For Love
Back in her room, her empty room, Willow sat on the bed. She hadn't eaten anything that day. She supposed she should, or she was going to feel the toll tomorrow, especially after another sleepless night. However, Willow didn't feel tired or hungry. Just invigorated. Lying back on the bed, she hugged herself, able to imagine she was hugging Tara, because Willow still wore her sweater.
So, hopping up, and settling in at her desk, Willow began to draw up charts linking words and their magical effects, herbs, spices and tones as well. She worked all through the night. Buffy never came to see her.
Not that Willow noticed. At that point, Willow wouldn't have noticed anything short of a tsunami; she was so ensconced in her work.
Willow didn't go to class that day. Or the day after. She was so obsessed she didn't stop for almost 5 days. She ate barely anything, she didn't shower. By the time she was finished, she had lost 11 pounds, her hair was oily and messy, her face dirty. But she had done it.
***Buff's POV***
Now Buffy was seriously worried. One day of missing class was seriously unusual for Willow, but two? Something had to be wrong. However, whenever Buffy stopped by, and knocked on the door, there was never any answer. She had seen Willow leave several times, and managed to sneak into the room one day while Willow was out on another trip to the library, maybe the magic shop.
That place must be sold out by now! Buffy thought as she opened the door. It wasn't locked. What she saw made her jaw drop. The room was a shambles, there were scrolls, parchment, posters strewn everywhere. A few empty, most covered with writing. Books lay open, with scraps of paper sticking out at random places, pages torn and dog-eared. Now, Buffy was scared. This wasn't Willow, this wasn't her at all. Glancing at the bed, she saw a familiar sweater lying near a pillow, and then she knew. She understood. She knew what this was about. Tara.
Buffy called an emergency meeting of the Scoobies – sans Willow – and they decided to keep an eye on her, but let her do what she needed to do.
"She needs to work through this," Giles had said.
Xander and Dawn had wanted to offer their help. Giles refused. "She needs to work through this, alone," he had repeated gently.
So Buffy would wait. She would wait until her friend was in real danger, then she would save her best friend. She would save Willow; she always did.
This time, however, Buffy wouldn't be quite so lucky.