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Date Posted: 18:23:38 02/12/04 Thu
Author: Kuzibah
Author Host/IP: 68.80.18.137
Subject: Re: New Fanfic: Two Hearts- part 2
In reply to: Kuzibah 's message, "New Fanfic: (BtVS, Post-Chosen) Two Hearts- part 1" on 18:22:25 02/12/04 Thu

Buffy rapped her knuckles against the doorjamb of Willow’s room. “Welcome back,” she said when the witch looked up. “How did it go?”

“Pretty well,” Willow said. “She speaks English, which is a plus. How did things go here?”

“Good,” Buffy said. “We got a phone call yesterday. From Oz.”

Willow’s hands froze above her suitcase, and she slowly turned and sat on the bed. “Oh,” she said.

“He told us about Venice,” Buffy said.

Willow nodded slowly.

“He also told us he’s getting married,” Buffy said. “In two weeks. In Crete.”

“Oh. That’s nice,” Willow said.

“And he invited all of us,” Buffy went on.

Willow seemed to come out of her trance. “Hey, that’s fantastic,” she said with forced cheerfulness. “That’ll be fun.”

“Are you okay with this?” Buffy asked.

“Of course. I’m fine,” Willow said. “Oz and I haven’t been together in ages and anyway, gay now! He was just…” She whirled one hand in the air, searching for a word. “I don’t know. I was confused then,” she finished lamely.

Buffy sat down next to her friend and took her hand. “I know it isn’t like that,” she said. “I know how I felt when I found out Riley was married. I mean, we were so over, and we were wrong for each other and knew it. But when he showed up with what’s-her-face, I just thought, that could have been me. I could have been married and deliriously happy… I wouldn’t have been. I know that. But I just couldn’t help feeling…”

“Yeah,” Willow said in a small voice.

They were silent for a moment, then Buffy said, “Giles is going to the wedding. He’s going to tell Dawn and Xander about it at dinner tomorrow night, but I wanted to let you know first.”

“Thanks,” Willow said. “I don’t think I’ll go, but you and Giles have a good time.”

“I don’t think I’m going, either,” Buffy said.

Willow made a little sympathetic noise. “No, but you, and Giles…”

“It’s fine,” Buffy said reassuringly. “We’ll do the traditional ex-boyfriend wedding day thing. A big vid-fest. Tomb Raider for you, Pirates of the Caribbean for me. Lots of take-out curry, with ice cream for dessert.”

Willow smiled gratefully. “Thanks,” she said.

v v v v v v v v v v v v

“Wow, Oz! No kidding!” Xander exclaimed when Giles broke the news at their now-habitual Sunday-night dinner. He glanced over at Willow, who gave him an almost imperceptible nod. “That’s great!” he said. “I’m glad for him.”

“He’s also extended an invitation to all of us to join him for the ceremony,” Giles said. “It’s to take place in the Greek islands two weeks from yesterday.”

“Alright,” Dawn exclaimed. “A vacation!” She turned to Buffy, who lowered her eyes.

“I’m staying home this time,” Buffy said. “But you guys go.”

Dawn turned back to Giles, but seeing no surprise or disappointment on his face, she relaxed. “Maybe I will go,” she said. “I’ll have to think about it.”

Xander, who had watched all the cross-table glancing carefully, tucked into more chicken. “Well, I’m going,” he said. “It’ll be nice to catch up. What’s the weather like in Greece?”

“This time of year? Mid-sixties. Sunny,” Giles said.

“Sounds great,” Xander said. “Where can I get shorts this time of year?”

v v v v v v v v v v v v

Dawn went back and forth trying to decide whether to attend the wedding for three or four days, then finally settled on staying in England. That settled, Giles and Xander made arrangements to fly to Greece, while Buffy and Dawn arranged for a weekend to distract Willow from what was going on several hundred miles south.

