Buffy bounced into the kitchen, stole a slice of apple right out of William’s hand, and hummed a pop tune as she dropped a piece of bread into the toaster. It was a normal morning, except for the frisson of energy between the two as their eyes met, and they both smiled.
Separately, they both contemplated closing the three feet of distance between them to start exactly where they’d left off the night before, and they both gave into the impulse simultaneously.
The kiss was a desperate clashing of tongues and limbs, William pushed forward until he was pressing Buffy to the counter with his body, her arms wrapped around his neck, and they poured out the ache that came from a tryst that ended too soon and a frustrated, almost sleepless night into one soulful kiss.
William pulled away before he could fully give himself over to his lust, marveling at this newfound self-control. He smiled at her wickedly, then returned to his breakfast, and Buffy did the same, heart gradually slowing to a more acceptable pace.
After a few minutes of comfortable silence, she said, “So I have a plan.”
“Do you now?” William smiled.
“A good plan. Priority one is Meni-whatever, since they’re going to try to raise him in a few days, right?”
“Right, day before your birthday. Speaking of which, you haven’t told me what you want.”
Buffy flicked her hand in his direction dismissively and said, “No time for that now. We’re talking about my plan. So, we know what day they’re raiding Claw-Demon, so we need to find where. Once I do my slay thing, we deal with the other problem.”
“Your headaches---“
“Might get worse, I know. But they might not, and we can just buy a ton of aspirin, right? I mean, the really bad one was when memories started coming back, so I would guess they won’t be that bad again.”
“You can’t be sure,” William insisted. “We should try and figure out---“
“Nope. No, we shouldn’t.”
“Pet---“
“William Pratt, follow the plan!” Buffy pouted. “Aren’t you the one who said Menithea is the biggest threat?”
“I did, but that doesn’t mean we should completely ignore…I have to locate the original spell, figure out which incantation to use, and you have to---“
“This is how I see it,” she interrupted. “We have to do the spell, right? Otherwise Buffy’s brain is going to explode, or something?”
“Something like that. You cannot exist in this…limbo.”
“Okay. If I were to go back to other world, and I’m not saying at all that I am so don’t get mad, wouldn’t we want to do the spell at the same time the original spell was cast? Make sense?”
William furrowed his brow in thought. “Yes, I understand.”
“So that gives us over a week. And I don’t want to talk about it again until we deal with the demon!” Buffy said firmly, pleading with her eyes for William to understand this wasn’t just about a task list, but a way to keep herself sane, a way to keep herself from breaking.
He understood perfectly, and hurriedly moved forward to kiss her briefly before backing up again and nodding, “Right then. Ready for school?”
It took a few seconds before Buffy to regain use of her brain enough to nod, and say, “School, sure.” His kiss had been quick, nothing like the passionate embrace of just minutes before, but just the same as every other time their lips had touched, her entire being had almost sung.
William smirked a bit at her, and for a moment she was struck by how much of a Spike-the-vampire expression it was. Yet, she liked it, that playfulness. Loved it, even. “Come on, kitten. Don’t want to be late.”
“Wouldn’t want that,” she grumbled, but with a smile glowing just in her eyes. They made their way out to the car, side by side, their hands brushing every few steps.
William opened the passenger door chivalrously, then rested his hand on Buffy’s lower back before she could get into the car. “You…you won’t tell anyone---“
“Of course not, doofus,” she winked. “It’s our little secret.”
The second they stepped onto school grounds, William began to feel like an absolute pervert, as Buffy seamlessly blended into the crowd of teenagers in the hallway.
Well, no, she didn’t blend, she could never. She radiated with an inner light, a spark, something intangible that intrinsically separated her from the rest of the mundane brats that populated Sunnydale High. Her beauty, her grace, her innate power, all set her apart.
And yet, she was still just a sixteen year old girl, and she looked it, and he suddenly felt a rush of guilt as he watched her walk down the hall.
Until she spun around, caught sight of him watching her, and gifted him with a brilliant smile. A smile that soothed his suddenly frazzled nerves, and communicated her understanding of his feelings, feelings he hadn’t even tried to express.
He moved off towards the library, already counting the seconds until he’d see her again.
Buffy turned back and headed for class, the smile shrinking a bit, but losing none of it’s power. She didn’t notice people glancing at her as she entered class, slid into her seat, and rested her chin on one hand. The smile was bright, and happy, and showed she had a wonderful secret.
As long as she compartmentalized and chose to only focus on William, her smile remained all morning until lunch. The moments when her problems forced their way to the forefront of her mind, however, caused the grin to flicker, and fade, and when a headache suddenly burst behind her eyes, it died.
William hummed along with the small stereo he had in his office, turned down low so the sounds of the Ramones wouldn’t infiltrate the library itself, or God forbid carry out into the hall where Snyder might hear.
His phone rang, and he answered it quickly. “Yes? Oh, Jonathan, good…excellent. Did you get the address?...Of course, yes, I’ll come in tomorrow. Thanks.”
He noted down the address, a probable location for the lair of the trio of vampires who controlled and terrorized the town’s underground, then started as an unfamiliar voice yelled his name.
“What is it?” William jumped up and emerged from his office to see a round, worried looking girl standing right by the desk.
