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Seeing Red

(Book 2 of the Red Light Series)

Part 1

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Buffy and Willow were walking hand in hand through one of Sunnydale's many cemeteries, talking, laughing, and generally having a good time.  It had taken a week after Jenny Calendar’s funeral before they could just laugh without feeling guilty.

It had been a busy week.

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After spending that first afternoon making out for the first time, Buffy and Willow had gone to Giles, and Buffy had to explain how she had slipped and told her mom about being the slayer.  Giles didn’t comment on the two girls holding hands the entire time they were there.  For their part, Buffy and Willow didn’t bring up the subject of their relationship- neither feeling comfortable talking about such things with Giles when he had essentially just lost his girlfriend- or at least potential girlfriend.

Giles had resignedly agreed to speak with Buffy’s mother after the funeral, to explain about vampires and slayers.  In the end they had to take the elder Summers on an abbreviated patrol in order to convince her.  Buffy had been adamantly against it at first, and when it was about to turn into a shouting match between mother and daughter, Willow had stepped in and salvaged the situation. 

She had been sitting quietly, afraid to draw attention to herself as it was the first instance where she was spending any significant amount of time in the presence of Mrs. Summers since she and Buffy had begun their relationship.  Willow had been extremely nervous- certain that Buffy’s mom would have negative feelings for her.  In her nightmares Buffy’s mom reviled her, accusing her of corrupting and perverting her daughter- forbidding her from ever seeing Buffy again.  Finally, she couldn’t stand the thought of Buffy and her mom ending up in a screaming match, and she had grabbed the slayer’s hand and dragged her out of the room.  After trying reason, she ended up putting on her resolve face and telling Buffy that she *would* be bringing her mother with them that night- they would have the whole Scooby gang there, and they would camp out at the gravesite and wait for Jess Wheldon, a vamp victim buried that afternoon , to rise.  They would stake him and then take Mrs. Summers home.

Buffy, surprised by her girlfriend’s commanding tone, had meekly acquiesced.  It was even money who was more surprised when she walked back in to the living room and quietly announced the decision- her mom or her watcher.

Events had progressed as expected; Wheldon had risen, been staked, and reduced to dust.  They had led a bewildered Joyce Summers back to the house where she and Giles had a long talk over a fairly tall glass of whiskey while Buffy and Willow had retired to the back porch for some quiet cuddling,

The week had settled into a routine after that night- Willow would meet Buffy at her house so they could walk to school together, then it was classes, research in the library, then some heavy patrolling- mixed with a little light petting.  So far, they hadn’t made any effort to rush the physical stuff.  There was lots of kissing- both the long languid gentle kind and the deep, hot, breath-taking kind.  There was groping; but over-clothes only; neither was quite ready to cross that line… yet.  Both of them knew that it wouldn’t be long.

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Buffy laughed out loud as Willow- barely restraining her giggles- said, “And then… <snicker> Giles face… when your mom <snort> when your mom said, ‘So Buffy fights these vampires and demons…’” she trailed off, unable to contain her laughter.

Buffy continued the thought, “…and <giggle> and you…”

“…Read Books?” they both shouted, dissolving into insane laughter as they remembered the flustered look on Giles face and his stuttering attempt to explain the importance of research.

They held each other in their arms to keep from collapsing completely.  After a moment, their laughter died down and they gazed into each other’s eyes for several moments.  Smiles faded from hilarity and took on a new look as desire began to build.  Their arms tightened around one another, bodies pressing firmly together as their breathing sped up and their eyes dilated in arousal. 

Just as they were about to kiss, a rude voice rang out from several meters away, “Ooo lookie here, Marty!  We got us a couple of Lezzies!”

A second voice responded from near the first, “I do believe you’re right, Nixon.”

Buffy closed her eyes and growled in frustration.  Not even turning her head, she loudly said, “Hey!  We’re having a moment here.  Why don’t you two piss off?!”

Marty turned to Nixon and said, “These two want to have a moment of happiness…”

Marty paused as Nixon answered, “I don’t think we can allow that, can we?”

Marty shook his head, agreeing with Nixon, “I’m pretty sure that’s against the rules.”  Coming up with an idea, he said, “I know- lets kill the blonde and take turns showing that redhead what a man can do!”

Nixon was about to say something when he found a stake suddenly protruding from his chest. 

Marty watched in horror as Nixon turned to dust.

Buffy was shouting as she attacked the stunned vamp, “Why can’t you people ever let us have a single freaking moment of joy…” she paused as she dislocated the vampire’s jaw with a powerful roundhouse punch.  “…or love without ruining it?!” she finished as she followed up the punch with a spinning backfist, again striking the damaged jaw and knocking the vamp to its knees as he cradled his ruined face in his hands.

Willow , having recovered Buffy’s stake, took that moment to exclaim her own frustration as she drove the wood home, “All we wanted to do was have a little moment of contentment, but NO, you had to ruin it!”

Buffy smiled at her girlfriend as they watched the vamp collapse into ash, “I get really tired of those jerks messing up our fun!”

Willow smiled back, “I know what you mean!”  Moving to take Buffy in her arms, she added, “Now, where were we?”

Buffy was at that moment struck with a dizzy spell and almost collapsed in Willow ’s arms, “Whoa!”

Willow , instantly concerned, asked, “Are you ok Buffy?”

Buffy recovered after a moment and said, “Yeah, I think so…  That was weird!”

Willow put her hand on Buffy’s cheek and felt the heat.  Moving it to her forehead she let out a low moan of frustration, “Buffy, you’re burning up!”

“Wadaya mean?” she demanded.

Willow was torn between concern for her apparently sick girlfriend, and frustration at the unresolved tension.  “Buffy, I think you’ve got the flu.”

Buffy closed her eyes and groaned, “Dammit!  I wanted to…”

Willow began to lead the sick slayer back to her house, “I know, baby.  Me too…”

Buffy whined as they walked, “Stupid Flu!”

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Xander shook his head at Cordelia's complaining.  She wanted to know why they had to patrol before they went to the bronze.  “Of course,” he thought, “She complains, but she still does it.” 

“I *told* you,” Willow said, her patience strained by Cordy’s incessant complaints.  “Buffy’s sick.  The least we can do is take over patrolling for a few nights,” she said with a sigh.  “Xander isn’t helping any either!” she thought, uncharitably.  She knew that Xander had a conflicting obligation between his best friend and his girlfriend, and was wisely keeping his mouth shut, but she still wished he would just shut her up.

Switching conversational gears without a clutch was another annoying habit Cordelia had.  “I don’t understand.  How come you’re not sick?”

Puzzled by the abruptly changed subject, Willow said, “Huh?”

Cordelia rolled her eyes, explaining, “Well, the way you guys are sucking face all the time…”

Willow ’s eyes narrowed in anger, “Hey!  Do I bring up you and Xander’s supply-closet shenanigans?  No!  I think not!”

As Cordelia was about to say something else, Xander jumped in, waving his hand up and down between them and whistling. “Ok! Time Out!  In case you haven’t noticed, we are in a grave yard.  If you guys don’t keep it down you’re going to scare away all the vampires!”

Cordelia just rolled her eyes again, saying, “Whatever.  Let’s just get this done.  You owe me a night of dancing at the bronze- although describing what you do out on the floor as ‘dancing’ might be too generous…”

Willow ’s eyes bugged out as she looked at Xander smiling at Cordelia’s words, even as he gave a half-hearted “Hey!”  She couldn’t for the life of her understand why Xander would put up with the constant insults.

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Willow didn’t see what Xander saw when he looked at Cordy.  The way her eyes would sparkle, and the corners of her mouth would twitch up when she and he traded insults.  It was like a weird kind of foreplay between them, and they both got excited when it happened.  They couldn’t argue for more than a couple minutes before they were locked together at the mouth, kissing and groping.  Maybe no one else could understand it, but they always knew when the barbs were the fun, sexy kind, and when they weren’t.

Not that such exchanges had led to actual sex yet.  The closest they had come had- not surprisingly- come in one of the supply closets at school.  They had ended up having a heated exchange in the lunch room, where they couldn’t immediately act on it, and had continued the argument for several minutes before they walked away from one another in a huff.  Everybody that witnessed it probably thought they were incredibly pissed off at one another- really, they were just taking separate routes to one of their favorite closets.  There had been no need to arrange it ahead of time, they just both knew right where to go.

Within seconds of the door closing they were clawing at each other’s tops, nearly tearing the fabric in the process.  Cordy was so worked up that she didn’t even comment when her $250 angora sweater ended up crumpled in a ball on the floor.  Xander had stroked and kneaded her breasts, toying with her nipples, while she ran her hands over his back, marking the skin with her nails.  They ended up dry-humping for several minutes before breaking off in frustration.  Desperate as he was, Xander would never force the issue, and they both knew there was no way Cordelia Chase was getting fully naked, let alone horizontal, in a closet at school.

Anyone who knew Cordelia stayed the hell out of her way that afternoon.  Frustration had put her into Über-Bitch mode for the rest of the day.  She actually had one sophomore football player in tears after she caught him staring at her ass as she got in her locker between classes.  Xander had just skipped the rest of his classes that day.  He went home and jerked off three times before he was able to once again face civilized society without sporting a raging hard-on.  He didn’t even need a dirty mag to fantasize to- the memory of Cordy’s flaring nostrils and flashing eyes as they ripped into one another verbally was more than enough to work with.

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Back to the present, Xander had managed to establish quiet, if not peace between the girls, and they were prowling the cemetery looking for a vamp to stake.

Willow was trying to put Cordy’s comment out of her head.  Not because she was embarrassed that the tactless wonder knew about, or even commented on, Willow and Buffy’s not infrequent make out sessions- but rather because she was feeling withdrawal pangs from missing just such activities.

Yesterday, they had both been too busy and preoccupied to have any ‘face time’ as Buffy had jokingly referred to it.  There had been tacit plans for a serious make-up session during patrol; had been until Marty and Nixon had ruined things.  Then the flu bug struck, and even though Willow was quite willing to have the flu in exchange for some quality Buffy kissage- Buffy wouldn’t hear of it.

“Buffy!  I’ll probably get it anyway- half the school is down with it.  I might as well take advantage of the opportunity to have a little fun getting it, rather than by way of someone in my general vicinity coughing in my direction,” she had reasoned

Buffy had remained firm in her denial of Willow ’s advances.  She had, however, promised to make up for it when she was over the flu.

“How?” Willow had pouted.  I don’t want to wait for kisses later, I want them now *and* later!  Whatever kissage I miss tonight is gone for good- never to be recovered.” She has said in a mock-forlorn voice.

Buffy just gave her a seductive smile, and said, “Who said kisses were the only thing I had in mind?”

Willow had shut up at that, her mind busy on just how Buffy might make up for missed kissage.

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Buffy was making her way across the graveyard, trying to ignore the fatigue and lightheadedness she was feeling.  She sensed something as she approached the Heckinsack’s mausoleum. She jumped around the corner, swinging her stake at whatever was there.

Xander screamed and jumped back, holding on to his own stake tightly.

Cordelia let out a shriek from where she stood behind Xander.  She and Willow instinctively held up their crosses at Buffy.

Buffy was slightly taken aback- looking at Xander she said, “Non-vampire.”  Her eyes swiveling to Cordy and Willow , she added, “Plus two.”

Willow was annoyed with her girlfriend, and it showed in the confusion on her face- happiness to see her new love, combined with annoyance at the fact that Buffy was out of bed and in a graveyard when she was supposed to be resting from the flu!  “Dang it, Buffy!” she said as she put her cross away.

Xander said, “Man, Buffy! My whole life just flashed before my eyes!”  He glanced over at Willow and added, “I gotta get me a life!”

Buffy bewilderedly asked, “What are you doing here?”

Willow put her hands on her hips and countered, “What are *you* doing here?”

Buffy looked at her girlfriend blankly and said, “Well, I'm patrolling!” as if the answer were obvious.

Willow ’s eyes showed her concern as she walked over to her girlfriend and put her hands loosely on her hips, “Baby… you’re sick!  You’re supposed to be in bed.”

Buffy attempted to defend herself, not meeting Willow ’s eyes she looked over at the others and pouted, “No, I feel fine. I mean, I'm... the world's spinning a little bit, but I like it, it's kinda like a ride.”

Cordelia, in her waspish way mixed concern with unthinking insult as she said, “Half the school's out with this flu. It's a serious deal.”  Putting her hands on her hips, she added sternly, “Buffy. We're all concerned about how gross you look.”

Buffy’s voice dripped with sarcasm as she answered, “I'm touched. Really. But I have work to do.”

Willow pulled her into a halfway hug and said, “Buffy, come on, one night of rest is not gonna kill you.”

Buffy pulled away slightly and said, “No, but it might kill somebody else.”

Xander pointed at her with his stake and said, “You mean Angel might.”  As Buffy turned away from the group, he added, “Buffy, this is not the time to challenge Angel for the ultimate fighting championship.”  He Gestured with his stake, explaining, “He's at full strength… you're only half a Slayer.”

Buffy turned and looked Xander in the eyes.  “Yeah, but I'm still the Slayer. And, as long as I am, Angelus's not gonna kill anybody else.”

Angelus popped up behind her and said, “Aw, c'mon.  Just one more.”

He attacked, as Willow and Cordelia screamed.  He ran right past Buffy and straight for Cordelia tackling her to the ground.

Buffy grabbed him by the back of his coat and pulled him off of the whimpering Cheerleader.  She turned him around, took him by the coat collar and swung at him with her stake- aiming for his foul heart.

He blocked her with his arm, grabbed hers and twisted, making her drop her stake.  He taunted, “Not feeling well, lover?”

Buffy looked up at him and punched him in the jaw, not saying a word.

He glared back at her and tried to kick her, but she grabbed his foot and shoved his leg up, making him fall hard onto his back.

Buffy smirked and taunted back, “That helps.”

Angelus scrambled to hands and feet while Buffy came at him from behind and tried to kick him.  He countered, kicking up and out, driving his foot into her chest.  She staggered back a bit until she could regain her balance.  He got up and advanced toward her.  She took a couple of swings at him, but he avoided them easily.  He blocked a third attempt, grabbing her arm and gripping her by the throat.

“You know, you being off your game's kinda takin' the fun out of all this,” he sneered, punching her in the face and causing her to stumble backwards again.

“Nope, still fun!” he goaded.

Angelus punched her in the gut, then grabbed her by the neck and shoved her around and into a corner column of the small mausoleum.

Buffy was dazed and tried to regain her balance, but didn't get a chance because he again punched her in the face, knocking her flat on her back.  He leapt on top of her and pinned her arms down.

Angelus took another moment to mock the fallen slayer, “Uh-oh. This does *not* look good for our heroine!” he said as he bent down to bite her.

Willow took that opportunity to throw Xander's jacket over Angelus' head.  She backed away and Xander grabbed Angelus’ head under the jacket, punching him and kneeing him twice in the face. 

Angelus fell over onto his back while Willow and Cordelia whipped out their crosses and held them out at him as he got up- forcing him to back off.

Xander quipped, “Take a walk, overbite,” while Buffy got to her feet.

Angelus slowly backed away.  “We'll have to do this again sometime,” his taunt falling somewhat flat as he had clearly lost this round,

He turned and walked off.  Buffy just watched him go.

Willow was instantly at her girlfriend’s side, “Baby, are you okay?” she asked, concerned.

Buffy put her hand to her forehead and plaintively said, “I told you guys to leave, I...”  She started to feel dizzy, whispering “I... Oh...” and fall to the ground unconscious.

Willow shouted, “Buffy!”

Xander and Cordelia turned to look, “Buffy?” Xander asked.

Willow helped Xander pick up the fallen slayer and they rushed to the hospital.

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Part 2

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Cordelia and Xander were sitting on a row of chairs in the waiting room with worried looks on their faces.  Giles was leaning against a doorway, nervously cleaning his glasses. 

Willow was nervously pacing back and forth, glancing at the elevator each time she reached the end of her path.  She was mostly worried about her girlfriend, but she’d be lying if she claimed she wasn’t nervous about seeing Buffy’s mom. Every time the elevator dinged, and the door opened, Willow jumped slightly and held her breath until she saw who was coming out.

She knew that Joyce knew about her and Buffy; Buffy had assured her on several occasions that her mom was cool with the whole thing, but Willow hadn’t actually spent any time alone in Joyce’s presence since she and Buffy had begun their new relationship.  Plus there was the added stress of Buffy being in the hospital, which Willow imagined wouldn’t put her girlfriend’s mom in the best frame of mind.

Giles watched the redhead becoming more and more frantic as time passed.  Finally he stepped into her path and stopped her, his hands gently gripping her shoulders.  Willow , you must calm down,” he said.  “You aren’t doing her any good by working yourself into a state…”

This time when the elevator dinged and the door opened Buffy’s mom was the one who walked out. 

Giles felt the redhead tense under his hands and saw her eyes widen in alarm.  He quickly spun around to see what was coming and was surprised when it turned out to be Joyce Summers.  He had, from Willow ’s response, halfway expected some monster to be attacking.

Joyce walked up to Giles and demanded, “Where is she?”

Cordy and Xander got up and approached, flanking Giles and Willow .

Giles answered, “She's still in the emergency room.”

Joyce made as if to walk out of the waiting room, saying, “I wanna see her.“

Willow said, “They won't let us in there!” her frustration and concern clearly evident in her voice.

Joyce stopped and looked back at her, not having noticed her at first, as she was hidden behind Giles.  She saw that the redhead was near tears, and immediately went to her; wrapping her in a tight hug.  “I’m sure she’ll be all right, Honey,” she tried to reassure her daughter’s girlfriend.

Willow let go one loud sob and tightly wrapped her arms around Buffy’s mom.  That one gesture, and calling her honey, finally convinced her that Joyce was really ok with her dating Buffy.  She only managed to keep from breaking down entirely, because she didn’t want to worry the older woman any more than she already was.  She nodded her head, not yet releasing her embrace, and agreed, “She will be.  It’ll take more than the flu to do in the slayer!”

Just then the Doctor came to the door and asked, “Mrs. Summers?”

Joyce and Willow let go their embrace and turned to the doctor.  Joyce kept one arm around the girl, silently offering her support.  “Yes?” she answered.

The doctor smiled and introduced herself, “I'm Dr. Wilkinson.”

Joyce immediately asked, “Is Buffy okay?”

The doctor began to explain, “We were able to stabilize and...”

Joyce interrupted exasperatedly, “Is she *okay*?”

Dr. Wilkinson reassuringly said, “She's going to be fine.”

Joyce and Willow both spoke at the same moment, “Oh, thank God!”  They looked at each other and smiled before looking back at the doc.

