to get dressed. Lisa and Tara stared at her the whole time she was naked, for obviously different reasons.

Tara was shocked. While the Willow she knew was not exactly shy, she also never liked to flaunt her body. She certainly would not normally strip in front of a stranger. She stood up. "Will?"

"Why do you have to keep asking me that? I'm fine." Willow took a deep breath. "In fact, I feel great. I've got all this extra energy."

Willow shrugged her shoulders. "Yeah, but it didn't kill me. Guess I'm lucky, huh?" She smiled. "Oh, food!" She threw herself onto the bed beside Lisa and grabbed a hamburger.

Tara crossed her arms and gazed into Willow's aura. It was convoluted. Dark in places it was usually bright, and bright where there wasn't usually color at all. The blonde felt as if an icy hand had gripped her heart and begun to squeeze. Willow had been all torn up inside and she didn't even know it.

"Do you guys think you can really stop this thing before it hurts anyone else?" Lisa asked.

The redhead nodded. "Let me finish this first," she replied, with her mouth full.

Tara pulled up in front of Dr. Moon's building, with Lisa in the passenger seat beside her and Willow sprawled in the back. The blonde turned off the ignition as Lisa shook her head.

"Because you're an Iquanni too," Tara replied. "Anything we have to tell these people, will probably be received more seriously if it comes from a member of their tribe."

Lisa shrugged her shoulders. "If you say so. But I have to warn you; I don't know anyone on that list. I mean, it's not as if we're all one big happy family or anything."

"I have another question," Lisa said. "What if we actually run into the buu-kha?"

"Run," Tara replied. "You get out of the way, and let us handle the demon. It's what we do."

Lisa nodded, and led the way. As soon as they got inside, they knew they were too late.

People lay scattered around the waiting room, which was soaked in blood. A nurse had been pulled halfway out the small greeting window and had her throat gouged open. Tara and Lisa were both overwhelmed by the carnage; they turned pale and began to tremble. Willow just shrugged her shoulders.

"We'd better find this doctor," said the redhead. She threw open Moon's private office door, only to find Moon himself curled up on the floor and babbling. "Found him."

Tara shook her head. "This doesn't make sense. Why is the buu-kha killing them? I thought it was just supposed to be a soul-stealer."

"Are you kidding? This thing is pure evil," Willow offered. "Remember what the file said? They're the spirits of lost Iquanni shamans who gave into the darkness. What makes you think they'd stop at taking a little bit of energy when this..." She spread her arms. "...is so much more fun?"

"We'd better hurry," said Tara. "And find the others before its too late for them too."

As they got out of the car at the Lonewolf Service Station, Tara's eyes widened. "It's here."

"I-I'm not sure. I can sense it...but it's not clear." Tara charged into the garage area, stopping so abruptly Willow and Lisa almost ran into her. "Oh Goddess, no. Not again."

A man was laying face down in a pool of his own blood, while another's upper body had been crushed beneath a car that had been lowered on a lift. A third, Native American, whose shirt had a patch on it that said John, was on his knees near the back with a glazed look in his eyes. He didn't move or speak.

The redhead turned several complete circles, her face growing sterner each time. "I thought you said it was here!" she snapped. "Where is it?"

"We must have just missed it." Tara punched a nearby wall. "Damn it! We weren't fast enough!"

Lisa shook her head. "There's still a chance. There's one more address on your list, right?"

A few minutes later, the trio arrived at a two-story townhouse. Tara, in fact, was just about to knock when they heard a shrill scream from inside.

"Oh no!" The blonde tested the knob, and found it locked. "Reserare et resignare!" There was a loud click, and the door swung open on its own. "Come on!"

Willow and Lisa followed Tara into the house, where they found a Native American man laying at the bottom of the stairs. He was bruised and battered, unconscious, but alive.

"That was a woman's scream," said Lisa. "She must be..." They all jerked their heads up as they heard another scream. "...upstairs!" Now she took the lead, taking the stairs two at a time, and throwing open the first door she came to followed by another when that one proved to be empty.

Inside they found the source of the screams; a Native American woman in the clutches of the buu-kha. As they were entering the room it had just pulled its hand out of her chest. She slumped to the ground as it released her, and swallowed what it had stolen from her.

