The Good, The Bad and The Fangy
by dawnm
Storms
[reviews]
Author's Note: Please read and review. I'd love to know what you think of the story. Also, feel free to email me with any questions or comments.
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Chapter 5 - Storms
Buffy and Willow lay on the grass, hands entwined, looking up at the stars. A gift of love had been offered, but the silent musings of the unworthy are the hardest demons to slay. "Buffy?" The redhead's voice was laden with uncertainty. The blonde turned onto her side to face her.
"What's on your mind?" Buffy placed a tender kiss on the back of Willow's hand.
"I just..." Willow was reluctant to voice her fears, but couldn't stop the slivers of doubt that crept into her mind. Could this really be happening? She had secretly dreamed of this day for so long. But, it all just seemed so unreal.
"Second thoughts?" Buffy swallowed the pain and attempted a smile, but her eyes betrayed her, revealing the fear that gripped her heart. The tender hazel interrogation jarred Willow out of her meditation.
"Oh, Buffy, no." The hacker shifted onto her side to face her love and her fears. Realizing that she had infected Buffy with her insecurity, Willow tried to clarify her feelings. "It's just that I..." She stalled again, discarding each phrase that sounded too needy, and was left without any words to describe how she felt.
It was clear that Buffy needed an explanation. Willow lowered her head. "Is this really real? It feels like a dream. How could you love me?" The words were drenched in neediness.
"How could I not love you?" She caressed Willow's cheek before gently brushing back a stray lock of red hair.
"Everyone else seems to manage it." The redhead whispered sadly.
"Their stupidity is my good fortune." Buffy said. "If anyone else had half a brain, then you wouldn't be mine." The conviction in her voice jumpstarted Willow's heart.
"I will always be yours." Willow confessed as Buffy pulled the redhead into her arms as the need to be closer asserted itself.
"Buffy? Willow?" Something in the bard's voice triggered warning bells in the slayer's head.
"We're over here." Buffy said, springing to her feet and offering Willow a hand.
"Have you seen Xena?" Gabrielle looked on the verge of tears.
"No. Why?" Buffy scanned the bard's face, searching for a clue. "What happened?"
"I think she left. Argo's gone."
"Did you have a fight?" Willow asked, laying a comforting hand on the bard's arm. Gabrielle shook her head.
"Let's go back to camp and you can tell us what happened." Buffy led the bard toward the light of the campfire where they settled on the ground atop the bedroll that Gabrielle and Xena shared. The bard's voice shook and her natural eloquence was replaced with stumbling incoherence as she told of Perdicus' arrival and Xena's subsequent departure.
"Hey...it'll be okay." Willow assured her, though her own eyes mirrored the worry in Gabrielle's. The hacker put an arm around her shoulders and the bard welcomed the comfort, sinking into Willow's arms, liberating the tears that she had been holding back.
Buffy gazed at the pair, conflicted, as both love and irritation washed over her; the former at the sight of the redhead tenderly comforting their distraught friend and the latter as she thought about Xena's repeated withdrawals. She brushed her fingertips adoringly across Willow's cheek before resting a hand on the bard's shoulder and softly questioning her. "Do you know where she might go?" Gabrielle sat up then, wiping her eyes as she shook her head. "I could go look for her..." Buffy trailed off realizing it would be an exercise in futility.
"She could be anywhere." Gabrielle sighed. "Even if you knew where she was going, you couldn't catch up with her on foot."
"I'm sure she'll be back soon." Willow said, hoping that she was right.
"She probably just needed some time alone." Buffy said.
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Some hours later, Xena quietly rode into to the camp to find the three girls asleep. She sank to the ground, back against a nearby tree, and, as she often did, gazed at the sleeping bard. Weariness painted the warrior's face, giving her an unusual air of vulnerability. The steel in her blue eyes melted away, replaced with a soft azure glow, as she looked upon the ethereal figure of her best friend framed in moonlight. She let go the reigns of self-control and entertained visions of holding the strawberry-blonde in her arms. Memories of times they had shared rained down on her, healing her tattered heart as a summer shower might a drought-scorched field. Moments later, the warrior's mask slid into place, imprisoning Xena beneath, as one thought pulled her out of her reverie: Perdicus.
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Shortly before dawn, dull gray clouds rolled into the sky overhead, blocking out the would-be sunrise. Buffy woke disoriented as the drizzle fell upon her face. Willow stirred in her arms and turned sleepily toward the blonde who placed a series of whisper-soft kisses on the redhead's inviting lips. Pleasant little jolts of electricity coursed through her body and forced Willow from her slumber. She smiled into the hazel eyes that greeted her as she snuggled ever closer to the source of radiant warmth that was Buffy. Neither seemed to notice when the rain stepped up its assault as they gazed into each other's eyes and closed the unwelcome distance that stood between their lips.
The chill of the rain made Gabrielle shiver in her sleep and instinctively she reached out, seeking Xena's warmth. Her brain registered the empty space on the bedroll beside her and the bard opened her eyes to the dreary day. She sighed with relief as she noticed the warrior a few feet away sleeping under the protective cover of a large tree. The second sight her eyes fell upon was the passionate kiss of her two friends who appeared content to lie in the rain all day protected from the cold by only the blanket of their love.
