Born of Blood chapter 1
A Buffy the Vampire Slayer fan fiction
Set season four. Oz never returned to Sunnydale and forced Willow to make the choice between him and Tara. Because of this, Willow and Tara have still not experienced the impetus to make them a couple. However, they both have feelings for the other. Willow has told Buffy about her feelings, and she has been kind and encouraging to her best friend. Femslash.
"Prognatus cruor. Suggero nos vita. Ex nostrum pulsus pectus pectoris currit. Permissum suus vox exsisto notus.
"Calling on those who are said to give life, from Aine to Isis and other Blesseds, I come with my humble plea. Deep is the well of our life force, hidden inside our body and soul, shrouded by an unyielding curtain of dark. I beseech thee, trade this darkness for light. Reveal the hiding places of our innermost selves. Let our life force flow freely to the open world. Release it all, and allow the world to choose whether to end in the darkness or light.
"Prognatus cruor. Suggero nos vita. Ex nostrum pulsus pectus pectoris currit. Permissum suus vox exsisto notus."
"Okay, you're right, that one is freakin' creepy," Buffy said to her friend with an obvious edge of "don't mess with it, Will" in her voice.
"It makes me feel all wiggy inside. Like, I did not sign up for this! I mean, sure, I wanted to learn to do magic, and I am learning and working. And of course I want to get better and be able to do more spells and stuff. But this is just weird. I don't want to touch it. I feel like that could cause some serious big bad. I mean, I'm sure there are other spells that are weirder and bigger and badder, but this is the first one I've hit, and it's majorly on the side of creepy. As in 'I'm shaking a little right now' creepy."
Buffy turned a teasing smile on her friend. "Willow, you're definitely growing up, but it makes me happy to see there are some things about you that will never change. Oh, the Willow-babble,"
Willow looked at Buffy with a pouty expression on her face, trying to feign indignation and failing. "I was NOT babbling!" she protested.
"Sure you weren't, Will. Whatever you need to tell yourself to keep you happy." Buffy shot a smirk at her best friend, and Willow shot one back. The redhead turned away, and her smile grew from sarcastic to genuine as she thought about how lucky she was to have Buffy in her life.
The girls had been through so much together. There was the weird: multiple "end of the world"s (which, obviously, never really worked out), a few too many kidnappings and almost murders (sometimes Willow wondered if Buffy got tired of saving her ass), and really frightening vampire doppelgangers (who, strangely enough, kind of predicted the future).
There was also, thank goodness, the normal: first loves, both in the emotional and physical sense, grades that did not come out as well as hoped, and raging hormones too strong to be controlled in a ladylike manner.
And then there were the things that should have been normal but were weird because it's Sunnydale and Buffy's the Slayer: tough breakups (nothing like spearing the man you love on a sword to let him know it's over), graduation (killing an evil mayor/giant snake thing really does make you feel mature enough to hold a diploma), and roommate issues (maybe they could've worked things out if Kathy hadn't been a monster).
Basically, life had tried very hard to tear these two apart. And life had never succeeded. Even with the most recent thing they were going through, the thing that Willow worried might turn her best friend away from her forever, they were still close as close could be.
Buffy sat down on the bed next to her best friend, and Willow turned around to face Buffy and spontaneously leaned in to give her a quick hug.
"I'm so lucky to have a friend like you," Willow murmured. "We've been through so much, and you've always been there for me. And then, on top of that, you're like this super chick. I would be dead about three hundred times over if it weren't for you always sweeping in and saving the day. And me."
"Willow," Buffy said, taking the redhead's hands in her own, "Of course I always sweep in and save you. You're my best friend. I never thought I'd find a friend who'd understand the Slayer thing, or at least be willing to accept it. But I found a friend who's willing to throw herself into danger to help me do my job. And I mean, you don't have a real obligation to help. I'm bound by my damn sacred duty, but you're only bound by –"
"By the fact that I love you so dang much," Willow giggled.
"Exactly," Buffy smiled. "So maybe you are lucky to have a friend like me, but I'm very lucky too."
The two girls smiled at each other and sat in the comfortable silence that only best friends can achieve. Then Buffy got a sparkle in her eye, and Willow looked away and rolled her eyes, stifling a groan. She knew exactly what was coming.
"So Willow," Buffy said, trying to look and sound as innocent as possible. "Any particular reason we just had the conversation we just had?"
"What?" Willow said. "A girl can't just be thankful for the awesome friends she has?"
"Oh, of course she can!" Buffy responded. "I just mean…well…see…. Okay, enough with the bullshit. I'm just going to ask. Why did we have the conversation we just had? What's on your mind? How are you feeling? Oh, and be honest. Please!"
"Fine," Willow conceded. "I was just thinking about how lucky I am to have a friend like you and about all the reasons I am lucky. And the reasons started out as the things I said, that you save me and are there for me and all that great stuff. Then I thought about the newest reason."
"You mean," Buffy interjected, "the fact that you're gay?"
