Title: New Friends
By: Chen
Feedback: Oh! Yes!
Rating: G
Disclaimer: All things Buffy belong to Joss Whedon and ME (Grr! Argh!) and, alas, not to me.
Spoilers: Not really.
A/N: Charlie strikes again. Sequel to 'Just Good Friends'. In this story I write about something I have little knowledge of - I hope I managed to do it in a credible and respectful way.
I want to thank my BETA – Alanna. Never forgetting Colleen who always reads my stuff and still encourages me.
Just one more thing, I promise! Thanks to all you guys who took the time to give me feedback – it means the world to me!
***
Charlie rushed down the street, cursing the amount of time it took to brush her long hair. She found Tara already waiting with a cup of coffee placed in front of her. Charlie apologized to the shy girl and sat down. Ordering came next, and when they both had their respective ridiculously large cups of coffee in front of them, Charlie raised her head and looked at the girl. "So, Tara, you one of them Scoobies?"
"Oh, no. I m…mean I was. S… sort of. When Wi…Willow and I were together. Not since."
Tara's stutter threw Charlie. She hadn't meant to make the girl nervous. "I am sorry if I was nosy."
"No it is okay. They are a tight group, you know?"
"Yes, I sort of know, from what Spike told me."
"Spike. He is sort of a Scoobie too. In an odd way, that is." Charlie laughed and Tara blushed. She still hadn't gotten used to that mini earthquake that was the tall girl's laugh.
"I guess you could say that. Even though he would deny it with a couple of 'bloody' this and 'bloody' that." She shook her head. "That is Spike."
"You seem to know him pretty well. I don't want to pry… or anything."
"It's okay. Yes, I think I know him a bit. Pretty well? I don't think so. He is not an easy one to figure out. But what I do know, I like. Hey, he saved my life!"
"He saved your life?" Tara didn't even bother to hide her astonishment.
"Yeah, that is how we actually met. I was going home one night and got attacked by a vampire. The thing is about to make yours truly its supper, when out of nowhere comes this bleached blond bloke. Then, it is like one of those Batman cartoons: Bang! Swish! Poof! Vampire is gone and before I can say thank you or anything at all…. Blonde mystery savior is gone, just like that." Charlie snapped her fingers to add emphasis to the 'that'.
"Except I was not about to let it go, or to explain the whole thing away, like most people around here do. I had to know who this guy was… So I tracked him down."
Charlie paused and took a fag from her coat pocket. "Okay if I smoke?"
Tara nodded a yes, wanting to hear the rest of the adventure. Charlie had a gift for storytelling.
"Took me months, but I found him and in the process heard a lot about him. You know the tale: traitor vampire who now kills his own kind because he's in love with the Slayer. The poetry of it all alone is enough to make anyone curious. I didn't give up and I finally caught up with him at Willie's."
Tara wrinkled her nose at the mere mention of the demon- friendly bar. "You actually went there? Willie's?"
"Yes, I did. Willie's. What a place." Charlie's wrinkled nose matched Tara's. "Spike and I have a pact to never go back there. Anyway… We started talking and we just clicked, you know? Somehow it was as if I had known the guy all my life. Not to mention our ridiculous addiction to fags and Passions."
"You two are… together?"
Charlie couldn't help herself, she had to laugh. "No! Oh, God, no! Just friends. Like in: 'I'm gay and he's in love with Buffy' friends." She wiped a tear from the corner of her eye. "Spike and I are almost like family. The truth is, he is the only family I have now."
"You… are gay?"
"I'm sorry, I thought you knew."
"I didn't. I am surprised. Is this…" Tara felt her face grow hot.
"Please, this isn't a date like in 'date'." Charlie looked Tara square in the face. "Please, I don't want you to feel uncomfortable. I thought we could be friends. You seem to be a nice person and I like making new friends. Inviting you for coffee was just about meeting someone I would like to know better, okay? Plus we have some things in common. Not many people are familiar with the Hellmouth side of Sunnydale, as you are well aware of." She placed a hand on Tara's shoulder. "Besides, I know about you and Red, I mean Willow. I went through something like that not long ago - a long relationship that ended badly."
