Author: Birdie
E-Mail: birdie@cwcom.net
Distribution: If you want to use any part of this fic please mail me
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: No
Content:W/T
Summary:A lonely young woman seeks solace in exciting dreams.
Could true love only be a library away?
Disclaimers:The usual
Willow woke up singing. Friday. Every morning for the last three months she had awoken at 7am to the sound of the same moronic jingle on her clock radio. It had become like a waking dream, though Willow's unhappiness had warped it to her own ends.
'I hate Chicago, oh I hate Chicago,' she hummed, 'Chicago sure ain't the town for me.'
As an afterthought, she added, 'Come to Joe's autos on Franklin and drive straight on without stopping.'
She sighed and drew the duvet closer around her slender frame. Winter in the windy city was everything it had being made out to be. Willow was naturally an optimist, though prone to nervousness and insecurity. She could have bemoaned the fact that she could only afford to live on the Southside, but she preferred to make the most of the fact that she was close to the University campus. Her apartment was cold and dingy, but Willow was delighted she had her own
Sometimes Willow liked to sit and eat her sandwiches while watching the everyday life of the campus pass her by. Pass her by. That was the problem. Her days were stuck in a dingy office, buried somewhere at the heart of The Loop. A mechanical clerk, like 10,000 others in this sprawling metropolis. Jumping the El in the dark every night, riding home to an empty room.
Willow Rosenberg was young and lonely and desperately unhappy. Since separating all ties with her parents and fleeing her home town of Atlanta for the big city, she had effectively cut off her only way off getting to college. Willow had a sweet, pretty face, with huge brown eyes and a cute little smile that seemed to hang around her face for most of the time. Her lustrous red hair hung straight down to her waist and her slim, waif-like figure frequently drew admiring glances from the other girls in her office. But Willow was oblivious. She spent the days dreaming of college and sharing her life with someone who could live with her geeky ways and quirky humour. Someone who would love Willow.
She was 19 years old and a virgin. The only boyfriend Willow had ever had, had put her in hospital when she had declined his offer to spend the night in a motel. Then things had got worse. Her uncle had started to casually touch her breasts and her ass. She had been deeply uncomfortable about that, but when he had tried to put his hand up her skirt at a family party, she had run in tears to her father, who had later given her a black eye for her lies. Willow fled and did not return.
Now she loved to sleep, for with sleep came the dreams. They started just after her arrival in Chicago, and they enervated, enthralled and excited her. The dreams started with a girl. She was the antithesis of Willow. Blond, beautiful and terrifying. A warrior. Superhuman. The girl fought evil. Terrible monsters with scales and claws, frightful vampires who fought their way out of the ground and attacked. But the tiny girl beat them all.
That morning, Willow awoke electrified and aroused. The dreams became more frequent after that, and Willow found herself in them, the slayer's best friend, no less. And there was a boy, goofy, funny and handsome. Willow wanted him. Just as she wanted the girl. She wanted friends like them. So badly it hurt. She wanted that life. Exciting, fantastic, dangerous.
Willow crawled out of bed and robotically prepared for work. She hadn't dreamed of the slayer for over a week.
After work Willow decided to go to her favourite (only) hangout: the library. She took the El and then a bus to the Jeffrey Manor branch near her apartment. She was looking forward to seeing her friend, Marie, who worked checking books out at the branch. Marie was kind of brash, but she loved books and she called Willow 'her little bookworm' which she kind of liked.
As she walked in she spied the branch's manageress in Marie's usual spot.
'Hey, Mrs Finch.'
'Hello Willow. How are you this evening?'
'Fine and dandy. Is Marie in?'
The older woman frowned. 'Oh, didn't you know, dear?'
'Know…?'
'She's gone. Got a better job upstate.'
'Do you have her number?'
'I'm sorry, it was very sudden.'
Willow sighed. 'Okay, I'm just gonna…browse.'
'We have a new girl,' Mrs Finch said. 'I think she's off up aisle three.'
'Okay, I'll go and say hello.'
Willow wandered off past mountains of books , only a tiny fraction of which she would ever read. She spotted the new girl, her arms full of books, and trotted up to her.
'Hi?'
The girl looked up from her work, and Willow's life suddenly changed forever. Like a bolt of lightning. She was beautiful, but it wasn't just that. She was special. Willow knew that immediately. Long, glossy blond hair framing a pale, oval face. Her eyes shining blue and lovely, a delicious pout of a mouth. Willow felt a tremendous pull to this girl, like an open invitation to heaven. The moment lasted only a moment, like in all the best movies, then the girl dropped her head, embarrassed by the intensity.
'C-can I help you?'
Willow felt a tremendous urge to touch the other girl, to hold her face in her hand and….
'I just wanted to say hey. I kind of hang out here. I'm Willow.
The other girl looked up again and gave her just about the sweetest smile Willow had ever seen.
'T-that's beautiful. Your name, I mean. I'm just plain old Tara.'
Willow woke at 7am with a word on her lips. 'Tara.'