"Ah, the witches." The buu-kha chuckled. "And you've brought me the last Iquanni. Here I was, berating myself, for having left her behind. I do appreciate this."

"You'll what? Scold me? You can't possibly do anything to hurt me, witch. You must know that."

"Not like me, you haven't. But it doesn't matter. You're not Iquanni. And as much as I enjoyed swallowing your lover's soul, I really don't care about either of you." It stepped forward and reached for Lisa, who was too scared to try and get out of the way.

"Let me?" The buu-kha clenched its fists. "Let me? Who are you to let me do anything?" It lashed out with such intensity Tara was turned completely around. She spun into Lisa, the two of them landing in a crumpled heap in front of the entity. "Hmm...two souls in one sitting. Why not?"

Willow glanced from Tara, to the buu-kha, and back again. "No." She saw it looming over her, and for the first time since it attacked her, she felt something. "No!" She remembered what it had done to her, how it tore her up inside, and she was damned if she was going to let it happen to Tara. "Not to her!"

The buu-kha turned as the redhead brought her hands up, palms facing toward it, and began to whisper under her breath. It chuckled. "You can't fool me! I saw it witch! I know the truth! You gave up on the magick because your control over it is, at best, fleeting! You fear your own power!"

"Wrong. See, thanks to you," Willow corrected. "I'm not afraid of anything!" She could feel the power flowing through her and smiled. "Is it hot in here, or is it just you?"

"What?" The buu-kha felt its internal temperature beginning to increase at an accelerated rate. "No! What have you done to me?" Its body was beginning to smolder. "No, stop it! Stop..." Its words were cut off in mid-syllable as it exploded, littering the room with little black blobs of ooze.

When Tara and Lisa came to they were in the car, and Willow was driving. The redhead had just pulled into the parking lot of their motel, and was turning off the ignition as the blonde sat up in the front seat. "I was wondering if the two of you were ever going to wake up."

Willow nodded. "Of course. How else was I supposed to help you, when you couldn't even help yourself?" She frowned as she saw the expression on the blonde's face. "Oh, would you get a grip? I can handle it. I'm not a little china doll you know. I'm more of a witch than you'll ever be."

"I know you've got a lot of power. But Goddess, Will, don't you understand? Don't you remember what we read on the computer? If the buu-kha was really dead, all the souls it stole would have gone back to their owners. You didn't change back though. You're still...you know."

The redhead shrugged her shoulders. "Whatever." She opened the car door and slid out. "I'm going to go take a shower. I'm sure you guys can find some way to amuse yourselves."

"Yeah. But, did I hear your right? The buu-kha, it's still out there somewhere?"

Tara nodded. "I'm afraid so. If our usual luck holds, we'll be seeing the thing again soon enough."

Back at the Blackwoode home, little black bits of ooze scattered around the room began to move. They flowed off the walls, ceiling, and furniture, and merged together. Soon after, it began to grow and change. But the figure that took shape was vastly different from the hooded entity it had been.

It was man-like now; a powerfully built Native American with slate gray skin and black eyes. It wore boots and fringed leather breeches but no shirt. It had claws, and sharp spines down the length of its muscular arms, as well as horns extending out of either side of its head.

"I have not been forced to retain my true face for a very long time." It snarled. "That witch will pay for what she has done to me!"

"So what do we do?" Lisa asked. "If the buu-kha really is still out there somewhere, sooner or later it's going to come after me...us again."

Tara nodded. "We're working on containment now. It was trapped before. We can trap it again."

"Yeah, but how? You need a spirit jar to do that, and I have no idea how to find one. I mean, even the Professor had never seen one in person, until..."

"Oh please." Willow walked out of the bathroom, not even bothering to wear the towel this time. "Listen to the two of you. It's ridiculous. Why do you have to make everything so difficult?"

The redhead rolled her eyes as she was getting dressed. "You don't need a fancy jar to trap the thing. As long as you know the right rituals and you have all the supplies, any container should do."

"You are..." Tara stopped, her mouth hanging open. "...right. The spell. Will, you're amazing."

Tara stood up. "Make a list of the things we need. I'll get them when I find a container."

