Title: Falling Star - part 4
Author: chronic
Feedback: Advice, criticism and abuse all welcome.
Summary - Alternate W/T story arc for season 6.
Spoiler Warning: Up to and including "All the Way"
Disclaimer: None of these characters are mine, much as I wish they were. I'm just playing with them for a while…
Rating: 15. Some swearing and violence
Notes: The story begins shortly after All the Way. Assume the other major storylines (Buffy and Spike, Xander and Anya, Dawn's stealing etc) are happening, unless I contradict them. Lyrics are from Creep by Radiohead.
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Willow let herself in and made herself a drink. "Did you have a good day, dear?" her mother called from the living room. Willow walked across the hall before she answered.
"It was ok" she said, ignoring the fact that as soon as she'd asked the question, her mother had gone back to reading the paper in front of her. "We've got a new girl starting next week."
"That's nice dear"
"The rumour is she got kicked out of her last school for burning down the gym."
"Oh" her mother replied, still engrossed in what she was reading. Willow sighed and went upstairs. She threw herself on to the bed and thought about what had happened that day. She had overheard Xander and Jesse talking in class. "So, man" Jesse had said. "What's the what with you and Willow?"
"What?" Xander had exclaimed.
"C'mon, you know you could."
"Jesse, c'mon, its Willow. We're just friends."
'Just friends' Willow thought bitterly. 'Just Willow. Plain old Willow. Dull, boring, Will. The kind of girl guys are just friends with.' She flicked on the radio, and, as is so often the case, found the song matched her mood perfectly.
"You're so very special
I wish I was special
But I'm a creep
I'm a weirdo
What the hell am I doing here?"
"I don't belong here" Willow sang along.
"I don't care if it hurts
I wanna have control
I wanna perfect body
I wanna perfect soul
I want you to notice
When I'm not around
You're so very special…"
Willow didn't wonder why people didn't notice her, she knew. It was because she wasn't worth noticing. She was in the background, or part of the background, for other people's lives. There were a hundred things she could do to get her parents attention, stealing, drugs, whatever. But what would be the point? They'd yell at her, send her off to rehab and forget about her again.
She knew her intelligence made her special, but few people seemed to care. Some of the teacher's got excited, but the students who bothered to notice usually took offence. How dare she be cleverer than them? She kicked off her shoes and pulled herself up the bed so her head was on the pillow. She didn't like the next song that came on the radio, so she turned it off. Willow stared at the ceiling and sighed. She wished she had something that made her special. Made her different. Made people notice her, respect her, love her.
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Tara climbed the stairs, one hand on the banister, the other balancing a tray. She reached the top, knock on a door, then entered. "Mom? I bought you lunch."
Her mother sat in bed. "Oh, thank you honey" she said weakly.
"How are you feeling today?" Tara asked, placing the tray on her mother's lap and sitting on a chair beside the bed.
"Better. These new pills seem to be as good as the doctor said." She gave a weak smile.
Tara looked closely at her mother. She looked better, but was still deathly pale. It had been 6 months since she became ill. "The wages of sin" her father had said. "Moral corruption causes physical corruption." Tara didn't understand. Her mother the demon had been nothing but loving to her, always been there for her. Her father the human… her mother had never hit her. Never told her it was for her own good, to control the demon.
"Honey, are you ok?" her mother asked when Tara had been silent for a few minutes.
"Huh?" Tara came out of her thoughts. That was just like her mother, asking how she was when she was the one who was ill. Was dying…
"I'm fine mom. I'd better go, I've still got chores to do." Tara stood, kissed her mother and made her way to the door. "I love you."
"You're a good girl, Tara" her mother told her. "Have you been keeping up with your studies?" Tara grinned. She knew her mother was referring to the magicks she had taught her, rather than any schoolwork.
"Yeah. I'll never be as good as you though."
Ellen MaClay leaned back against the headboard, exhausted by the effort of conversation. But she smiled. "You'll be as good as you can be. Go do your chores, I'll see you later."
