oreadno1 (oreadno1) wrote in willowgileslove, @ 2007-06-13 18:51:00 |
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Current mood: | creative |
What Tomorrow Brings, Chapter 1
Fandom: BtVS
Rating: FRAO
Pairing: Willow/Giles of course! with a very brief mention of Willow/Kennedy (the skanky bitch)
Setting: AU Post-'Chosen'
Summary: Life after the destruction of Sunnydale. If you couldn't tell, I suck at summaries.
Spoilers: None
Status: WIP
Feedback: Pretty please. Constructive criticism is always welcome and appreciated. If you want to flame me, well okay; I have cattle prods. And chainsaws.
Disclaimer: I don't own these characters (if I did Willow would be with Giles where she belongs!); I just hijack them and take them out for a joyride every now and then. Also, I have no beta, so any and all mistakes are solely mine.
Chapter One
The battered schoolbus rattled down the dusty, cracked pavement away from the crater that had once been Sunnydale. The initial excited chatter had died down to vague murmurings as exhaustion swept through the survivors.
Willow welcomed the peace. Her head ached; her body ached, the spell to empower the Slayers having taken a great deal out of her. She leaned her head against the window, staring out at the barren, arid landscape passing by. She wished she could sleep, but one loud, over-enthusiastic voice continued to drone on, disturbing all who wanted nothing more than to relax and forget about the past few months in quiet slumber.
"Man, I can still feel the power just surging through me!" Kennedy exclaimed, "It's so awesome! I can really get into this! I feel so strong! And powerful! Like I can take on anything..."
"Kennedy..." Willow whispered, attempting to quiet the newly-made Slayer.
"What?" Kennedy demanded, earning glares from her sister Slayers and the other occupants of the bus, "It's true! I am powerful! We all are. But you! God, you have more power than all of us combined! You're a goddess! You've got so much power in you! It's so incredible! And you're my goddess!"
"But..." Willow tried to interrupt, but Kennedy was on a roll and not to be denied.
"We are so going to rule! No one will be able to touch me and my girl!"
"Kennedy," Willow warned, pushed to her limit and losing her temper. "Would you just shut the hell up!"
"What?"
"Just...be quiet! No one wants to hear you anymore. We're all tired. Tired from the battle, tired from the last few months, and tired of listening to you! We just want some peace and quiet so we can rest. But, no, you can't do that. God, do you ever think about anybody but yourself?"
"But Willow..."
"No! It's true! All you ever think about is yourself! And power! I can't even count the times you went on about power and how I was the most powerful person around! It's like it's the only thing you think about, the only thing you care...."
Willow abruptly stopped as memories flashed across her mind. Memories of Kennedy in Buffy's face, declaring Willow the more powerful of the two; memories of Kennedy questioning her about witchcraft and the extent of her powers; memories of Kennedy bragging about how much better trained she was than the other Potentials; memories of how Kennedy revelled in having authority over the other Potentials. An awful realisation came crashing down on her.
"Oh my God! That's why you liked me so much so quickly; why you chased after me so hard! It's wasn't me, it was my power! That's all you care about; all you ever cared about!"
"No, that's not..."
"Yes it is! Oh, god, I'm such an idiot! How could I not see through you?"
Willow suddenly got to her feet, determined to put as much space between her and Kennedy as the confines of the bus would allow. She headed for the back of the bus where Buffy, Dawn, Xander and Giles were. As Kennedy rose to follow, her fellow new Slayers formed a human wall, blocking her path.
"Just leave her alone," Vi declared with her newfound assertiveness.
"Stay away from me," Willow insisted as she made her way to Giles' side, "Far away."
Giles stood at Willow's pleading glance, allowing her to slide into the seat beside him.
Kennedy stood there, taking in the sea of unfriendly faces looking back at her, turned on her heel and stalked to the front of the bus. She flung herself into a seat, seething.
Giles looked down at Willow, who was crying softly. Nervously he eased his arm around her and allowed her to rest her head against him. She curled into him and sobbed silently. He murmured soothing words to her until he realised she'd fallen asleep.
When they came upon the next town, the bus headed for the hospital to get medical attention for the injured. Giles didn't move, for Willow hadn't awakened. Kennedy tried to stay behind but Buffy and Xander made her leave the bus. Giles watched over Willow, aware that the spell with the scythe had been draining for her. He looked up when Buffy came back to them.
"Robin's gonna be okay, but they're keeping him overnight for observation. He lost a lot of blood. Faith's staying with him. The others mostly have bumps and bruises," she informed him.
"Then I imagine we should see what this town has in the way of overnight accomodations. We'll continue on to Los Angeles tomorrow."