Love and everything that goes with it
by Bwriter
Part nine
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Part nine - a/n - sorry about the delay in updating - thanks to everyone who has given feedback so far
Willow waited for Buffy to say something. Anything. The silence was unnerving.
The reason Buffy wasn't talking was because she was having an internal conversation with her demon.
/let me talk to her/
'a world of no'
/you will mess it up/
'I wont'
/well then talk to her/
'and say what?'
/anything, but stop sitting there having a conversation with yourself/
Buffy looked up and saw Willow looking at her worriedly.
"What do you want to know?"
Willow let out the breath she had been holding.
"Well I don't know. Angel never talks about this kind of stuff, well not with me anyway."
Buffy nodded her head, knowing that he hadn't really talked to Faith about Vampires either, though with Faith being a Slayer that was kind of a moot point.
"Well, do you want to know what it is like being a Vampire, or what I was like?"
Willow picked up one of Buffy's hands and thought about her answer before raising her head and catching her girlfriends eyes.
"What you were like. Before and now."
Buffy gave Willow's hand a small squeeze before beginning.
"Becoming a vampire is a profound and powerful experience. I could feel this new strength coursing through me. Getting killed made me feel alive for the very first time... ironic huh?"
Buffy told Willow everything, from the moment she met Angelus, when her soul was restored, right up until the moment she had arrived in Sunnydale. She left none of it out.
Willow just sat there taking it all in. Listening as her girlfriend told her about the times when she killed, maimed and tortured humans and demons alike. For food. For fun.
She also listened as Buffy told her of the hundred years or so she spent alone, only having contact with the human world when she needed to.
When Buffy had finished she chanced a look at the clock and noticed that it was now two in the morning.
Turning back to Willow, Buffy could see that she needed time to think about everything she had been told.
Rising she offered her hand, which trembled, and nearly sobbed in relief when Willow took it and pulled herself up.
"Its late. I'll walk you home. Your parents still in Canada?"
Willow nodded her head yes and the two headed off into the night.
Buffy patrolled until dawn, or as near to dawn as she could get without turning crispy.
Angel was pacing the main room when she got back.
"Where have you been?" He was worried. Buffy usually never stayed out so close to sunrise.
"I was patrolling."
Angel threw his hands up in the air before turning and storming off to his room.
Buffy thought about following him but she was too tired, so she headed off to get some sleep herself.
The next night they all met in the library. Everyone but Willow.
"Where's Will?"
Faith looked uncomfortable before telling Buffy that Willow was at home working on a paper for English.
Buffy knew the Slayer was lying but she never called her on it, thinking that her girlfriend did not want to see her right now.
Giles interrupted before anything else could be said.
"We have a problem. We took the meaning of ~One the tenth night of the tenth month~ to mean the tenth of October, but we were taking that date off our calendar."
Angel and Buffy understood what Giles was saying and they both turned to look at each other, worry in their eyes.
"What should we have thought?" Xander heard the worry in Giles voice as well and when Giles was worried, well it never turned out well for the gang.
"The calendar dates have changed that many times through the history of the earth-"
"But the prophecy was discovered when Angel and Buffy were evil, that wasn't too long ago."
Both Vampires glared at Cordelia.
"Yes, the Powers discovered it then, but it was written thousands of years before. We cannot pin point when."
Everyone turned to face the new arrival.
Lou walked into the library and took a seat. Fang followed her but stopped by Buffy, who reached down and patted his head affectionately.
"So we're blind?"
"Not exactly. We can't pinpoint the exact date but we do think that it will happen sooner rather than later. What we really need, is more information, which sadly, we do not have."
Everyone seemed to slump at Giles words before Buffy stood up straight, turned and walked out.
Buffy made her way over to Willow's house, aware of Fang following at a distance.
She noticed that all the front lights were on and wondered why as Willow's parents were still in Canada.
Stepping up to the porch she heard raised voices coming from inside.
"...how is that not a problem?" It was a male voice and Buffy heard the anger in it.
"Dad it's my life! You can't stop me!" So it was Willow and her Father arguing then, but over what Buffy didn't know.
"Willow, we just don't think that you've thought this through properly. You say things are fine but people will talk."
"Mom, just because I happen to be dating a girl doesn't mean people are going to take notice."
It all clicked for Buffy. Willow's parents had somehow found out about them and returned home early to confront their daughter.
Buffy stifled a growl. They didn't need this right now.
Stalling any further argument she knocked on the door, which was opened by a tall man who looked to be in his forties.
"Yes?"
"Hi I'm looking for Willow."
Buffy felt like a bug under a microscope as Willow's father stared at her, but then Willow was there.
Buffy saw a look of relief pass over Willow's face before a frown settled. Buffy honestly didn't know if coming to see Willow, the day after she had spilled all of her darkest secrets, was smart idea, but she needed to see her.
"And you are?"
Buffy brought her gaze away from Willow and settled it on her father.
Deciding that being rude would only make things worse for Willow, Buffy stuck out her hand, making sure to keep it far enough out the front door as possible as she didn't yet have an invite to the house.
"My name is Buffy."
Willow's father stared at the hand before lifting his own and giving it a shake. If he noticed the coolness of Buffy's skin he didn't say.
"Iris."
Willow took that moment to intervene.
"Dad would you mind if I talked to Buffy for a minute?"
Her father left but not before throwing his daughter a look.