As Tara walked back downstairs she couldn't help but smile. Her mother was irrepressible, she let nothing keep her down. Tara wondered if she could become like that. She definitely wasn't now. As if to prove her point, her spirits fell as her father called her name. "Tara? Have you cleaned the kitchen yet?"
"C-c-coming" she called. 'One day' she hoped. 'One day I'll be free of this.'
But not today.
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"I can't believe he's leaving."
"I know. I thought when he came back he'd be staying for good this time."
Tara and Willow walked arm in arm. They had just met at the magic shop, where Giles had announced his intention to leave. Buffy had run out halfway through his goodbye speech, and Xander had gone after her. Dawn trailed behind them, staring at the floor.
"Dawnie?" Tara called, looking back. "I'm sure she'll be fine. She's just a little upset."
"And we wouldn't want that, would we?" Dawn said bitterly. "Can't have Buffy being upset."
Will and Tara exchanged a worried look. "You go on ahead" Tara whispered. "I'll hang back with Dawn." Willow nodded her agreement, then strode ahead. Tara stopped and turned, waiting for Dawn to catch up. Tara fell in beside the teen, and gave a hesitant smile. "So, wanna talk about it?"
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Willow let herself in and when upstairs to her room. She guessed it would be a good 20 minutes before Tara and Dawn got back, so she may as well put the time to good use. She knelt before the bookshelf, and pulled several books out to reveal another book. She picked it up and flicked through it till she found her page. She lay on the bed and began to read.
The book was mainly about the spells magick users had once used to fight each other. Most of them were considered too difficult to be practical, and anyway, the use of offensive magick was prohibited, or at least frowned upon, by all the groups who knew of its existence. The book had been in the loft of the magick shop, where Giles kept the more dangerous objects. Willow had taken it without asking him, she knew he would disapprove of her little research project. 'If only they would trust me' she thought longingly. 'I know what I'm doing, and this will help me keep us all safe.'
She heard a key turn in the lock and quickly hid the book. She lay back on the bed just as Tara came in. "Hey. How's Dawn?"
"Ok, I think." Tara said. "Just feeling a little unappreciated."
"Aw. We'll have to have a Dawnie day soon" Willow said as Tara joined her on the bed. "So" she continued, a sly grin spreading across her face. "You gonna show me how appreciated I am?"
Tara grinned, and moved in to kiss her. "Vixen."
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Giles looked up from packing his case as someone knocked on the door. He glanced at his watch. 11.30, everyone he knew should be in school, college or at work. Except Buffy of course. He desperately hoped it was her, he needed her to understand that his leaving was for the best. He got up and answered the door, to see Tara standing there hesitantly.
"I, ah, came to see if you need any help. With the packing" she said, gesturing at his cases.
"Oh, I've nearly finished. But you can help me tidy the room."
She looked at him quizzically. "Giles, it's a hotel. They pay people to clear up."
He looked slightly embarrassed. "Oh, I know. I just hate to leave things untidy." He looked up at her again. "Shouldn't you be in class?"
"Oh, I, ah, w-well…"
Giles grinned. "One of those days?"
"Kinda. Speaking of leaving things untidy" Tara said as she moved in to the room. "I think Buffy knows why you have to leave. She just doesn't want to accept it."
"I hope you're right." Giles said, sitting down on the bed
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"How can he leave now?" Buffy wailed. "I can't do this on my own, I, I can't…"
"Ssh, its ok" Willow said, hugging her tightly.
"No its not!" Buffy cried in to her shoulder. "He's leaving me!"
"Yes. Yes he is" Will said. "And it hurts, I know. But he has his reasons." She tried not to let the doubt she felt show in her voice. To be honest, she didn't understand Giles logic either.
Buffy's next words were muffled as she buried her face in her best friend's shoulder. "It'll be ok" Willow said, kissing the slayer on the top of her head. "I'll do anything I can to help, you know that. I'll take care of you. I promise."
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"Giles, can I ask you something?"
Giles turned at the nervousness in the witch's voice. "Of course."
"Are you worried?" Tara continued. "About Willow?"
He took off his glasses and began cleaning them. "I take it you are?"
