Love and everything that goes with it
by Bwriter
part six
[reviews]
Part six
a/n - okay - seems I confused some people - I reworked part six and took out the confusion - see what you think
Neither could look away. Buffy was trapped. Her demon was telling her one thing and her head was telling her another.
Willow froze not knowing what to expect and not knowing what she wanted to expect.
A cough interrupted them and both looked away, Willow blushed and Buffy turned her attention to the scratch mark on the table.
"So, wanna introduce us then?"
Buffy had nearly forgotten about Lou.
"Sorry. Guys this is Lou. Lou this is Faith, Xander, Cordy and Willow. You already know Angel."
Lou nodded to each member of the gang, her gaze lingering on Willow, causing Buffy to shoot her a glare.
Lou stifled her grin and turned to Faith.
"So your the Slayer then." It wasn't a question and Faith looked at both Buffy and Angel to see who had told her that. Both shook their heads no.
"That'd be me. I'm getting some pretty weird vibes off you. Your not a Vampire, but I don't think that you're a demon either. What gives?"
Lou sat down beside Faith and snagged a drink of her coke before answering her.
"I'm an immortal. I was born just over two hundred years ago in Ireland. What I am remains a mystery but I work for the Powers."
Buffy's head snapped around to face Lou, taking in the apologetic look on her face.
"What?" The was ice in Buffy's voice and Willow placed her hand low on her back to settle her down. Buffy flashed her a shy smile before turning back to face Lou.
Lou now had everyone's attention.
"I need to talk to Buffy and Angel first before I talk to anyone else about this, so can we meet you later?"
Angel answered for them all.
"Meet at our place. The whole gang is coming over for a movie night."
Buffy turned shocked eyes to Angel.
"You have a T.V and never told me!?!"
He sent her that smirk she loved.
Buffy stood up before saying goodbye to the gang, her eyes once again catching Willow's.
Willow looked over to Faith before asking her if Angel had ever mentioned her before.
"I think he did once, but only in passing."
Willow wasn't happy with that answer but she had no idea why. She just knew that when she had seen the woman hug Buffy, she didn't like it.
Faith watched Willow, trying to get a beat on what she was thinking. She could see the confusion in her gaze and wondered if Willow even knew what was going on in her own head right now.
Buffy sat there in silence, absorbing everything that Lou had told her an hour ago.
As soon as Lou had finished talking, Buffy stood up and walked out of the mansion, needing space.
She now sat on top of the Bronze. Thinking. Brooding.
The sound of a fight from below reached her and broke into her brooding. Looking down she saw a group of Vampire's surrounding Angel, Faith and the gang. He must have went back after she left him with Lou.
Buffy stood up before jumping off the building and landing on her feet fifty feet below.
She never paused and launched into an attack. Sending one to the ground with an uppercut to the jaw followed by a roundhouse kick to the head, she staked him before moving on to the next.
Faith and Angel joined the fight though Willow, Xander and Cordy stayed back watching the scene before them with wide eyes.
Though they hadn't known her very long, the three knew that Buffy was pissed about something. Luckily she was taking it out on the Vampires that had been about to start munching on them.
Angel, Faith and Buffy cut through the group of Vampires in no time. Buffy fuelled by her anger, not at Lou but at herself, never paused, she just kept attacking, not even noticing that she had given her demon free range and that she was bleeding from a cut above her eye.
Angel was also in game face, his anger matching Buffy's, staking any Vampire that got close to him while keeping an eye on Faith and Buffy.
He growled loudly when Faith was stabbed in the arm with a knife, leaving a large gash that oozed blood. He tried to get to her but was jumped by four of the eight remaining Vampire's.
Buffy turned at her Sire's loud angry growl and saw what he saw. She also saw that he was trapped and couldn't get to Faith in time to stop the knife that was heading for her throat.
Leaping over the demon closest her Buffy grabbed him by the neck and threw him in front of the incoming knife.
