To Thine Own Self Be True
by mike
Willow
[reviews]
Chapter 4
Willow
Welcome to Sunnydale. The sign seemed like a joke. It was all so peaceful. So mundane, why am I in Sunnydale? Well, four weeks ago, I turned sixteen. One week after that I became the slayer and all within two more weeks, I had gotten my watcher killed slayed the master and roasted his minions and my parents are getting divorced.
After burning down the school gym, even though they couldn't prove I did it, my dad said he couldn't handle me anymore. He actually suggested military school, but my mom won that battle.
Two things saved me. One, some of the kids claimed that I saved a bunch of them from some biker gang (that's easier to believe than vampires) and two, my grades were excellent, well except for missing half my classes the last 2 weeks before the dance where I dusted the vamp that had killed Merrick and fried all his minions using the gym as an incinerator.
Merrick said one of my strongest features was my ability to improvise. Merrick would have been proud. Those two items saved me from prosecution, not from expulsion. That along with mom needing to get a job brings us to Sunnydale.
Mom has a degree in art history and had worked in a museum and some art galleries off and on but hadn't had any thing to add to her resume for a few years, having decided to be a stay at home mom.
Mom had two items on her list, get a good paying job dealing with art and find me a high school that would accept me which meant outside the LA school district. Sunnydale is almost two hours outside LA and mom thought it would be perfect for a new art gallery that would cater to buyers from Santa Barbara to Monterey.
I was expecting a really small town, but was pleasantly surprised. Population was around one hundred thousand. They even had a real mall with a Cineplex.
There was also a university, UC Sunnydale. And I was all set up for Sunnydale High School. We arrived on Saturday, two hours before the moving van and got settled into a really quaint two story wood frame house with a nice big porch.
I kept telling myself this was going to be OK, even though I was concerned about how I was going to fulfill my "Before I die" list being so far from the action. That was my first false assumption.
I was also excited about no one knowing me here, false assumption two.
I was looking forward to making new friends who would have no preconceptions of me. Well at least that part was right.
So Monday morning comes all sunny and bright and I move around boxes getting ready for school. I get a little nervous thinking about having to start all over again, but remind myself that it's like having a second chance to get everything right, kinda like ground hog day. I just hoped I didn't need that many times to get things right.
Mom drops me off in front of school and as I close the door, she calls out to me.
"Buffy," she says with a pleading quality.
"Yea mom," I reply.
"Try not to get kicked out school, OK", she finishes with hope in her voice.
"Yea mom, I'll try", I give her a big grin and hurry off.
As I'm walking up the front steps, I hear a thunk and thud behind me and glance back and see some pathetically dressed guy with a skateboard lying on the ground on his back under the guard rail. He shakes his head and I turn around and continue walking into school. I find the Administrative offices and let them know who I am. They tell me the principal, Mr. Flutie would like to talk to me.
Let's just say Mr. Flutie was embarrassing. He started to rip up my school record from Hemry claiming everyone got a fresh start and then taped it back together muttering something about burning down the gym. Not the best of starts, but at least I hadn't been kicked out yet.
I got my schedule and headed off to my first class with paperwork and class slips for my teachers in hand. I was told to go to the library on my first free period to get my books.
My first class was History. I gave my paper work to the teacher and grabbed an empty desk near the back next to a really pretty girl who dressed really well. She shared her text book with me during class and told me her name, Cordelia.
Pretty name I thought and I was encouraged by how openly friendly she was right off the bat, but trust must be earned, and the price of my trust is high. After class, we walked down the hall to the next class, stopping by the drinking fountain. Cordelia had been talking about how she wished she could be in LA for all the shoes or something and then started talking about hanging with her if I passed some cool factor test. I played along to see where it was going, but I was cooling fast. Cordelia was turning out to be a really bad cliché'. We stopped at the drinking fountain where some girl about my size with long red hair was getting a drink.
"Willow," Cordelia spoke out, "glad to see you've found the softer side of Sears".