"I-I trust her. I do. But the power she has, the things she's capable of…"
"I know" he said. "Bringing Buffy back was an amazing accomplishment, but the risks… its not the sort of thing a person in their right mind should ever contemplate, no matter how confident they are of their abilities."
"In their right mind? Are you saying…"
"I'm not sure what I'm saying. Certainly, rescuing Buffy from hell was a noble goal, and her grief would have clouded her judgement. But her attitude seemed to be that the ends justified the means." He paused, frowning. "A very dangerous thing to believe." He looked up and saw the panicked expression on Tara's face. "I don't think we should worry too much. One of the things I've always admired in Willow is that she puts her friends above all else, and will try to help them, no matter what. You just need to make sure she considers all the options and implications, before she takes drastic action."
Tara nodded, looking slightly reassured. Giles glanced at his watch, and stood up. "Well, the taxi should be here any minute." Tara stood and hugged him. As they embraced, Giles said quietly in to her ear "look after them for me."
Tara pulled back and nodded, beginning to tear up. She followed Giles down to the street and waved as the taxi pulled away.
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"So he's really gone" Xander said. The others remained silent. They sat around the Summers living room.
"Poor Buffy. I hope she's ok" Tara said.
"Where is she, anyway?" Xander asked. "Its getting kinda late."
"I'll find her" Willow said, standing. "I think she just needed some time alone." She pulled on her coat, called "back soon!" and left.
She walked down the street, looking up at the darkening sky. She knew exactly where Buffy was, she'd gone to the Bronze a couple of hours ago, saying she couldn't handle the assembled scoobies talking about Giles. But Willow had not intention of finding Buffy. The girl needed some time to herself, for crying out loud!
Initially Buffy had planned to go out for a few hours, and then patrol, but Will had told her to take the night off. The slayer had protested briefly, but quickly agreed when Willow promised to patrol. The witch smiled in the dark. 'At least Buffy trusts me.'
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The scream shattered the night. "Oh my god!" Sarah cried. "That was Gary! It got him!"
"We don't know that" Nathan told her, but he also recognised his friend's voice, screaming in pain.
"We've got to get out of here!" Daniel cried, and the three of them ran down the street.
The four of them had been on their way to the Bronze when it attacked. Nathan didn't know how to describe it, it moved so fast it was a blur. It had run straight at them, knocking them to the ground. Gary had run, and the thing chased him. And judging from the screams, it had caught him.
"What is it?" Sarah wailed.
"I don't know, I've never seen anything move that fast."
"Is it following us? Its gonna come for us, isn't it?"
Nathan paused. Sarah was probably right, it was coming for them right now. Took her hand, and the three of them ran down an ally.
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Willow walked down the street, enjoying the feel of the cool night air. She heard voices and stopped to listen. They were raised in panic, obviously running in fear. She ran towards them.
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Buffy finished her beer, and signalled to the barman for another. "And, and, he left. Everybody leaves. Don't wanna stay near Buffy" she rambled drunkenly.
Spike looked at her worriedly. He hated seeing her like this. Obviously he didn't want to see her in pain, but at least when she was fighting him, or telling him to piss off, she had passion. Full of fire, full of life. Now she just seemed empty. Unless you counted all the alcohol she'd necked. Spike tried to take the bottle the barman had just given her. "I think its been enough for tonight, luv" he said. Buffy knocked his arm aside without effort, the drink hadn't lessened her strength.
"No. Not enough" she said, raising the bottle to her lips. Spike sighed, and ordered himself a whisky.
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"Come on!" Daniel cried, running ahead of the others. He reached the end of the ally, and turned to face his friends. "Come on!" he shouted again.
Suddenly, in a blur of movement, Daniel was gone. Nathan's mind tried to piece together what had happened. The creature that hunted them had run straight at Daniel, picked him up and carried him away. As if to confirm this, Daniel's screams came from beyond the mouth of the ally. Nathan and Sarah turned and ran back the way they had come, terrified. Nathan pulled ahead, then slammed in to an invisible barrier. He crashed on to his back, his nose bleeding. Sarah, panic stricken, began pushing at the barrier, trying to find a way through.