"Yeah, that's the one," Willow answered very shyly, turning her gaze from Buffy's to stare at the floor.
"Oh Will," Buffy murmured, and then she leaned in and gave her best friend a tight hug. As she pulled away, she took the redhead's face in her hands to make sure that she wouldn't look away.
"You are one of the most incredible people I've ever known. You're crazy smart, totally caring, and so loyal. I would be a total idiot if I let you being gay do anything like drive you out of my life. You're awesome, and that doesn't change based on if you like boys or girls or neither or both. I never thought I'd have a real best friend, but then you came into my life and proved me wrong. I love you for you, for every little part of you, and nothing's going to change that."
Willow's green eyes were shimmering with tears, and she once again pulled Buffy in for a hug. "Thank you," she whispered in her best friend's ear. "I didn't know how much I needed to hear that."
"Of course," Buffy whispered back. The girls pulled apart, and both had big smiles on their faces.
"Besides," Buffy said, "if you can deal with me being a Slayer, I think I can deal with you being a lesbian. It'd be a little hypocritical of me otherwise."
Both girls laughed at this, and the mood in the room lightened back up. Willow stood up from the bed and walked over to the mirror, messing with her hair.
"So what are your plans for the night?" Willow asked over her shoulder.
"I'm going to do a quick training session with Giles, then patrol for a while, then come back here and study. I've got an English test tomorrow that I don't know how I'm going to pass. I guess we'll just have to hope for the best," Buffy said with a groan. "What about you? You're obviously doing something fun, to be checking your cuteness levels in the mirror. Which are off the charts, by the way."
"Oh thanks," Willow replied sarcastically, though the blush in her cheeks made it obvious that she appreciated the compliment. "I'm actually going over to Tara's and we're going to do some magic research."
"Ooh, going over to Tara's for some magic research," Buffy insinuated. "Maybe while you're there, you could, ahem, make some magic of a different kind."
"Buffy!" Willow uttered embarrassedly, turning around to face her best friend. "There will be no magic of that kind. I mean the kind that you mean, not the kind that I mean. I mean, there will be magic of the levitating objects and glowing lights variety, but none of what you were implying. No, none at all. I mean, Tara's probably not into making that kind of magic. Or I mean, maybe she is, but probably not with other girls. And even if she is into making that magic with other girls, it certainly wouldn't be with me."
"Okay," Buffy declared. "I'm going to stop you right there, partially because you would go on for another ten minutes if I didn't and partially because of what you just said. I don't know if Tara's into girls or not, but let's just say for the purpose of this conversation that she is. Why do you think she wouldn't be interested in you?"
"Well…" Willow hesitated. "I don't really know. It's just me. And she could do better, especially as far as crushes go. I mean, I'm not the prettiest girl on campus, or the smartest, or the most popular –"
"And what does that have to do with anything?" Buffy countered. "Answer me this: is she the prettiest girl on campus? Or the smartest or the most popular?"
Willow thought for a moment. "Well, she's definitely not conventionally popular. But I like that about her. And I don't think she's necessarily the smartest at school, but she is really smart in so many other things. And as far as prettiest goes…well, most people would say probably not, but I kind of really think so."
"Ah-ha!" Buffy exclaimed. "And that's what I'm trying to tell you. You don't have to be the prettiest, the smartest, the most popular. The right person will like you anyways. And will probably see you as very pretty and smart and popular."
"I guess you're right," Willow said shyly.
"Of course I'm right!" Buffy replied. "And for what it's worth, you probably are the smartest girl on this campus. And you're gorgeous."
"Thanks Buffy," Willow smiled. "I just…I really want this to work out."
"I understand," Buffy said to her best friend. "I want that for you too."
The girls smiled at each other for a moment, and then Buffy turned and looked at the clock sitting on her nightstand. "I'd better get going," she said as she stood up. "I told Giles I'd meet him at 8, and I'd like to do a little warm up before I get there."
"Yeah, I'd better leave too. Tara said I could come over around 7:30." Willow turned towards the mirror and checked her appearance yet again.
"You look fine," Buffy reassured her best friend as she walked over to her. "In fact, you look better than fine. You look hot! Ow ow! Sexy Willow!"
Buffy began dancing around the redhead in a provocative manner, and Willow gave her a gentle shove to get her to stop. "Thanks Buff. I appreciate it." The sarcasm left her voice as she repeated herself, "I appreciate you a lot."
"You're welcome, Will. I know." She watched as Willow walked to the bed and picked up the spell book she'd been reading out of then walked to the door. "You have a good time tonight."
"Thanks Buffy. You too. Good luck with the studying."
"Oh, I'm going to need it!" Buffy responded.
Willow opened the door and started to walk out, turning to give Buffy a last little wave.
"Will?" Buffy said as her friend turned to face her.
"Yeah?" the redhead replied.
"You're awesome. Just…remember that."
Willow smiled at her friend one last time and then shut the door.
I hope this works out, Buffy thought as she started gathering some weapons for training. Because it's obvious that Tara makes Will happy.