Giving Faith a quick glance to make sure she was okay Buffy squared off with the knife wielding Vampire.
Blocking a punch to the head, she ducked and brought up both hands before catching him under the chin and knocking him off balance.
As he fell, she staked him and joined Faith in fighting her way over to Angel, who had by now killed two of the four Vampire's he was fighting.
One of the Vampires broke from the fight when he realised that there was three humans standing there doing nothing.
He jumped in the direction of Willow, Xander and Cordy when a loud angry growl was heard. Angel looked to Buffy thinking it was her and she was looking at him for the same reason.
Looking up they both saw a sight they hadn't seen since they were evil.
Lou was standing on top of the warehouse across from the Bronze with a large panther at her feet.
The panther roared again before leaping down and landing on the stunned Vampire. The Scoobies backed away further in to the hard wall behind them as they watched the panther tear apart its prey before turning to the remaining Vampire's.
Buffy spotted Faith down first.
"Fang!" Buffy motioned over towards Faith.
The panther responded to the call and bounded over to Faith.
The fight was over in less than a minute of Fang joining.
When all the Vampires were dust he leaped over to Buffy before leaping up at her and knocking her to the ground.
Angel watched on with a small smile on his face but the rest of the humans present were worried.
Xander thought that Buffy was next on the animals list and, without pausing to wonder why the animal was helping them, he bend down before lifting a brick close by and throwing it at the animal.
Fang gave a soft growl and stopped licking Buffy's face to see what had hit it. Turning he saw the brick before he turned back to face Buffy.
"It's okay."
He seemed to understand and finally climbed off her. Buffy stood and gave him an affectionate scratch behind his ears before taking stock of the damage.
Angel was bleeding in various places as was Faith but the remaining humans were undamaged.
Lou took that opportunity to drop beside them, Fang going to her side at once.
Angel grabbed Faith planting a hard kiss on her lips before he turned to the group, not even glancing in Lou's direction.
Buffy walked over to Willow, Xander and Cordy.
"You guys okay?" She was asking them all but her eyes were on Willow's.
When they all nodded that they were fine she hesitated, looking at Willow before she turned and walked away.
Angel watched her before turning to Lou.
"I really hope it was worth it." There was no mistaking the growl in his voice.
He started to go after Buffy when Willow stopped him.
"Faith's hurt. Look after her and I'll catch up with Buffy."
Angel looked at Faith who nodded her head slowly before looking over to Lou who sighed but turned to Willow.
"Take Fang."
Willow looked at the black panther before backing away and shaking her head no.
"He wont hurt you and he can track Buffy."
Willow gave in and set off with Fang, letting him lead the way. When he stopped at a cemetery she paused before going in. He handled himself well with the other Vampires so she figured she'd be fine.
Rounding a corner, she spotted Buffy sitting on a bench staring at the sky.
"Hey there."
Buffy jumped. She jumped again when Fang jumped up beside her on the bench.
"Hey."
Willow sat down on the other side of Buffy and watched as she played with the fur on the back of Fang's ears, listening to the purr the panther made.
"He likes you."
Buffy looked up before looking back down at Fang.
"Glad someone does." It was whispered and Willow wasn't supposed to hear it, but with the cemetery being so quiet she heard it loud and clear.
"What happened earlier?"
Buffy's first response was to deny anything had happened, but as she turned to see Willow, she saw those big innocent eyes she loved and couldn't do it.
"She lied to me, well me and Angel."
"How did she lie?"
Willow watched as Buffy's eyes darkened at the memory.
"She works for the Powers. It was her that gave us back our souls." The way she spit out Powers, Willow could tell Buffy wasn't one bit happy with what had happened.
"And you didn't know that?"
Buffy patted Fangs head before leaning down and whispering "protect" in his ear.
He jumped off the sat and took guard at the foot of it.
Buffy turned her body and faced Willow fully.
