North and South...and West
by Rin
After the War
[reviews]
"Forrest...you're up awful early this mornin', son. What brings you here?" Mary was worried about her son. He'd been unhappy for some time now. Ever since he asked her about the big scandal behind why Buffy couldn't see Mr. Will...and why Mr. Will was forced to sleep in the slave quarters, when they themselves, freed slaves from this very plantation, weren't put out there. It didn't make sense to him, and he wanted answers. Knowing everything that goes on in this household, Mary was prone to give her son answers today. It had been a month since he'd first begged her, and he asked every day. He was just so confused.
"Just can't wrap my mind 'round Ms. Joyce bein' so cruel to Mr. Will when he done nothin' but help out 'round here." Forrest leaned against the counter. "Mama...I know Mr. Will and Buffy are in love...but I figured that woulda made Ms. Joyce happy. I don't understand why she would make Buffy marry somebody she obviously don't want."
"Well, Forrest...sometimes things happen that make parents do crazy things. It might not make no sense to us but I'm sure it does to Ms. Joyce." Truth was, Mary wasn't sure Ms. Joyce was thinking too clearly on this one. Ever since that Harris boy got the taste of power, he hadn't worked a day in the field, and during their engagement announcement party here at the plantation a few days back, he was a gentleman...just not to the one he was supposed to be marrying.
"I'm not sure, Mama...it just don't make no sense to me, is all..." Forrest bit into an apple. "It seems to me that after all these years of tryin' to get Buffy to settle down...Ms. Joyce would've been happy that she wanted to, instead of forcin' her like she is..."
"I'm afraid these things are outta our hands, son."
"I don't like it. Granted, Mr. Xander is a lot better than that stiff Mr. Finn but I still don't like it. Buffy is in love with Mr. Will. It doesn't seem right is all I'm sayin'..." Forrest was smacked on the back of his head.
"Don't talk with your mouth full. I taught you better'n that." Mary wanted to do something, too. She'd never seen Miss Buffy so miserable...and Miss Dawn was all sorts of confused. The poor girl got the statement a few months back, saying her husband was killed in the war, so now she was a young widow. And Ms. Joyce was acting insane, worrying more about society. If Mary hadn't been a slave for most her life, she would've confided in Joyce, asked why the sudden change of heart. Joyce was never concerned about societal status before, so why now? What made this different?
One thing was for certain: none of this drama would've happened had those two Yankee soldiers come knocking.
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"Buffy...what are you doing here?" Willow had been paid, and was currently packing what little things she did own. That's when she heard the door crash open, and an angry Buffy standing before her. "It's almost sundown. Your mom is gonna catch you!"
"No, she won't...I slipped something in her tea. She'll be out the rest of the night." Buffy had heard that her mother fired Will anyways, even after Buffy's agreement to marry Xander. It wasn't fair, so she decided to play dirty, and bought some of those sleeping pills from the apothecary in town. She put an extra strong dose in her mother's tea, and Joyce had zonked out. She cleared it with Forrest to keep watch, since his mama was due back from the town any minute now with his sister.
"Buffy!!" Willow was shocked that the blonde would do something like that. "You're just kidding, right?"
"I had to see you. How else was I going to with her down my throat, watching me like a hawk." Buffy shut the door to the slave house, and made her way to sit on the bed. "I heard she's kicking you out. I don't want you to go. It's not fair. She promised me she wouldn't kick you out if I agreed to marry Xander..."
"She only agreed not to kick me out without money. She paid me this morning, so I guess that getting rid of me is her major obstacle cleared." Willow stopped packing, and sat down on the bed beside Buffy. "I've missed you..."
"Oh, Will...I've missed you, too..." Buffy threw her arms around Will in a desperate plea to be held. Willow wrapped her own arms around Buffy, needing that contact, too. She would be leaving in the morning. She couldn't stay for the wedding, which was this weekend. There was no way she'd be able to survive that. "When do you leave?"
"At dawn... I couldn't stay here...not with..." Willow had to swallow the lump in her throat.
"Let me go with you. We still have time...we can still run away together..." Buffy was in tears again. She just wanted to be with Will; she didn't care how or where. For 24 years, SunnyDale had been her home, and she loved this plantation and all the stories passed down...but she had a new home now: with Willow.
"You can't do that. I won't let you give your life up for me." It was the same tired argument, even if Willow wanted more than anything to just let it happen.
"Do you know where you'll go?"
"Probably north. I can't very well go back West...they know me there. Your mother made it clear that I should go as far from South Carolina as possible..." Willow noticed the sun was almost completely gone, so she started to light the candles in the room, and she started a small fire for the night. Just the quiet time as she went about these mundane tasks...just having Buffy near while she did it...they seemed like they were that much more important. "If you're cold, I can make it heavier. I just don't want to waste the rest of the wood."