"My mother picked it out." The embarrassed girl squeaked out, turned and ran.
She stopped at the hall exit and looked back. I then realized that I had been staring at her, totally dumbstruck at how beautiful she was and couldn't believe no one else could see it.
I then heard Cordelia saying something about watching out for the nerds but all I was thinking over and over in my head was a name. "Willow".
Lunch came and I went hunting, I needed to find her. I couldn't explain it, but I hadn't felt this strong a need since Valerie left. I walked out into the south court and saw her sitting on a bench, opening a lunch bag. I walked up to her and waved.
"Willow, right?" I said in what I hoped was a captivating way.
"You want me to move", she asks me. Looking at me with the most beautiful green eyes I have ever seen. I shake myself realizing what she's thinking and quickly respond.
"Lets start over, I'm Buffy. I have a favor to ask. It doesn't involve moving, but it would involve hanging with me for awhile." Please say yes, I silently plead.
"Aren't you hanging with Cordelia?" She almost accuses me and I can't quite blame her for that one.
I decide to play safe for a bit longer and reply, "I can't do both?" I query.
"Not legally", she responds in all seriousness with a perfect deadpan.
I break out into a big grin, stifling my laughter, thinking she is just too adorable.
"Her loss then." I reply sitting down next to her on the bench. We are both straddling the concrete bench facing each other.
"As for the favor, I heard you're the one to talk to about getting caught up on classes and all." I let her know.
"I can totally help you out there, but you would really rather hang with me than Cordelia?" She says in disbelief with a hint of suspicion.
The suspicion in her voice cautions me not to come on too strong.
"Absolutely," I reply, "as for the reason why, I know Cordelia's type, knew it well in LA. They can't be trusted. And they have only two things on their minds, boys and clothes. Those conversations get really boring fast."
"You find talking about boys boring?" She asks cautiously.
Damn, I say to myself. Then I remember "The Letter". "To Thine own self be true." But could I trust this girl who I just met. I then decided to go with my instincts and said, "I guess I have to give a little trust before I can expect to be trusted, does that sound fair Willow?" I say softly, holding her gaze with my own.
"That sounds fair, but what do you trust me with?" She says back to me equally softly, and with anticipation of something important.
"The answer to your question is yes, Willow, I find discussion about boys very boring. I am trusting you with some very personal information about myself. All I ask is for you to trust that I would rather spend time with you than with Cordelia or any of her cronies. If we can get past this, then I think we could have the start of a real friendship. What do you say?" I almost plead with her, ready to run if she rejects my offer. I can't believe that I have exposed myself this quickly, this readily. I must be crazy. Then I look again into her eyes and know that she's worth the risk.
"I say friendship is good." A quick pause, a nod of her head and a pursed lip. "I trust you." She gulps out and then gives me this huge smile that would put the most beautiful sunrise to shame.
I can't help but grin goofily from ear to ear upon seeing it. Just then, the moment is shattered by loud smelly guys, one on each side of us. I glance at each of them in turn, ready to pound them if they threaten Willow. I look back at Willow and she still has her big happy smile and I relax. She looks at me and say's while pointing at the guy with the messy hair, "Buffy, this is Xander. Xander, Buffy. And this is Jessie." She finishes up pointing at the other one.
I want more time with Willow but these are obviously friends of hers, and Willows friends are my friends I tell myself, even if they are male.
Xander starts off on some weird ramble about getting to be close friends and relationships and I just glance at Willow. She rolls her eyes at me, which causes me to chuckle and her to look pleased that I chuckled.
Just then Cordelia came up.
"Don't let me interrupt your downward mobility," she started while trying to shoo Jessie away. "But your meeting with the gym teacher is canceled because of the extreme dead guy found in the girl's locker room."
Jessie starts to offer some inane platitude about comfort and I interrupt him with a question to Cordelia.
"Any idea how he died?" I ask pointedly.
"Morbid much, I didn't ask", she states with a look of extreme disgust. Could be she got a whiff of Jessie.
