Of Stakes And Spells
by VixenRaign
Personal Revelations, Part One
[reviews]
(Author's Note: Due to request, and the fact that this was one of the few things that I could work on while away, I decided to do a small up-date. I hope it is to all of your likings. BTW; I was listening to 'The Italian Job' soundtrack while writing this . . . good for focus!)
= = = (*Personal Revelations*) = = =
The next day the Slayer found herself in Giles' house doing research on some weird star-constellation that was said to be the signal that some great bringing of doomed soothing-or-other. She didn't really care, she could handle it . . . or Slay it at any rate. {Funny how being in love can make everything seem so secondary,} Buffy thought, {All that matters is that she's safe and Happy.}. Willow looked up from her book, feeling the Slayers gaze on her, and smiled. The blonde smiled back, and then returned her eyes to her own book.
"Any luck yet?" Giles asked from the kitchen. The room all grunted in the negative, and the older British man sighed in defeat. "Very well, I think that's enough for today. Off with you all." Before the words had ever left his mouth Anya had Xander by the collar and was dragging him out the door. He gave a feeble wave and was gone. They all held in a laugh at how whipped he was, but at how happy Anya made him.
"Hey Giles?" Willow asked slowly, "What's the name of the prophecy?" Giles sipped his tea, and shook his head.
"One from the Codex. I did some back-reading and came across it. It may not happen for a number of years, but it'd be nice to get a bit of a jump on it." They nodded, and Buffy's face fell slightly. Giles headed back up-stairs quickly, a number of books in hand. Willow, closing her book, noticed the Slayer's distracted look.
"Buffy?" she asked slowly, the blonde didn't seem to ever hear her. Getting up, she walked over to her and sat down on the arm of her chair. Still no movement. Placing a finger under her girl-friends chin she forced her to look at her. As soon as she was pulled out of her reverie, she smiled slightly.
"Hey," she laughed slightly, "Got a little lost in thought." Willow nodded and kissed her head softly.
"What's wrong?" Willow asked almost happily. Buffy just looked at her like she was confused. "Don't give me that face, Buff. You were thinking about something . . . something sad." Buffy looked away, and then back at her girl-friend, a fake smile in place.
"I fine, really. Just thinking about Mid-terms." Willow's face looked accusing, and slowly turned into resolve face. Buffy winced.
"Buffy Anne Summers." Willow stated almost as a warning. "Are you lying to me?" Buffy nodded slowly, knowing there was no weapon to defeat Resolve-Willow. "Then tell me what's really bothering you." It wasn't a question, it was a demand.
"The Prophecy." She said simply. Willow nodded, and waved for her to go on. Sighing, Buffy laid her head into a hand. "It's from the Codex."
"Yes . . . ?" Willow said, a little more gently.
"The book of Slayer-Prophecies." Buffy took a deep breath and felt Willow lay a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Giles thinks it could be YEARS away . . . what if the prophecy isn't for me?" she finished quietly. Willow stiffened, and Buffy felt it. Lifting her head slightly, she winced at seeing the scared look on Willow's face.
"Not for you?" she asked slowly, "You mean . . . like, for another Slayer?" Buffy nodded. "But that's impossible!" Willow said quickly, "Faith's been in a coma for way to long to ever wake up . . . the doctors all said she was vegetable. Her brain is practically soup - Vegetable Soup! There's no one else it could be for." She said firmly.
"Willow," Buffy said gently, "I know that no one likes to talk about it bu - "
"Then don't talk about it!" Willow said almost angrily. "That's what's done in polite circles! When there's something that doesn't want to be heard, and it's not true anyways, then people don't mention it! It's just left alone, to rot and die and be forgotten, and then people can by happy and move on - " the red-head was silenced with a kiss. As Buffy pulled away, she placed a hand on either of the girl's cheeks.
"As cute as you are when you babble like that," she said quietly, "I think we need to talk about this." Willow kept her eyes closed and shook her head. "Willow, please. We know that Slayers don't last forever . . . I'm almost three years over my expiration-date as it is, and although I've out-lasted my two predecessors . . . I think we need to consider that, well, accidence happen." A tear leaked out of the redhead's pinched eyes, and Buffy whipped them away. "Will, please look at me?"
"I can't." she said quietly. Buffy wrapped her up in a hug, and pulled the poor girl into her lap, rocking her gently. "You're not allowed. You're not allowed to leave me, Buffy." She said firmly, "You have to stay until it's the right time for you to go. Or else, when the REAL Apocalypse come and *Everyone* dies, including me." She was starting to sound like a child, and she didn't care. Buffy kissed the top of her head, and laughed slightly. "What's so funny?" Willow demanded sadly.