"I am sorry. Was yours a witch too?"
"No, vampire." Tara couldn't hide her surprise. "Not when we were together. She got turned and…" Charlie's eyes filled with unwanted tears at the memory of Frances. "I dusted the vampire. I dusted the demon who killed Frances." Her was suddenly very soft.
"It must have been hard for you."
"Yes, it was," Charlie pulled herself together. "Mercifully I had Spike to get me through all of it. He made me understand that the demon looked like Frances and talked like her, but it was not my girl. It still gets to me though. I miss her."
"I understand. I know it's not the same, but I miss Willow too." Tara patted Charlie's hand in sympathy. "You okay?"
"I'm getting there. You?"
"It is hard. Willow was my first real girlfriend... I had crushes before, but not a serious relationship like I had with her. It's not easy finding someone to love and trust. Finding that person and having her love you back is almost a miracle."
It was Charlie's turn to nod in sympathy.
Tara glanced at the girl sitting next to her understanding how the usually difficult Spike could be friends with Charlie. She was so easy to open up to. In some strange way, she just knew Charlie would listen to whatever she had to say and not judge her for it. Tara could see the girl's aura pattern and smiled to herself. The girl was all about temperance. It made sense.
Tara made up her mind to ask Charlie the question that was jumping up and down in her mind. "If it's not too much of a personal question… When did you find out…"
"That I was gay? And don't worry, I don't mind talking about it at all." Charlie put out her fag on the ashtray and placed it on an empty table behind her. "I was around fifteen when it became kinda obvious to me. I was not interested in boys at all. My father was so happy about that, then not so happy when he found out that what I was interested in were other girls. I got a big crush on a senior girl in my high school. I kept it to myself, you know how it is. Thought something was wrong with me and all that."
Tara nodded in understanding. She knew all about that.
"So I mustered up enough courage to tell my best friend about it. No way I was going to tell my parents. I invite her over and my heart is in knots and I am sure she is going to totally freak out. I just had to tell somebody or go insane. I sit down and I just tell her. And she…" Charlie smiled at the memory. "Boy, I still can hear her voice. She asks: 'is she cute?' and then 'are you happy?'. No freak out."
"Wow. Nothing?"
"Nope. Not a thing. I felt so relieved. My best friend, who is straight as can be, just accepted me for who I was. Learned an important lesson that night. Just be yourself. People who really care about you, will love you for that." Tara looked at Charlie with renewed admiration. "And that is my very long and way too elaborate answer to your question." Charlie took a sip from the coffee and noticed Tara was silent. "Hope I didn't bore you into silence."
"No, not at all. It's just that you seem to be so comfortable in your skin. I am not that… comfortable in mine."
"I don't see why not. You seem fine to me."
Tara gave Charlie one of her embarrassed smiles. "I am trying to get there. I grew up very much the loner. Being gay in a small town was not all that easy. Not to mention all the… family issues. I have to thank Spike in a way for helping me. When my father came to take me back home – when it was time for me to change into a demon…"
"What?" Charlie exclaimed.
"Please don't worry." It was Tara's turn to laugh. "I am not a demon. You know about Spike's chip – how it works?"
Charlie nodded yes. "Can't hurt humans, gets massive headaches when he does. Yeah."
"Okay, so my father came to Sunnydale with my brother and my cousin. I did something really stupid then – a spell to keep everybody from seeing demons. It was a mess. Not proud of that one. In my defense, if there is such a thing, I did believe the story. I believed that I was going to turn into a demon and Willow wouldn't love me anymore. So we are all at the Magic Box… You know the Magic Box, right?"
"Yes, except Spike calls it Scoobie Central."
"So we are all there at the store. My father is saying these horrible things about me and I am feeling like less than nothing, when Spike comes over and punches me. Big headache for Spike."
"Big Spike headache, ergo you are not a demon. I wish I could have seen it."
