Summary: Every choice she has made, every mistake, every joy, every sorrow, it has all led her here. AU All human, pure Spuffy goodness.

Prologue

Have you ever stopped to ponder what led you to where you are or how you became this person? Do you ever look back at your life and wonder how one person, one single event, can affect your life so completely?

If that one thing was removed...if it just disappeared like that from your life...how would everything change?

Would you still be the person you are today?

The paths I have chosen to walk have been filled with joy and with pain, but they have led me to where I am today. Every choice I've made, every mistake, every heartbreak, every sorrow...it has all led me to this very moment.

And I would not change a thing.

Chapter 1

She was a quirky little thing. Her large personality was in sharp contrast to her stature. At age 9, it was quite clear that Miss Buffy Summers wasn't going to be very large in the size department. In fact, looking at her now, sneakily maneuvering around her neighbors home, golden skin to match her golden pigtails, and those huge green eyes framed by a mischievous little face, she seemed almost pixie-like.

The aforementioned neighbors had recently moved in to the house right next door to little Buffy and had yet to come introduce themselves. Can you believe the gall? The wait was killing her.

Her curious mind was running wild, wondering what these new people might be like. Were they adventurers from oversees? Secret government spies staked out on assignment? Members of a mafia family, recently placed in the little town of Sunnydale by the witness protection program? Oh, the possibilities were endless, and Buffy Summers was determined to find out who her new neighbors were.

She hopped from bush to bush, slyly peeking through each curtained window, hoping for at least one with a sliver open just enough to peek at what was inside. Realizing she had come to the fence designating the end of the front yard, Buffy cautiously peered around before climbing, in a very unladylike fashion, over the wooden fence.

She froze when she landed with a thud on the other side, hoping no one had witnessed her rather ungraceful entrance. Crawling on all fours, she silently crept to the next window, to what she assumed would be the living room.

That's when she saw him. He was just a little thing, all honey curls and thick-framed glasses. He was sitting in the corner of the room between the couch and love seat, cozily reading a rather thick book.

So they had a kid? This was great! Buffy would finally have a new friend. Before she could knock on the window to get this nervous boy's attention, however, a loud shattering sound echoed through the room. Buffy jumped back in surprise, wondering what happened. It didn't take long to find out.

A huge-balding man wearing a wife-beater and boxers stumbled into the room with Buffy's bookworm. He was hers, she had already decided.

"What the hell is the matter with you, boy, leaving your goddamn books all over the floor for me to trip on? That was my last fucking beer, you little brat."

The boy pushed himself further into the corner and Buffy thought she heard a timid "Sorry" whispered from his mouth before the man grabbed him by the shirt and threw him over the couch.

"Sorry! You're fucking sorry? You sure as hell are sorry. That whore of a mother you had should've had a goddamn abortion when she could've. Then I wouldn't be stuck dealing with you while she rots away 6 feet under."

Buffy's temper was rising but her fear held her in place. Sure, she had seen fighting before; her parents fought all the time. Yet Buffy had never seen someone look so hateful...and she had definitely never seen someone put their hands on their child, not in this way.

Picking up the book the boy had dropped when he was thrown across the couch, the man threw it violently at the boy's face. He lumbered over to the fallen child and grabbed his head full of curls maliciously, then roughly shoved the boy's face into the book until Buffy heard his glasses crack.

"You want to read this shit? Then read it, but keep it out of my fucking way. Do you understand, boy? Well, do you?"

Buffy saw the boy nod his head shakily and then heard his squeal of "Yes, sir!" The man let go of the boy's head and stumbled off back down the hall to whatever hell he came from.

Buffy, still frozen, watched as the boy shakily sat up, grabbed his book and held it to his chest. What a brave boy, she thought as she watched him return to his corner and continue reading, albeit unsteadily. If she were in his place, she would have been a blubbering mess. But look at him, not a tear in his eye. Buffy wasn't sure how she felt about that.

Over the course of the next 24 hours, the scene replayed itself over and over again in Buffy's head. Late in the evening, her mother found Buffy weeping quietly in her room. Joyce questioned the tears, but all Buffy could say was, "It's not fair." Joyce simply held Buffy close and explained that sometimes things aren't fair, but that we do our best to help and make it right.

Buffy knew she was just a girl and wished she could stand up to that big mean man and show him who was boss, but that was obviously somewhat impossible at the moment. By the next night, however, she knew she had to do something. What she could do — what she would do — was be that quiet boy's friend.

Once she knew her parents had fallen asleep, she used her spy skills and snuck out of her bedroom window. It wasn't the first time she had snuck out the window, though admittedly, the other times she would just sneak out and into the tree house in her own backyard. But there was a first time for everything. She hustled down the tree that stood next to her window and quickly hopped the fence into the neighboring yard.