"Believe it or not, a decorating store. I think it's kind of gloomy, but I guess somebody out there must like it. I thought it was oddly appropriate." Tara picked up the other bags. "I also got the rest of the things we need. But I'll tell you one thing. People in this neighborhood don't seem to like magick."

Lisa wrapped her arms around herself. "So, all we need is the buu-kha then? How..."

Outside the motel, the buu-kha stood in the middle of the parking lot with its arms crossed.

There were no people around at the moment, but even if there had been they wouldn't have seen it. It was more corporeal than before, but thanks to the human souls it had already absorbed it was able to determine who could and could not perceive it.

"I sense the Iquanni female's presence. But it is hard to believe the witches would return to a place I am already familiar with to try and protect her." The entity started forward, halting in its tracks as it nearly ran into a car that jumped into a parking place when it and the motel.

A man got out. He was big by human standards, but looked rather puny in comparison to the buu-kha. He took a duffel bag from the back seat, turned, and ran right into the suddenly visible entity. He gazed up, and up, into the creature's smoldering eyes. "What the hell?!"

"You are not Iquanni. But under the circumstances, you will suffice." The buu-kha drove its hand into the man's chest, laughing as he dropped his bag and shuddered.

Lisa and Willow arranged candles and crystals on the counter, while the blonde drew several large symbols on the mirror with a semi-clear liquid. She then put the urn into the sink and opened the top.

"I'll sit on the floor and start the chant. When I hit the apex of the spell the kurnas on the mirror will glow. The buu-kha is then seized by the containment wards and, as I understand it, stripped of the souls it has stolen, which weakens it enough to trap it in the first place."

"Then it gets sucked into the jar," Willow continued. "We close the lid, and everybody's happy."

"What about the buu-kha?" Lisa asked. "It has to be here when you do this, right? So, what's to stop it from, you know, killing us in some indescribably horrible way?"

Tara wasn't sure how to respond. A moment later, the decision was taken out of her hands.

All of a sudden the front door exploded inward, heralding the arrival of the buu-kha. It strode majestically into the room and looked around. When it saw Lisa and Willow, standing in the bathroom door and blocking its view of Tara, the creature took a step forward and smiled.

"Goddess!" Tara licked her lips. "Try to keep him busy for a while. I'll work on the ritual."

It shook its head. "You have great power, young one. It's a shame you refuse to use it."

"Oh I'm afraid I've already done that. You have nothing left for me but your life." The buu-kha turned its gaze to Lisa. "But you, however..."

"So...there is no reason for you to sacrifice yourself." Lisa lowered her voice. "Remember, even if he takes my soul, the spell will reverse it. Let me do this."

Lisa walked toward the buu-kha. "I'll tell you what. I'll give myself to you, freely. In exchange, you promise not to hurt my friends here. Is that a deal?"

The buu-kha laughed. "Why should I bargain with you? I can claim your soul whenever I like. I do not need your permission." It started to reach for her.

Lisa grabbed a letter opener off the desk and held it over her chest. "Back off! See, from what I understand you have to take my soul yourself in order to gain power from it. But if I kill myself first you won't be able to take it at all, now will you? You'll lose out on a pretty tasty meal."

"Try me!" Lisa gritted her teeth. "You murdered Professor White-Crow! And you've killed a lot of others since then. You have to pay for that!"

The buu-kha lunged forward with a swiftness that almost defied human understanding. It had thrust its hand into Lisa's chest before she had a chance to begin forming the concept of stopping it in her head. She lost her grip on the letter opener as it ripped its prize from her. As it released her she collapsed, not quite unconscious, while it absorbed what it had stolen. It closed its eyes and reveled in its victory.

When the buu-kha opened its eyes a second later Willow was standing right in front of it. She put her hands on its chest. "My turn!" She smiled. "Animus Consumere!"

Energy surged from the redhead's hands, burnt its way into the buu-kha's chest and all the way through its upper torso, and exploded out its back in a smoldering shower of black ooze and what appeared to be bone. It remained on its feet, wide-eyed and staggering, while she backed away.

Willow smirked. She glanced over her shoulder at Tara, who she realized was almost to the end of the long and complicated containment spell. As she turned back the buu-kha raised its arm and clamped one huge hand tightly around her neck. Her eyes bugged out as it lifted her off her feet.