“I was sent to get you, there’s an emergency,” the girl rushed out. “Are you busy?”
He gaped at her. “No, I’m not. What’s wrong?”
“Do you know Buffy Summers?”
A tight, cold hand of dread gripped his heart. “What about Buffy?” He growled, unable to suppress his almost animalistic reaction to the words emergency and Buffy being near each other.
“Um, she collapsed? In the student lounge. Angel, do you know Angel? He asked me to come get you.”
William was out the door before she’d finished her sentence. He pushed his way down the hall, ignoring the indignant cry of a football player he inadvertently shoved into a locker in his attempt to get to Buffy as fast as possible.
He had to push his way through a crowd of onlookers, but when Buffy came into view, he breathed a sigh of relief. Her eyes were open, she was talking to Drusilla, cradled in Angel’s lap who was observing her with a worried expression.
Kneeling down next to her, William disregarded the onlookers, Drusilla, Angel, and his own conscience, and took her hand in his as he whispered, “You alright, love?”
“I’m fine!” She insisted, but her weak, shaking voice gave her away. “Got a really bad headache and fainted, but it’s gone now. Stupid Angel won’t let me get up.”
“I think you’re not supposed to move people who faint, you can sever the spinal cord or something,” the dark haired boy said.
Drusilla rolled her eyes. “That’s not really true. At all.”
“Get to class, everyone,” William called out, adopting his voice of authority, and the crowd started to disperse. “Faster would be good, bell’s about to ring. Drusilla, let Buffy’s teacher know she won’t be coming, and you two get to class.”
“I’ll carry her to---“ Angel started to offer.
“I’ve got it,” the Watcher’s voice was firm, harsh, with no room to argue.
Gingerly, Angel helped Buffy stand up, then grabbed his backpack before following Drusilla down the hall, after both promised to come check in at the library in an hour.
“Can you walk?” William asked softly, one arm around Buffy’s waist to hold her up.
“No problem,” she nodded. “I’m fully ambient.”
“Ambulatory.”
“Whatever. I’ll just…lean on you a bit.”
They made their way down the hall silently, William clenching his jaw tight to the point of pain, Buffy using the last of her strength to convince him she was fine with her stable steps and untroubled face, despite the fear threatening to over take her.
Once in the library, William swept her body up into his arms and carried her into his office, where he laid her gently on the couch. Buffy didn’t protest, just sank into the cushions and closed her eyes.
She felt him settle onto the couch next to her, and she forced open her eyes as she said, “It’s not a big deal.”
“It bloody well is.”
“I think I was just tired, I didn’t really sleep and---“
“Don’t feed me that crap, Buffy,” he hissed, then regretted it instantly. “I’m sorry. It’s not your fault, I know that, I’m just…”
“Worried?”
“That’s putting it mildly.”
She reached out and softly stroked his face, saying, “It’s gone now, though. The headache. It was just a…burst, and then I collapsed. And I’m shaky now, but it doesn’t hurt anymore. Water and maybe a nap and I’ll be right as rain. Where does that phrase come anyway, rain isn’t…Well anyway, I’m fine now. The plan should still be---”
“Sod the plan. We’ll multitask. I can’t have you…I can’t let you continue like this. We’ll figure out the spell, and how to use it, and then, well, then we’ll see. I’ll look if there’s any way to suppress the headaches mystically until then.”
“But the demon---“
“Dru can work on the demon, she’ll be willing I’m sure. Angel too, probably. And you’ll go home and sleep.”
“I will not!” Buffy struggled to sit up and ignored William’s sputterings of protest. “I can help. I’m not totally useless.”
“I know that, pet, I’m not saying you are, I just can’t let you do anything that might hurt you.”
“You’re not letting me do anything! I’m the Slayer, it’s my job to help!”
“And I’m your Watcher,” he shot back. “It’s my job to keep you safe.”
“I am safe,” Buffy promised. “You do keep me safe! But you don’t have to save me all the time, you know. I’m pretty tough and sort of self sufficient.”
“That you are,” William admitted, reluctantly admiring her tenacity. “Fine, but you’ll remain on this couch while you help, understood?”
“Perfectly,” she nodded exaggeratedly. “Bring me a book, Watcher.”
He rose and moved to his desk, where he grabbed a tome from the weekend that promised cures for mystical ailments. As Buffy reached for it, he held it just out of reach.
“What?” Buffy asked, confused.
“You have to pay the price for the book,” William grinned at her.
“And what’s that?”
He lowered his voice, despite the fact that there was no one around to hear him but Buffy. “A kiss.”
Her eyes twinkled and she beckoned him forward with one finger. William leaned down, and brushed her lips with his softly, briefly, not fulfilling either’s needs, but rather increasing them ten fold.
William lifted her legs, settled on the couch, then placed her feet in his lap. After observing him happily for a minute, Buffy opened her book, and searched its pages for a cure to the pain that still ailed her, despite her words to the man beside her.
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Author's Chapter Notes:
Phew. Life is crazy. But, here is the next chapter! And just a little announcement, voting is open at the Spuffy Awards, and this fic is nominated for Most Original Plot. Go check out all the amazing nominees for all the different categories, and vote for your favorites! Thanks as always for the feedback, it seriously makes my day. Chapter title from a song by Aimee Mann.