Xander was shifting back and forth on his feet. “Good… Good…” he said; his apprehension manifesting itself in the way he was fretfully rubbing his hands together  “That's good,” he repeated once again.

Cordelia just kept one hand on her boyfriend’s shoulder and didn’t say a word.

Giles smiled briefly and put his glasses back on his face.

Dr. Wilkinson added, “I want to keep her here a few days, though. She still has some healing to do…”

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The whole gang was in the hall upstairs near Buffy's hospital room. They were waiting for her to be brought up.

As soon as the elevator door opened, Joyce went to the gurney, “Buffy?” she asked as she reached the bed.  “Hi, sweetheart,” she said, her concern for her daughter evident.

Everyone followed along as the orderly wheeled her toward her room.

Willow took her girlfriend’s hand, careful of the IV needle, but needing some physical contact.  “Hey baby, we’re all here,” she said.

Buffy sounded groggy and out-of-it as she said, “Hey. Here we are. It's all of we. Are we taking me home?”  she struggled to get up as she spoke.

The doctor tried to push her back down, saying, “No. Buffy, you need to lie down, honey.”

Buffy, still groggy, but insistent said, “Yeah? Lie at home. My bed is better than any bed that's... not my bed.”

The doctor looked at Joyce and stupidly observed aloud, “She's still a little out of it.”

Joyce just nodded at her, not wanting to offend the doctor by saying “Duh!” even if that was what came to mind.

Buffy looked at Willow and said, “Shh! Hospital zone. No moaning.”  Looking over at her mom, she confided, “She gets noisy…”

Willow blushed so hard that she was almost glowing.  All eyes turned to her for just a moment before everyone discretely looked away.  Everyone except Cordelia, who was enjoying Willow ’s embarrassment far too much to miss a moment of it.

Oblivious to the redhead’s consternation, Buffy looked at her and quietly said, “It’s true Will, you do.”

The doctor cleared her throat and said, “She'll feel better after she's been here a while.”

Buffy again began to struggle, “Lemme go. Look, I wanna go!”

The orderly pushing the bed, two nurses and Dr. Wilkinson all struggled to get her to lie back down. Buffy, however, was having none of it and put up a fight.

Willow shouted, alarmed, “Buffy, what's wrong?”

Buffy just continued to struggle.  “No! No! Let me go!” she cried.

Cordelia spoke.  “I think she wants to go,” she said, once again demonstrating a magnificent grasp of the obvious. 

The hospital employees finally managed to get her pushed back down on the bed, while Buffy was still crying, “No, don't do that! Stop it!”

The doc began fumbling for a hypodermic needle, telling the nurses, “Hold her steady!”

Buffy, clearly delirious, looked back at her watcher, saying, “Giles, tell them!  The vampires! I need to kill the vampires!”

The doctor spoke soothingly as she slipped the needle into Buffy’s arm, “This'll help you relax.”

Xander threw Giles a concerned look while Cordelia cringed and looked away.  Willow was focused on Buffy, unshed tears in her eyes and confusion written all over her face as she watched her girlfriend fighting to get away.

Buffy cried out, wincing in pain, as the needle penetrated her flesh, “Ow! No!”  When the doctor pulled the needle back out, she lay back and breathed heavily for a moment.

Xander, trying to cover for Buffy ‘s slip, said, “It's gotta be the fever.”

Cordelia chimed in, “Yeah, it made her delusional.”

Buffy looked again at her watcher.  “Giles, They're out there!” she insisted.

Giles smiled reassuringly and said, “Yes, uh, well, we'll, uh, we'll get those, uh, vampires later.”  He laughed lightly, looking at the doctor.  “I hear it's best t-to play along,” he explained, keeping on smiling.

The sedative began to take effect and Buffy started to relax. One of the nurses checked her IV while Joyce leaned in and stroked her hair.  “Honey, listen...”

Buffy interrupted. “I wanna go home,” she whined plaintively.

Joyce tried to reassure her, “It's gonna be okay. I promise.”  They start to wheel her away again.

Buffy cried out one last time, “*Please* don't make me stay here...”

Joyce said, “I *promise*.”

They all followed as Buffy was taken into her room.  The door closed and Willow looked in through the narrow window.

After a moment Xander looked over at Giles, saying, “That was a new experience. I'm not used to seeing Buffy scared like that.”

Joyce said, “Yeah, she just *hates* hospitals. Ever since she was a little girl.”

Willow , her eyes still shiny with uncried tears, asked, “What happened?”

Joyce crossed her arms and leaned up against the wall next to the door to her daughter’s room.  She sighed and answered, “When she was eight her cousin Celia died in a hospital. Buffy was alone with her at the time.”

Cordelia interjected, “Yuk!”

Joyce nodded her head and said, “Yeah, they were very close.”

Willow whispered, “Wow, and she was eight?”

Joyce said something about needing to use the phone and Giles commented that there was one by the nurses station.  He made as if to walk with her, when Xander stopped him with a question.  “Do you think she's gonna be okay in here?”

Giles stopped for a moment and pondered the question.

Cordelia answered Xander’s question as she began to pace up and down the hall.  “I don't know, Lysette got her nose done here, and she came in looking for the Gwyneth Paltrow, and it looked more like the Mr. Potatohead.”  She stepped over to the door and looked into Buffy's room.

Xander said, “Cordy...” clearly exasperated with his girlfriend’s cluelessness.

Even Giles was compelled to comment on Cordelia’s gaffe “Buffy is not here for cosmetic surgery…”

Cordelia didn’t miss a beat, saying, “No, but while she's in here, she might as well get that thing done.”

Giles and Xander shared a look of confusion.

Cordelia explained, “You know, that thing on her face?”  She turned to look at Xander and Giles, “You know that *thing*…”

Willow said, “There is nothing wrong with Buffy’s face!” and then shook her head, amazed that she had bothered to address Cordelia’s comment.  Turning to Giles and Xander she asked, “Do you think Angelus will attack Buffy in here?”

Xander pointed out, “He can come in, it's a public building.”

Giles sounded worried as he agreed, “That's true…”

Cordelia was still stuck on her own topic.   “Am I the only one that's noticed that thing?” she asked, bewildered that no one else agreed with her.

Willow ignored her, “I think I have an idea…”

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Xander sat outside, hidden in the bushes across the street from the hospital’s main entrance.  He was supposed to have stayed with Cordelia, but couldn’t resist being here just in case Angelus did show up.

Willow ’s plan was twofold, Giles was to wait in the parking lot with a crossbow to try and take Buffy’s ex out from a distance- if he made an appearance.  She figured that his arrogance would lead him to use the main entrance, rather than skulk around to a side or back entrance.  If Giles failed, he was not to engage, but rather to take off in his car, hopefully drawing Angelus away from the hospital.  In the meanwhile, Willow was going to try and do the uninvite spell on Buffy’s room at the hospital, in hopes that it would create the barrier and keep the vamp out if he got past Giles. 

As a backup, Willow was going to try and sneak into Buffy’s room with a supersoaker filled with holy water, just in case the spell didn’t work.

Both she and Giles told Xander just to take Cordelia home- claiming that this was just insurance, and that Angelus wouldn’t likely come with this being such a public location and all.

Xander felt differently.  He had a feeling that this was exactly the situation that Angel- in his mind they were one in the same- would love.  He wasn’t about the big fight and defeat- he was about the cruelty and pain.  Nothing would please him better than to torment and kill the slayer while she was helpless to defend herself.

Xander really wanted to be there if Giles got lucky.  He wanted to see Angel dusted so badly that he could smell the ash in the air.  He wanted to collect the remains and keep them in a jar to look at once in a while.  He figured it would make a nice pick-me-up whenever he was feeling down.

Cordelia hadn’t been very happy when he left her, though.  She was still on the whole, ‘You spend all your time thinking about your darling Willow and your precious Buffy, and never think about me!’ kick.

He’d not bothered to deny her charge- he just quipped, “You think about yourself enough for both of us!”  Seeing her eyes flash, and knowing they were about to have another knockdown, drag-out he apologized, saying, “Look, Cordy.  I’ll make it up to you tomorrow- anything you want to do.  I just want to be there if they dust his ass.”

Cordy had recognized that he was being mostly truthful, plus the promise of a day of power-shopping with Xander as her bag carrier and personal attendant, was enticing, to say the least.  She acquiesced, but couldn’t resist a parting shot, “Fine.  Go.  But remember, even with Angel gone- and even sick and delirious, Buffy’s only got eyes for Willow- not you.”

Xander grimaced at the memory.  Clearly, Cordelia had some serious jealousy issues.  Though, he had to admit that he hadn’t done too much to reassure her.  Cordy had made a big step- at least for her- when she had gone against her flock and hooked back up with Xander.  He had given her every reason not to- especially with that stupid love spell stunt he had pulled.  She would have been well within her rights to hate him for that- for trying to put a love spell on her that would have made her his love slave.  Even more so because he had planned to use it just to dump her; to cause her as much pain as she had caused him.  That really more than made up for her dumping him on valentine’s day.

Xander really liked Cordelia.  Despite her self-centeredness and many other flaws.  He saw that they were a shield against the outside world, just like his own joke-guy persona.  When he occasionally got a peek at the real Cordelia, the girl behind the bitch, he liked what he saw.  She was strong and self-confidant, with a dose of vulnerability.  And she had made a true emotional investment in their relationship.  As he had mused more and more often lately, she would complain vociferously, but was always there to help- grousing the whole time of course. 

There was only one thing that was stopping him from trying to deepen their relationship.  He needed to be sure- for both their sakes- that he wanted her for her, not as the runner-up to Buffy’s grand prize status.  He needed to convince himself before he would have a shot at convincing Cordelia.

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Xander’s introspective musing was interrupted as he heard the sounds of whistling.  When he looked up, there was Angelus, walking down the sidewalk toward the hospital, a bouquet of white roses in hand.  He seemed so happy and carefree.  Xander’s blood boiled and he almost couldn’t wait until Giles took his shot.

Just when he thought it wasn’t going to happen, when he was about to (stupidly) charge the vamp with nothing more than a cross and stake, he heard a muted popping sound.  He saw Angelus stagger and growl, his gameface on, and looking for the source of his pain.  Another popping sound and Xander noticed that, instead of a wood arrow sticking out of the vamp’s chest- followed by a glorious dusting sound- there were two darts sticking out of his neck.  He could hear angel’s growl as he slowly slipped to his knees, and then went face down on the ground.

Xander goggled as he saw Buffy’s Watcher step out from between a couple of parked vans, his head swiveling left and right as he checked for witnesses.  As much as he wanted to jump out and go over to Giles, Xander restrained himself, wanting to see what would happen next.

Giles approached the fallen vampire, a compact black rifle slung over one arm.  As he got within a couple meters of the body, he pumped another round into him; calmly opened the action and loaded a fourth dart and then fired that one into Angelus body as well.  It seemed clear that Giles wanted to take no chances that he might be playing possum.  Xander wondered what the hell was going on.

The scene became a little clearer as Giles set down the rifle and opened up a pack containing heavy iron manacles.  He shackled the vampire’s hands behind his back, then his ankles as well.  Then he attached some sort of device to the vamp’s elbows, cinching them up tightly behind his back, separating them with an iron bar so that they were restrained.  He then chained his knees together as well, effectively immobilizing Angelus’ arms and legs.

Xander looked on, confused, as the watcher picked up his rifle, slung it over his shoulder, and them began to drag Angelus by his feet, face down, across the parking lot to his car.  As he watched Giles stuff the comatose vampire into his little Citroën, he tried to figure out where the Watcher would be taking him.

He wasn’t sure what was going to happen next, but he knew he was very curious.  And, if Giles had some plans to get a little payback for Jenny, before makin’ with the dust bunnies, well Xander wanted front row seats.

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Part 3

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Willow was sitting next to Buffy’s bed, watching.  Watching her girlfriend’s tortured sleep, watching for her own personal nightmare, Angelus, to show.  She performed the ritual, hopefully it would work, because the backup plan was weak.  She looked down at the supersoaker in her lap.  Filled with holy water, it would definitely do some damage to a vampire, but this was Angelus- her own personal boogieman ever since he had held her, dangling, by the throat, threatening to kill her.  “God, if Buffy hadn’t shown up…” she thought.  She’d be dead.  Dead.  No more Willow.  She couldn’t really grasp the concept.  Sure, intellectually, it made sense.  She wouldn’t be… anywhere or anything.  She wouldn’t go to classes, wouldn’t be in the library researching the next big bad, wouldn’t be helping Buffy… with anything ever again.

So, it made sense when you thought about it, but she couldn’t really picture it.  Couldn’t imagine what it would be like to just not be there anymore.  She couldn’t grasp not being there for Buffy.  She couldn’t imagine Buffy without Willow .  More to the point, she never wanted to imagine Buffy without Willow . 

That, of course was the real fear she was having.  One doesn’t grow up with a psychiatrist for a mother and not learn to self analyze.  She was terrified that Buffy would leave her.  Either through death or just because she would realize she had chained herself to a pathetic loser and tell her to get lost.  She knew that wasn’t fair to Buffy.  She said she loved Willow , and when Willow questioned her, it was like saying she didn’t believe Buffy was being honest with her. 

That wasn’t the case at all.  She knew Buffy loved her.  She really did!  She just didn’t think she was worth it.  She knew that was because of a lot of reasons that weren’t really valid, but again with the ‘understanding mentally’ but not ‘accepting emotionally’ thing.  Didn’t make it any easier.

So, instead of focusing on why did Buffy love her- she’d think about why she loved Buffy.  A much happier subject!

Looking at the love of her life- laying there, pale, sweaty, dark circles under her eyes, that oh-so-attractive line of drool down the side of her mouth…

Willow paused in her observations to grab a Kleenex and wipe up the Buffydrool.

Willow looked at her fevered love, smoothed back the hair off of her brow, and remembered the first time she ever saw her.  She was walking up the steps outside their beloved Sunnydale high school.  Willow thought she was so pretty that it took her breath away.  She stood stock still, her eyes focused on this angel come down from heaven to grace their presence. 

Of course Xander managed to snap her out of it by taking that opportunity to run right into the stair railing- obviously as smitten as she, but not having the presence of mind to come to a standstill pre-smite.

She had never been truly jealous of Xander trying to hit on Buffy.  She knew Xander didn’t stand a chance with such a glorious being.  No she’d been more jealous of Buffy- not that she thought Buffy wanted Xander, but rather because she could so obviously have him on a whim if she ever did want him. 

Willow thought she would always have some lust for Xander.  Despite his goofy act, she knew he was a wonderful person.  He was kinda a hottie too, if he’d just loose the loud baggy clothes.  Anyway, she was supposed to be thinking about Buffy, not Xander.

She still couldn’t believe Buffy wanted her.  It was an amazing thought- that Buffy Summers wanted to touch her, feel her skin against her own.  That she wanted Willow ’s lips against her own... Willow was quickly coming to accept that fact.  She rarely had time to doubt it as Buffy took advantage of every opportunity to demonstrate.  And she didn’t have to suffer the ignominy of being relegated to closet kisses only, as poor Xander had had to do for so long with Cordelia.

No, Buffy thought nothing of walking up to Willow in front of Xander, Giles, or Cordelia and locking lips.  A brief hello kiss was expected anytime they met, anyplace except a classroom or crowded hallway.  Even that was only to cater to Willow ’s sense of propriety.  Buffy was clearly addicted to Willow kissage.  Willow didn’t really know why, “But who am I to second guess the ‘chosen one’?” she snickered.

Nor was Buffy always the initiator.  When there wasn’t an audience gathered, Willow was prone to unexpected assaults on the slayer’s mouth.  She chuckled as she remembered Monday, after school in the library- she had been standing over by the counter outside Giles office when Buffy got up from the table and walked over, put her hand on Willow ’s shoulder and asked if she was ready to go yet.  Willow turned to face her, put her hand up to cup Buffy’s cheek- something she loved to do, but then slid her fingers back into the hair on the back of Buffy’s head- grabbed a fist full of it and dragged her forward to meet Willow’s mouth in a searing kiss.  Willow stepped into the slayer, wanting full body contact and ended up walking her backwards until she was pressed up against the wall, Willow’s free hand running up and down her side, brushing up against the outside of her breast.

Of course the slayer retaliated, grabbing a double handful of Willow ’s ass and pressing her closer so that their jean-covered pelvises were rubbing into each other.  That, of course, was the moment Giles walked in.  From the midst of their passionate encounter they heard “ Willow , did you get a chance to Good Lord!”  When they guiltily broke apart, and turned, Buffy couldn’t restrain a giggle at the sight of Giles furiously cleaning his glasses.  Willow was mortified, but couldn’t help noticing… “Giles, are you blushing?” the imp-spirit that had evidently taken over her mouth for a moment asked.

“Yes, w- well, I- I would appreciate it if the t- two of you would save such behavior for more p- private surroundings!” he’d stuttered out

Both girls had said, “Sorry Giles.”  Willow thought she had at least made an effort to *sound* sincere, which was more than she would say for Buffy…

Her thoughts returned to the present and she looked at her watch, hoping Giles was ok, hoping that Angelus would just stay away until Buffy was ready to fight him.  If he did show, Willow was rooting for a successful crossbow shot.  It might seem anti-climactic, but she just wanted it over and done.

She clutched a little tighter on her squirt gun.  “I hope Giles is ok,” she whispered.

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Xander had run as fast as he could to Giles apartment, he figured that Giles would most likely go to either the library or his place, and- seeing as the school was a public environment, he’d have more privacy at his own place.

By the time he got there, Giles car was already parked and empty.  He ran to the building, and peered in the little window next to the door.

For the next hour, Xander stood in place, unmoving; his eyes riveted on the scene before him.

Giles had Angelus strung up, hanging from the ceiling in his living room.  He had attached a chain to each end of the bar separating his elbows, and had it strung up through a big eyebolt in one of the exposed beams of his ceiling.  He was pulled up high enough that he could just stand on the tips of his toes, and even then his arms were pulled high up behind him, placing incredible stress on his shoulders.  Giles had apparently cut off his clothes, as they were nowhere to be seen.  He was left wearing only a pair of black silk boxer shorts.

The vampire was still out of it, judging by the way that he was leaning against the chain, not paying attention to the pressure on his shoulders.  Xander noticed that there was a short chain between Angelus’ feet and another eyebolt fixed to the floor.  Xander was amazed that Giles had such a setup.  That particular fixture looked like it had been there a while, and he noticed that it was located where the couch normally sat.  There was another one several feet away.  Looking up, he saw a corresponding bolt in the ceiling.  Why hadn’t he ever noticed that before?