"That hurt witch!" The hole in its body was already beginning to heal. "But unfortunately for you, I do not have a heart for you to destroy! A pity the same cannot be said for you!"

Lisa rose behind the buu-kha. She was pale, shaking, had tears running down her face and was barely able to see straight. But she had also picked up the letter opener again. As the entity became aware of her presence it turned to glare at her, just as she screamed and drove the blade home. It sunk up to the hilt in the buu-kha's left eye with a sickeningly loud squish, causing the entity to howl in pain.

It tossed Willow aside and thrashed about, one clawed hand catching Lisa. It shredded her shirt and most of her chest, knocking her a full three hundred and sixty degrees and sending her flying across the room. She struck the far wall and slid to the ground, blood everywhere.

Symbols on the mirror glowed, just as she had said, while a tornado-like wind enveloped the buu-kha. Still in a great deal of pain, apparently, it was lifted off the ground and spun faster and faster. Minute tears formed across the entire surface of its slate gray skin, and from them wisps of white smoke began to escape. One of them flew into Willow's mouth, and another into Lisa's, while the others passed through the wall and were gone. Bellowing with the last shreds of defiant--but useless--rage, the buu-kha's body seemed to collapse in on itself. Reduced to nothing more than a quivering pile of black ooze it was drawn into the urn.

Tara reached over her head and put the lid back on, then dropped her hands into her lap and sighed. "Goddess. It worked. I..." She gasped. "Willow!" She tried to get to her feet, found her knees too weak to comply, and crawled to her lover instead. "Will? Baby, please. Wake up!"

The redhead's eyes fluttered open. She gazed into Tara's eyes for a moment, and smiled. "Hey."

"I'm me again if that's what you mean." Willow sat up, running her fingers through her hair. "I feel like I've been lost in a..." Her eyes widened. "...nightmare. Goddess Tara...the magick. I used magick." She felt the tears welling up. "And, I hurt you. The things I said, I-I was horrible to you."

Tara shook her head. "Listen. Yes, you did magick. But even with what the buu-kha did to you, you didn't let the power take over. I'm so proud of you." She stroked the redhead's cheek. "As for the rest, well...I think we can talk about it later. Okay?" "Okay. I love you, Tara."

As the couple embraced, they heard a painful gurgling sound. It was only then they saw Lisa. Quickly they went to her side. Her mouth was full of blood.

Tara nodded. "We won. It's over. You hang on, okay? We'll get you an ambulance."

"N-No. It's...too late." Lisa was seized by a fit of coughing. "Do me...one last favor...would you?"

It turned out Lisa didn't have that many friends, but the people who did come to her funeral were very loyal and had a lot of good things to say about her. Tears were shed and hugs were exchanged. Willow and Tara were there, grieving alongside the others, though for very different reasons. After all, they knew exactly what Lisa had given up to protect the rest of her people across the country.

They took it upon themselves to make the arrangements, because it was revealed to them that Lisa did not have any family. In order to attend the service, and in fact be free to go anywhere at all, they had managed to convince the authorities that the same person who killed Lisa also murdered the people at Dr. Moon's office, as well as at the service station. They got a little unexpected help from Dr. Moon, John Lonewolf and the Blackwoode's, who remembered everything that had happened with the buu-kha. Knowing it was the responsibility of their tribe they had helped clear Willow and Tara, and attended Lisa's funeral as well.

After the ceremony ended and the other people began to file away, Willow and Tara remained. They held on to one another and stared at the empty space where Lisa's gravestone would soon be placed. The other Iquanni were paying to have it designed and carved by a tribal craftsman.

Willow nodded. "She's a real hero though. By burying the urn and the buu-kha with her we can be pretty sure no one will come along and open it again. Not any time soon, at least."

"I just wish we'd gotten a chance to know her better." Tara lay her head on the redhead's shoulder and sighed. "If it's all right with you, I'd like to go now. I'm not real keen on Texas anymore."

"Sure." Willow kissed the blonde, and put an arm around her waist. "By the way, I love you."

Main What's New Fiction by Author Fiction by Pairing eBooks

Subject Index Submissions Gallery Forums Links Awards Contact Us

If you find problems on these pages please email your host.

Deep in the Heart

By Kirk Baldridge

Kirk@mysticmuse.net