She'd done some recon earlier in the day and figured that the boy's room was on the far side of the house. After some quick recon earlier that day, Buffy found out that the boys room was on the other side of the house.

She slowly snuck to the boy's bedroom window and peeked inside. To her surprise, the boy appeared to still be awake. He was reading by the light of a flashlight he had somehow taped onto a hat that sat atop his head.

Buffy couldn't help it; she giggled at the look of it and his head shot up.

Bright green eyes met soft blue and it was as if lightning struck. For the rest of her life, she would never forget the way her body reacted in that singular moment. She also immediately saw his fear and confusion, and shook herself as if clearing her thoughts before motioning for him to come to the window. Buffy drew her mouth into her prettiest smile, hoping to soothe his obviously frayed nerves.

The boy seemed to consider his options for a moment before gently closing his book and walking over to the window, The flashlight bobbed haphazardly with every step. When he finally reached to window, he quietly raised it halfway. For a moment, they just stared at one another, feeling a vague connection but unaware of how important they would soon become to one another.

Buffy decided to break the silence.

"Hi! I'm Buffy Summers, your neighbor. Do you, um, mind if I come in?" He remained quiet, staring cautiously at her. Well, this was awkward. After a few moments of awkward silence, Buffy continued. "Or not. I just…well, I kind of overheard some things yesterday and thought your might, you know, like to have someone to maybe talk to or something. Like a friend?"

His eyes opened wide before he finally spoke. "YOU want to be MY friend?"

She nodded happily; pleasantly surprised to hear that he had a kind of cute accent. It made him sound like one of the guys from her spy movies.

"Well, yeah. That is, if you'd let me in. It IS kind of chilly out here." Again, she smiled the trademark Buffy smile that would one day melt hearts.

He sat in silence for a few more moments, but Buffy knew the exact moment that he had made his decision. A gentle smile broke across his face and he stepped back, allowing her entry into his room.

That night they talked about everything. She told him that she lived with her parents and little sister, Dawn, and that her most favorite things to do were spy and cheer. She was sure she was going to be a cheerleader when she grew up. She told him that her own parents fight — quite often in fact — but that it was subtle enough that her little sister never noticed. After a few moments, she admitted that she always felt confused and sad after the fights.

She revealed what she had seen the day before and how it made her feel, and he told her how that happened all the time since his mother's death almost 2 years before. He told her how his mother loved him very much but would often disappear for days and come back with marks all along her arms. He never understood where she went, but when she came back, his father would go insane with rage and take it out on the both of them. After her death, the rages got worse, but his father tended to stay to himself most of the time, locked away in his room with the TV blaring.

She learned his name was William Pratt, that he was born in London but had moved here after his mother's passing two years before, and that he had made no friends since moving to America. This revelation made Buffy sad and thoughtful; that was a long time to go without any friends. William didn't feel that way, though, and explained that he thought of his books as friends. They were always there for him when he needed to escape, to go on a journey somewhere else.

"When I read a book, it's like I become the characters and live the story. For a little bit, I feel okay. Not lonely or sad, but okay."

Buffy smiled and reached for his hand. "Well, now you have more than these books, you have me. I'll be your person and you can be mine!"

He tilted his head and gave her a curious look. "Your person? What quite do you mean?"

She giggled quietly and then whispered, "The person you can always go to when you're sad, or happy, or just want to talk. The person you can always count on. I can be yours, and you can be mine. We'll be each other's…people!" She squeezed his hand.

He smiled and turned away. When he looked back at her it occurred to her that he had been crying. Why now, she wondered. He didn't cry when he told her of his mother's death or of having no friends. So why now?

Before she could think much on it, he responded to her suggestion. "I think that's a smashing idea."

Over the summer, the young Buffy and William — or Will, as Buffy dubbed him — grew closer and closer. At first, Will was worried that he leaving the home to go to Buffy's would provoke his father's ire, but it proved to be the opposite. The more Will was out of the house, the less he had to see his father. This pleased both Buffy and himself a great deal.

Almost every bleeding second of the summer was spent with Buffy. Sometimes they stayed at her house, looking through her mother's library or playing one of Buffy's silly pretend games. Other times, they would roam the neighborhood on an elaborate adventure constructed from Buffy's bravado and his impeccable imagination.

Mostly, they just sat in Buffy's bed and talked. They talked about 9 year old things like toys and school, but they also talked through very mature things — things most adults assume are of little concern to children. They talked of their dreams, their fears, about life.

Occasionally, when his father would become enraged and take out his anger on his son, Will would silently let him. Then, when it was over, Will would sneak out of his window and in through Buffy's. He never had to say anything; he would just nestle himself up against her and she just knew. She would hug him tight and whisper to him the dreams they shared. She always knew how to make it better.