"No, you don't. We weren't very nice to him." Tara looked down at her coffee. "Vampires were all supposed to be evil and Spike was not to be trusted. Except for Angel because…"
"Because the poof has a soul." Tara couldn't help laughing with Charlie over the Spikeism.
"Yes. Spike is different though, isn't he? He stayed and helped us during the summer, when Buffy was gone. He did a lot of good things since then... He has changed."
"Yes hon, he has. And it has been hard for him, very hard. He brings a whole new meaning to the 'fighting your demons' cliché, doesn't he?" Charlie's eyes went soft at the thought of Spike in the Halloween pajamas with the little bats she had bought him as a present and had sworn on her life not to tell anyone about. "He can be a sweetie though."
"Aren't you afraid about what will happen if something goes wrong with the chip?"
Charlie sighed and pondered upon the question that had troubled her for a while. "I am afraid *for* him, but not *of* him… There's a big difference there. And I am definitely not afraid for my own safety. I just know he would never harm me. I trust him. When it happens, *if* it happens, I have every intention of being there to help him in whatever way I can." A shudder passed through the girl's body. "No use worrying about it now... We will cross that bridge when we come to it."
"It is a big risk. To care about somebody like Spike. It can bring a lot... of pain."
"Yes, it is a risk. Yes, it can bring a lot of pain. It can also bring a lot of happiness. Without Spike, I would have been dead now. With him, I am not only alive, but I also have a loyal and loving friend. Even though we haven't know each other for very long… I just can't explain it to you."
Charlie's voice became very solemn, loosing its usual lightness. "There's something there that is like blood. Family. He is my best friend. There's not much I would not do for him and he has been there for me from day one. I like my odds, Tara."
Images flashed in rapid succession in Charlie's mind… Spike's boyish grin when she gave him extra marshmallows with his hot chocolate… His first disastrous foray into the kitchen so he could learn to cook Buffy a romantic dinner… And the one she cherished the most: her best friend, holding her and comforting her through all those endless nights, when the nightmares had almost driven her insane.
She had no regrets and knew had she the choice, she wouldn't do anything differently.
"I definitely like my odds."
The End
By: Chen
Feedback: Oh! Yes!
Rating: G
Disclaimer: All things Buffy belong to Joss Whedon and ME (Grr! Argh!) and, alas, not to me.
Spoilers: Not really.
A/N: Charlie strikes again. Sequel to 'Just Good Friends'. In this story I write about something I have little knowledge of - I hope I managed to do it in a credible and respectful way.
I want to thank my BETA – Alanna. Never forgetting Colleen who always reads my stuff and still encourages me.
Just one more thing, I promise! Thanks to all you guys who took the time to give me feedback – it means the world to me!
***
Charlie rushed down the street, cursing the amount of time it took to brush her long hair. She found Tara already waiting with a cup of coffee placed in front of her. Charlie apologized to the shy girl and sat down. Ordering came next, and when they both had their respective ridiculously large cups of coffee in front of them, Charlie raised her head and looked at the girl. "So, Tara, you one of them Scoobies?"
"Oh, no. I m…mean I was. S… sort of. When Wi…Willow and I were together. Not since."
Tara's stutter threw Charlie. She hadn't meant to make the girl nervous. "I am sorry if I was nosy."
"No it is okay. They are a tight group, you know?"
"Yes, I sort of know, from what Spike told me."
"Spike. He is sort of a Scoobie too. In an odd way, that is." Charlie laughed and Tara blushed. She still hadn't gotten used to that mini earthquake that was the tall girl's laugh.
"I guess you could say that. Even though he would deny it with a couple of 'bloody' this and 'bloody' that." She shook her head. "That is Spike."
"You seem to know him pretty well. I don't want to pry… or anything."
"It's okay. Yes, I think I know him a bit. Pretty well? I don't think so. He is not an easy one to figure out. But what I do know, I like. Hey, he saved my life!"
"He saved your life?" Tara didn't even bother to hide her astonishment.