"You remember how I said that they" Buffy motioned to the sky with her eyes "cared, just not about me?"
Willow wondered where this was going but nodded her head that she did.
"Seems that they were there all along. From the moment my soul was retuned, from Angel's soul was returned, 'til Lou showed up tonight, they've been there."
Willow didn't see the problem here.
"And your mad because..."
Buffy shot to her feet, startling Fang who thought there was danger.
Leaning down she patted him on the head before pacing back and forth.
"All these years, believing that I was... wrong, a demon with a soul, cant be human, unable to be a demon, stuck in limbo and they were there the whole fucking time. All these years thinking that I wasn't... why?"
Buffy was in game face by the time the words left her mouth and she swung lashing out. The head stone her foot connected with shattered.
Willow watched her before cautiously standing and moving over to the agitated Blonde Vampire.
"Buffy, explain it to me because I'm having trouble following."
Buffy spun around and backed up when Willow flinched with the fast movement.
Feeling fangs in her mouth, Buffy reverted to her human guise and sat back down, her head in her hands.
Willow sat down beside her and rested a hand on Buffy's back and began making small circles hoping to help release some of the tension.
What she didn't know was that she was causing some of that tension. Buffy took a deep, though unneeded, breath before expelling it and sitting up straight.
Willow rested her hand on Buffy's leg that was closest her.
"Why are you upset?"
Buffy's eyes filled with tears.
"Because I thought they didn't care."
Willow now knew what was driving Buffy from one reaction to another.
"You feel guilty because you feel you should have been helping to fight on the side of good all these years yet you feel angry that they never gave you any indication they were there."
Buffy shook her head no. She had been thinking about every time she had met Lou over the years, all the signs she hadn't saw then but did now.
"I'm mad at myself, because I know they were helping me yet I did nothing for them. I couldn't see what was right in front of me. Everytime Lou showed up it was to save me. From myself or a demon."
"From yourself?"
"When it got to much I tried to end it all. I would wait for the sun to rise, but Lou always, and I do mean always, showed up and stopped me. Other times when I felt like I couldn't go on and I nearly gave into the demon, she would show up and help me get back on track."
"Seems to me that the Powers did help guide you, just in a way that you thought it was your own doing. You must have been on the right track."
"I could have fought the evil that seems to spread more and more yet I did nothing." There was self loathing in Buffy's voice and Willow heard it.
Willow sighed before standing up.
"Get over it!"
Buffy looked up shocked by the outburst in the quiet night.
"Buffy, what's done is done. We have a very large battle looming ahead and we need you in it a hundred and ten percent. If you feel guilty for the thousands of people that died because of your demon then fight. Help us save the six billion people that will die if we don't stop this thing."
Buffy stood up and turned her back to Willow.
"Your right about the helping to fight, but I can never make up for the deaths I've caused. You were a little out on your figures. I killed thousands in a single year."
Willow couldn't say anything to that.
She walked up and placed her hand on Buffy's back, trying to offer comfort, feeling the muscles tense beneath the Vampires skin.
/Damnit just touch her already! Turn around and kiss her/
Buffy didn't know if it was because of everything that had happened tonight or because Willow was touching her and standing so close but she listened to her demon.
Spinning around, she grabbed Willow by the waist before kissing her, putting everything she was and everything she could ever be into it.
Willow never moved. She felt Buffy's lips on her own. Buffy's tongue tracing an invisible line over the mouth.
Willow jerked back at the feel of Buffy's tongue. Buffy tried to follow her before her eyes snapped open to take in what she thought was a horrified expression of Willow's face.
"Oh God."
Buffy licked her suddenly dry lip, and regretted doing it when she tasted the lip gloss Willow had been wearing.
"Why... what..." Willow couldn't get the words out. She took one last look at Buffy before turning and running away.
Buffy nodded to Fang that he was to follow. When they were both out of sight, she sat heavily on the bench.
What had she done?
a/n - is anyone still confused or did that help?