Giles was walking about with a jaunty step, arranging some things on the side table.  A large bowl, a plastic packet of some kind of sticks, a large bottle of water, what looked like a kitchen sponge, and a web-style belt.  He was actually whistling as he got set up for whatever he had in mind.

Giles opened the packet and Xander recognized the sticks as bamboo skewers- the type one used for shish kebabs.  He dumped the packet into the bowl, and poured the water over them.  He took the sponge, tossed it into of the water and picked up the belt as well.  Looping the belt and passing the end through the brass buckle, he stopped whistling and considered his prisoner for a moment. 

Giles spoke for the first time since Xander had started watching, and he could hear the watcher’s suppressed anger in the words as clearly as if he had been standing next to him. “I imagine you would love to chat while we do this, but I don’t think I really want to hear anything you have to say.”  With that, he looped the belt over Angelus head and left it hanging loosely around his neck.  He picked up the sponge, now dripping with water, and quickly stuffed it into the vampire’s mouth.  As he hastily snugged the belt down, and tightened it so that it forced the sponge deeper into Angelus mouth, Xander realized what was in the bowl- holy water.

The vampire came to, and began to thrash around as the water seared the inside of his mouth.  Xander saw water and blood seeping out around the belt as Angelus screamed into his makeshift gag.

Giles was standing behind him as he tightened the belt even further, prying his jaws apart and exposing his fangs.  Angelus had his gameface on as he thrashed his head around, trying to figure out where he was, and who was doing this to him.  His eyes narrowed as he realized where he was, and Xander thought he saw a brief look of fear pass over his face before he steeled himself for what was to come.

When the vampire’s movements had stilled, Giles walked back around in front of him, arms crossed and a look of pure, undiluted loathing on his face.  “I imagine you would like to take this opportunity to tell me how much you enjoyed the little ‘present’ you left for me last week.  I’m sure you’ve been in this position before in your long and illustrious un-life, and I have no doubt that you would love to turn the tables, torturing the torturer.  Well, sorry to disappoint…” he said, his voice dripping sarcasm. 

He turned his back on the vampire, showing his contempt.  As Giles had no doubt predicted, Angelus sought to strike out with his feet, ending up separating both his shoulders as he reached the end of the slack in his foot chain, and ended up yanking his body down against the chain attached to his elbow binding.  Giles smiled a little at the sound of jerking chain, followed by a muffled scream of agony.  He picked up a skewer out of the bowl of holy water and turned back to the undead monster.

“You see, I was quite smitten with Ms. Calendar.  I have no doubt that we were falling in love.  I don’t know what our future would have held- this being the Hellmouth and all- but I was looking forward to finding out.”  Giles paused his narration, and slid the wet skewer into his left pectoral muscle, the angle shallow enough that it came back out again where the muscle curved around to the side of his chest.  Xander could see the flesh redden and burn at the entrance wound, and the blood bubbling and smoking as the skewer came out the other side.  He actually winced at the grunt of pain forced from the trussed-up vampire.

Giles watched the wound smoke and sputter for a moment before speaking again.  “Her death, and the circumstances around it, naturally, struck me quite hard.”  He reached into the bowl for another skewer, saying, “As a result, I have what the Americans call ‘issues’ that I need to work through.”  Giles slid the second skewer through Angelus’ right pectoral muscle, apparently aiming for symmetry.  As the vampire jerked and grunted Giles explained, “That’s why you are here.  I don’t want apologies, or sympathy or even remorse from you.  I wouldn’t get it, and even if you offered it, it would be false.”

He skewered the vampire through the side of his abdomen, just the very tip coming out through his back.  “You are here to die painfully.  That is all I expect or want from you.  Your death- as painful as I can make it.”

Xander felt a cold shiver go down his spine.  Giles was being almost clinical, with no emotion in his voice as he continued his torture.  Xander began to feel slightly nauseous, yet he couldn’t turn away.

“I was going to make love to Jenny that night.  It was to be our first time together…” he said, grabbing yet another skewer and making a matching wound on the other side of his stomach.

Xander was starting to become mesmerized by the even tone of Giles voice, the slow and deliberate infliction of the wounds- seeming almost gentle as he slid each skewer home.

Giles turned his back to Xander and picked up something out of his line of sight.

“When I went upstairs and saw her laying in bed…” Giles said as he kneeled before the vampire.  “…My first thought was, ‘how beautiful she looks’…”

Xander wondered what Giles was doing, when suddenly his hand raised up high and Xander saw a small sledge hammer in his grip.  Both his eyes and Angelus’ widened suddenly at the unexpected sight.

“…It was just then that I saw that her neck had been broken.” He said as he brought down the hammer- the impact on the vampire’s left great toe coinciding exactly with the word ‘broken.’  The toe popped like a grape being smashed-the blood spraying for several feet, splashing over Giles hand and covering his front with little red droplets.

Angelus scream was quite audible, even through the gag, as he shuddered and jerked.

Giles looked up at the crying vampire and said, “Yes.  That’s exactly how *I* felt.  The pain was sharp and sudden, and it felt like all the air had been sucked out of the room.”  He again raised the hammer, watching until Angelus opened his eyes so he could see it coming again.  “It was masterful, actually;” he said as the hammer dropped onto the vampires right great toe.  “The note, the Champagne … the rose petals… the way you laid her out on the bed…”  He stood up and grabbed several skewers, punctuating his words with a quick thrust directly into the stomach.  “Each scene <stab> calculated to induce maximum <stab> suffering and torment <stab>.”

The extreme brutality of the hammer, after the coldness of the previous torture was too much for Xander.  He turned his head and vomited noisily onto the ground.  Only the cries and groans from Angelus kept Giles from hearing him as he retched his guts out into the shrubs framing Giles door.

“I have to admit…” Giles said as he considered his prisoner, now victim, once again for a moment.  “…the stories, the legends of your cruelty… they certainly weren’t exaggerated.”  Taking another handful of skewers, Giles rapidly stabbed them into his thighs, calves and even his knees- until the vampire could no longer stand, but was hanging cruelly by his dislocated shoulders.

Xander looked back up in time to see the Watcher grip the dangling vampire by his shoulders and push down.  Only the fact that he had already emptied the contents of his stomach kept him from retching at the tearing and popping sounds of the ligaments and tendons in Angelus’ shoulders and arms.

Finally Giles seemed to tire of his sport.  He went over to a leather bag and removed a big, fat hypodermic needle.  Xander gulped, seeing that.  “Great!” He thought.  “Now I’m gonna have nightmares of Doctor Giles coming to give me a shot!”  After a second he shook his head at the ridiculousness of that thought.  He just watched his father-figure horribly torture someone, and it was the sight of the needle that was gonna give him nightmares.  “How sad is my life?” he thought.

Gilles plunged the needle into Angelus heart, drawing a large sample of the vampire’s blood.  “Never know when this might come in handy,” he explained.  He emptied the sample into a small glass jar and went and put it into his freezer.

When he came back, Giles put the needle into the bowl of holy water and drew a large dose.  “And so, the reign of Angelus ends at last.” He said as he plunged the needle once again into the vampire’s heart.  “May you rot in hell for all eternity!” he whispered harshly, showing some emotion for the first time since this all started.  He depressed the plunger, emptying about five ounces of holy water directly into the vampire’s heart.  He quickly stepped back to watch the show.

Angelus began screaming again, his body violently jerking and spasming as the holy water began to eat away at his heart.  It took nearly a full minute before the damage to that organ was sufficient, and the Master Vampire Angelus collapsed in his bonds, then exploded into dust.

For a moment, Xander had a hard time accepting that it was over.  Finally- the vampire he had hated for so long was dead and gone- no more to trouble their lives.  He didn’t notice as Giles dropped heavily onto the couch, burying his face in his hands.  Xander was too preoccupied with his own conflicted feelings; joy that the bane of his existence was finally gone, and at the same time, he was highly disturbed by the behavior of the Scooby Gang’s paternal member.

His musings were interrupted by the sound of a painful sob.  He looked at Giles and saw him begin to shake.  Suddenly he took a deep breath and cried out the name of his fallen beloved.  His voice was raw with pain, as if he was experiencing all at once the emotions he had coldly talked about during the session with Angelus.

A lot of Xander’s horror was washed away as he saw the older man collapse onto his side, holding his stomach as he sobbed out the pain and agony he had been unable to completely let go of since her death.  Xander turned away, wanting to give the man some privacy.  He walked away from the building thinking that maybe now Giles would be able to start the healing process.

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Part 4

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Willow woke up feeling refreshed, even though she’d only slept about five hours.  Xander had come by the hospital just after midnight to tell her she could go home.  After, of course, she’d soaked him with holy water.  “It’s really his own fault!” she thought, still chuckling at the sight of her other best friend standing in the doorway, poised to say something, with water dripping all down the front of him, his hair and face soaked.  “He shoulda knocked!” she snickered.  “Oh! Plus, he owes me for scaring me half to death!” she thought, not snickering quite so much.

She’d been in a halfway state between wake and sleep, plus she was focused on her thoughts of Buffy- just getting in to a rather romantic fantasy when the door swung open and a figure walked in.  She immediately snatched up her supersoaker and let fly with a stream of holy water, arcing it up and down, seeking maximum saturation in hopes of driving the vampire away, rather than just making him cranky.  By the time she realized Xander, not Angelus, was standing there, she had already half-emptied the squirt gun.

The dirty look Xander gave her only added to the humor of the situation, and Willow had to fight to stifle her laughter.

He’d told her that Angelus was dust and she felt a wave of relief that was almost palpable.  Sure, there was still Spike and Drucilla to contend with, but they didn’t have the same kind of personal vendetta against Buffy that Angelus did.  She’d leaned over and kissed her sleeping girlfriend’s hot forehead and left with Xander.

Xander had been kinda quiet on the way home.  She’d made a few efforts to start a conversation, but his responses were all short.  When she asked what was wrong, he just gave her his sad smile- the one that meant he was trying to work through some issues.

“Do you want to talk about it?” she’d asked.

“Nah, it’s nothing big, I just need to think about some stuff.  It’s no big- promise,” he’d responded.

She looked at him seeking any sign of deception or deeper emotion.  Not finding any, she turned back to walking, saying, “Ok.  But you know if you need…”

Xander’s smile turned more genuine as he interjected, “Yeah, Will.  I know.  Thanks.”

When she got home, she’d been too keyed up to go right to sleep and decided to do Buffy’s homework for her as a ‘get well soon’ present.

Now she needed to get herself ready and over to Giles, as he was taking them all back to the hospital to visit.

As she showered, she tried not to think too much of how they would celebrate once Buffy had gotten well- she didn’t want to be late to Giles.

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Xander made sure he arrived early to Giles house.  He thought the watcher might still be passed out on the couch- and he didn’t want Willow or Cordelia to find any evidence of what happened here last night.  He wasn’t sure what he was going to say to the watcher about it, if anything.  He’d just wait and see how Giles handled it.

If he brought it up, though, Xander was going to suggest that perhaps they not tell the girls exactly what happened.

When he arrived, Giles was already up and having a cup of tea out on the front patio, reading the paper.

“Good morning Xander,” Giles said with a quite chipper voice.

Xander looked surprised, and said, “G-man… you seem strangely… ‘up’ this morning.”

Giles smiled, and completely ignoring the abuse of his name, said, “Yes, well, a good night’s rest and all…” he trailed off as he drank his tea, his smile firmly fixed on his face.

Xander waited a moment for him to elaborate.  When nothing more seemed forthcoming, he asked, “So, did the plan work?  Did Angelus show?”

Giles smile, if anything, got even wider.  “Yes.  Willow ’s plan worked quite nicely,” he said.

Xander again waited in vain for more information.  “Giles! Spill, is he vacuum food or what?”

Xander didn’t think his eyes could bug out any further, but then Giles giggled.  Giggled!  Giles!

Giles snickered and repeated Xander’s euphemism, “Vacuum food, <snicker> that’s funny!  Yes, Angelus is now ‘vacuum food.”  He looked at Xander, ignoring his slack jaw and wide eyes, “That’s quite clever.”

Xander was getting wigged.  Maybe even more so than last night.  “So… torture turns the Watcher into a giggling school-girl!” he thought with some concern. 

“It was all rather anti-climactic, I’m afraid,” Giles said, his humor dissipating as he explained.  “He came into the parking lot on his way to the hospital, I waited until he passed and shot him in the back.”

Xander was strangely reassured that Giles was still such a poor liar.  It made him seem less psychopathic, somehow.  “So, you dusted him in the parking lot at the hospital.” Xander said, more of a statement than a question, but Giles answered anyway.

“Y- yes that’s r- right,” he stuttered.

Xander decided this conversation could wait indefinitely.  “Too bad.  I wanted him to suffer first,” he said, giving his tacit approval for Giles actions.  He went on to say, “Hey, the girls aren’t due for a few- I’m going to run over to the flower shop and get something…”

Giles watched in silence as the young man walked briskly away.  He did feel somewhat guilty about not telling the group exactly how Angelus met his end, but he thought it better in the long run.  It might make for difficult working conditions if they knew exactly how ruthless he was capable of being.

He was feeling exceptionally fine this morning.  He had worked out his rage on the vampire, and his heartbreak afterward.  “All in all, it was quite the cathartic experience. 

His pain before last night was like an open wound- still bleeding with every breath he took.  While he would always miss Jenny Calander, now at least the wound was closed, and could begin to heal. 

Giles quietly hummed the refrain from Beethoven’s 9th symphony as he went back to his tea and paper, waiting for the others to arrive.

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Buffy Summers woke with a start, momentarily forgetting where she was, and not recognizing the room she was in.  A middle aged black woman walked into the room and Buffy thought she remembered her from last night.  Things were still a little hazy, but she realized she was in a hospital room- one of her least favorite places to be.

Dr. Wilkinson smiled at the blonde and said a cheery, “Good morning.”

Buffy moaned lightly and sat up stiffly, rubbing the crusties from her eyes.  She said, “Could've fooled me.”

The doctor asked, “How are you feeling? Looks like your fever's gone down.”

Buffy, in a sudden burst of energy tried to get out of the bed, saying, “Well, good! Thanks for having me. Let's try and keep in touch.”

The doc pushed her back down.  “Not so fast,” she said while inspecting Buffy's bandaged arm.  “Hmm…”

Buffy looked at her warily, asking, “Good 'hmm' or bad 'hmm'?”

The doctor furrowed her brow, muttering, “Swelling's... gone!”  She looked up with surprise at the slayer and asked, “Does this hurt?” giving Buffy’s arm a gentle squeeze

Buffy answered, “Nope.”

Wilkinson muttered, “Amazing,” as she picked up Buffy’s chart.

Buffy again tried to get out of bed, saying, “Well, then I should probably go, right?”

The doc stopped her again, “No. Soon.”  She explained, “We have to make sure that fever is gone. That's a strong virus you have. Maybe not as strong as you, but...”

Buffy, struck by a sudden thought asked, “I-is that the same virus the kids have?”

The doctor was saved from answering by a knock at the door, followed by Giles sticking his head in and asking, “May we come in?”

The doctor said, “Please!” and gestured for them to all come in.  “Maybe you can keep our patient from bolting,” she said plaintively.  She turned to Buffy and sternly said commanded “Rest! Hmm?” as she left the room.

Xander quickly presented the bed-ridden slayer with five balloons, saying, “Flowers for milady.”

Buffy looked up at them and said, “I think they call those balloons.”

Xander joked, “Yeah, stick 'em in water, maybe they'll grow.”

Willow grinned and said, “Not to be outdone...” as she set school books on the bed.

Buffy raised her eyebrows and said, “Homework!” in an obviously false-cheerful voice.  She looked up into the eyes of her love and added in a very whiny voice, “I thought you loved me, Will.”

Willow , smile firmly in place, said, “It's my way of saying, 'get well soon'”

Buffy responded, “You know, chocolate says that even better.”

Willow added, “I did all your assignments. All you have to do is sign your name.”  Her smile turned seductive as she lowered her voice and said, “This way, when you get better, you’ll have time for more… ‘enjoyable’ stuff…”

Buffy’s voice was slightly breathless as she said, “Chocolate means *nothing* to me!”

Willow gave Buffy her ‘delighted’ grin- the one showing all her teeth, and just the tip of her pink tongue between the front teeth.  After a moment she stepped back and glanced at Cordelia.

Cordelia said, “Nobody told me I was supposed to bring a gift.” She shot a look at Xander and Giles, adding, “I was out of the loop on gifts.”

Giles mumbled, “It's, it's tradition among, um... people. Um...”  He tentatively walked over to the bed and set down the bag he had been munching from.  “Grapes,” he stated.  “Well, did you, uh, pass the night well enough?” he asked.

At that moment nurse came into the room and walked around the bed.

Buffy started to respond, “Not really. Something happened I thought you...” she trailed off as the nurse checked her IV.

Buffy said, “You know what? Let's take a walk.”

========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ==========

Willow was pushing Buffy along in a wheelchair while the others walked alongside.

Buffy was curled up in the chair under a blanket.  “Now, this part I could get used to,” she said with a sigh.

Willow bent down and whispered in Buffy’s ear, “You look adorable, all curled up like that.”

Seeing Buffy’s blush Giles tried to move the conversation back to the matter at hand, “We were discussing, um, stuff?”

Buffy said, “Yes, stuff. Um, you know, a girl died here last night.”

Willow asked, “How?”

Buffy said, “Well, the flu.”

Xander quipped, “The Flu doesn't exactly sound monsterrific.”

Buffy said, “I know. But there's this Dr. Backer, and he's been giving them these experimental treatments.”

The mini-caravan of people stopped near a bench and Giles sat down.

Buffy continued, “I-I'm not sure what he's up to, but he's a little creepy. A-and then there was this kid, Ryan. He said he saw something.”

Giles frowned slightly and asked, “Saw what?”

Buffy said simply, “Death.”

Cordelia interjected “Death!?”

Willow had one hand stroking the slayer’s hair.  She suddenly stopped and asked, “*The* Death? As in, 'it is your time'?”

Giles stammered, “Buffy, a-a-a frightened child...”

Buffy, knowing the whole thing sounded kinda fishy said, “Yeah, but I thought I saw something. I'm not sure, I was really out of it, but...”

Cordelia was still fixated on the whole ‘death’ issue.  “But you do know that you saw death,” She interrupted.

Willow was picturing the scene in her head. “Did it have a scythe?”

Xander, ever the punster, asked, “Ooo, if he asks you to play chess, don't even do it. The guy's, like, a whiz.”

Buffy gave Xander a low-grade glare and turned back to Giles, “Maybe it wasn't death. Maybe it was something else.”