"Yeah, that is how we actually met. I was going home one night and got attacked by a vampire. The thing is about to make yours truly its supper, when out of nowhere comes this bleached blond bloke. Then, it is like one of those Batman cartoons: Bang! Swish! Poof! Vampire is gone and before I can say thank you or anything at all…. Blonde mystery savior is gone, just like that." Charlie snapped her fingers to add emphasis to the 'that'.
"Except I was not about to let it go, or to explain the whole thing away, like most people around here do. I had to know who this guy was… So I tracked him down."
Charlie paused and took a fag from her coat pocket. "Okay if I smoke?"
Tara nodded a yes, wanting to hear the rest of the adventure. Charlie had a gift for storytelling.
"Took me months, but I found him and in the process heard a lot about him. You know the tale: traitor vampire who now kills his own kind because he's in love with the Slayer. The poetry of it all alone is enough to make anyone curious. I didn't give up and I finally caught up with him at Willie's."
Tara wrinkled her nose at the mere mention of the demon- friendly bar. "You actually went there? Willie's?"
"Yes, I did. Willie's. What a place." Charlie's wrinkled nose matched Tara's. "Spike and I have a pact to never go back there. Anyway… We started talking and we just clicked, you know? Somehow it was as if I had known the guy all my life. Not to mention our ridiculous addiction to fags and Passions."
"You two are… together?"
Charlie couldn't help herself, she had to laugh. "No! Oh, God, no! Just friends. Like in: 'I'm gay and he's in love with Buffy' friends." She wiped a tear from the corner of her eye. "Spike and I are almost like family. The truth is, he is the only family I have now."
"You… are gay?"
"I'm sorry, I thought you knew."
"I didn't. I am surprised. Is this…" Tara felt her face grow hot.
"Please, this isn't a date like in 'date'." Charlie looked Tara square in the face. "Please, I don't want you to feel uncomfortable. I thought we could be friends. You seem to be a nice person and I like making new friends. Inviting you for coffee was just about meeting someone I would like to know better, okay? Plus we have some things in common. Not many people are familiar with the Hellmouth side of Sunnydale, as you are well aware of." She placed a hand on Tara's shoulder. "Besides, I know about you and Red, I mean Willow. I went through something like that not long ago - a long relationship that ended badly."
"I am sorry. Was yours a witch too?"
"No, vampire." Tara couldn't hide her surprise. "Not when we were together. She got turned and…" Charlie's eyes filled with unwanted tears at the memory of Frances. "I dusted the vampire. I dusted the demon who killed Frances." Her was suddenly very soft.
"It must have been hard for you."
"Yes, it was," Charlie pulled herself together. "Mercifully I had Spike to get me through all of it. He made me understand that the demon looked like Frances and talked like her, but it was not my girl. It still gets to me though. I miss her."
"I understand. I know it's not the same, but I miss Willow too." Tara patted Charlie's hand in sympathy. "You okay?"
"I'm getting there. You?"
"It is hard. Willow was my first real girlfriend... I had crushes before, but not a serious relationship like I had with her. It's not easy finding someone to love and trust. Finding that person and having her love you back is almost a miracle."
It was Charlie's turn to nod in sympathy.
Tara glanced at the girl sitting next to her understanding how the usually difficult Spike could be friends with Charlie. She was so easy to open up to. In some strange way, she just knew Charlie would listen to whatever she had to say and not judge her for it. Tara could see the girl's aura pattern and smiled to herself. The girl was all about temperance. It made sense.
Tara made up her mind to ask Charlie the question that was jumping up and down in her mind. "If it's not too much of a personal question… When did you find out…"
"That I was gay? And don't worry, I don't mind talking about it at all." Charlie put out her fag on the ashtray and placed it on an empty table behind her. "I was around fifteen when it became kinda obvious to me. I was not interested in boys at all. My father was so happy about that, then not so happy when he found out that what I was interested in were other girls. I got a big crush on a senior girl in my high school. I kept it to myself, you know how it is. Thought something was wrong with me and all that."
Tara nodded in understanding. She knew all about that.
