Dark Willow

"Dawnie, what are you doing here?"

Dawn took a nervous step back, shaking slightly. After Tara had... Dawn still struggled to think of it, Willow had gone off the deep end. Red hair had turned black, and now even her eyes were dark, her voice somehow both Willow and not Willow.

She'd hoped to talk Willow out of it, tried to find her by tracking down that warlock... person from a while back. Instead she'd found that he was dead, and Willow... Willow was...

"I-I have to go," Dawn said.

She darted around the dark-haired Willow's side, only to freeze as Willow once more appeared in front of her. Right, uber-powerful witch now with even more power, that was...

"Why, so you can run and tell Buffy?" Willow said.

Dawn faltered. She hesitated on the spot; ok, running wouldn't work, and she couldn't fight Willow even if she wanted to. This... This was.

"You're only going to make things worse," Dawn tried. "But I promise, it's not too late-"

"Do you miss her?" Willow interrupted.

"Yes!" Dawn said. How could she think otherwise.

"Did you cry?" Willow said.

Dawn stared. There was something undeniably creepy about Willow's tone, perhaps all the more because she could recognise Willow underneath all that. She could recognise the kind, caring woman who'd helped her through so much, only to now be...

"Of course you did," Willow said. "I get that."

She took a step forward. Nervous, Dawn backed away, nearing the wall behind her.

"I understand the crying, you cry because you're human," Willow said. Suddenly a smile was playing at her lips; Dawn shivered. "But you weren't always.

"Y-yes, I was," Dawn said, voice trembling.

"Please," Willow said. She seemed almost amused; Dawn took a step back. "You're telling me you don't remember? You used to be some mystic ball of energy. Maybe that's why you're crying all the time Dawnie, because you don't belong here."

Dawn bumped into the wall, a nervous sound escaping her lips.

Willow...

Willow stared at her. Dark, empty eyes widened; she tilted her head.

"Want to go back?" Willow said. "End the pain. You... oh, I can see it. The light held within you, and that spell that makes you this."

Something in her tone changed. She sounded almost rapturous; she lifted a pale hand, dark veins raised in her skin, and rubbed two fingers together. Dawn felt it, a pinch on some visceral, primal level. Her eyes widened.

Willow slowly wiggled her fingers, toying with some wave or energy only she could see.

"I could do anything with this," Willow said. She smiled, enjoying herself. "It's so easy... All the power of the Key helping generate it. A slight tug and I could unpick all of it, or I could... twist, tweak, I could..."

Out of the corner of her eye, Dawn spotted her hair colour shift. Blonde, to a redhead, then back to her normal. Her eyes widened; she felt her body shift as though a handful of years had passed.

Dawn pressed her hands to the curtain on the wall behind her, wanting to grip something. She couldn't move any further back, couldn't do anything as Willow neared.

"So many possibilities," Willow said. She really was loving this. "What should I do? Do you want to go back to being a ball of light? Do you want to be a Slayer? I could do that, you know, so easily; I can see everything that makes you up now. You're nothing but a spell. Maybe I could make you replace Miss Kitty after what you did, maybe I should kill you; maybe I could turn you..."

Her voice trailed off. For a moment she faltered; before Dawn could dart anywhere however, Willow refocused.

"What would be the most fun..."