Rating: Still going with PG, although it's a pretty tame PG, at that
Feedback: Thank you kindly. Melpomenethalia@aol.com
Spoilers: Through season five's "The Gift"
Distribution: Here and eventually the Warren. If you're interested, please let me know.
Summary: Buffy jumped through the portal and died. But what happened to her next?
Disclaimer: All characters are owned by Mutant Enemy (Joss Whedon), a wonderfully creative company whose characters I have borrowed for a completely profit-free flight of fancy. Kindly do not sue me, please, as I am terrified of you. Thank you. Part 15Mouth agape, Buffy looked from the slightly self-righteous Harmony to the obviously angry Drusilla and then the suddenly uncomfortable Darla in quick succession.
"Darla," Drusilla whispered in a voice that was teetering on the edge of control, "that was completely uncalled for."
Darla opened her mouth to reply, but the brunette gave her a warning look and she closed it once again.
"Buffy and I need to have a few minutes alone. Excuse us," Drusilla said in a commanding tone as she strode purposefully towards the slayer and helped her to her feet, slipping an arm around her shoulders and guiding her away from the others.
No sooner had the two of them begun to walk than the valley was quickly replaced by a spring garden. Lilacs in full bloom stretched in rows for as far as the eye could see, roses of pink and white and yellow nodded their heads sleepily in the warm breeze, and the perfume of lilies of the valley and violets filled Buffy's nose. Butterflies danced lightly over the flowers, and the dull hum of large, fuzzy bumblebees followed her down the white gravel path. Taking note of a large hammock stretched between two blossoming cherry trees, Buffy quickly realized this must be the garden that Drusilla sometimes rested in that William had mentioned earlier. For quite a while, she silently followed where Drusilla led. A look at the other woman's face told her in an instant that she was composing herself after the scene with Darla.
At length, the two of them entered through a gap in a box hedge and found themselves in the midst of a rectangle of green grass surrounding a small reflection pool. An ornate, carved-stone bench stood by its edge, and Drusilla motioned for Buffy to sit beside her on it.
"Now, you mustn't think I'm upset at all with you, dearie," Drusilla began gently, patting Buffy's hand calmingly. "I'm afraid I let my temper get the best of me for a moment back there. Darla spoke out of turn."
"Yeah, I kinda got that," Buffy answered carefully. "So, um, what she said…"
"Is entirely true," Drusilla finished for her. "Yes, William does have feelings for you. Very deep ones, truth be told. But it should have been he that told you, not Darla. William still carries some, well, scars is perhaps the best word to use."
Buffy frowned into the pool, barely taking the time to notice that it mirrored both her and the usually reflection-free Drusilla. "I see."
"No, dear heart, I don't believe you do," Drusilla sighed softly. "And I'm not really the one to explain all of this, but that's not why I brought you here. William is very, very dear to me, Buffy. When he first came here, he was so completely distraught that almost nothing could calm him. I tried to help ease the transition for him, but considering I was the last thing his human eyes had seen, it was a long time before he began to feel comfortable with me. Eventually, though, he became one of the strongest souls here, and I couldn't have asked for a kinder or more gentle friend."
"Really?" Buffy asked, startled. "I mean, William is sweet and all that, but… strong?"
"Don't let his shy ways fool you. That soul has a heart as brave as a lion and determination to match. After the shock wore off, he delved more deeply into Spike than many of us would ever have dared with our own other selves, and from that he was able to save many, many lives that would otherwise have been lost to the demon. Not all his battles were victories, of course, and when he failed his agony, both physical and mental, was particularly intense. It never stopped him, though. That's why bits of him have bled through into Spike."
Buffy played absent-mindedly with the hem of her skirt as she tried to understand all of this, and then it slowly dawned on her. "When I saw that look in Spike's eyes, the one I've seen in William's sometimes here, that was his soul, wasn't it?"
Drusilla nodded. "There have been times when William has almost completely inhabited Spike again, even though it may have been only for a few minutes or even seconds. William always stayed close to Spike. His affection for me helped make the feelings between the other me and Spike far stronger than most vampire bonds for all those years."
"So, you two, you're not," Buffy began hesitantly.
Drusilla laughed happily. "No, no. William is more like my brother than anything else, and I love him dearly, but I am not in love with him, nor he with me."
"Oh, because, well, you know, the other set of you were pretty tight."
"Um, yes, that they were," Drusilla said as she blushed slightly more pink than a nearby rhododendron.
"Sorry. Didn't mean to embarrass you or anything," Buffy apologized quickly.
"Oh, that's alright, Buffy. It's a perfectly natural question to ask," Drusilla said, though she was still a bit flustered. "In any case, my feelings for William are part of why I've brought you here."
"They are?"
"Yes," Drusilla answered, drawing herself up straighter and looking at Buffy steadily. "I suppose you would call this the 'shovel talk'."
Buffy blinked rapidly. "Huh?"
"William is a dear friend of mine and has a beautiful heart, but he's also very vulnerable where you are concerned. It would be easy for you to hurt him. I'm asking you not to do that."
Buffy regarded the other woman for a long moment. "Dru, you don't have to worry about that, I promise. I kind of get the feeling William has had his heart stomped on a few times?"
"Considering his first love humiliated him, told him he was beneath her because his family wasn't wealthy, and treated him as though he were something nasty stuck to the bottom of her over-priced shoes and his second love killed him less than five minutes after they first met, I don't think it's an exaggeration to say yes," Drusilla agreed sadly.
"Whoa. His love life has been about as rocky as mine," Buffy responded with a sympathetic gulp.
Drusilla nodded as she put a stray curl back over Buffy's shoulder. "I can sense him, of course. He's dreadfully upset and deeply embarrassed, and he's gone off by himself, remembering all of those old hurts and feeling old scars bleed."
"Can you show me where he is?" she asked quietly.
Drusilla smiled broadly, pleased with her question. "Close your eyes, and I'll send you to him."
"Thank you."
With that, Buffy shut her eyes, and when she opened them, Drusilla was left sitting in her garden, quite alone except for the singing of a meadowlark.
"I do hope I shan't need that shovel," she mumbled to herself as she climbed into her hammock, more than ready for a long nap. "I've never been entirely certain what one is supposed to do with it." She paused. "Although, perhaps, I could get in a bit of practice with Darla."