"So I mustered up enough courage to tell my best friend about it. No way I was going to tell my parents. I invite her over and my heart is in knots and I am sure she is going to totally freak out. I just had to tell somebody or go insane. I sit down and I just tell her. And she…" Charlie smiled at the memory. "Boy, I still can hear her voice. She asks: 'is she cute?' and then 'are you happy?'. No freak out."
"Wow. Nothing?"
"Nope. Not a thing. I felt so relieved. My best friend, who is straight as can be, just accepted me for who I was. Learned an important lesson that night. Just be yourself. People who really care about you, will love you for that." Tara looked at Charlie with renewed admiration. "And that is my very long and way too elaborate answer to your question." Charlie took a sip from the coffee and noticed Tara was silent. "Hope I didn't bore you into silence."
"No, not at all. It's just that you seem to be so comfortable in your skin. I am not that… comfortable in mine."
"I don't see why not. You seem fine to me."
Tara gave Charlie one of her embarrassed smiles. "I am trying to get there. I grew up very much the loner. Being gay in a small town was not all that easy. Not to mention all the… family issues. I have to thank Spike in a way for helping me. When my father came to take me back home – when it was time for me to change into a demon…"
"What?" Charlie exclaimed.
"Please don't worry." It was Tara's turn to laugh. "I am not a demon. You know about Spike's chip – how it works?"
Charlie nodded yes. "Can't hurt humans, gets massive headaches when he does. Yeah."
"Okay, so my father came to Sunnydale with my brother and my cousin. I did something really stupid then – a spell to keep everybody from seeing demons. It was a mess. Not proud of that one. In my defense, if there is such a thing, I did believe the story. I believed that I was going to turn into a demon and Willow wouldn't love me anymore. So we are all at the Magic Box… You know the Magic Box, right?"
"Yes, except Spike calls it Scoobie Central."
"So we are all there at the store. My father is saying these horrible things about me and I am feeling like less than nothing, when Spike comes over and punches me. Big headache for Spike."
"Big Spike headache, ergo you are not a demon. I wish I could have seen it."
"No, you don't. We weren't very nice to him." Tara looked down at her coffee. "Vampires were all supposed to be evil and Spike was not to be trusted. Except for Angel because…"
"Because the poof has a soul." Tara couldn't help laughing with Charlie over the Spikeism.
"Yes. Spike is different though, isn't he? He stayed and helped us during the summer, when Buffy was gone. He did a lot of good things since then... He has changed."
"Yes hon, he has. And it has been hard for him, very hard. He brings a whole new meaning to the 'fighting your demons' cliché, doesn't he?" Charlie's eyes went soft at the thought of Spike in the Halloween pajamas with the little bats she had bought him as a present and had sworn on her life not to tell anyone about. "He can be a sweetie though."
"Aren't you afraid about what will happen if something goes wrong with the chip?"
Charlie sighed and pondered upon the question that had troubled her for a while. "I am afraid *for* him, but not *of* him… There's a big difference there. And I am definitely not afraid for my own safety. I just know he would never harm me. I trust him. When it happens, *if* it happens, I have every intention of being there to help him in whatever way I can." A shudder passed through the girl's body. "No use worrying about it now... We will cross that bridge when we come to it."
"It is a big risk. To care about somebody like Spike. It can bring a lot... of pain."
"Yes, it is a risk. Yes, it can bring a lot of pain. It can also bring a lot of happiness. Without Spike, I would have been dead now. With him, I am not only alive, but I also have a loyal and loving friend. Even though we haven't know each other for very long… I just can't explain it to you."
Charlie's voice became very solemn, loosing its usual lightness. "There's something there that is like blood. Family. He is my best friend. There's not much I would not do for him and he has been there for me from day one. I like my odds, Tara."
Images flashed in rapid succession in Charlie's mind… Spike's boyish grin when she gave him extra marshmallows with his hot chocolate… His first disastrous foray into the kitchen so he could learn to cook Buffy a romantic dinner… And the one she cherished the most: her best friend, holding her and comforting her through all those endless nights, when the nightmares had almost driven her insane.
She had no regrets and knew had she the choice, she wouldn't do anything differently.
"I definitely like my odds."
The End