"There is one other option." She said as she continued to hold her distressed girl-friend. "Faith could be killed off by the Counsel so they can have a new Slayer. Then maybe she can deal with all that World-Savage- Crap . . ." Willow gave a wet chuckle, and wrapped her arms around the blonde's middle.
"Yeah, well, I wish they'd get on with it . . ." she said spitefully. There was so much venom in Willow's words that Buffy pulled back slightly to look down at her girl-friend. The redhead seemed surprised to see the shock on Buffy's face and they just looked at each other for a second.
"Do you really mean that?" the Slayer asked slowly. Willow nodded, wondering why she'd ask. Buffy leaned back, not looking at Willow, but anywhere else.
"What?" She asked slowly. Buffy just shook her head, and waved it off, though she still didn't look at her girl-friend. "What!?" she demanded loudly.
"Nothing, Will, calm down." Buffy said, gently, getting up, forcing the redhead to stand as well.
"No, Buffy, I want to know. What did I say?"
"Nothing, nothing. I just didn't expect that . . . you know . . . forget it." She said, as she started gathering books to put back on the shelves. Buffy grabbed the books out of her hands, and slammed them down on the table.
"Buffy! I've just about had enough of this 'I'll-Keep-It-To-Myself-Crap'! Tell me what - "
"FAITH, OKAY?!" Buffy yelled, right back at her, "Yeah; she messed up, yeah; she could be a real bitch at the worst times, and okay; she tried to kill pretty much all of us, but that doesn't give us the right to wish her dead!" She huffed, and grabbed the books up again, "If it wasn't for her, we never would have beaten The Mayor . . . why does everyone seem to forget that she was the one that fixed the whole in the plan? When it came down to it, she helped us, and I hate the fact that you all pass judgment on her when none of you knew her like I did . . ." Buffy sighed, and flopped down on the couch, looking totally exhausted.
"Are you defending her?" Willow asked, completely shocked. Buffy just shook her head and sighed.
"No." she said flatly, getting up. "Just forget it." She walked over to the book shelves, and started putting the books away slowly.
"Are you actually saying that?" Willow asked her almost angrily. Buffy didn't answer, she just kept putting books back. "You think that all that crap she pulled was actually justified by some stupid dream you two shared while you both were passed out in the hospital?!" with that Buffy slammed the last book home so hard, the wooden backing to the book-case practically shattered. Willow winced, and took a step back.
"Willow?" Buffy said slowly, "Please, stop." This was what most Scoobies called the 'Last-Warning' voice. It sounded perfectly calm, but was like the small bit of humidity you get before an earth-quake, or the way the ocean seems to be placid before a storm. Willow didn't care.
"Is this because you and she had a thing?" Her voice had an edge, and she knew it. Buffy closed her eyes, and slowly turned to Willow. She slowly walked towards her girl-friend, and stood about three feet in front of her. When she did open her eyes, they were completely black. Not a sliver of green was visible, and that scared Willow. The only other times she'd seen Buffy like this was in the throws of heated Passion, or when she was on the Hunt. Not patrolling, that was different . . . this only happened when she went out looking for something to pummel, and thrash, and destroy. Her chest heaved as she slowly began talking.
"Willow," her voice shook slightly with a false calm, "Get - Over - It." She closed her eyes, again, and Willow watched as the Slayer clenched her fists to the point that her knuckles hand turned white. "I Love you, you know that, and - for the record - I kissed her forehead. I don't want Faith, I don't want Tara, why would I EVER want them when I have you? So please, as a favor to me, please drop it." Buffy open her eyes, still slightly dilated, and took a shakingly clam breath. She cleared her throat, and looked everywhere but Willow. As her eyes landed on the door, she slowly walked towards it.
"Buffy!" Willow called haltingly, not wanting the Slayer to leave still mad at her, but the blonde raised her hand, halting all speech. She slowly made her way back out the door. All the while, Willow just stood there, watching her go, wondering how this had all started. {So that's a fight . . .} Willow thought sadly, {Two days and already we're yelling . . . is this a sign?}. The red-head sighed and walked to the doorway. No sign of Buffy in sight. As she walked slowly back towards the campus, she wondered what would happen the next time they saw each-other.
(To Be Continued . . .)
(Author's Note: Hey People! I know that probably wasn't what you wanted, or were expecting, but it was needed. It's part of the story, and I PROMISE - you can hold me to it - that there will be Smoochies and so on and so forth in the next two chapters to come! Just have to wait to get home from Italy . . . )
~ VixenRaign ~
_