Will feared that things would change when the summer was over. After all, Buffy was a pretty, vibrant girl who surely had plenty of friends. He on the other hand…well, he was less than impressive. Will looked into the mirror, gazing at the odd boy staring back at him.

He saw a narrow face with surprisingly sharp cheekbones that were framed by wayward light brown curls flying in every which way. Behind his thick black glasses, he saw two bright blue eyes — one of the few features he did not get from his mother. He actually didn't know where he got his blue eyes — and Buffy often would tell him how bright or "pretty" they were — but it wasn't really important. Will knew he was invisible.

Sighing solemnly, he straightened his collar over his plaid vest and turned away from his image. He knew that today, when they went back to school, his "person" would forget all about him.

Oh my God, where was he! Buffy had been up since the crack of dawn, or something like that. Usually her mom had to fight to get her out of bed every single school day...every single school day, that is, except for the first day of school.

Today, she woke up extra early so she was sure to have enough time to pick out her cutest outfit. She knew she looked adorable in her khaki jumper, pink ruffled shirt, and all black Mary Janes. Buffy had begged her mom to put her hair in a French braid, and the pleated tail now hung with a big pink bow over the arch of her shoulder. Her dad had bought her the cutest pink backpack before leaving for his monthly conference, and she stood with the bag slung over her arm as she waited — not so patiently — for her friend to join her in the walk to school.

She balanced along the edge of the curb, pacing back and forth between her house and Will's until she finally heard the door creak open.

"FINALLY!" She whined, flinging out her hands melodramatically.

He turned around quickly and his eyes were as wide as saucers. "B-Buffy?"

She rolled her eyes at him and answered, "Well, duh!"

"I just…I, um, well, I didn't expect you to be here is all."

"What? Of course I'm here. Now come on, I can't wait to introduce you to my friends!"

The smile that came across his face stunned even her. She was unsure as to why he was so surprised. They spent every day together; why would she have left without him just because he was a few minutes late?

Whatever. She wouldn't worry about that today.

When they arrived at the school, Buffy pulled him over to a table with two other girls — one blonde and the other brunette — and immediately set about introducing them. Will couldn't help but smile at the excitement all over Buffy's face, but his merriment quickly vanished when he saw the expressions on the other girls' faces.

"Cordy, Harm, this is Will, my person." Buffy said happily.

"Ewww! Buffy! How could you bring this dork over here? He's just so…nerdish!" the plump blonde girl squealed.

The brunette sitting next to her rolled her eyes dramatically and snickered. "Really, Harm, couldn't think of anything better? Not that I disagree, but, I mean, like, really, Buffy. Look at him!"

Will immediately bowed his head in embarrassment and appeared to shrink into himself.

Buffy's face turned red with agitation and she turned towards Will. With exaggerated movements, she looked at his feet, lifted his arms, felt his cheeks, peered into his ears, and looked around the circumference of his head.

"Hmm. He looks good to me. I see a really nice, smart kid who doesn't need to make himself feel better by being mean to other people."

Will was shocked. Did she really just stand up for him? He looked around nervously, noticing that many of the students around them had paused to witness the scene. Harmony's eyes were as wide as saucers and Cordy looked like she was about to blow a fuse.

"Excuse me, Miss Priss," Buffy continued, wagging her finger at the brunette. "You better remember who you're talking to."

Buffy walked purposefully over to Cordy, stopping mere inches from her. She made a scene of looking her up and down as well, and then nodded at Will.

"You know what I see, Will? I see a sad girl who has no life and bad hair." Both girls gasped. Buffy turned her head casually to the blonde girl, "Oh, and her stupid friend."

With that, Buffy walked away. Her mom had always told her there was nothing more to say to people like that. She dragged a stunned Will behind her as she walked through the common area until she found another bench and plopped down.

"Wow, can you believe those girls, Will?"

"Actually Buffy, yes, I can." He whispered, thinking of all the kids at his old school in London who teased him constantly. Buffy turned concerned eyes at him and grasped his hand in hers.

"I'm sorry I introduced you to those losers. They aren't worth our time anyway. We don't need those nasty people bringing us down, right, buddy?" She smiled her trademark smile at him and he nodded enthusiastically. Her smile could do wonders to a boy's attitude.

"Right." He replied, feeling worlds better.

As they smiled at one another, they didn't notice a timid red head in a long brown dress and a quirky boy in a Hawaiian shirt and khaki shorts making their way towards them. Both had huge smiles upon their faces.

"Can I just say, WOW!"

Buffy and Will turned towards the boy's voice, confused with his meaning until the red head stammered out, "Y-Yeah. I mean, I've never seen someone stand up to Cordelia before, especially not like that."

The brown-haired boy piped up again. "You sure told her."

Buffy smiled and said, "Thanks! Do you guys want to sit with us?"

And with that simple question came the start of something wonderful.

Please review. It motivates me to update. Thank you!