The radio was playing 'I'm only happy when it rains' by Garbage. The rain did, in fact, beat solidly against the windows of her apartment. Saturday.
'Um.' Willow burbled happily, snuggling deep into her bed and drawing the covers tightly around her. She felt suffused with warmth and contentment. She had a date with Tara tonight. *A date* ?
Willow squeezed her teddy bear harder. They had only talked for ten minutes last night. The blond librarian had been in Chicago for a few months. She had no family in town and no friends. She seemed terribly shy, occasionally stealing (longing) glances at Willow as they talked. Suddenly Tara had paused and visibly trembled.
'I can't believe you've come.'
'Huh?'
'You're in my dreams.'
She reached out as if to touch Willow's face, but stopped short. 'You're even more beautiful…'
Then she hunched back. 'I'm sorry. You must think I'm nuts.'
'Come out with me?' Willow said immediately. 'Come out with me tomorrow?'
Tara looked up from her books. Beautiful blue eyes. 'Really?'
'For sure. We'll have fun. The two of us.'
Tara's face lit up and Willow saw that wonderful smile again. Her legs turned to jelly.
'Of course. Of course I will. Are you sure?'
'Sure I'm sure. And Tara?'
'Yes?'
'I dream.'
Willow walked the few blocks back to her apartment. Did she believe? Did she believe it was even possible? It certainly felt like…love at first sight. Such a cliché. But Tara was (a girl). So what? What did Willow have to prove to anyone? She was alone. No family 'values' or 'standards' to live up with. She gazed out at the Chicago skyline. She'd been looking for the value in this frightening town, and now she'd found it. Willow Rosenberg was her own woman. She'd seen it all in those perfect eyes. Everything she longed for.
Willow crouched behind the gravestone, her heart in her mouth. Somewhere around her a particularly vicious vampire was stalking her, hungry for Willow blood. Buffy was at least half a mile away patrolling with Riley.
'Witch!' The creature roared, rearing up out of nowhere, flailing towards the small girl with the stake. Willow flailed helplessly, her mind going blank of a spell to stun the demon. Just as the monster was set to tear the witch's head from her shoulders, it's six foot frame was shocked by a blast of pure beltane fire. The vampire howled in distress, unable to move. This time Willow didn't miss her chance. Summoning all her physical strength she plunged the spike into the demon's heart. As the creature dusted, Willow fell forward onto her chest, where she lay, gasping. Moments later a familiar pair of brown leather boots and the hem of a paisley skirt came into her field of vision. Tara helped Willow to her feet. The smaller witch gave her lover a huge hug.
'What are you doing here?'
Tara pouted. 'I hate it when Buffy makes you patrol. I couldn't just sit at home.'
'I love you.'
'Then kiss me.'
'Tara.'
Willow woke up. The rain beat against the windows. Garbage on the radio. Saturday.
Willow and Tara stood on the deserted observation deck of the John Hancock Center on Madison and gazed out over the glowing city skyline and the majestic Lake Michigan and slowly inched towards each other.
'I like to come up here,' Tara said, 'And just watch the world go by. It doesn't seem so big and scary. It's beautiful.'
'Will you tell me about your dreams, Tara?'
Again, the blonde looked at Willow shyly. 'Did you ever the feeling that someone else is living your life better than you?'
'Oh yeah…'
'In my dream we're…very good friends. And it's wonderful. We do spells!'
'Spells?'
Tara nodded and giggled. 'Magic. We do magic together.'
Very slowly, Willow reached out her arm, like crossing a million miles, to take Tara's hand. She gently took Tara's hand in hers, stroking the girl's soft palm with her fingers and rubbing the top of her hand with her thumb.
They were completely silent now, their eyes locked together, both smiling, happy with the moment.
Willow reached out her other hand and took Tara's other hand, longing now to feel the gentle curves of the blond girl's body against her.
'Willow?'
'Mmmm?'
'You're not teasing me are you?'
Willow gently pulled Tara to her and kissed her softly on the lips. 'Do you think I am?'
'No.'
They kissed again, and Willow's spirits soared up to the heavens.
Willow awoke. 7.00am. The radio played 'Nutbush City Limits' by Tina Turner.
'Urgh, I can't stand that song.' Tara mumbled. Sunday.
Willow looked down at her rumpled young lover. *Lover* Willow could have laughed with joy. They had made love and it had been sweet and awkward and gentle and funny. Unspeakably wonderful. They had fallen asleep in each other's arms. Too many dreams in one night.
Willow spooned up to Tara's snug form. 'Want you.'
Tara looked up at the pretty, sexy girl she had dreamed of for months. 'I love you, Willow'.
Chicago was a great city. Willow soon forgot about the dreams of the slayer.
Willow awoke. 7.00am. Another sunny day at UC Sunnydale. She nudged Tara.
'Wake up, sleepyhead.'
'Morning.' Tara mumbled. 'Sleep well.'
'Like a log in the fog.'
'You ever get those dreams about Chicago anymore?'
'Nah. Guess it must have had a happy ending.'