Cordelia, always sensitive to the feelings of others, asked, “So this isn't about you being afraid of hospitals 'cause your cousin died and you wanna conjure up a monster that you can fight so you can save everybody and not feel so helpless?”

Everyone stared at the cheerleader in shock and horror for a moment.  Giles took off his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose.  “Cordelia, have you actually ever heard of tact?”

Cordelia, immune to the looks of disapproval, said, “Tact is just not saying true stuff. I'll pass.”

Willow rubbed her hand gently on the slayer’s shoulder and said, with empathy, “Your mom did tell us about your cousin…”

Cordelia sat down in a huff next to Giles.

Buffy said, “This has nothing to do with that. This little boy Ryan is afraid of something, something real. As long as I'm forced to stay here, I'm gonna find out what.”

Xander, jumping on the chance to be helpful, said, “So, is this the part where we say, ‘what can we do to help?’”

Buffy said, “well, we need to see that little girl’s file?”

Xander, now a man with a mission, said, “Consider it done!”

Cordelia stood up and crossed her arms, giving Xander a look.

Xander, seeing his girlfriend’s glare, amended, “Uh, we’ll do it tonight, after we spend the day shopping… right, Cordy?”

Cordelia grabbed his arm and began to pull him away, “Oh you’d better believe we’re spending the day shopping…”

Xander Half turned to the others as he began walking away and gave an apologetic grin and wave, saying, “Uh, we’ll bring it by your place tonight, G-man!”

========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ==========

Xander stood in the hallway around the corner from the records room of the hospital, waiting for Cordelia to escape the evil clutches of the security guard who had interrupted their records search.  He snickered a little at the way she had him wrapped around her finger in less than two seconds.

His grin turned to a frown as he recalled her touching the bald-headed rent-a-cop.  He wasn’t exactly jealous of some random security officer- but he definitely felt a twinge of anger when he saw her hands on him, even as he acknowledged that she was saving his hide.

Unfortunately he was replaying that exact scene in his head as she walked around the corner and let out a surprised gasp when she run into him there.  “Could you make just a little more with the touchy-gropey?” he said in a not-pleasant voice

Cordelia merely smiled and arched one perfect eyebrow.  “Jealous?” she asked, her voice dripping with honey.

“Of Rogaine boy?” Xander laughed.  “I don't think so.”

Cordelia snipped, “And why are we here again?  Oh, right. Your obsession with helping Buffy. Have I told you how attractive that's not?”

Xander said, “Cordelia, someone's gotta watch her back.”

Cordelia archly said, “Yeah, well, I've seen you watch her back.”

As the clue flew just out of reach over Xander’s head, he asked, “What is that supposed to mean?”

Cordelia gave him one of her patented ‘what are you, and idiot?’ looks and said, “Well, I was using the phrase 'watch her back' as a euphemism for 'looking at her ass.' You know, sort of a pun.”

Xander said, “Oh! Right.”  Just then the clue descended, stricking him upside the head and he snapped, “Hey!”

Cordelia said “Well, you do.”  There was just the most minuscule little bit of hurt in her voice as she said it.

Xander almost quipped back “Jealous?” but at the last possible moment, his brain processed the emotional component of her last statement.  “I… Oh…” he trailed off.

Cordelia stood there in silence, awaiting the inevitable comeback, mentally preparing for another round of argument.

Xander stepped close to Cordelia, putting one arm around her- his hand low on her back, just above her own ass.  He looked right into her suddenly confused eyes, and said, “I don’t know if it’s any consolation… but I like ‘watching your back’ even more.”

Cordelia looked up into his eyes and read sincerity, and a little lust.  And, maybe, just maybe she saw a burgeoning love there.  Maybe it was a reflection of her own, as she had been finding herself sliding inexorably closer to that state herself.  She smirked up at him and pushed him away, snapping, “Well, let me clear it up for you… It isn’t.”  She then walked away from him down the hall toward the elevators.

Xander had seen the twinkle in her eye, and the grin at the corners of her mouth.  Now she was walking away from him with an ever so slightly exaggerated sway to her step.  He recognized it right off- he had, after all, been completely honest when he had told her that.  She had a great ass, and he spent much time watching it.

Xander hastened after her, not wanting to miss out on the elevator smoochies that were about to happen.  “Almost as good as a supply closet!” he thought as he jogged down the hall.

========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ==========

As Cordy drove them to the library, Xander watched his raven-haired girlfriend.  She was still slightly flushed from their impromptu make-out session in the elevator.  Fortunately, it was late enough that no-one else got on while they were busy.  Unfortunately, the ride was all too brief.  Xander used the folder he was carrying to hide the erection he was sporting. 

Cordelia had smirked at him as he hid the evidence of his arousal.  That was nothing new, she always did that.  What was new was that she licked her lips as she looked down at it.

He didn’t know if she did it deliberately, or not- but he went from about eighty percent erect to one-hundred and ten percent-  ‘Yes Sir, Ready for Action, Sir!’ in a heartbeat.  It took him the entire walk to the car thinking about Giles and Angel making out to get the hard-on to subside.

Xander was enjoying the time he spent with Cordelia more and more these days.  Even their ‘bataan death march’ shopping trip today was better than he had feared.  He still wasn’t an eager shopper, but… watching Cordelia try on clothes, making fun of clothes that wouldn’t look good on anyone- and of course making fun of the people who bought and wore such clothes anyway- as well as just talking… it had been nice.

He’d even let her pick out a couple of outfits for him, stuff he wouldn’t normally have chosen, but seeing the look on her face when he wore them for her, well there was something about watching Cordy lick her lips…

One thing that amazed him was that- away from their friends, and especially away from her friends, Cordy wasn’t quite so aggressively shallow.  Occasionally the subject went from clothes, fashions, and entertainment; to life stuff.  They talked about Buffy and Willow’s new relationship, about Giles and Ms. Calendar, about Angelus and Ms. Calendar, about Buffy and Angel… just the stuff in their lives.  And, the cheerleader had actually showed some compassion- especially for Giles and his loss.

Of course, they traded barbs like always, but there was none of the serious ones- just the fun and playful- foreplayful- ones.

After Cordelia noticed Xander was staring at her, she shot him a glance and asked “What!? Is there something on my face? Is my hair messed up?”  She began to try and check herself out in the rearview mirror.

Xander laid his hand on her thigh, stilling her frantic movements.  “Nothing’s wrong, Cordy,” he tried to assure her.

Cordelia gave him a glare for scaring her like that.  “What’s your problem then?” she snapped.

Normally Xander would have been unable to resist such an attack and would have snapped back.  Tonight, however, for some reason he was in a very laid-back, and strangely honest, mood.  “When’s the last time I told you how beautiful you are?”  Even as he asked, he knew he’d never actually told her; not in so many words, anyway.

Cordelia stared at him for a second, as if trying to gauge his sincerity.  “Xander… I…”

Xander interrupted, pointing at the turn into the school parking lot.  “We’re here Cordy,” he said.

Cordelia just barely made the turn.  When she stopped the car and put it in park she was flustered and confused.  Xander had never spoken like this to her, and she didn’t know what to think.

Xander grinned slightly at having reduced his girlfriend to stunned silence.  A state she rarely inhabited.  He waited until she looked back at him, and said, “Lets take this in to Giles and Willow , and then find someplace quiet.”

His last words as they exited the car both excited and frightened her.

“We need to talk…”

========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ==========

Part 5

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Willow and Giles walked into the library, talking. 

Willow asked, “So, where do we start?”

Giles sounded distracted as he responded, “Hmm? Oh, I don't know. Maybe look into the history of the hospital, bizarre incidents, that sort of thing.”

Willow stopped and looked at the watcher for a moment, “I'm sensing a little less than full committal here.”

Giles stopped walking over by the counter and leaned against it.  “Oh, I-I suppose so. Cordelia may be…” he pondered on the most appropriate adjective.  “…homerically insensitive, but she may also be right.”

Willow looked skeptical.

Giles defended his, unusual for him, position.  “Death and disease are, are things, possibly the *only* things that, that Buffy cannot fight,” he explained.  “It's only natural for her to try to create a-a defeatable opponent. Especially now, after recent events…”

Willow gave Giles a sad smile, thinking of Jenny, as she thought he must be.  She knew her girlfriend was anything but infallible, but she also considered where they were.  “That's true,” she acknowledged.  “But, on the 'we live on the Hellmouth' side, these kids may have seen a monster.

Giles tipped his head in acknowledgement, and began to walk back to the stacks.  “What, a monster that grown-ups can't see? Doesn't ring a bell.”  He suddenly stopped, as an idea came to him, “Unless...”

Willow jumped up to sit on the table.  “Unless?” she asked

Giles walked back toward her, explaining, “Well, sometimes small children *do* see something we adults don't… Us.  Our true selves, our- our... our hidden faces.”

Willow ’s brow crinkled in thought, “So the kids might be afraid of a regular person?” she asked slowly.  Realization dawned on her and her face lit up, “Like the weird doctor!”

Giles agreed, “Stanley Backer was his name, no?”

Willow jumped down from the table and went to her backpack.  “Let's look him up,” she said as she grabbed her laptop.

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It only took Willow a couple of minutes to set up and start surfing for information on her laptop.

During that time Giles stood back and watched her, thinking about her and Buffy’s new relationship.  It was quite amazing how, in such a brief time- only a matter of a few days really- Willow had changed so much.  Oh, she was still Willow- the brilliant, funny, somewhat shy girl she had been, though her shyness was dissipating at a rapid rate as her self-confidence grew.  Now, though, there was an allure… a sexiness that was new.  Giles had always thought Willow was a very pretty girl, but now…  He felt somewhat embarrassed to find that he was attracted to the lovely redhead.  Nothing to worry about, he didn’t fancy himself to be in love with her or any such nonsense- but now when he looked at her, he didn’t see a young girl, he saw a desirable woman. 

Giles was not yet entirely comfortable with the concept that this desirable woman was in love with the girl he thought of as his daughter- Buffy.  He realized that he was somewhat stuffy when it came to sexuality; frankly it was probably a reaction to- an overcompensation for- his hedonistic youth.  Giles certainly didn’t condemn the two girls for their relationship, he genuinely wanted the best for his surrogate daughter and the girl he sometimes fancied as his protégé.

He just wasn’t completely at ease about it… yet.

Willow suddenly said, “Got it!” startling Giles out of his reverie.

He went and stood behind her looking over her shoulder as she brought up Dr. Backer's medical database file comes up on the screen.  “Our Dr. Backer has something of a rap sheet,” he observed.

Willow began to read off some of the low points.  “Reprimands for controversial experiments, risky procedures, a malpractice suit. Looks like it was dropped suddenly.”

Giles took off his glasses and said, “Factor in Buffy's observation that he gives her the, um, uh, wiggins...” He turned away to think.

Willow looked up over her shoulder at him, asking, “This may be our death guy?”

Giles turned back towards her and said, “I just wish I knew what he was doing to these children.

It was that moment that Xander and Cordelia walked in with the little girl’s file.

========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ==========

Giles and Willow were avidly scanning the file while Xander sat, impatiently waiting for Cordelia to get back from the restroom.  He was nervous.  He was planning on telling her his feelings for her.  Honest discussion of his feelings, was something he had never really done before.  Frankly it scared the hell out of him.  But, he had decided that Cordelia was worth trying for a real relationship.  He thought they were ready to move to the next level- being in love.

God! Just the word, or the thought of the word, was frightening.  He was going to try and tell Cordelia Chase, Queen C, most popular girl in school- known to some as the biggest bitch in the school- that he was falling in love with her. 

Xander was startled when he felt a hand on his shoulder.  He looked up and saw Willow looking down at him, confusion clearly written on her face.

Willow had noticed that Xander seemed to be working himself into a state.  She excused herself from Giles for a moment and walked over to her best friend, putting her hand on his shoulder.

“Jeez, Xander, you’re awfully jumpy…” she said, trying to incite an explanation.

Xander laughed nervously, “Jumpy?  Me?”

Willow gave him a ‘don’t try to fool me, mister’ look and said, “What’s wrong?”

Xander knew he didn’t stand a chance at fooling Willow .  She always could read him like a book.  “I just… I’m… Cordy and me…” he stuttered.  He knew she was going to be upset with him, but he also knew she would support him.  “God, relationships suck!” he thought uncharitably.  That was unfair, he knew.  But he wished they could be simpler at least.

Willow considered her friend for a minute.  Either he was breaking up with Cordelia… she felt slightly guilty at the hopefulness of that thought. Or…

“You’re in love with Cordelia?” she squeaked, shocked at the idea.  Teen lust she understood, but love?  How unfair was that; that she should feel hurt by this, especially when she was in love herself, and- in love with the girl Xander had wanted since the day they met.

Xander saw the hurt, confusion, and guilt in his friend’s eyes and stood up, taking her in his arms.  “I know, I know.  It’s weird,” he said.  “I’ve been thinking a lot.  I wanted to make sure it wasn’t because of you and Buffy… but yes- I’m falling in love with Cordelia Chase.”  He pulled back and looked down into her eyes.  He gave her one of his lopsided smiles and asked, “Think you’ll ever forgive me?”

Willow laughed at that.  Only Xander Harris would ask her to forgive him for falling in love.  She sobered and said, “You really think…”

Xander interrupted her.  “You guys don’t see her like I do.  You don’t see what she’s like when she drops the bitch act.  She’s…” he trailed off, lost in thought for a moment.  “Yeah, I’m sure, Will.”

Willow saw his certainty in his eyes.  It was something she hadn’t really noticed before, but it seemed like Xander was maybe a little more mature now than he had been only a little while ago.  Like he was making some mature decisions, rather than just reacting- badly- to things that happened.

“Be happy for me?” Xander asked, just a little hopeful apprehension peeking through.

Willow chastised herself for her selfishness.  Xander deserved happiness too.  He accepted and supported her relationship with Buffy- despite the pain it must cause him.  She owed him the same.  Putting on a- mostly- genuine smile, she said, “Of course I’m happy for you Xander.  You’re my best friend- and if Cordelia makes you happy, then you have to go for it.”

“Even if you don’t understand it,” Xander said, finishing what he imagined was her unspoken thought.

Willow chuckled again, “Even then.”

Xander pulled her into a hug once again, whispering, “Thanks, Will.  You’re the best!”

She broke away, teasing, “Sure, *now* you realize that…”

Xander would have responded, but Cordelia walked through the door at that moment and cleared her throat upon seeing him and Willow in a loose hug.

Xander stepped away from Willow and walked over to his girlfriend, who was giving him a slightly icy look- one hand on her hip.  He took her hand and laced his fingers with hers, saying, “Come on Queen C, let’s get outta here.”

Cordy gave a slightly disapproving “Hrmph,” but allowed herself to be led out.

========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ==========

“Where do you want to go?” Cordelia asked, still a bit stiff after seeing Xander and Willow holding each other like that.  It wasn’t so much that she thought they would be actually doing anything, as it was the easy comfort those two shared.  She was actually jealous.  Not that she’d ever tell Xander that.  She hated the fact that she was falling for Xander Harris, king of losers.  But, despite the fact that she hated it, it was still happening.

“Someplace quiet… I- I didn’t have anyplace specific in mind.  We could go to my house, I guess.  The parents are probably passed out by now,” he said, the bitterness clear in his voice.

They never really talked about it.  She knew his parents were alcoholics, and she got the impression that Xander’s home life was… unpleasant, but he never gave her any specifics.  She softened her attitude a little bit, and offered, “We can go to my house.  Mom and Dad are in LA for the week- some charity event or other.”

“Ok,” Xander said.  The rest of the ride was made in silence; each wrapped up in their own thoughts.

========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ==========

Xander turned down Cordelia’s offer of something to drink.  He led her by the hand into the plushly appointed living room and sat them down on the couch, facing one another.  He didn’t relinquish her hand as he began to speak.

“You remember that night when the werewolf attacked us in your car?” Xander asked.

Still having no idea where any of this was going, Cordy said, “Uh, you mean one more night where I almost died since I started hanging out with the ‘Scooby Gang?’  How could I forget it?”

Xander ignored the gibe; “You accused me of caring more about Buffy and Willow than I did you; of spending my time thinking of them, when I should have been focused on you.” Xander was having a hard time meeting her gaze.  “You were right,” he admitted.

Cordelia failed to strangle a little gasp.  “Oh my God!  He’s going to break up with me?” she asked herself incredulously.  She pulled her hand away from his and back into her own lap.  “This can’t be happening!  I thought we were…” his next words interrupted her line of thought.

Xander had his hands clasped in his lap, his fingertips turning white as he wrung them together.  “I’ve spent too much time thinking about Buffy, when I was with you.  I owe you an apology for that, Cordy.  It was unfair to you, and really to us both.  I- I…” Xander finally stiffened his backbone and looked up into her eyes, which were wide and shiny.  “She’s shocked that I’m apologizing?” he wondered.  He continued on, “I want to make it up to you… kinda… well, not really starting over or anything, but like, maybe…” he trailed off, frustrated that he couldn’t find the words to express his feelings. 

Ok, now she was seriously confused.  “Doesn’t exactly sound like a breakup…” she thought.

He tried a different tack- “Look, I’m not saying this very well, so I’m just gonna say it: I’m falling in love with you.  Hard.  I- I miss you when you’re not around.  I even miss arguing with you over stupid things.  I… you make me happy when you walk into the room… and when you smile at me- really smile… I kinda wish I could freeze time and just stop right there.”  He reached up to cup her cheek, saying “You’re so damned beautiful when you smile.” 

“Oh my God!” she thought again, her face breaking out into one of the smiles he was talking about.

He noticed his hand was shaking as he touched her skin.  “And, it terrifies me,” he continued, “To feel like this, to say this to you…  I thought about it, and I think you might be falling for me, too.  But there’s a little voice in the back of my mind that has been screaming at me not to say anything, not to risk it.”

Cordy managed to choke out one word from her suddenly dry mouth, “Why?”

Xander smiled, his eyes shiny with tears as he said, “In my dreams, you tell me that you love me too.  In my nightmares you… laugh as you…” he had to pause and swallow as he felt like his heart was trying to climb out his throat.  “…as you stomp my heart under your foot like a grape.”

Cordelia could clearly hear the aching tenderness in his voice- she could see the hint of fear showing through his unshed tears.  She was too choked up to speak herself.  She got up and stood before him, pushing him back into the couch.  She straddled his lap, one knee on either side of his hips.  She pressed her body up against his and whispered, “You are *so* going to get lucky tonight!”  She immediately began to kiss him with all the unrestrained passion she could muster.