"I'll be fine." Buffy patted the spot on the bed, indicating that Willow should return. "Did they bring you enough to eat? I can maybe sneak you..."
"I'm fine." Willow smiled, as she sat down next to Buffy again...just now realizing that it wasn't appropriate for them both to be sitting on the bed together out of wedlock. Even if they were just sitting...
"Do you need any extra blankets, or pillows...anything at all?" Buffy wanted to feel useful. She wanted to keep her mind off the fact that this Saturday she was marrying a man she didn't love, and the 'man' that she did love was sitting next to her, about to leave.
"I'm fine, Buffy...I'll be fine." Willow placed her hand on Buffy's knee to calm her but it only caused the familiar shock of electricity to happen, as they both giggled slightly and blushed at the contact. "Sorry..."
"No need to be...I...I liked it...I like it when you touch me..." Buffy wasn't sure what she expected to accomplish coming out here tonight. Talk Will into running away? Into staying? Into convincing her mother what a bitch she was being?
The air changed in the room suddenly, and Buffy felt a chill rise in her body. More from anticipation than actual cold. Willow noticed, and went for the tattered wool blanket she'd been using, and wrapped it around Buffy's shoulders. When Will's fingers contacted against the skin on her neck, Buffy shivered again, and her breathing got heavier. Her stomach dropped, and she wasn't sure what to do...
"Let me put another log..." Willow went to get off the bed but Buffy grabbed her hand, and pulled her back down. "...but you're obviously cold, Buffy. I don't want you to be uncomfortable."
"I'm not!" Buffy tried to hide her blush. "I'm not uncomfortable...here...with you. It's the most comfortable I ever remember being."
"Buffy, don't say such things. Your wedding is this weekend..."
"Please don't remind me?" Buffy put her pleading eyes towards Willow, and again, the redhead had to swallow back a tear. "Xander said he wanted to ask you to stand with him...to be his best man...but mom wouldn't allow it. I don't think he knows what's been going on this entire time..."
"He always was a little slow on the uptake...it's why I went to West Point with him in the first place." They chuckled together... "What about Mary, Forrest...Dawn and the others? Won't they notice you're missing from the house?"
"Mary and Susie are out to the market, buying material for new clothes. Dawn is upstairs reading."
"What about my neighborhood watchdog?"
"He's watching, and he'll tell us when his mother gets back." Buffy noticed the smirk Willow cast her way. "What?"
"Nothing...I just didn't realize you were so sneaky. What does your fiance say about that?"
"He'll never know." The giggled again, and fell back on the bed in laughter. Taking deep breaths, they risked looking over at each other, as they realized they were lying on the bed together, albeit with their legs dangling off the side. "Will...I...I still wanna marry you."
"I know, Buffy. I want to marry you, too...but things just didn't work out that way." They both took deep breaths, and Will took a chance, outlining the furrowed brow on Buffy's face, and cupping the blonde's cheek between her hand. "You truly are the most beautiful woman I've ever met..."
"You're not so bad yourself..." Buffy moved her face to get more contact with Will's hand. "I've never wanted anything so bad in my life...and I know it's not ladylike...and I know it's not proper...but..."
"Buffy?" Will was worried...but a little turned on by the lust in Buffy's eyes.
"I want you, Will...and if I can't have you for the rest of my life...at least give me one night? Just one moment of pure happiness? It's more than I could ever hope for..." Buffy stared at Will's lips, as she started to play with the buttons on the redhead's shirt.
"We can't...it's not right..." Will wanted to protest but she had to agree. She didn't know if she'd ever have this feeling again, and after tomorrow, she would never see this woman again.
"Nothing has ever felt more right than it has right now...please, Will? Make me happy...just this once... I couldn't stand the thought of Xander Harris being my first...I can't stand the thought of him touching me like I want you to touch me." Buffy started to unbutton Willow's shirt, and the redhead found she couldn't move.
"I don't want him touching you...ever..." That did it. The thought of Xander touching what belonged to her made Willow snap, and she had a ferocity she never knew she had. Without thought of what she was doing, Willow leaned over Buffy, and pulled her into a fiery kiss, groping and clawing to get closer to her.
"Touch me, Will...please..." Buffy let her hair down, as she brought them back to a sitting position. Taking Willow's hands, she guided them to help her untie her dress. "I love you so much."
"I love you..." Willow couldn't believe she was about to do this...and for that matter, how was she supposed to do this? No time to think about that now...Buffy was awfully needy, as she pushed Willow's shirt from her shoulder, and gasped at what she saw there. The few deep scars she had from battles, the toned stomach and tan from years of labor, the small muscular arms, and two unmistakable items that definitely claimed Will Rosenberg a woman.
