DISCLAIMER: I do not own anything to do with Buffy the Vampire Slayer - it
all belongs to Joss Whedon.
Author's Note: Again, I say the Anya/Spike reunion with the Scoobies is soon (in fact it's gonna be the next chapter) but for now, we have to deal with the in-between. Also, I know Kennedy is quite an unpopular character (I myself love the Willow/Tara pairing) but she will be useful later on, especially considering she's a Slayer too.
Chapter 6
It was barely sunset when Kennedy and Willow came home from the play. Buffy had sorted herself out by then, and had put on a brave face as she had gotten used to doing time and time again.
'Hey Buff, had a good day?' Willow asked cheerfully.
Buffy pasted a smile onto her face. 'Yeah, great, just some alone time. How was the play?' She figured the less she went into detail about her day, the better. The last thing she wanted was for them to pity her.
'We really enjoyed it,' Kennedy replied. 'I was quite surprised at how realistic it was - of course, it was done by a real witch, so she would know what stuff's really like.'
'Oh, and the best thing happened afterwards,' Willow quickly continued. 'We got to talk to the writer, and we were really deep in conversation about my history as a witch, and she was so fascinated by my story, she wants to make it into a play!' Willow exclaimed.
'Wow, Willow, that's great!' Buffy nodded her head in support.
'Yeah, she's gonna write about how I got into magic, being friends with the Slayer, and of course my dark period.' She paused. 'She said she would be really careful about that part, and not try and make it out as if I was a villain or anything. She's really cool with it, she wants me to go over the script and casting and everything with her.' She started jumping up and down. 'This is the best thing that's ever happened to me!'
'Oh, Willow, I'm so happy for you,' Buffy stood up and gave her a hug.
'Hey, where's Dawn?' Kennedy asked.
'Out at the mall with a friend,' Buffy answered plainly.
'Oh, do you know when she'll be back? Cos we talked to Xander, and he said he'd come over tonight with a movie and we could all watch it together.' Kennedy explained.
'I dunno, I'll call her cell.' Buffy picked up the portable phone, clicked a few digits on it, and put the phone to her ear. But before anyone answered, Dawn and Xander walked in through the door. Buffy hung up the phone.
'Hey guys!' Dawn said, wincing slightly because of all the bags she was carrying. 'Guess who I ran into?' She indicated towards Xander.
'Hey Xander,' Buffy said. 'Hey Dawn, you spend your college fund on what's in those bags?' she asked teasingly.
'It's just some stuff I've wanted to buy,' Dawn protested. 'Really, it's not as bad as it looks,' she assured.
Just then, the phone Buffy was holding rang. She answered it automatically. 'Hello?'
'Hey Buffy, it's Cordelia,' the voice at the other end said. The connection was a bit scratchy; she assumed it must've been Cordelia's cell phone.
'Hey, Cordelia!' Buffy was surprised, and her voice showed it. Everyone in the room was looking at each other with curious expressions. 'What's up? Is something wrong?'
'No, nothing's wrong. Jeez, I call and you immediately assume something's wrong. What has become of our friendship Buffy?'
'Oh, we had a friendship then?'
Cordelia had made a face that luckily Buffy couldn't see. 'Ha ha,' she said sarcastically. 'Listen, I'm gonna be dropping by tonight, I have something to bring to you.'
Buffy's face contorted. 'You're coming up all the way from LA? Is it really that important?'
Cordelia glanced at the people in her car. She didn't want to give anything away, but thought she'd just tease Buffy for a while. 'I think you'll agree that it's pretty huge.'
'But nothing's wrong?'
Cordelia smiled. 'Nope, everything's great.'
'Then what's so urgent that you need to drive up here straight away?' Buffy was getting worried.
'Oh, for G-d's sake, am I welcome there or not?!' Cordelia was getting frustrated.
'Of course. . .you are,' Buffy however was just confused.
'It's a surprise, OK? I'll be there in a couple of hours.' She hung up.
'But, wait. . .' she heard the tone and took the phone away from her ear, staring at it. 'That was weird.'
'Cordelia's coming down? What could she possibly want?' Willow asked, a bit angry. She'd never really liked Cordelia much; she'd teased Willow a lot at school.
'I really don't know,' Buffy replied, still staring at the phone. 'She said it was a surprise.'
'A surprise from Cordelia?' Xander spoke up. 'That's never good.'
'She said she'd be here in a couple of hours. . .'
'And nothing's wrong?' Dawn checked.
'She said everything was great. . .y'know, she was being really secretive about something.' Buffy finally put the phone down.
'Well, whatever it is, we'll find out in a couple of hours, right?' Kennedy said. They shrugged in agreement.