After she had kissed him breathless, she sat back upright and started to untuck her shirt.  Xander’s eyes dilated in lust.  It took a great deal of effort for him to reach out and grab he arms, stopping her.  His voice was hoarse as he said, “Cordy, I didn’t tell you I love you to make you sleep with me…”

She smiled another of her thousand-watt smiles, her feelings heightening even further at his restraint.  Especially when she could feel his denim-covered excitement pressing into her now wet center.  She ground against him a little as she said, “Xander, this isn’t because you said you love me.  This is because I love you too.”

“Oh God!” Xander squeaked when he felt Cordelia rub herself against his erection.  His mind was on the edge of a cliff.  One more step and he thought would utterly give way to instinct and emotion.  There was only one more hurdle before he gleefully threw himself into that chasm.  He had yet to let go of her arms as he choked out, “Protection! I- I don’t… I didn’t…”

Cordelia smiled.  Under the circumstances, Xander was being quite the gentleman.  Most guys would have thrown her on the ground and screwed her brains out the moment she straddled their lap.  “Must really be love,” she thought with a giggle.

Xander’s eyes widened even further when Cordelia giggled; she leaned in and he heard her seductive whisper in his ear, “Xander, I went on the pill a month ago.”  The thought that she had, as much as a month ago, started planning on having sex with him incited him wildly.  His mind kicked down the last barrier and thew itself into the abyss. 

Cordelia was shocked when she heard Xander’s almost feral growl.  She laughed in excitement when he grabbed her ass and stood up, keeping her up against his body.  She wrapped her legs around him, hooking her ankles in the small of his back and her arms around his neck as he carried her out of the living room and made his way through the house to her bedroom.

Xander made it to her bedroom, despite the distraction of her sucking on his neck the whole way.  When he got into the room, he slammed her into the wall- not hard enough to hurt, but just enough to heighten the sense of danger and loss of control. 

Cordelia gasped as she was pressed against the wall.  She felt wild and uninhibited as Xander attacked her mouth with a searing kiss while rubbing himself against her in a simulation of the act they were about to engage in. 

Her sex felt swollen and heavy with hot moisture as she felt the friction of their jeans against their most private parts.  She broke off the kiss, panting, “Need… skin…”  She moaned as he began assaulting her neck with lips and tongue.  She started clawing at his shirt, trying to get it down over his shoulders while trying to pull the t-shirt up and off at the same time.

Xander must have gotten the hint at last because he pulled her away from the wall and went over to the bed.  He threw her back on the bed and grabbed at his t-shirt, yanking it and his shirt over his head at once.  He toed off his shoes and tore at the fly of his jeans.

Once he had them open, he pulled them and his boxers off at the same time.  While he was bent over, he tore his socks off as well. 

Cordelia was breathing hard as she watched her soon to be lover frantically undressing.  When he stood back up before her- his smooth, broad chest heaving, she couldn’t help but ogle him for a moment.  When her eyes made it down to his flat stomach she saw the trail of hair below his navel and followed it down to, “Ye Gods!” she thought.  Though it was the first she had ever seen one ‘in the flesh’ as it were, Cordelia had sneaked a peek at her mother’s Playgirl magazines a time or two.  Xander wasn’t the largest she had ever seen, but he looked awfully big, with it sticking straight out from his body like it was pointing right at what it wanted- her.

Xander grinned when Cordy started staring at his erect cock.  His amusement changed to hot, dripping lust when she licked her lips.  He groaned out loud, “Cordy!”

Hearing her name groaned out like that pushed Cordelia’s already overwhelming excitement right into the red zone.  She looked up at Xander’s wild eyes and gave a little moan herself when he said in a commanding tone, “Cordelia, take off your clothes.”

Xander was frozen to the spot as he watched Cordelia scramble to get naked.  Shoes went flying in random directions as did her blouse and pants.  He let out an unrestrained moan of arousal when she freed her generous breasts from their black lace confinement.  She slid her panties off her legs and laid back before him completely unclothed.  “You… are *so* unbelievably hot, Cordy,” he breathed out.

Cordelia whimpered.  She drew her knees up and let them fall out to her sides, opening herself completely to him.  “Xander, I need you. In me. Now!”

Xander didn’t need to be asked twice.  He quickly crawled until he was face to face with her.  He reached down and grabbed his cock, rubbing the head up across her wet slit, inciting a moan from both of them.  This was his first time, but he had done plenty of research to be ready for this day, not knowing when it might come, but wanting to live by the Boy Scout motto: Be Prepared!  His research had given him a basic lay of the land, and an understanding of the task before him.

“God! Cordy you’re so wet!” he said with a groan.

His groan was echoed as he dragged across her clit.  “Xander!” she whimpered urgently.  “Please!”

Xander lined himself up and slowly eased into Cordy’s tight heat.  “Ooohhhhh Goooodddd” Xander moaned out as he sank into her. 

Cordelia cried out in sheer pleasure, “Xaaannnnnddeerrrrrrrr!” as he bottomed out.  “Don’t move for a second,” she breathed out sharply.

Xander was instantly concerned, “You ok?” he asked.

Cordelia gave him a sultry smile, “Oh yeahhh.  Just need to adjust a bit.”  Instinctively knowing that any guy would take it as a complement, she smirked at him, adding, “You’re kinda big.”

Xander smiled at the complement.  He adjusted himself, putting his forearms under her shoulders, carrying his weight on his elbows he pressed the length of his torso against hers, feeling the delightful sensation of her big breasts squishing against his chest, her long, hard nipples poking into him.  He leaned down and kissed her for a moment.  He asked, “I didn’t…”

She looked at him strangely.

“It didn’t… hurt?”

Cordelia realized what he was asking.  “Oh, no.  Cheerleader, remember?  High kicks, splits…”

He got it.  “Oh… good!”  He looked into her eyes and said, in all seriousness, “I love you, Cordelia.”

Cordelia had tears of happiness in her eyes as she said, “I love you too.”  She wiggled her hips a bit, letting him know she was ready for him to move.

Xander got the message.  He slowly withdrew from Cordy’s heat, causing them both to suck in a breath at the beautiful sensation.  Xander began to move within his love, long deliberate strokes.  They were both extremely excited, buzzing on the brand new love they had revealed for each other, not to mention the incredible feeling of being inside and around each other for the first time.

It was completely indescribable, the awe-inspiring feeling of giving this gift to each other, their first loves.  How rare and precious was that?  Both still virgins both physically and emotionally. 

Cordelia clutched him to her, wanting maximum contact as he moved inside of her.  She couldn’t believe how good he felt inside of her, stretchy and burning, but feeling oh, so wonderful as his swollen glans slid along her tunnel walls.  The hair surrounding the base of his fat cock rubbed against her swollen clit as he bottomed out with each stroke.  She felt her hips reflexively pushing up to meet his downward thrusts, the impact creating a slapping sound as their bodies met with each stroke. 

Xander kissed her as he moved, kissing her lips, her face her neck, latching onto her pulse point and sucking hard. She ran her hands up and down his back, reaching down to grab his ass and spur him on.

It was soon too much for Cordelia to stand and she came upon that one perfect moment, where she felt loved throughout her whole body and spirit at once.  It wasn’t her first orgasm, but it was her first orgasm brought about by someone other than herself.  The difference was incredible.  She felt like she was sinking into warm water on a cold day.  Waves of pleasure rippled through her body again and again as Xander continued to move inside her slick heat.  She cried out his name, not screaming but more like a loud victory cry.

Xander felt himself slipping away as Cordelia’s tight sheath squeezed and pulsated around his hard length.  He came hoarsely shouting his lover’s name and it felt like his soul was pouring out of his body into his beloved.  He could never have dreamed how much better this was when it was shared with another, specifically with the woman he loved.  To put it in Xander-terms it was like comparing Prime rib from Ruth’s Chris with Salisbury steak at the high school cafeteria.  One was almost edible, the other was almost a religious experience.

He rested his forehead against Cordelia’s and said, “I just found my new favorite place in the whole world to be.”  Locking her eyes with his he whispered, “Inside you.”

Cordelia couldn’t help a delighted laugh, “That’s the corniest thing I’ve ever heard, Xander.”

He laughed along with her, realizing it did sound like a bad romance novel.  Not that he’d ever read one of those. No sir!  He’d heard rumors, that’s all. 

“Yeah, well.  It’s still true,” he said with a smile.

Cordelia arched her brow and teasingly said, “Oh yeah?  Think you can do it again?”

Xander was surprised, but quickly smiled and said, “Give me a couple minutes and I’ll see what I can do!”

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Part 6

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Giles was sitting in the chair at his desk.  He was waiting for Willow to arrive so they could go see Buffy and tell her what they had discovered the previous night.  Apparently Cordelia and Xander were going to meet them there.

He had been sitting there, stirring the same cup of now cold tea for well over an hour.  He had finally just gotten up out of bed that morning, still tired from a restless night, but unable to sleep.  Over and over again he had been replaying his final conversation with Willow the night before.

He had driven her to her house from the library.  As she was about to exit the car, she turned to him and said, “Giles.  I- I just wanted to thank you…”

Giles, surprised, and sensing that she wasn’t thanking him for the ride, asked, “For what?”

Willow took his right hand in both of hers and gave him a grateful squeeze.  “For Angelus,” she answered.  Looking down at their joined hands, she added, “I know Buffy could have taken him eventually, but…  It still would have hurt her… to see his face and to remember who he used to be.”

Giles ducked his head, not used to accepting praise, and somewhat chagrined that he couldn’t share the details of what actually happened.

Willow went on, “When Xander came to the hospital and told me last night that you’d got him, I was *so* relieved!”

Willow gushed on for a few moments, but Giles hadn’t the faintest idea what she’d said.  The moment the words ‘told me last night’ were spoken Giles froze up.  He hadn’t told any of them until Xander… *that morning!*  “How could he have known?” his mind shouted.

After a moment he had managed to offer a strained, “yes, well… I’m just glad that it’s over.  Good night, and I’ll see you bright and early, yes?”

Willow looked at him strangely, as if sensing his discomfort, but answered with her usual cheerfulness, “Ok, Goodnight Giles.”

‘How did Xander know?’  ‘What had Xander seen?’  Those two questions haunted him all night long.  Xander hadn’t said anything unusual yesterday morning, but upon reviewing their brief conversation, he could see where the young man had been careful in his questioning, as if trying to find out if Giles would tell him what really happened- he hadn’t - or lie to him- which he had essentially done.  A lie of omission is still, after all, a lie.

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Buffy was looking at the picture one of the kids had drawn for her.  “Death,” she whispered, giving it the name the kids had used.  She looked up as Giles stuck his head in the doorway and knocked.  She waved him in with a grin that  became a full fledged smile when Willow came through the door. 

Willow couldn’t keep the teeth-baring grin off of her face when she saw Buffy smile at her.  She rushed over and kissed her on the forehead- not the satisfying kiss they both wanted, but under the circumstances…

“Hey, baby,” Willow said quietly, her eyes shimmering with love.

Buffy’s smile showed all her warmth and love for Willow .  “Morning, Love.”

Buffy’s endearment caused Willow to smile even more broadly.

Giles cleared his throat, reminding the girls that they weren’t alone.

Buffy blushed only slightly.  “Hey guys, what’s the what?” she asked.

Giles said, “Uh, well, it looks as if you, uh, were on to something.”

Buffy said, “I know.”

Giles didn’t catch the significance of Buffy’s comment, but Willow saw something, furrowing her brow at her girlfriend as Giles continued, “The, uh, the, the girl Tina, um, it's apparent that she, she died of the fever,” he said as he sat down.  “simple enough, but, but her records show her improving and then suddenly deteriorating w- w- w- without any apparent cause.”

Willow still hadn’t figured out Buffy’s hidden meaning.  She looked at her eyes as she said, “We checked Dr. Backer out. This guy was *not* a solid citizen.”

Buffy just looked up at her girlfriend and said, “It wasn't Backer. He was clean.”

Cordelia spoke up for the first time, asking, “What do you mean 'clean'?”

Xander, catching the other part of Buffy’s comment, asked, “What do you mean 'was'?”

Buffy’s eyes lost some of their blankness as the sadness she tried to hide showed through.  Willow grabbed Buffy’s free hand, not yet understanding, but having an innate need to comfort her love. 

Buffy said, “He's dead. This thing killed him, and not with kindness.”  She grimaced a little at her bad pun as she handed Giles the picture Ryan had drawn for her.

Willow was concerned and asked, “You saw it?”

Buffy answered, “No, it's invisible. I saw Backer nearly shredded and the thing knocked me down. But it's real. Which means I get to fight it.”

Giles was still looking at the rough drawing.  He took off his glasses and hesitantly said, “this is your work?” gesturing toward her with the picture.

Buffy glared at him for a moment, as if offended.  No, one of the kids.”

Giles seemed slightly relieved, “Oh. Um... Well, it would help if-if we knew what it was.”  He sighed.  “I-it's invisible to you, but the, the children can see it.”

Cordelia interjected, “But you said you did see something the other night.

Buffy said, “Uh, yeah, but I was pretty delirious. I mean, it doesn't make any sense. Why would I see it then and not last night?”

Just then the door opened and Buffy’s mom came in.  “Good morning.” She smiled brightly at everyone except Giles.  Her smile dimmed a little as she looked at him.

Giles put his glasses back on and looked away from her.

Joyce put down the bag she brought in with her.  Taking in the sudden silence, she said, “Ooo, looks like I interrupted a secret meeting.”

Everyone chuckled weakly, still unused to Buffy’s mom knowing about Scooby stuff.

Joyce’s smile dimmed as she realized that she had indeed interrupted something.  Something to do with slaying, apparently.  She forced her smile back in place and looked at Buffy, saying, “Honey, I, I just talked to the doctor, and she said I can take you home.”

Buffy considered for a moment and then said, “No. I need to stay here.”

Joyce was confused. “But, Honey, I thought you'd be raring...” she started.

Buffy looked directly into her mother’s eyes and said, “Mom.  There’s something bad happening here.  In the hospital.  Something I need to take care of, ok?”  Her eyes were pleading with her mother to understand and not ask a lot of questions.  Of course, wishing for it didn’t make it happen.

“I don’t understand, Honey.” Joyce said, bewildered.  “Are there vampire’s in the hospital?”

“Worse…” Buffy whispered.

Joyce wanted more.  She dreaded more.  “Okay, well, I'll, uh, I'll talk to the doctor,” she said.

Buffy added, “Uh, just for a day… or s-so.”

Joyce didn’t turn all the way toward Buffy.  Her gaze settled on Giles and she glared at him.  Finally, she just nodded and hurried out.  She hated this.

Cordelia closed the door behind her.

Willow watched as Buffy’s mom left.  She’d caught the glare.  “I think she blames Giles for Buffy being the slayer,” she thought.

Xander wrapped his arm around Cordelia’s shoulders as she stepped back to his side.  Rather than protest, Cordelia sipped an arm around his waist and pulled herself closer to him.

Both Buffy and Willow ’s eyes widened at the public display of affection, the first they had ever seen those two engage in.  Willow thought she might know what led to this.  She tried not to feel jealous at the thought that Xander might have slept with her.  It wasn’t easy.  If not for her certainty that Buffy loved her, she might have taken this knowledge really hard.

Cordelia saw the surprise on Buffy’s and especially Willow ’s face.  She knew it wasn’t really fair, but a small part of her wanted to dance around and yell “Ha! I got him you didn’t!!”  She had felt threatened by both girls’ relationships with Xander.  She knew they had never really tried to interfere, but she’d felt threatened anyway.  Now, things were different.  She didn’t need to guard her heart quite so strongly; therefore she could be comfortable touching in public.

Utterly oblivious to the subtext floating around the room, Xander asked, “So what's the drill?”

Buffy shook her head, she’d wonder about the whole Cordy/Xander deal later.  Now it was time to focus on slayage.  “Giles, see if you can get a mug shot on that guy. I need to know what I'm fighting.”

Always happier to have something specific to do, Giles rose and walked around the bed, saying “Right, yes.”

Buffy went on, “I'll check Backer's office. See if I can find any post-its marked 'why a monster might want me dead'.”

Xander said, “Sounds like a plan.”

She added, “Course, if I find anything, I won't know what it means, so, Will...”

Willow , who would probably never be entirely self confident, jumped all over the opportunity to help.  “Oh, yeah, I'm good at medical stuff.  Xander and I used to play doctor all the time!”

Both Cordelia and Buffy slowly turned their less than friendly expressions onto Xander.

Feeling the gaze of two unhappy women land heavily upon him, Xander chuckled weakly.  Looking at the slayer he said, “No, she's being literal.”  Turning to his girlfriend he continued, “She used to have all these medical volumes, uh, and diagnosed me with stuff.”  Now frantically looking between the two, not sure which would hurt him worse, he pleaded with his eyes for them to believe him.  “I didn't have the heart to tell her she was playing it *wrong*.”

Willow was all innocence and naiveté as she looked at Xander, saying, “Wrong? Why?”  spinning toward Buffy she said, “How did *you* play doctor?”

Buffy blushed lightly and said, “Uh, I never have?”

Cordelia raised her eyebrows disbelievingly at Buffy and cleared her throat.

Giles picked up on the hint, “Um, fascinating though this is...”

Jumping on the distraction, Buffy said, “Yeah, right. Go!”

Giles said “W-w-we'll call you if we... know something,” as he started out, with Cordelia and Xander close behind.

Buffy’s eyes never left her curious girlfriend’s as she said, “Know something soon.”

========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ==========

Out in the hall, Giles, Xander and Cordelia started walking toward the waiting room.

Giles said, “I'd best head for the library. Research beckons.”

Xander said, “Yeah, research- we’re all over it,” he said gesturing to Cordy and himself.  “First though, I’ve got to get some breakfast.  For some reason I’m even more hungry than usual this morning.”  He hadn’t meant it as a tease to Cordelia, but she blushed anyway.  “You want to come with us, G-man?”

They came to a stop outside the waiting room, and Giles said “Don’t call me that,” his voice even and offhand- as though protesting out of habit only.  The truth was, he was still a bit nervous in Xander’s presence- not sure what the young man might have seen.  “As to breakfast- No, I think I’d like to get back to the library.”

Cordelia was relieved- she wanted more alone time with Xander.  “Ok,” she said brightly, taking Xander’s hand and starting to drag him off.

Xander frowned a little at Giles reluctance to meet his eyes.  “Ok… Do you want us to bring you anything when we come in?” he asked.