Willow stepped out onto the porch and sat on the seat, motioning for Buffy to join her.
Buffy sat down and lifted one of Willow's hands.
"When did they get back?"
"This morning. Seems someone called to let them know that you and I were, well you know."
Buffy frowned before settling her arm around her girlfriend.
"How did they take it?"
Willow gave a small snort.
"Their Jewish. I got the 'how could you do this to us' speech about three times."
Willow lay her head down on Buffy's shoulder and let out a sigh before sitting up again and turning to face her.
"What are you doing here anyway? I told Faith to tell everyone I had a paper to write for class."
"Newsflash, I'm a Vampire, we can tell when people lie, well most of the time, depending on the person."
Buffy leaned forward and placed a kiss on Willow's forehead.
"Also, we just got bad news and I wanted to see you."
Willow sat straighter and asked what was wrong.
"Seems we miscalculated the amount of time we would have before the shit it the fan."
Buffy explained what Giles and Lou had said about the calendar changes through the years.
"So Lou's back then?"
Buffy nodded her head.
Willow sighed before turning to look and make sure her parents were not peeking out the windows before turning back and leaning in to kiss Buffy.
Buffy pulled her closer before licking softly at Willow's bottom lip, asking for permission as she always did.
Willow gave it and soon the too were engaged in a heated kiss that was only interrupted when the front door opened.
Iris took in the scene before him. His daughter was half sitting in some girls lap. Said girl had one hand wrapped in his daughters hair and the other roaming her back. He couldn't see where his daughters hands were.
"Willow."
Willow broke apart from Buffy at the anger she heard in her fathers voice.
Buffy also heard the anger, as did Fang, who had been keeping watch for any danger.
Buffy stood, lifting Willow with her before placing her girlfriend behind her and turning to Willow's father.
Iris wanted to take a step back at the look in Buffy's eyes.
Hearing a low growl, all three turned to face the black panther that was stalking up the path.
Iris did step back at that.
"Willow, get inside. Move very slowly."
Willow threw her father a dirty look, noticing that he didn't seem concerned with Buffy's safety before moving around her girlfriend and going to greet Fang.
Buffy tried not to laugh at the look on Willow's fathers face.
/I don't like him/
'me either'
Buffy felt her demon smile.
/that mean we can eat him?/
'no, somehow I don't think Willow would like that'
/whipped/
'proud of it, anyway, your one to talk'
Her demon said nothing to that and Buffy turned to see Fang give Willow a lick on the cheek. For some reason that snapped her out of the daze she had been in.
"Willow are you out of your mind? Get away from that animal right now." Iris never raised his voice, trying not to alert the animal in question to his presence.
Buffy rolled her eyes before calling Fang over. The panther bounded over to Buffy, keeping Iris in his line of sight.
Everything happened so fast, only Buffy's speed was able to stop the bloodshed that would surely have happened had she not been there.
Iris darted out and made a grab for his daughter, Fang saw this and mistook it for an attack. The panther pounced.
Willow screamed when she saw Fang leap for her fathers neck.
Willow's scream sent Buffy into action. She jumped in front of the human and growled warningly at Fang, who changed direction mid leap to avoid the Vampire.
Fang sat down, Buffy, stopped growling and switched back to her human mask, and Willow's scream stopped.
Iris looked from his daughter to the panther to the girl in front of him before sitting down heavily on the step behind him.
The front door opened and out popped a woman Buffy guessed to be Willow's mother.
"What is going on out here? Who screamed?"
Willow stepped up and motioned her mother inside before she spotted Fang, leaving Buffy alone with the panther and the human.
Iris took a deep breath before looking up at the girl who his saved his life. He had heard the growl and seen the oversized teeth. Now he wanted answers.
Buffy stroked Fang, letting him know that she was not angry at him, before turning to face the human.
"You're a Vampire." It wasn't a question.
Buffy nodded her head, wondering how he knew about Vampire's.
Iris read the question on her face and gave a humourless laugh.
"Not everyone in this town believe the 'gangs on PCP' stories the police seem to like."
Buffy nodded her head and opened her mouth to speak when the door opened again and Willow came back out.
Iris stood up and refused to let her past. His eyes locked with Buffy's and she could see the confusion and fear in them.
"You have nothing to fear from me."
Willow turned wide eyes to her girlfriend, wondering just what she had missed.
"Your dad knows."
Willow's face paled and Buffy actually thought that she was going to pass out. Moving forward Buffy darted around Willow's father and caught her girlfriend just in time.
Iris was about to pull the Vampire off his daughter by force if need be, when he stopped to watch.
Buffy lowered Willow gently to the ground, pillowing her head on her knees and stoking her hair, waiting for Willow to come round.
Lowering her head, she nuzzled Willow's neck, a purr escaping her as she did so.
Willow blinked her eyes open and sat up with a start as everything came back to her.
"Buffy?"
Buffy tightened her hold.
"I'm here baby."
Willow sighed before looking up into the concerned eyes of her father.
"Dad?"
He heard the worry in his daughters voice but he could not get past the fact that his daughter was dating a girl and that the girl was a demon.
"I think we all need to talk this through." He turned and started into the house before a thought hit him and he turned back around.
"Please don't mention any on this to your mother. She dose not know about the evil in this town."
Willow nodded her head before looking up at Buffy.
"That went better than I thought it would."
She couldn't help it. Buffy burst out laughing.