Kennedy, who arrived from a training session for the wave of Slayers called with the destruction of Sunnydale late Sunday night, dealt with the entire situation by pointedly not dealing. Buffy had to almost admire the way she treated Giles’s upcoming departure as just another of the trips that had become commonplace since leaving California the summer previous. But she did take extra care with Willow, bringing her things without being asked, and coaxing her into the bedroom early and keeping her in late.

The day before the wedding, Giles took Buffy aside for a moment before the cab arrived. “Are you going to be okay here?” he asked.

“Yeah,” Buffy reassured him. “Lots of girl things planned. Actually, you and Xander are probably better off getting as far away as you can.”

“You have the number of the hotel if you need anything?”

Buffy smiled. “I’ll be fine,” she said. “And I can’t tell you how great it is knowing that calling you if I need anything won’t involve anything more life-threatening than finding out where the fuse-box is.”

“It’s in the basement by the washing machine,” Giles said. “And I mean it. Call.”

“I promise,” Buffy said. “Be sure to give my best to Oz.”

“Giles! Taxi!” Xander called from the hall, and the two men exchanged their goodbyes and left.

The four women watched them go. When the taillights of the cab faded, Dawn said, “I’ll call the take-out place. Who wants what?”

“I’m not hungry,” Willow said quietly, and Kennedy put an arm around her shoulders.

“I’m putting on ‘Johnny English,’” Buffy said. “Join me in the den, if you want.”

v v v v v v v v v v v v

Once separate from Willow and her unpredictable feelings on the matter, Xander had a raft of questions for Giles about Oz’s situation and the girl he was to marry. At first, Giles thought the boy was just making small talk, which was annoying since Giles knew few of the answers, but by the time they were in the air over the continent, Giles had realized just what a romantic the boy was.

The discussion turned to the questions Oz had asked about any future children, and Xander got a faraway look.

“What a girl she must be,” he said. “To know what he is, and yet consider having his children anyway. That’s what frightened me the most with Anya, that I couldn’t get over her demon-ness.”

They changed planes in Athens, and took a smaller plane to the island of Crete. They stepped out into a day so gloriously clear and bright, it was almost as though England were a distant planet. They checked into their lodgings, a coral-colored villa that faced the sea. Xander busied himself unpacking while Giles called Oz to let him know they had arrived.

Oz immediately invited them to dine with his future in-laws and a number of the circus families who had also come for the wedding, and Giles was happy to accept.

v v v v v v v v v v v v

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[> Re: New Fanfic: Two Hearts- part 3 -- Kuzibah, 18:25:10 02/12/04 Thu (68.80.18.137)

Buffy had to admit that Willow was giving it her best, trying to enjoy the ‘girls weekend.’ She cheered on the girl soccer player as she followed her dream, laughed at the antics of the cartoon fish and turtles, and teared up a little over Tobey Maguire and his horse, but she was clearly distracted. So before they got involved in the zombie plague that wiped out England, Buffy suggested they all take a break and walk down to the pub for some meat pies.

Out in the clear, cold air, their feet crunching on the gravel alongside the lane, Buffy asked, “Do you want to talk about it?”

They walked in silence for a minute or two, Buffy watching Willow, Kennedy glaring at Buffy, Dawn looking off at the countryside and Willow staring straight ahead.

“I don’t know how I feel,” Willow said. “I mean, as much as I want to deny it, I did love him. He was my first real love.”

Kennedy made a noise that sounded undeniably like a growl, and Willow backpedaled. “That’s how it is sometimes,” she said. “You buy into what society accepts.”

Kennedy took Willow’s hand. “It’s hard,” she said. “Accepting a lesbian identity. And sometimes it’s easier for women to play along.”

“Right,” Willow said, but she and Buffy exchanged a look when Kennedy turned to observe an oncoming car that seemed to say it wasn’t nearly so cut-and-dried.

v v v v v v v v v v v v

Giles and Xander walked up the stone drive to the home of Oz’s fiancée’s family. It was an old house, surrounded by wild gardens. Long tables had been set up on the lawn, and lights strung between them. The dinner was already in progress, and as the two men approached, they could see spot some of the circus folk in their flamboyant costumes, doing tricks for the amusement of the family.