I look around and then at Willow and say, "I gotta book, see you later?" I ask her.
"I'll meet you in the library, OK?" She replies.
"In the library." I repeat back to her.
I then head quickly off in the direction of the women's lockers. When I get there, I find the door locked. I decide not to break things my first day in school and go outside and see the large window open about 12 feet up.
I look around and see that I'm alone and launch myself up and through the opening. Good thing I'm a tiny little thing I murmur to myself. I land with a bit of a thunk on top of a row of lockers and quickly jump to the ground. I walk around until I see a tarp over what I assume to be a body. Gotta make this quick before the Coroner and cops arrive.
I pull back the tarp and turn the guys head and see the twin punctures in the side of his neck. "Bite me." I whisper.
I then check his mouth for any evidence that he had done any drinking. There was no residue in his mouth and no smell of vampire. I wouldn't have to track him down later for staking. But I would have to figure out who did the deed. But I could do that later. Right now I had a date to meet Willow at the Library. The thought of Willow immediately put a smile back on my face as I covered the corpse and left by way of the door. Making sure it closed quietly and completely after my exit. I then referred to the small map I had been given that morning of the school and made my way to the Library.
When I entered the Library, I was stopped by the feeling of power in the room, but I wasn't able to discern if it was good or evil. As I slowly walked towards the desk, a tall man, older than thirty but not grandfather age yet, came from a back room. He looked at me and said in a very British accent, "Can I help you?" He asked this while raising his eyebrows. The accent immediately made me suspicious.
"Yes," I replied, "I'm new and need some books." I stated simply.
He looked me more carefully and said "Miss Summers?"
"Good guess." I replied, almost certain now that this guy was a watcher.
"I have just what you're looking for." He stated gleefully and plopped out this huge old book with the title Vampyre.
"Wrong," I said looking right back at him. "I'm not registered for blood suckers 101. I need some textbooks, but now the dead guy in the locker makes more sense. I really hadn't expected vampires. Not in this quiet little town and especially not on my first day of school. What's going on with the guy who's had all his blood drained through two tiny holes in his neck? Are you handling it?" I ask, already knowing the pat answer.
"What am I to do about it? I'm a watcher, you're the slayer." He states as if that should be enough.
I reign in my emotions, reminding myself not to give anything away. But it doesn't mean I can't have a little fun.
"Well, I just got here, why you don't try slaying while I get settled in. It's no biggie, a stake through the heart and off they go."
"But I'm your watcher" he stammers. "I train you, and guide you and instruct you in your duties."
"Well," I start out. "I have this fondness for living, and living means being careful and not taking bad advice. So I don't take advice from people I don't know and who haven't earned my trust yet. Are you prepared to earn my trust, whatever your name is Mr. Watcher." I spoke challenging.
"I'm Mr. Giles. You are required to trust me; I am the Council's representative." He spoke with authority.
"I saw 'Charge of the light brigade' Giles, and it made the last act of Hamlet look like a walk in the park. You want to work with me; you're going to have to prove yourself. I've taken out a Master and over 50 of his minions. I've proven myself. What about you?" I said coldly, daring him to make a come back.
"Well yes, you have been remarkably successful for a recently called slayer. I think I can see my way to earning your trust. Unfortunately, I have to attend a staff meeting right now. I'll return in an hour and we can then discuss the matter."
"It will have to be later," I replied, "this is my first day and my mom is expecting me."
"All right," he replied shortly, "I'm sure something can be arranged. We'll talk later" and with that he picked up a notebook and left the library.
I was gazing at the swinging doors after Giles left when I was startled.
"Buffy?" I jumped straight up and turned around while in the air to see Willow emerging from the darkness of the upper level book stacks.
"Willow" I barely whispered, just now remembering why I originally had come to the Library.
"Uhhh, I pulled your textbooks for you." She looked at me with a look of curiosity and confusion, walking toward me with half a dozen text books in her arms.