Giles really wanted to tell them that they didn’t need to come at all, but that was foolishness.  He wouldn’t put his own concerns above the need to identify this creature so that Buffy could effectively fight it.  He’d just have to face Xander and find out what he had, or hadn’t, seen- after they found Buffy’s invisible child killer.  “Um, perhaps a jelly donut?”  He blushed ever so slightly.  Jelly donuts were a not-so-secret addiction of his.  One he had tried- and failed- to beat on several occasions.

Xander called back over his shoulder, “Ok, we’ll see you in about an hour…” he started to say when Cordy cut him off.

“Two hours,” she said loudly enough for Giles to hear.  She offered no explanation.

Xander was two stunned by Cordy’s actions to protest and allowed himself to be dragged off.

Giles hoped he could get some serious research in during the next two hours, knowing that Cordelia would distract him, as always.  Plus, today he needed to talk to Xander before they saw Buffy again.

========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ==========

Ok, so what’s the deal with the huggy twins? Buffy asked about 10 seconds after the door closed.

Willow thought about it for a moment, and then said, “I think last night Xander told Cordelia that he’s in love with her,” she said in a quiet voice- still not sure how she felt about that, not sure what right she had to feel anything other than happy for him.  Which she was… kind of.

Buffy was stunned.  “Xander’s in love with Cordelia?”  She quickly realized that was a kinda dumb question, they had been dating for quite a while now, if you didn’t count the week they were broken up.  “Xander told her he was in love with her?  Are you sure, Willow?”  The last time she and Xander had really talked about Cordelia, and Xander’s relationship with Cordelia, was right before she dumped him on valentines day.  That wasn’t all that long ago, and the word ‘love’ hadn’t even been raised.

Willow looked at Buffy with a melancholy expression.  “Yeah, I think so.  He told me last night that he was falling in love with her.  He said we didn’t see the person behind the bitch like he did.”

Buffy noticed the glum look Willow had, and had a moment of fear, “How does that make you feel?”

Willow ’s smile brightened as she noticed the hint of insecurity in Buffy’s voice.  She got up on the bed and laid down next to Buffy, on her side so she could face the slayer.  She reached out with her left hand and ran her fingers through Buffy’s blond locks, relishing the quiet intimacy of the moment, happy that she could do this kind of thing- she’d only fantasized about it forever.  “I think I will always have a little desire in me for Xander.  Just like he will have for you.  Just like you will for angel- even though he’s gone.”  She scooted a little closer and let her hand trail down Buffy’s side until it rested gently on the swell of her hip.  “Believe me when I say that I am exactly where I want to be.  Right here with you.  I love you Buffy Summers”

“Yeah?” Buffy asked.

“Yeah.” Willow answered.

Buffy gave an exaggerated sigh, saying, “Well, *that’s* a relief!”

Willow smiled, “Yeah?  Why’s that?” she asked playfully as her hand began to move around, creating a gap between the pajama top and pants. 

Buffy shivered at the feel of Willow ’s fingers on her bare flesh.  “Ummm, ‘cause I love *you*, Willow Rosenberg!”  Buffy reached for Willow ’s hand, pulling it away from her skin. 

Willow looked confused, “Sorry, I…” she started, thinking Buffy didn’t want her touch.

Buffy lifted her girlfriend’s hand to her lips and placed an open mouth kiss on her palm.

It was Willow ’s turn to shiver as she felt the damp warmth of Buffy’s tongue on her flesh.

“Go lock the door, Willow ,” Buffy softly instructed.

Willow ’s eyes dilated and her breathing grew rapid.  “W- what?” she asked, not sure she was really hearing Buffy right.

“Lock the door, Willow .  I’m gonna show you the right way to play doctor.”

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“So, where do you wanna eat?” Xander asked as Cordy pulled out of the parking lot.  He figured she wanted to go someplace nice if she thought it was going to take a couple of hours.

Cordelia surprised him when she pulled in to a McDonalds just down the street from the hospital and got in the drive through lane. 

“Um, Cordelia?  I don’t think it’s going to take us a couple of hours if we’re getting Mickey D’s drivethrough…” Xander said, trying to figure out what was going on in his girlfriend’s head.

Cordelia ignored him for a moment while she placed their order- five Egg McMuffins™ and two OJs.  Turning to her boyfriend as she pulled forward in line, she said, “Will three be enough to tide you over till we get donuts?”

Xander was a little slow on the uptake this morning.  “Uh, what are we doing between Mickey D’s and donuts?” he asked, baffled by her behavior.

She again ignored his question as she turned to pay for their food.  She took the bag of sandwiches and the drinks and handed them to Xander.  She smiled broadly and said, “Eat up, Xan.  You’re gonna need your strength.”

The smile on her face, the sparkle in her eye, and her comment were enough.  He finally got it.  He gulped loudly and opened the bag with trembling hands as Cordelia zipped down the street headed back to her place.

========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ==========

Willow had jumped back onto Buffy’s bed after locking the door.  Excitement and trepidation showed in her expression.

Buffy ran her hand slowly over Willow ’s arm as she said, “I don’t want our first time to be in a hospital room, Will.  I want to kill the monster tonight, and go home tomorrow.  I want to take you out on a real date, to a nice restaurant, and then go back to your place and…”  Buffy’s eyes glazed over at the thought of what she wanted to do to her girlfriend.

Willow understood Buffy’s desire to make their first time something special.  But, she was frustrated with the waiting. “So… playing doctor is…” she started.

Buffy came back to earth, “No, it’s not all the way.  I just wanted you to know that I wasn’t ready to go all the way here in a hospital bed.”  Seeing Willow ’s desire and frustration, she added, “But, we don’t have to go all the way, to have fun,” her smile bright and sunny.

Willow drew herself close to Buffy and whispered, “Two whole days without being able to kiss you… and I feel like it’s been forever.”  She put on a stern expression, saying, “You’re not allowed to get sick again, missy.  Not ever!”

Buffy smiled, “Yes Ma’am!” she said with a grin.  Her grin turned into a smirk as she added, “Besides, I’m feeling much better now.”

Willow leaned in and captured Buffy’s lips, suckling slowly on them, not wanting to hurry.  She gently sucked on Buffy’s lower lip, drawing it into her mouth, caressing it with her tongue.  When Buffy sought to deepen the kiss, Willow bit down on that lip, not hard enough to draw blood, but almost.

Buffy gasped and opened her eyes, only to find Willow staring intently into them. 

Willow let go of Buffy’s lip and whispered, “Behave, slayer.” 

Buffy felt a hard shot of arousal spike through her at Willow ’s command.  Before she could do or say anything in response, Willow again pressed her lips against Buffy’s, this time suckling Buffy’s upper lip just as she had the lower.  She felt herself being slowly rolled onto her back as Willow climbed on top of her.

Willow wasn’t sure where her commanding attitude was coming from, but it made her feel good when Buffy complied with her instructions.  She ran her tongue along Buffy’s teeth, demanding entrance as she settled her weight atop the prone slayer.

Buffy opened her mouth to Willow ’s tongue and lied back to see what would happen next.

Willow took her time exploring the slayer’s mouth, tracing her gums and teeth, trailing over and around her tongue- testing the different textures of Buffy’s tongue and teeth against her own tongue.  Eventually she drew the blonde’s tongue into her own mouth and sucked on it, stroking and lapping it. 

Buffy moaned at the sensation of her darling girlfriend essentially performing oral sex on her tongue.  The moans only got louder when she felt Willow ’s hands cupping and squeezing her breast through the thin material of her pajama top.  Her hands balled up the sheets as she strained not to touch Willow the same way.  She didn’t even realize it, but she was waiting to be told what to do.

Willow had Buffy groaning almost continuously now.  After what seemed like both forever, and yet no time at all; she finally broke off the kiss and sat up, straddling Buffy’s hips on the bed.  She took in the flushed and panting girl before her.  The sheets were pulled away from the bed and twisted up in Buffy’s hands and if she pulled any harder, they would no doubt tear.  Willow slid her hands up the small mounds of Buffy’s breasts and gave the stiff nipples a pinch through the material and Buffy almost bucked her off of the bed.

“Oh God! Willow !” Buffy cried.  “Please!”

Willow wanted nothing more at that moment than to strip Buffy naked and suck on those sweet breasts while stroking her fingers in and out of her.  She wanted to taste Buffy so badly that she could almost cry at what she had to do next.  “Buffy, we have to stop now.”

Buffy whined loudly, “No! Please?  Don’t wanna stop!”

Willow put on her stern face, “Buffy!  Look at me.”

Buffy reluctantly obeyed, looking up into Willow ’s eyes, and feeling a new wash of moisture at the apex of her thighs as she saw her girlfriend’s commanding look.

Willow said, “Listen up, missy.  Our first time is not going to be in a hospital bed, remember?”

Buffy knew Willow ’s resolve face- there would be no relief for the ache in her loins.  “Ok, Willow ,” she answered submissively.

Willow smiled down at her love and said in a more gentle voice, “I want it too, baby.  But we’ve got kids to save, and monsters to slay, remember?”

Buffy nodded her head, still pouting a little.  “Right, got to save the world again.  Or at least, some of it’s younger inhabitants.”

Willow chuckled as she ‘dismounted’ Buffy and got off of the bed.  She leaned back in for a short, but sweet kiss and said, “Go get cleaned up baby and we’ll go see what we can find in the doctor’s office.”

Buffy jumped down and started to walk to the small bathroom.  After only a couple of steps, she turned back to the redhead and said, “You know, you’re getting kinda bossy, Willow.”

Willow was instantly contrite, “I’m sorry, Buffy.  I…” she was cut off by Buffy stepping into her, so that their bodies were touching.

Buffy took Willow ’s hand and said, “No, Willow .  I- I kinda like it.”

Willow was surprised.  She didn’t know what made her do it in the first place, but she was even more shocked that Buffy liked it.  “Yeah? Really?” she asked.

Buffy slowly nodded her head, her eyes locked on Willow ’s.  She took Willow ’s hand and pressed it against her stomach and slowly slid it down under her pajama pants, saying, “Yeah really.  When you call me missy, and command me…”

Willow ’s eyes went wide as Buffy pressed her fingers against the fabric of her panties.  She could feel the outline of Buffy’s nether-lips.

Buffy continued, “…I get all… hot… and wet.”  Buffy dropped her eyes as she pressed Willow ’s fingers hard against her panties, causing the wetness to soak through and coat Willow ’s hand.

Willow felt the wet heat of Buffy’s desire on her fingers and gasped out loud.  She felt her own pussy grow slick and moist.  It was only the thought that tomorrow they could explore each other more in depth that kept her from giving in to desire right now.

Buffy pulled Willow ’s hand back out of her pants and they both looked at the redheads glistening fingers.  Buffy felt suddenly embarrassed.  “I can’t believe I just did that!” she said, letting go of Willow ’s hand and dropping her gaze.  “Let me get you a Kleenex,” she said while thinking, “God! porno much?”

Willow said, “Stop.”

Buffy turned back around.

Willow looked her right in the eyes and said, “I’ve wanted to do this since that first morning.” 

Buffy’s eyes widened and her jaw dropped as Willow took those fingers in her mouth and sucked them clean, a look of ecstasy on her face.

Willow couldn’t believe how amazing Buffy tasted.  Pungent and sweet and musky.  Utterly unique in Willow ’s taste experience.  She looked forward to tasting it straight from the source tomorrow night!  When she had gotten every last drop, she said “Go get ready.  And no touching yourself, Missy!  If I have to wait, so do you!”

Buffy snapped out of her daze and said, “Yes, Willow.”  As she went in to the bathroom she thought, “Jeeze!  I’m going to be wet for the next 24 hours straight…”

========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ==========

It took only five minutes to get to Cordelia’s house.  Impressive when you considered that it was five miles of city streets away.  Despite fearing for his life, Xander managed to snarf down all three of his sandwiches and was just finishing his orange juice as they pulled into the drive lane.  Cordy had eaten a single sandwich and was also finishing her juice when they stopped.  Unfortunately the abrupt stop caused some of the juice to spill over her mouth and down her open shirt.  “Damnit!” she said.  “That bra cost $70!”

Xander, in a move he’d wanted to do since dating Cordelia, said, “Let me get that…”

Cordelia gasped as Xander leaned over and licked the orange juice off of her chin, briefly moving up to give her a quick kiss on the lips as he un-did another two shirt buttons.  He lapped the orange juice off of her neck, working his way down to her inviting cleavage.

Xander thought he could never get enough of the taste of Cordelia’s skin.  Warm, slightly salty, and now covered with a sheen of sweet/tart stickiness, which complimented her own flavor quite nicely.  He decided right then that he was going to make some strawberry glaze and smear it all over her breasts one of these nights, and take his time gently lapping it off.

Cordelia was breathing heavily as she savored the feeling of Xander’s tongue against the upper slope of her breasts.  She let out a quiet moan of pleasure as he finished.

The thought of coating, then cleaning Cordy’s breasts of some sweet, sticky glaze was enough to cause some swelling in his pants.  Cordelia’s moan of pleasure as he pulled away furthered the swelling until his pants were extremely uncomfortable.

Cordelia opened her eyes and looked into her lover’s.  “That was… I didn’t expect… Wow.  Get your ass out of this car and in the house right now!”

Xander gave a mock long-suffering sigh, “Yes dear, whatever you say, dear.”

The two fairly ran to the door, Cordelia fumbling for her keys.  As she tried twice to get them in the lock, Xander gently covered her shaking hands with his own.  “Not that I mind for a heartbeat, but why are you so… eager this morning?”

They got the door open but didn’t walk through.  “Again, let me emphasize how very much I am not hating this right now, but why didn’t you want to wait until after research?”

Cordelia looked up at Xander but didn’t say anything.

Xander looked down and saw trepidation in his lover’s eyes.  He tried to reassure her, “I know we never really talked about… important stuff, especially emotions… I’d like to change that.  I love you Cordelia.  I… I want t- to… I want us to be able to talk about stuff.”

Cordelia dropped her eyes to the floor.  “It’s… kinda embarrassing.”

Xander just waited patiently, holding her hand in his.

“Watchingyouresearchmakesmehot.” She mumbled.

Xander caught a few words, but wanted to be sure.  He put his free hand under her chin and lifted her face until he could see her eyes.  “I got ‘watching’ ‘research’ and ‘hot’” he said.

Cordelia blushed but said it again more slowly, “Watching you research… it makes me hot when I look at you, leaning back, all stretched out, looking down at one of Giles musty old leather monstrosities.”

Xander smiled, but didn’t laugh.  “Really?” he asked.

Cordy nodded her head slightly and added, “I don’t know why.  It just does.  And, I couldn’t… after last night… I don’t think I could just sit there, watching you.  I’d go crazy.”

Xander could tell she was embarrassed by that, and that she had to really drop some shields to say that to him.  Now would not be the time for a joke, especially if he wanted a shot at seeing her naked again any time soon.  “Cordy, every time I see you I get excited.  Seriously!  From that first time we kissed… every time you enter a room… all I have to do is see you, and I can’t concentrate on anything else.”

Cordelia searched his eyes for any sign of exaggeration- when she saw his sincerity, she smiled and said, I love you Xander.  I don’t know how it happened, but I’m glad it did.”  She then proceeded to drag him into the house and to the nearest living room chair.  She turned him so his back was to the seat, and then she draped herself against him and kissed him passionately.  Just as he was returning the kiss, she broke off and smiled up at him while she unbuckled his pants.  She grabbed the waist of his pants and boxers and dragged them down to mid thigh, freeing his now fully erect cock.  She pushed him back causing him to fall into the chair, and kneeled before him.

“Oh God!” he squeaked when he realized what was about to happen.

“Sit back and enjoy, Xan,” she said in a sultry voice before leaning into him and proceeding to lick up and down his length.

Cordelia hadn’t done this before, but like Xander, she had done her homework.  Cosmo routinely published tips and techniques for pleasing a man, and what pleased a man more than a hot, wet blowjob? 

For a long time, Cordelia couldn’t imagine why she would ever want to suck a guy’s cock.  “What’s in it for me?” she’d always wondered.  Girls in the locker room always acted like it was gross, and they only did it because it was expected, or sometimes even demanded.  Well, right now, the sounds coming out of Xander’s mouth and the feeling of control she had made her want to do this every chance she got.  Plus the taste of his skin was wonderful, and the texture- like velvet over steel.  She found herself enjoying this quite a bit as she vigorously sucked his head, rubbing her tongue around the ridge and pumping the shaft with her saliva-slicked hand.

Xander felt like he must be in heaven.  Cordelia Chase was not only giving him head, she initiated it… eagerly.  He’d never had a blowjob before, so he couldn’t really comment on her technique relative to anyone else, but she was definitely doing something right. 

She didn’t think it had been that long since she started, but suddenly Xander started to shake, and she heard him cry out that he was almost there.  She hadn’t really planned on how this was going to end, but there was no way she would let him cum on her shirt, or on the chair, so she just kept plugging away when she heard his agonized groan and suddenly her mouth was full.  Hot!  A little bitter and salty, but for the most part not much flavor at all.  God, there was a lot of it though, her mouth filled up and a little started dribbling over her lips.  She convulsively swallowed, and then swallowed again.  Finally, the flow seemed to stop, and she sucked hard, hollowing her cheeks to get any left over out. 

Xander couldn’t believe that Cordelia just swallowed his cum.  God, it was one of his biggest orgasms ever, and she swallowed it all.  He felt like his whole body was buzzing with the sweet release.  He looked down at her as she released his cock with an audible pop.  When her tongue swept out and gathered up that little bit on her lips, his whole body shuddered like it had been hit by an aftershock.

Cordelia smiled brightly and said, “That was fun!  I think I’m gonna do that a lot.”

Xander groaned in exhausted ecstasy.  “Oh my God!  I think I won the girlfriend lottery!”

========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ==========

Part 7

========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ==========

Willow and Buffy were poking around the Late Dr. Backer’s office, looking for clues. 

Willow was looking through the files on his desk.  She said, “It's weird going through his things.  Look, he didn't finish his coffee. Guess he won't.”

Buffy said, “Yep, another person I wasn't in time to save.  It's too bad Angel didn't put me in the hospital sooner…” she trailed off as she looked at Willow, who was staring at her, hands on hips, and a stern look on her face.

Willow kept glaring at Buffy, her eyes unblinking.

Buffy blushed, finally getting it.  “I’m moping again, aren’t I?” she asked, suddenly finding the floor to be quite interesting.

Willow dropped her hands off of her hips and stepped closer to her girlfriend until they were almost touching.  “You know, Buffy.  The whole ‘poor me, everything is my fault’ thing is not very attractive.”

Buffy looked up as if to say something.  The words died on her lips unspoken when she saw Willow raise her brows as if to say, ‘are you really about to interrupt me?’  She dropped her gaze back down to the floor.