The sound of the bard shuffling around the campsite as she rescued their belongings from the rain brought Buffy and Willow back to reality. Still smiling dreamily at each other, they hurried out of the bedroll, quickly gathering it up before running under the tree where Gabrielle had sought shelter next to Xena. The warrior woke and rose to her feet as they approached. The storm moved to the next level as rain pounded the earth and lightning streaked across the sky touching down in the distance.
"It's not safe here." Xena said. "We've got to make a break for it. Come on." The warrior ran through the camp to where Argo was tied. Grabbing the reigns, she took off at a run leading the horse as the others followed her to a nearby cave. The group dashed into the cave a few minutes later, each drenched and chilled to the bone from the pouring rain.
Buffy put her arms around the shivering redhead who accepted the warmth with a grateful smile. Gabrielle stared at Xena who promptly moved deeper into the cave and sat down and began sharpening her sword, her favorite pastime when she wanted to avoid the bard. Buffy and Willow watched Xena walk past the bard and then looked at each other. Buffy motioned toward Gabrielle with a tilt of her head. Willow nodded and went to the bard, gesturing toward Xena as she whispered. "Go, talk to her."
Buffy sat down, resting against the wall near the mouth of the cave, which was only partially lit by the overcast day outside. As Gabrielle walked into the near darkness in search of the warrior, Willow sought and found her slayer. Buffy's eyes sparkled as she patted the floor between her legs, indicating for the redhead to sit. The hacker smiled a sweet smile and scooted into place, leaning back into Buffy's chest. Enveloped in the warmth of the slayer's embrace, Willow tilted her head to meet the hazel eyes that she cherished. On one side, they heard the constant cadence of the rain. On the other, they heard the faint voices of their friends. Convinced that all would soon be resolved between the warrior and bard, Buffy and Willow cuddled contentedly, hands entwined on the redhead's midriff, stealing an occasional kiss as they waited for the storms to pass.
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"Xena?" The bard called tentatively to the figure in the darkness.
"Hmm?" The warrior sitting with her sword in front of her, answered without looking up, without breaking the rhythm of stone against steel.
Gabrielle sat down next to Xena in the near total darkness and tried, without success, to catch the warrior's gaze. "I was hoping we could talk." The bard's voice was barely above a whisper.
"About?" The warrior's mask was firmly in place and her voice gave nothing away.
"About us." Gabrielle laid a hand lightly on Xena's knee.
"Us?" Xena answered as if she had never heard the word before, casually shifting so that the bard's hand fell from her knee. Gabrielle withdrew her hand and swallowed the rejection whole.
"Are you just going to sit there, Xena? Sit there sharpening your damn sword, pretending that you don't know what I'm talking about?" The bard blurted, her hands trembling in her lap. The sharpening stone stilled and the warrior sheathed her sword. She turned to meet Gabrielle's gaze, falling into the green eyes that glistened with unshed tears in the dim light of the cave. A small hopeful smile graced the bard's lips as the warrior's mask fell away. Gabrielle toward Xena or Xena toward Gabrielle, one or both bridged the distance between them as their lips met in a much-needed kiss.
For a moment, the world around them fell away as they moved into each other's arms and deepened the kiss, both trying to satiate the need for the other's embrace. When the warrior's brain signaled that this was getting out of hand, Xena retreated. "I'm sorry, Gabrielle." The warrior whispered breathlessly as she sprang to her feet and crossed the cave. In the few seconds that it took the bard to register what had happened and go after her, Xena had effected her escape, slipping out of the cave and into the storm.
Seeing Xena dart past them out into the rain, Willow and Buffy stood up in surprise. Gabrielle stopped her pursuit of the warrior at the mouth of the cave, collapsing against the wall. "What happened?" Willow questioned, a concerned look furrowing her brow. The bard ran shaking hands through her hair before answering with a defeated shrug as she cast her eyes to the floor and her tears splashed at her feet.
"Okay, that's it!" The slayer said. "This ends right now." She brushed her lips against Willow's cheek before stalking out into the rain after the warrior.
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In full slayer mode, Buffy searched the surrounding area, hunting for the warrior. She found Xena standing in a clearing past a line of trees that had obscured her view from the mouth of the cave. "Hey, what is UP with you?!" The blonde asked, coming to a halt beside Xena. The slayer's stance oozed frustration.
Xena glanced up from the ground trying to cover the hurt on her face with the trusty mask she regularly hid behind. Buffy caught a glimpse of the pain and swiftly shifted gears into supportive mode. "She loves you. You love her." She said softly. "I don't see the problem here." Xena cast her eyes downward again and Buffy stood there confused as the rain pounded down, drenching them both. "Look...you've got to talk to her."
"I can't."
"She's in there crying, Xena." Buffy pointed meaningfully in the direction of the cave. "She needs you." The warrior stood frozen in place. "Come on, we can't just keep standing out here in the rain." The slayer urged, taking Xena's hand firmly in hers. "We're gonna take care of this right now." The warrior offered some resistance, but found herself pulled along as Buffy exhibited some slayer strength in dragging her back toward the cave.
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Continued in Chapter 6