"Sarah. Sarah, stop" Nathan said, getting to his feet. "We can't run anymore."
"That's right" a voice said behind them. They turned and faced their hunter.
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"Shouldn't they be back by now?" Anya asked. "I mean, there's only so many places Buffy could be."
"Maybe Buffy didn't wanna come home right away" Xander suggested. "Maybe they're talking."
"Or maybe Willow decided she wanted to patrol again." Anya said. They all turned to face her. "What, I'm just saying. She seemed to get a real kick out of it the last few times she went."
"She just likes to help. We all do" Xander said, frowning. He knew Anya disapproved of his going on patrol too.
"Willow knows what she's doing" Tara said. "She wouldn't get herself in to something she can't handle." Tara's voice was filled with confidence in her girlfriend, but they all saw her worried frown.
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"What do you want?" Nathan asked. "Why are you doing this?"
"Because I kill your kind"
"Yeah?" Nathan challenged, finding an unexpected source of courage. "Well, our kind fights back." The hunter just smirked.
"What are you?" Sarah asked, horrified fascination taking over from blind fear. She stared at the creature, with its black eyes and red hair.
"I am Willow Rosenberg." Willow moved forward, energy crackling round her fingers. Nathan and Sarah vamped out and charged.
A vampire can move faster than the average human, but to Willow they seemed to be moving in slow motion. She moved to the side, and grabbed the female vampire by the throat, lifting it off its feet. The energy on her hands crackled out, running across Sarah's skin, burning where it touched. Willow spun, and threw Sarah across the ally. The vampire hit the wall head first, and her neck splintered. As the spinal nerve severed, she died, and turned to dust.
Nathan blinked. One second he and Sarah had been charging the witch, the next Sarah was dust and the witch was several feet from where she had been. His momentum carried him forward as he struggled to turn and face Willow. He kicked himself off the wall, flying towards her, arms outstretched.
Willow caught his arms easily, and snapped them both. She released him, and stepped out of the way, leaving him to crash in to the wall. He fell to the ground, then cried out as the pain of his broken arms reached his brain. Willow stretched her arms out in front of her, her hands several inches apart. A glowing sphere began to form between them.
Nathan looked up as the witch walked towards him. The light floating between her hands grew in to a ball of fire. Nathan considered pleading for mercy, but stopped when he saw the witch's eyes. They were as pitiless as the fire she held before her.
Willow looked down at the vampire. It stared back at her. For a few seconds they locked gazes, then she released the fireball at it. The vamp screamed briefly as it was incinerated, then it was gone.
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Buffy had no idea what she was doing. She just knew that she couldn't just sit around thinking about Giles, and what she'd lost when Willow bought her back. Anything was better than that. She pulled back from the kiss, and stared at Spike. She could run away now, or hit him, or get another drink. Or she could stay here, with the vampire who claimed to love her.
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Willow skipped down Revello Drive. She'd fought several demons, though none had been particularly challenging. She smiled as she thought how the vampires had run from her in fear. From her! Who'd have thought it, Willow Rosenberg, scourge of the underworld.
The Augmentation spells she had cast to increase her speed and strength were wearing off now, but she still felt exhilarated. She reached the Summers house and let herself in. Everyone was asleep, so she tiptoed in. She couldn't go to sleep yet, she was too wired. She went to the living room, and sighed when she saw the mess. Plates, cups and empty pizza boxes littered the floor. She extended her hands, concentrated, and in a flash of light the room was tidy again. She crashed in to an armchair, and with a gesture turned the TV on. She turned the volume down low so she didn't wake anyone, then an idea occurred to her. She cast a veil of silence around the room, so that no sound from inside could be heard outside, and vice versa. She turned the volume back up, and settled back to watch.
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That was the last chapter for a while, as I won't have access to the internet for two weeks. But I promise a big post on Monday 8th of April. Happy Easter kittens!
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Now you can tell some lies
About the good times that you've had
But I've kissed your mother twice
And now I'm working on your dad.