Willow reached out and gripped Buffy’s chin firmly, dragging her head back up to meet her gaze.  “Say it,” she demanded.

Buffy’s eyes dropped, but she mumbled, “It’s not my fault.”

Willow wasn’t satisfied.  “Look me in the eyes and say it again,” she instructed.

Buffy met Willow ’s eyes for a moment, but she dropped her gaze again.  She couldn’t say it.

Willow sighed.  “Buffy, you saw someone killed by a monster right in front of you!  You were too sick to stop it, not to mention that the monster was *invisible!*  It’s natural to be upset.  It’s alright to be angry.  Now you’re going to do something productive about it- you’re going to slay it.  Something no one else in the world would do!  They’d all run and hide and thank God they were still alive!” 

Willow moved her hand from Buffy’s chin to her cheek, her other hand mirroring the gesture.  As she cupped her girlfriend’s face in her hands, she said, “If you weren’t going to do your best to kill this thing, then you’d have something to feel guilty about; because that’s something you can control.  Being sick, being unable to see the invisible thing… those are things you couldn’t control.  Those you don’t get to feel guilty about.  Understand?”

Buffy nodded her head slightly.

“Now, look me in the eyes and say it,” she once again commanded.

Buffy met Willow ’s eyes, tears falling out of her own as she said, “It wasn’t my fault.”  She threw her arms around the redhead and hugged her tightly, “God, what did I do to deserve you, Will?”

Willow pulled out of the hug and smiled at the teary slayer.  “Oh, come on.  I’m not *that* bad, am I?” she asked, teasingly.

Buffy rewarded her with a smile at that.  “No, you’re the best!  I love you so much, Willow !”

Willow kissed her gently, and said, “Well, that’s good, ‘cause I feel exactly the same about you!”  Drying Buffy’s tears with her thumbs, she added, “Now, lets figure out what’s the what, then you can kick this monster’s ass, and tomorrow I can give you the proper reward for being the conquering hero!”

Buffy said excitedly, “Oh yeah! I’m all for that!”

========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ==========

Several minutes later, Willow said, “Hey, wait, I think I have something.”

Buffy said, “Whatcha got, Sherlock.”

Willow said, “Okay, this makes sense. Dr. Backer was trying to inoculate the kids with a controlled dosage of the same virus they already had.”

She got a confused look from Buffy.

Willow explained, “Oh, raising their temperatures to burn the fever out of them.”

Buffy asked, “Would that work?”

Willow answered, “According to this it was starting to. So he really was trying to help the kids.”

Buffy said, “Till that thing stopped him.”  This time she said it, not with guilty self-flagellation, but with a determined, ‘I’m gonna kick it’s ass!’ tone to her voice.

========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ==========

Giles, Xander and Cordelia were in the Sunnydale High School library, going through a stack of books on the table.  Giles held Ryan's drawing for comparison.

Cordelia said, “Eww, what does this do?

Giles said, “(puts his mug down) What?

Cordelia found a particularly nasty specimen and pushed the book toward Giles, asking, “What does this do?”

Giles answered, “Uh, it, uh, extracts vital organs to replenish its own mutating cells.”

Cordelia said, “Wow!”  Leaning over to look at his book, she pointed at another picture and asked, “What does this one do?”

Xander looked up over the top of his book, not moving his head, just his eyes.  He could see the slow boil rising up in Giles face.  Rather than say anything to Cordelia, he just went back to his book, pretending not to notice.  Hey, he may be cowardly, but he’d leave the blowing up to Giles.  “Pussy-whipped? Who, Me?” he thought quietly.

Giles looked up at her and said, “Um, i-it elongates its mouth to, uh, engulf its victim's head with its incisors.”

“Ouch,” Cordelia said.  “Wait, what does this one do?” she asked, pointing to another.

Giles’ frustration boiled over and he fairly shouted, “It asks endless questions of those with whom it's supposed to be working so that nothing is getting done.”

“Boy, there's a demon for everything,” Cordelia said, clueless to Giles annoyance.

Giles slapped down Ryan's picture and got up from the table in disgust. He took off his glasses and rubbed his forehead, saying, “I don't even know if we're on the right track. Since this, uh... miscreant has only been seen by select individuals, there's a chance we won't ever... find a picture of it!”

Cordelia looked over at Xander and said, “Well, it's not in here.” 

Xander watched as she closed her book.  Suddenly he sat up, noticing on the cover a drawing that looks quite like the monster they were looking for.   

Giles looked down at it and slowly put his glasses back on.   

Cordy noticed their gaze and looked at the book's cover too.  “Hey…”

========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ==========

Buffy and Willow were back in Buffy’s room, chatting about how Buffy might fight this, whatever it was, when the phone rang.

Buffy picked up the phone and said, “Hello?”

The voice on the phone said, without preamble, “It's called Der Kindestod.”

Buffy wrinkled her nose, not recognizing the voice.  She said, “Who is this?”

The voice answered, “It's me. I've got your monster!”

Buffy said, “Cordelia?  Where's Giles?”

Cordelia said, “Looking up stuff.”

Buffy said, “Well, can you put him on?”

Cordelia said, “Hey!  I found your guy, okay? Just listen.”

Buffy shrugged and said, “Right.”  She pulled the phone partially away from her ear so Willow could scoot over and listen in.

Cordelia said, “Ok, The name means 'child death'.  This book says that he feeds off of children by sucking the life out of them.  Eww!  But anyway, afterwards, it looks like they died because they were sick.”

Buffy said, “So it did kill Tina.”

Cordelia said, “Yeah, that's my take. 'Cause it would be looking at the children's ward as basically an all-you-can-eat kind of thing, y'know.”

Buffy said, “Backer was curing the kids and taking away the Kindestod's food.

Cordelia nodded her head, though no one could see it, and said, “Hence, the slice-age.”

Buffy heard Giles in the background, “I found a picture of how it kills. Let me talk to her.”

Cordelia said, “Oh! Eww!”

Buffy said, “What?”

Cordelia said, “Oh!  Uh, you should see this thing! The way it does its thing, I mean, eww!”

Buffy heard shuffling sounds and suddenly Cordelia’s voice sounded distant, as though she had stepped away from the phone, “Why do I let you guys drag me into this stuff?”

Giles said, “Uh, uh, Buffy? Are you, are you still there?”

Buffy smirked, “Hanging on every eww.”

Giles said, “Uh, the, um, the Kindestod gorges by sitting atop his prey, pinning it down, uh, helplessly. Then he slowly draws out the life. I-it must be, uh, h-horrifying for the victim.”

Buffy just stared off into space.

Giles said, “Buffy? Hello?”

Buffy was remembering the death of her cousin.  It fit exactly what Giles was describing.

Giles said, “Buffy, w-what is it?”

Willow noticed the look on Buffy’s face and took the phone from her hand.  She said, “Thanks Giles,” and hung up the receiver.  Looking with concern at her girlfriend, she said, “What is it baby?”

Buffy said, “It killed Celia.”

Willow asked, “Your cousin?”

Buffy looked in Willow ’s eyes and said, “We have to get this thing, Willow , before it gets any more kids.”

Willow pulled her girlfriend into a hug and said, “You will. We will.”

Buffy’s voice was quiet, “But how? I-I can't even see it.”

Willow pointed out, “You saw it once.”

Buffy said, “Did I? Uh, maybe my mind was playing tricks on me. I mean, I was crazed with that fever. Who knows...”  her voice trailed off as she thought of something.”

========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ==========

Willow and Buffy were once again standing in Dr. Backer’s office, looking into the refrigerator.

Willow said, “Buffy, think about this.”  The concern was evident in her voice.

Buffy crouched down to get a better look and said, “I have. Lots of thoughts.”

Willow said, “It's crazy.”

Buffy started searching through the test tubes.  She said, “The fever. That's how you see the Kindestod. That's why Celia could see it. That's why Ryan still can.”  Finding the right one, she added, “It's the only way.”

Buffy stood back up and faced Willow , test tube in hand.

Willow said, “But how are you gonna fight this thing with 107 degree temperature?”

Buffy said, “I guess we'll find out.”  She uncapped the tube and raised it to drink the serum.

Willow quickly stopped her, “Buffy!”

Buffy said, “ Willow , I'm going to do this.”

Willow snatched the tube away and said, “Buffy, that's 100% pure. It'll kill you in an instant.”

Buffy’s eyes got big and she said, “Oh. They really should put that on the label.”

Willow reached into the refrigerator for a bottle of drinking water and grabbed a beaker that was sitting on top.  Buffy closed the fridge while Willow set the beaker on the desk and opened the bottle.

Willow said, “It needs to be diluted,” as she poured some water into the beaker.

Buffy said, “Okay, but this better work fast.”

Willow took the test-tube and drew some of the serum into a dropper.  She held it over the beaker and let a single drop fall in.

Buffy said, “Faster than that.”

Willow put everything in her hands down and turned to Buffy.  “This will be enough.  I’m not going to let you kill yourself because you couldn’t save your cousin.  When Buffy was going to protest, Willow added, “You still have to be able to fight, Buffy.  If you’re down for the count because you take too much, you won’t just be risking yourself, you’ll be risking those kids.”  Willow felt bad about guilting Buffy, but once again thought, “Sometimes you have to fight fire with fire.”

Buffy relented, taking the beaker, holding it up and looking at it, then over at Willow .  “Here's to my health,” she said.  After another moment's hesitation she swigged down the water and serum.

========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ==========

Willow and Buffy came around the corner into the hall outside the children's ward.  As they headed to the ward, Buffy was starting to feel the effects of the virus.  She said, “I think it’s working.  I feel… I feel hot.”

Willow felt her forehead and could detect some warmth.  She said, “Yeah, you’re defiantly getting warm.”

Buffy said, “Good.”

They reached the door to the ward, and Buffy looked in through the door's window.

The beds were all empty.

Buffy said, “The kids. They're gone.”

She and Willow exchanged a surprised and very worried look.

Willow asked, “What could have happened?”

Buffy said, “I don't know.”  Turning to face Willow , she continued, “Maybe we're too late. Maybe they moved.”  She ran her hand over her forehead and said “Maybe… I don't... I'm really hot Will.”

Turning to look back into the room Buffy started to see something.  Squinting her eyes slightly, she said, “Will?”

Willow responded, “What?”

Buffy said, “I think it's in there.”

A shimmering form began to take shape. It moved over to a bed, and suddenly Buffy could clearly see the Kindestod. It looked into an empty bed as though searching.  “Maybe it doesn’t see the same way we do,” she thought as she stared at it through the door's window.  The monster looked over at another bed and then noticed her staring.  It straightened itself up and looked directly at her.

Buffy's eyes went wide and she felt a shiver of fear run down her spine.

It just giggled maniacally and doffed its hat to her.  It stared at her for another moment, then it turned toward the other door to the ward. It put the hat back on and began to walk to the other door.

Buffy looked at the sign on the door.  It said basement access.

Buffy said, “It's going after them!”  She turned to Willow and said, “They’re in the basement, Will. Find a another way and get 'em!” she said as she stepped back and snap kicked the door open.

Willow didn’t hesitate, she took off down the hall, saying, “I’ll get ‘em Buffy!”

Before the Kindestod could open the door to the basement access, it heard the sound of the door crashing open.  It turned around in time to catch Buffy’s foot in its chest as she performed a leaping kick.  The monster hit the door and smashed through it in a shower of splinters.

Buffy felt a little dizzy after landing from the assault.  The exertion of the two kicks combined with the fever had drained her a bit.  She quipped, “You make me sick.

The Kindestod stood up and faced her. She swung at it again with a fist, but the monster blocked it. 

Buffy wasn’t in top form as she fought the Kindestod, and it eventually gained the upper hand and punched her twice in the face, then threw her against the wall.  She climbed to her feet and swung twice at the monster, but it just leaned back and avoided the blows.

It grabbed her again and threw her into another wall.  She recovered quickly, and hopped up onto one of the beds.  She took a quick look at the Kindestod, and then jumped off of the bed and landed a hard kick on its face.  

It stumbled back and to its knee as she landed on her feet. She kicked it three more times while it tried to get back up.  It struck her with a backhand and she spun around and let out a grunt of pain.  The monster took her by the shoulder and backhand punched her in the face again.  It then grabbed her by the throat, lifted her up and threw her across the room. Buffy struck the side of one of the beds, knocking it over.  She was stunned and just lay there on the floor for a moment.

The Kindestod reached down for its hat, disdainfully brushed it off, and put it back on its bald pate.  

Buffy recovered from her daze, but not in time to get away as the monster knelt and reached for her head.  It held her steady with both hands and its eyes bugged out and split open, reaching out to her on stalks.

Buffy thought, “Eww!  Gross!” as she reached up and grabbed the eyestalks.  She viciously wrenched them sideways from it’s head, tearing the flesh.  The sound of its scream caused her whole body to shudder.  She pulled a knee to her chest and planted her foot against it, sending it flying away from her and onto its back. 

She rolled over and climbed onto her feet, somewhat unsteady.  She stumbled over to the monster who was just getting to its feet, mostly debilitated from the wound to its eyestalks.  Buffy went behind the beast and kicked out one of it’s knees, bringing it down.  She reached around its neck from behind and wrenched its head back with all her might, as though she was going to toss the monster over her hip.  She didn’t have enough strength to throw the Kindestod, but there was a horrible crunching, tearing noise and its neck twisted and elongated several inches, its body collapsing dead to the floor as she let go. 

Buffy stood there for a moment looking down at the Kindestod's prone body.

========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ==========

Willow had found the kids, and led them up to the nurses station, leaving them in Dr. Wilkinson’s capable hands.  She explained that she had seen the empty room and the open basement access, and- as a concerned citizen- felt obligated to find the kids.  She didn’t think the Doctor entirely bought her story, but what was she going to say?  “Oh, the kids were hiding from a life-sucking monster, who’s ass my girlfriend is presently kicking in the children’s ward?”  Yeah, that’d go over well.

She went back to the ward to check on Buffy and found her standing, looking at the floor.

“You ok, Baby?” she asked quietly.

“Actually,” Buffy said as she turned to look at her girlfriend, “I think I'm starting to feel better.”

Willow stepped to her side and felt her forehead, “You’re still kinda hot…”

Buffy smirked, saying, “Aww, you say the sweetest things, Love.”

Willow blushed and quipped, “You must be feeling better.”  Turning to look at the empty patch of floor that had captured Buffy’s attention, she asked, “So, is it dead?”

Buffy nodded, reaching out and kicking the body in front of her.  “Yep.  I broke its neck.”

Willow goggled at the sight of Buffy’s foot meeting resistance in the thin air.  She tentatively reached out with her foot and pushed at it.  Her eyes widened, “Wow,” she said.

Buffy looked at Willow with a confused expression until she remembered that Willow couldn’t see it.

“Uh, Buffy?” Willow asked.

“Yeah, Will?”

“What are we gonna do with it?”

“Um…”

========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ==========

A phone call to Giles resulted in he and Xander taking the body.  They decided to bury it despite it’s invisibility.  Giles, upon examining the corpse, continued to say ‘Good Lord’ every few minutes, interspersed with, “Amazing!” or the occasional, “Incredible!”

Buffy finally got Giles to quit with the superlatives and pick up one end of the monster, while Xander took the other.  They finally just decided to walk out the front door with it.  No one was going to be able to see it anyway.

Willow , Buffy and Cordelia retired to Buffy’s room to wait for the guys to get done.  Cordelia had stunned them all by offering to help with the burying chores, but Xander had told her not to worry about it.  Buffy and Willow traded a glance at the goofy look on Xan and Cordy’s faces when they kissed goodbye.

As the door shut behind the guys after they left, and Cordelia turned around and leaned against the door with a dreamy look on her face, Willow couldn’t help but tease the statuesque brunette.  Turning to Buffy she said, “We don’t make faces like that, do we?”

Buffy went right along with it, “I don’t think so…” she paused as if really thinking about it, “Nah!”

Cordelia was in such an amazingly good mood, that she didn’t take even the slightest offence.  She just smirked at the couple and said, “Oh, yes you do!  You two spend so much time making moon-eyes at each other it’s a wonder you don’t walk into things!”

Buffy and Willow both laughed at that.  They looked into each other’s eyes for a moment and were both thinking the same thought.  “I can hardly wait for tomorrow night!”

Buffy shook off the reverie, thinking, “It’s probably a good thing I’m wasted from that fight, or I’d kick Cordelia out and ravish Willow right here and now!”

Willow blinked a few times and turned back to Cordelia, to see her smirking at them.  She was really curious about their relationship after Xander’s affirmation of falling in love last night.  “Did Xander tell you he’s in love with you?”  She didn’t mean to be so blunt, but it just kinda slipped out.

Cordelia looked confused, “How did you know?”

Willow had the grace to look embarrassed, “Uh, sorry about that.  Uh, Xander… last night… that’s what we were talking about in the library.”

Cordelia remembered being annoyed when she walked in to find Xander and Willow embracing.  Normally she wouldn’t really consider another girl’s feelings about her boyfriend, but she knew Willow ’s friendship was important to Xander.  Plus, now that she wasn’t playing queen bitch all the time, she had to admit that Willow was a nice girl, and a good friend.  Even if she was horribly fashion-unconscious. 

“Yeah, he did,” she said with a sigh, remembering the amazing feeling she had when he told her he was in love with her.

Willow suddenly got serious, “Do you love him?” she asked.

Cordelia caught Willow ’s tone and looked her right in the eye, “Yes.  I do.”  She was ready to fire with both barrels, expecting Willow to make some comment about her not knowing what love was, or something stupid like that.

Willow relaxed and smiled broadly.  “Good.  Congratulations Cordelia, I’m really happy for you both.”

Cordelia was thrown for a moment, getting pretty much the opposite of what she had been expecting.

Buffy added her congratulations, “Yeah, Cordelia.  I think that’s great.”

Cordelia paused for a moment, as if waiting for the other shoe to drop, “Uh, thanks guys,” she said tentatively.

Completely out of the blue, Willow said, “If you hurt him, I’ll beat you to death with a shovel.”

Cordelia and Buffy both stared at Willow , slack-jawed with shock.  Buffy finally regained her voice, “ Willow !”

Willow just shrugged, the smile never leaving her face as she said, “A vague disclaimer’s no one’s friend.”

Cordelia shook her head and said, “You know, I think your girlfriend’s violent tendencies are rubbing off on you.”