Two boys with guitars were singing romantic songs, while nearby another boy juggled dinner rolls. A bearded lady fanned her face with a fan of peacock feathers, laughing with a boy who looked to be covered in scales, like a reptile. An old woman talked with three teens in the close-fitting tights of trapeze artists, and they seemed to hang on her every word.

From somewhere in the crowd, Oz came forward to greet them, shaking their hands with a heartfelt, “hey.” He drew forward a girl with black hair and eyes, slender and shorter than he by two inches. “This is Bema,” he said, smiling. “And these are my friends Giles and Xander, from Sunnydale.”

Bema held out one hand. “I feel I know you already,” she said. “Oz has told me of all your adventures. How brave you both are.”

Xander blushed, and Giles looked embarrassed.

“I am pleased to meet you at last,” she said.

“Come on,” Oz said. “Bema’s mother just served dinner.”

v v v v v v v v v v v v

Willow glanced to where Kennedy and Dawn were playing darts, and, confident the game would go on for awhile, turned back to Buffy. “I wasn’t completely honest a little while ago,” she said.

“No kidding,” Buffy said. “I was wondering if I’d have to beat it out of you.”

Willow smiled weakly. “I just don’t know how to explain it,” she said. “I loved Oz. Up until Veruca, I thought we’d always be together. I would be the one asking Giles about werewolf babies.”

“I know,” Buffy said. “Oz is a good man.”

“When I was with him…” Willow paused, appearing to gather her thoughts. “I never thought about being with women. I only wanted him. I never thought, ‘wow, this is great, but if only Oz were a girl.’ If anyone had asked, I’d have said I was completely hetero.”

Willow took a deep breath, and a sip of her beer. Buffy waited, knowing she’d continue in her own time.

“Then, he left, and I met Tara,” Willow went on after a moment. “And when we fell in love, I loved her as totally as I loved Oz. She was everything to me, and I wanted to be with her forever. And, again, I wasn’t thinking, ‘something’s missing,’ or that I wanted boys anymore. It was all about Tara. I was completely lesbian.”

Willow fell silent again, and turned to look at Kennedy. When Buffy could no longer take the suspense, she asked, “And now?”

“I don’t know,” Willow said, and left it at that.

v v v v v v v v v v v v

“Are these people all performers?” Xander asked when they’d eaten.

“No,” Oz said. “We decided not to have a circus wedding. Bema’s father comes from an old circus family, but her mother’s family are still mostly fishermen. This will just be a family wedding. A few more of the performers will come in for the wedding, but only our close friends are here now.”

“How do you like performing?” Giles asked, taking a sip of ouzo.

Oz allowed himself a small smile. “I love it,” he said. “It’s like when I played with the band. It’s such a rush, having the audience with you.” He shook his head, amused. “Of course, now I’m scaring the hell out of them, but it’s still satisfying. But what about you? Willow told me some of it, but how are you handling the changes?”

Giles leaned back. “I have to be honest,” he said, “I jumped at the chance to get away like this after working so hard with all of these… girls. Finding them, revealing their destinies, training them, assigning them. I’m starting to understand why the Council found it necessary to employ so many Watchers. They’ve all so much energy, you’ve no idea. I’ve been exhausted.”

Oz and Xander both looked decidedly unsympathetic at Giles’s plight.

“Still… it’s been nice to be back in England,” Giles said. “And everyone is working together so well. As much as I hate the idea of reforming some sort of oversight organization for the Slayers, I think it will become necessary before too long.”

“If anyone can make sure it doesn’t become another Council, it’s you, Giles,” Xander said.

“Thank you,” Giles said. “But I wonder sometimes, myself.”

The men grew silent and looked across the lawn to where Bema and her brothers and sisters had set up their see-saw and were catapulting one another through the air. Oz smiled fondly at his bride-to-be.

“You’re a lucky man,” Xander said quietly.

“Thanks,” Oz said, not turning his head.

v v v v v v v v v v v v


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