"Wow..." Buffy felt her mouth go dry, and had to lick her lips to keep from staring so wantonly at the redhead's upper body. Once she snapped out of her daze, Buffy came to, and stood, removing her gown, and placing it on the coat rack to keep it from getting dirty. She was standing before Willow in nothing but her undergarments, and she hoped those would soon be hanging, too. "Can you help me with..."
"Oh...um...sure..." Willow snapped out of her daze upon seeing Buffy in her undergarments, and stood up in anticipation to see what was underneath. Knowing full well how to remove a woman's garments, Willow had them loose in no time... "Are you sure?"
"More than sure...in my heart, I'm already married to you. This isn't wrong..." Buffy pushed the white cotton from her shoulder, and allowed it to fall to her waist, making them equally dressed. The look of salivation and open lust and love that was on Willow's face assured Buffy that it was a mutual marriage.
"Nothing this beautiful could ever be wrong..." Willow moved the little bit forward, and pulled Buffy into one of those embraces that made no room for escape. They both gasped and moaned into the other's mouths, as their nipples and breasts made contact with each other. Hot and heavy kisses, the smacking of their lips and the crackling of the fire was all that could be heard between their quiet groans, moans, and gasps.
"Make love to me, Will..." Buffy unbuttoned Willow's pants, and let them drop to the floor, as she reached back and did the same to her own undergarments, leaving them both completely exposed to the room. Buffy returned to the kisses, as Willow moved them back over to the bed, being so gentle and adoring.
Once Buffy was on her back, Willow pressed above her, and just stared into her eyes. For the longest moment, it felt like they were saying their vows to each other then and there. No, this wasn't wrong. They were married in heart...
"I...I love you, Buffy Summers." Willow ran her fingertips gently over Buffy's exposed torso and chest, paying particular attention to the blonde's breasts and the nipples that were standing more at attention than the soldiers on the battlefields. "Mrs. Buffy Rosenberg..."
"Oh, Will...I love you, too..." Buffy pulled Willow back down for more heated kisses. It seemed like too long since the redhead's soft, gentle lips had been pressed against hers. Soon, roaming hands weren't enough...and Willow started to move her kisses along Buffy's body...paying worship to every inch, and taking her time in doing so...it was sweet torture to Buffy. "Please..."
She wasn't sure what she wanted...she didn't know how to do this...she wasn't sure what happened next...she just knew that the throbbing in her low down areas told her it had to happen soon, or she'd explode from just the kisses. Willow found her way back to Buffy's mouth, and buried her head in her neck, as she continued kissing, licking, and nipping at the blonde's exposed throat. Meanwhile, her hands had a mind of their own, as they continued to roam over the blonde's body...needing to touch every part of her. Soon, she found her hand full of something wet and sticky, and she was startled and looked up in a panic, thinking it was blood.
"No...it's...it's okay...I think...that's just...um...where it happens."
"I was in the war, Buffy...I heard all the men talk...I know how it works..." Willow ducked her head slightly. "I was just afraid I'd hurt you...I thought it was blood..."
"Not blood...just wet...I guess to make it easier...it's never happened to me before..." Buffy's blush spread her entire body.
"It's a good thing, from my understanding...that's just a sign that you really want me...I'm flattered..." Willow smiled down at her. "I just...well...I don't have the...um...equipment...to make it work."
"Use your hand...I like the way you touch me..." Buffy pulled Willow back in for another kiss, as the redhead moved her hand back into the wetness. She could feel Buffy's rapid heartbeat on this knob-feeling place above her opening. One flick of her fingers over that, and Buffy was arching into Willow for more contact. Taking the reaction as a definite good sign (since Buffy moaned and gasped her approval), the redhead returned to that spot every once in a while...moving her fingers, exploring the entirety of Buffy's opening and sexual organs. She felt good...and kept pleading for Willow to push her finger inside her further...that it felt good...to keep doing it...to keep touching that one spot...and soon, without warning...Buffy's entire passage tightened and squeezed at Willow's finger, as she moved it back out to play with that 'loveknob' (she named it that, since Buffy kept moaning 'I love you' when she would touch her there). Watching Buffy's face in the heights of pure ecstasy was a new experience for Willow, and the redhead thought she'd never seen anything more beautiful. "Oh...Willow...that...oh...my...that was...ungh..."
"That was ungh? Is that a good thing?" Willow was uncertain. She was a virgin, too. She didn't know.
"Def...definitely a good...a good thing..." Buffy struggled to get her breathing back to normal. Once her eyes stopped rolling back in her head, and her limbs weren't numb and could move, she turned over to Willow, and climbed on top of her. "Is...is it alright if I show you?"
Willow's eager nod was all the encouragement she needed.