"Let me take those," I quickly approach her, and with a grateful smile, take the books from her arms.
"Buffy, I heard your conversation with Mr. Giles, what was that all about?" She asked while at the same time locking her eyes to mine. I knew she was looking for any sign of deceit.
I had already started on a path of trust with her; I was determined not to blow it now.
"Willow, this is going to require me to trust you with something incredibly important, are you sure you want the responsibility of knowing?" I asked, letting her see the seriousness in my eyes.
She continued reading me for a few more moments then gave me that heart melting smile of hers and I swear I could feel my self blush as I responded with an ear to ear grin of my own.
"So this is bigger then telling me you're gay, huh? If I trust you with my friendship for life, will that be good enough?" She stated with sincerity.
I was struck speechless, but I had to say something. Which meant my emotions ran away from me and took over my mouth.
"Willow, pledging my eternal, undying love to you couldn't match such an offer as your lifelong friendship." It was out of my mouth before I had even run it by my brain. I swear my hormones were going to be the death of me yet but somewhere in the back of my mind I heard this little voice screaming at me to not hold back.
Willow gazed back at me dumbfounded and I panicked. I dropped the books and reached for her, putting my hands on her upper arms because she looked ready to faint from shock.
"I'm sorry Willow, but sometimes my mouth just runs off without my brain. Please ignore what I said; I really want your friendship. Please just tell me what to do or say so you don't run away screaming." I pleaded with her desperately.
I knew I had really blown it and wondered if I could run away and join the Navy. As I stood there, holding her upright and contemplating a life at sea, her vision cleared up and those beautiful green eyes began to sparkle again.
"Don't sell yourself short, Buffy." She spoke in a low, soft voice. "You've just pledged your eternal, undying love. How do I know it's for real? We have only just met today. How can I be sure you're serious?"
"You want me to be serious?" I ask in amazement.
"Why not?" She says to me mischievously, "It's not like I get an offer like that every day. Besides your are absolutely the most beautiful woman I have ever met." She finished huskily.
"Will this prove it to you?" I lean towards her knowing now what proof she needs. My lips gently touch hers slowly applying pressure. At the moment our lips touched, I felt a rush of energy like nothing I had ever felt before. I felt infused with power and light and every nerve in my body was suddenly awake and singing. I faintly heard our echoing moans of pleasure as my arms encircled her neck and her arms went around my waist as we pulled ourselves closer together.
Mindlessly, our mouths devoured each other finding the rhythm of the energy flowing between us. We used the kiss to modulate the flow through and over our bodies instinctively until we finally pulled apart in a desperate need for air. As we clung to each other, waiting for coherent thought to return, we simultaneously gasped out with what little intellect remained to us collectively.
"WOW". At least we did it in unison.
Finally Willow spoke up, "Buffy, I accept your eternal, undying love and only feel right in doing so if you accept my eternal, undying love in return." She whispered this to me while gazing into my eyes with so much love and affection that my only response was to start crying uncontrollably with the happiest tears I have ever experienced.
"Thank you Willow." I finally gasped.
Willow put her hand to my cheek and began to wipe my tears away and gently kissed my cheeks, causing incredible waves of pleasure each time her lips touched me.
With my tears dried, I returned the kisses to her cheeks, hearing her gasp with pleasure, and I moaned as my lips felt like they were alive, with a sensitivity that I can't begin to describe.
I pulled back finally and lost myself in those beautiful eyes of hers.
"So Buffy, what's a slayer?" Willow asked me finally.
"Come with me and I will explain everything." I promised.
"Uh Buffy don't we still have three classes before we can leave school?" Willow asked with a sorry look on her face.
I had forgotten that we were on lunch break. "Oh yea, we can go to my house right after school and do home work and I can tell you everything, if that's OK with you of course." I asked letting my embarrassed stupidity show on my face.
"Can't wait." She replied with a big smile and went over to the library door to wait for me.
I gathered up my books and we left the Library. The Library which I pledged would forever be one of my most favorite places in the world.