She hadn’t planned to say any of this stuff, it just came bubbling out.  “Cordelia, you spent most of my life making me miserable.  You hurt me more than anyone else ever could.  I cried myself to sleep practically every other night through grade school and junior high over things you said to me.  I hated you like no one else in the whole world.”  Willow was amazed that she hadn’t broken down into tears yet.  She just said it dispassionately, like she was discussing the weather.  “You made me hate myself, Cordelia.  So, I hope you’ll forgive me for being concerned about my best friend being in love with you, for worrying about him getting hurt.”

If Cordelia hadn’t been leaning against the door, she would have fallen to her knees.  She felt as though Willow had kicked her in the stomach.  It hurt so badly because it was all true.  Cordelia had delighted in tormenting the redhead through most of their lives.  “I… I don’t know what to say, Willow … ‘I’m sorry’ doesn’t begin to cover it.” 

Buffy drew Willow into her lap, hugging her so that her back was drawn tightly to the slayer’s chest.  She didn’t say a word, just held her, let her know without speaking, that she was there for her, that she supported her.

Willow felt like she was releasing a lot of baggage she had been shouldering for a long time.  It felt liberating.  “Just don’t hurt him, just love Xander like he deserves to be loved, Cordelia.  That’s the best thing you could ever do for me.”

Cordelia had tears streaming down her face.  She said, “I really do love him, Willow .  I never imagined I could love Xander Harris, but I do.  Real head-over-heels stuff.”

Willow smiled widely, “Good.  Then I’ll never have to introduce you to Mr. Shovel.”

Neither Buffy nor Cordelia could tell for sure if she was kidding.

========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ==========

Xander and Giles finished putting on the last shovel full of dirt.  They each stretched their backs, wincing at the popping noise Giles back made.

All day, Giles had been meaning to broach the subject regarding what Xander may or may not have witnessed with Angelus the other night.  So far he hadn’t successfully worked up the nerve.

Xander once again caught Giles staring at him, only to dart his eyes away as Xander saw him.  “Ok, G-man.  You’re starting to freak me out with this staring thing.  If you’ve got a question, ask.”

Giles was rattled enough that he didn’t even correct Xander’s misuse of his name.  “Yes, well… uh… that is to say, it’s about the other night,” he began, haltingly.

“Last night?” Xander asked, wondering if Giles was finally going to broach the subject.

“ No, no, actually I was referring to the night before.” He clarified.

Xander said, “Oh, you mean the night you tortured Angelus to death with bamboo skewers and holy water?” he asked guilelessly.

Giles went pale, “Uh, well, rather, that is to say…” the mumbled off, stuttering.

Xander said, “Look, Giles.  My vote was to beat him to death with a baseball bat.  I admire your creativity.  I won’t lie, it kinda wigged me out, but the bastard more than had it coming.  I’ve only got one question…”

“Um, er, yes?” Giles asked haltingly.

“Did it help?” Xander wanted to know.

Giles fell silent for a moment, considering both the question, and the things the young man had said himself.  “Tremendously,” he finally answered, deciding to be truthful.

Xander nodded his head.  “Good.”

And just like that, things were back to normal between the two.

“Xander?” Giles asked.

“What?”

“Don’t call me G-man.”

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Willow had decided that she didn’t want to eat at a restaurant that night.  She told Buffy it was because she wanted some quiet time together, where she didn’t have to share the slayer with anyone else.  That was partially true, she did want some quiet time with Buffy, away from the public eye, But the reason for that was because she wasn’t sure she could make it through dinner without jumping her girlfriend. 

It had been difficult, preparing dinner.  Not so much the preparing part- that was just cooking the pasta and heating a jar of sauce.  Salad came ready in a bag, she just dumped it in a bowl and tossed it with some bottled dressing.  Store bought garlic bread was warming in the oven.  Total prep time was measured in minutes.  The hard part was that, the closer it got to 5pm- when Buffy was supposed arrive- the more antsy she got.  She’d had a hard time keeping her hands out of her pants all day long.  She’d had to change her panties three times due to ‘excess moisture’ collecting there. 

Basically, Willow was horny.  More so than she had ever been in her life.  The only thing that kept her from taking care of the problem herself was the fact that she had instructed Buffy to refrain from touching herself, and it wouldn’t be fair to make her suffer if Willow wasn’t willing to withstand it herself.

“It’s gonna be worth it!” she reminded herself.  Even though she’d never been with another person, let alone woman, she was confident that she could make Buffy’s first time memorable.  Especially if Willow made her wait, made her feel the strain of the anticipation.

She just hoped that she could hold out herself.

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Buffy approached Willow ’s house with both eagerness and apprehension.  On the one hand, she wanted this.  Wanted it badly.  She had been overflowing with desire all day.  Willow had been so stern and demanding last night- telling her she didn’t want to see or hear from her before 5pm .  She was to arrive no earlier, no later.  Willow had been very clear that she was not to touch herself, not to relieve the ache in her loins, no matter how much she wanted to.  Willow said that she would see to Buffy’s needs that night.

Buffy could never have guessed that she would respond so positively to that sort of thing.  She constantly rebelled against parental control, and against controlling boyfriends when she was in LA.  Angel had never really tried to tell her what to do, and for that she was grateful.

Yet, somehow, when Willow became domineering, Buffy got seriously hot.  She had spent the day constantly fantasizing about what Willow would do to her if she disobeyed.

Her mom worried that the flu might have moved in to her stomach, she had gone to the bathroom so many times.  All she could do was reassure her mom that she felt fine.  It’s not like she could tell the truth- “Sorry mom, thinking about Willow and I making love tonight has got me so hot and bothered that I constantly have to go dry off my dripping pussy.”  Fortunately her brain cooperated with her today and nothing slipped out unwanted.

So, it was firmly established that she wanted Willow .  Tonight.  Sex… with Willow … tonight.  There was still some anxiety about this whole thing.  She had never slept with a woman.  And only once with a man… er, male anyway.  “I don’t have a clue what I’m supposed to do!” she worried.

She knew how to give a girl an orgasm, after all she’d been diddling herself for years.  She knew where the button was, it was the thought of going down that had her worried.  Willow had made it pretty clear she wanted to head south on Buffy, what with the whole sticky fingers thing yesterday.  Would Willow expect it back?  If so, could she do it?  Buffy had never imagined going down on a girl.  She had imagined, but had never actually gone down on a guy.  Basically, her one experience with sex had been straight coitus, and a few finger swipes to finish.

They were *so* going to do this tonight!  Buffy wouldn’t survive much longer.  She’d just have to rely on Willow to help her through her fear.  Willow , who’s got even less experience than me.  Gulp!” she thought.

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They’d managed to make it through the salad unscathed.  Both were nervous, but they were also very much in love, and had been friends for quite a while. 

Both has been properly impressed with each other’s clothes. Buffy wore a short tan leather skirt with a slit up one thigh, light brown calf high boots and a fawn colored camisole top with spaghetti straps.  It was an outfit she’d worn to school in the past, but it was still very enticing outfit, plus the high heeled boots brought her up to Willow ’s height.

Willow had gone shopping that day, enlisting the help of none other than Cordelia Chase.  She’d had to fight to keep Cordelia from dressing her in tramp-wear, but had been pleased with the understated but still sexy result.  She had a dark red knit skirt that went down to just below her knees, the material was very stretchy and clingy and showed off the curve of her hips and butt to great effect.  Her top was emerald green, short sleeved with a fairly deep V neckline.  It was of a very similar material, and, while not skin tight, did hug her curves. 

Cordelia had won the argument in the lingerie dept.  Willow ’s curves were enhanced by a pushup bra of green lace that barely covered her nipples.  Her form fitting skirt would have shown panty lines, so she had on a thong, also in green lace.  Willow had blushed fiercely as she paid for her purchases.  Cordelia hadn’t helped matters, teasing the redhead about what Buffy was going to do when she saw Willow in nothing but her panties and bra.  Amazingly, the shopping trip with Cordelia had been a lot of fun.  It was a good thing, however, that she didn’t feel guilty about the hit she put on her father’s credit card.  Willow rationalized that she deserved it-  If her parents wouldn’t be here to love her, they could at least pay the way to help her dress-to-impress for the one who did love her!

As it was, the tension had reduced to a dull roar as the two soon-to-be-lovers ate their dinner.  It wasn’t long, however, before it began to flare up again.

They were eating the linguini alfredo that Willow had prepared.  She knew it was one of Buffy’s favorite foods.  Willow had made it about half way through her portion when she became fascinated with watching Buffy eat.  Buffy would roll up the noodles on her fork and stuff them in her mouth, leaving the ends hanging, as she tried to slurp them up.  Invariably, her lips would end up coated in the creamy white sauce.  Willow watched as Buffy’s tongue swept out to clean those pink lips, she listened to the little hum of approval that followed every bite.  She noticed the way the butter sauce left Buffy’s lips glossy and slick, and how sometimes a little sauce would dribble down her chin as she ate with gusto. 

Willow ’s eyes became glassy and her pupils dilated in arousal.  Some small part of her awareness noticed and commented on the fact that lacy thong underwear did very little to stop the flow of her arousal, as the joining of her thighs became slick with her juices.  She noticed Buffy’s eyes become wide as they watched her rise up from her chair and approach.  She saw the muscles of the slayers long neck convulse as she swallowed her mouthful of pasta so she could ask Willow what she was doing. 

Willow whispered in a raspy voice, “You’ve got some sauce on your chin, Buffy.”

Buffy’s brow furrowed in confusion.  She picked up her napkin to wipe her chin, but Willow stopped her, grabbing her hand and saying, “Let me get that.”

Buffy waited for Willow to take her napkin, but it never happened.  Willow leaned in and swept her tongue across Buffy’s chin, drinking in the taste of the sauce, combined with the flavor of Buffy’s skin.  She groaned with desire and began lapping at Buffy’s mouth and chin, trying to get as much of that sauce and skin flavor as she could.

The surprise of Willow ’s oral assault evaporated when she heard the redhead groan.  The passion that has been at a slow simmer inside her all through dinner boiled over.  She stood up and swept Willow into her arms, her feet automatically heading for Willow ’s bedroom.

Willow had her arms around the slayer and was sucking and nibbling on the long column of her neck.  She found Buffy’s pulse and, sucking the flesh into her mouth, she bit down hard.

Buffy had made it into the bedroom and was halfway to the bed when the sensation of Willow marking her territory washed through her and nearly buckled her knees.  She cried out as both pain and pleasure flushed through her body.  She stood stock still, unable to process the overwhelming sensations in her body and move at the same time.

Letting go of Buffy’s neck, Willow said, “Put me down.”

Buffy gently lowered her to her feet.

Willow stared into Buffy’s eyes and whispered, “You’re mine, missy.”  She began to walk around the stunned slayer, stroking her hands over the girl’s torso.  “Say it, Buffy.  You’re mine.”

Buffy nearly cried out, “Oh God, Yes!  I’m yours Willow .”  Breathing heavily as her body was overcome with lust she added, “Take me Willow !  I belong to you!”

Willow smiled broadly and sauntered around to Buffy’s front, “Take your clothes off, missy.”

Buffy’s eyes widened even further at the low, commanding tone Willow had adopted.  She hastened to comply even as she wondered, “What  ever happened to that shy little redhead I met last year?”

Not that she missed her much.  No, Buffy liked aggressive, take-charge Willow very, *very* much.

Willow watched hungrily as her girlfriend quickly disrobed.  First the boots, then in quick succession the skirt and top, leaving her standing before her girlfriend in nothing but a sodden little pair of peach-colored satin panties.  Her voice cracked slightly as she said, “Panties, too, missy”

Buffy blushed, but made no effort to cover herself as she bent over and slid the panties off.  She stood before her Love with her feet at shoulder width, and her arms slightly out from her body, palms facing Willow , as if to say, ‘Here it is, what do you think?’

Willow was entranced.  Buffy’s tawny skin was an even tan over her whole body, with just the barest of tan lines at her waist and breasts.  Speaking of breasts, Buffy’s were marvelous; beautifully shaped, with just a slight cupping of the flesh on the undersides.  Willow pictured herself lightly stroking that skin with her tongue.  Buffy’s nipples were the color of milk chocolate and were very erect.  Willow ’s eyes trailed down from the wonder of Buffy’s breasts, down the line of her torso- blazing a trail with her eyes that she planned to follow with her tongue in just a few minutes- down to her carefully trimmed dark blond fur.  Willow gasped slightly at the sight, Buffy’s fur was shaped into a triangle pointing down at her dark pink lips.  She could see just a bit of the lighter inner lips poking out, but mostly what she saw was wet. 

Glistening wetness coated Buffy’s pussy and inner thighs.  Willow stepped up to her girlfriend and ran two fingers up that juncture, along the outsides of Buffy’s pussy, collecting some of that syrupy juice.

Buffy shivered at her lover’s touch.  She whimpered when it skirted around the area she really wanted it to go.  Nevertheless, she stood still, not doing anything until bid to do so by Willow . 

Willow brought her wet fingers up between them, two digits coated in thick syrup.  She deeply inhaled the musky aroma and felt shivers up and down her spine.  She stepped closer, so that her cloth covered chest pressed against Buffy’s naked breasts.

Buffy whimpered at the contact.

Willow split her fingers so that one was pointed towards her mouth, and the other was pointed towards Buffy’s mouth.  She whispered, “I want you to taste yourself, Buffy.”

Buffy’s eyes widened; she’d never done anything like that before. 

Willow said, “Do you trust me?”

Buffy, still apprehensive, nodded her head.  She trusted Willow more than anyone in the world.

Willow said, “Then trust me on this, you taste amazing, Buffy.”  She pressed her tongue against her finger and drew it into her mouth, her eyes telling Buffy to do the same.

Feeling uncertain, Buffy reached out with her tongue and hesitantly tasted the tip of Willow ’s finger.  It wasn’t horrible, in fact it wasn’t bad at all.  She shyly moved her head forward and drew the slick digit into her mouth.  She suckled her own sticky juices off, listening to Willow moan with pleasure. 

When her fingers were clean, Willow pulled her hand away and pressed forward into a searing kiss, as though she was trying to drain the slayer’s essence through her mouth.

Buffy was breathless when Willow finally released her mouth.  She panted heavily for several moments while the redhead stepped back.  Watching Willow slowly disrobe did nothing to calm her breathing. 

Buffy moaned quietly at the sight of Willow ’s pale torso wrapped in a lacy green bra.  She admired the way it lifted her breasts as though presenting them for Buffy’s approval.  The trembling in her knees shouted her approval. 

She felt a spike of arousal when Willow dropped her skirt, revealing a tiny little scrap of emerald lace.  A few stray red curls poke out around the green fabric, causing Buffy’s mouth to water.  She noticed that the material was darkly saturated with Willow ’s own arousal.  Buffy was glad to see that she wasn’t the only one who was ‘overflowing’ with desire.

Willow smiled, breaking from her stern visage for a moment.  “Buffy, you are so amazingly beautiful!”

Buffy blushed, strangely affected by the comment despite the fact that she was already completely naked.  “I’m glad you like,” she said.

“More than like!” Willow said.

“Do I get to see the rest of you?” Buffy asked plaintively. 

Willow smirked and reached behind her to undo her bra when Buffy asked, “Uh, Willow ?”

Willow stopped mid motion, “What, baby?”

Buffy dropped her eyes and clasped her hands behind her back- unconsciously making her breasts jut out a little further, capturing Willow ’s gaze.  “Can I… Can I take them off?” she asked hesitantly.

Willow dropped her hands and smirked at the suddenly bashful blonde.  “Eager to get your hands on me, missy?” she asked, the dominant mask back in place.

Buffy sighed, “Oh yes!  Please, may I?”

Willow thought that was a great idea.  “Yes, missy.  You may finish undressing me.”

Buffy smiled big and leapt over to the redhead.  She stepped behind her and noticed the thong with a gasp.  Recovering, she leaned into Willow ’s back and placed a gentle kiss on one shoulder as she undid the bra’s clasp.  She slid her hands around under the now loose material and cupped Willow ’s small breasts, lightly circling the nipples with her thumbs.

Willow moaned and pressed back against the slayer.  “Oh! That feels so good, baby.  I love the feel of your hands on my skin.”

After a few minutes Buffy moved her hands and slipped the bra off of her girlfriend.  As nice as playing with Willow ’s breasts was, there was something else she wanted to play with.

Buffy kneeled down behind the redhead.  “I can’t believe how great you look in a thong, Will,” she whispered as she rubbed her face against the cheeks of Willow ’s shapely bum.  She pulled down the string of a waistband and slid Willow ’s panties down her shapely legs.  She ran her hands up the inside of those legs as she moved back up.  Halfway up the thigh, she encountered Willow ’s own passion juices.  She continued up and cupped Willow ’s mons from behind, her wetness almost pooling in the slayer’s hand. 

Buffy pulled back her drenched hand and brought it to her face, inhaling the aroma.  “Not as pungent as mine,” she thought.  Tentatively, she reached out for a taste, worried that she wouldn’t like it.  The moment her tongue contacted her hand, she whimpered in delight.  “Sweet!  God! She tastes like candy!” Buffy thought in amazement.

“Oh Willow!  Have you ever tasted yourself?”  Buffy asked in wonder as she stood up.

Willow turned to face Buffy, shaking her head, “No,” she said.  From the tone of the slayer’s voice, it must be pretty good.

Buffy said, “Taste.”  She slurped up the wetness in her palm and pressed her mouth against Willow ’s for a kiss.

Both girls moaned into the kiss, their tongues wrangling back and forth, sharing Willow ’s essence.

When they broke the kiss, Willow couldn’t help but grin.  “Wow, I taste pretty good!” she said.  Of course she immediately blushed over her whole body at expressing such a sentiment.

Buffy said, “Don’t be embarrassed on my account, Will.  I’m right there with you!”

Willow kissed Buffy again for a moment, pressing naked flesh against naked flesh.  “I love you so much Buffy!”

Buffy’s smile lit up her face.  “I love you too, Will.  I’m so glad we finally found each other.”  Pausing for just a moment, she added, “I’m glad you didn’t get tired of waiting!”

Willow said, “I’d wait for you forever, Buff.”

Buffy smiled as Willow added, “But, lets not wait any more, ok?”

Nodding her head Buffy agreed heartily, “Definitely ok!”  suddenly embarrassed, she dropped her eyes and asked in a pleading/embarrassed voice, “Uh, Willow ?  Could we… with you on top and…”

Willow smiled at the same time her brow furrowed, trying to figure out what Buffy was asking for.  “Just ask, baby.  I’ll do anything you want.”

Buffy blushed over her whole body, “Uh, sixty-nine?”

Willow smiled as she blushed, but she nodded her head.  “Lie down on the bed, missy!  Willow wants another taste!”

It was a good thing people in Sunnydale were used to ignoring screams in the night…

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The End.

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