'Why don't we watch the movie?' Willow suggested, and they all made their way to the living room.
**********
'Was that Buffy?' Spike asked tentatively.
'Yeah, y'know that girl's got an attitude problem,' Cordelia protested. Spike and Anya exchanged looks, realising that it wasn't Buffy with the attitude problem.
'Anyway,' Cordelia continued. 'They're expecting us.' Then she smiled slyly. 'I mean, they're expecting me and a surprise. . .' She looked at Spike and Anya in the rear-view mirror and winked at them.
'So how long 'til good old San Fran, Cordy?' Anya asked.
'A couple hours,' she replied. 'So, what do you guys plan to do after the big reunion?'
Anya and Spike made funny expressions. 'What do you mean?' Anya asked.
'Well, so you say, "Hi, we're not dead, great to see you again" to the whole gang. . .then what? Where are you gonna go?'
Anya and Spike were a bit shocked, because in reality, they hadn't really thought that far ahead. There was a certain 'and they lived happily ever after' essence about this, and whenever it was like that, they didn't bother to think ahead. They both realised they were thinking the same thing, so they tried to brush Cordelia off with a simple answer.
'We'll cross that bridge when we get to it,' Spike said. 'What matters to us now is moving on from this period, starting our lives over.' He smiled to himself. 'Wow, I actually have a life now. . .' he privately celebrated.
'Hey Cordy, I was wondering. . .what's up with Angel and his date? Has he been on dates before?'
Cordelia absently changed gears and talked casually. 'Oh, no, Angel's not really the "going out" type. He hates dating. But Laura. . .they've both had a thing for each other for ages after he rescued her from a bunch of vamps. Angel felt guilty though about "betraying" Buffy or something by going out with another girl.' Cordelia paused. 'But now that she's shown she doesn't need him. . .he felt better about himself, and decided to ask her out. She said yes, and hey presto,' Cordelia took her hands off the wheel for a second and made a 'voila' hand gesture, 'Angel's got a girlfriend.'
'Wow, really? Really a girlfriend? One who's name is not Buffy and who's not a Slayer?' Anya commented amazed.
Cordelia smiled appreciatively. 'I'd say so. But, y'know, I'm happy for him,' Cordelia concluded. 'The poor guy's spent the last four years locked up, miserable, obsessed with work, and now he's gotten a ray of hope.'
'And she doesn't mind the whole vampire thing?' Spike asked. Cordelia shook her head.
'No, not at all. She knows about vampires, and knows that one with a soul is different. In fact, I specifically remember her telling me she preferred guys who weren't so ordinary.'
Spike smiled, knowing from personal experience that a vampire with a soul was much more than 'not so ordinary.'
There wasn't much talk from then on in the journey; just an enormous amount of anticipation as they got closer and closer to the reunion - the confrontation - that awaited them in San Francisco.
**********
Author's Note (again): If you're wondering about the Willow/play thing, it's an idea I was gonna use for a future fan fic. There is a sequel to this story, and I'm also writing the third part, so I hope you are all enjoying (I get from the reviews that you are!) because there's a lot more to come with this 'version' of post-S7.
Author's Note: Again, I say the Anya/Spike reunion with the Scoobies is soon (in fact it's gonna be the next chapter) but for now, we have to deal with the in-between. Also, I know Kennedy is quite an unpopular character (I myself love the Willow/Tara pairing) but she will be useful later on, especially considering she's a Slayer too.
Chapter 6
It was barely sunset when Kennedy and Willow came home from the play. Buffy had sorted herself out by then, and had put on a brave face as she had gotten used to doing time and time again.
'Hey Buff, had a good day?' Willow asked cheerfully.
Buffy pasted a smile onto her face. 'Yeah, great, just some alone time. How was the play?' She figured the less she went into detail about her day, the better. The last thing she wanted was for them to pity her.
'We really enjoyed it,' Kennedy replied. 'I was quite surprised at how realistic it was - of course, it was done by a real witch, so she would know what stuff's really like.'
'Oh, and the best thing happened afterwards,' Willow quickly continued. 'We got to talk to the writer, and we were really deep in conversation about my history as a witch, and she was so fascinated by my story, she wants to make it into a play!' Willow exclaimed.
'Wow, Willow, that's great!' Buffy nodded her head in support.
'Yeah, she's gonna write about how I got into magic, being friends with the Slayer, and of course my dark period.' She paused. 'She said she would be really careful about that part, and not try and make it out as if I was a villain or anything. She's really cool with it, she wants me to go over the script and casting and everything with her.' She started jumping up and down. 'This is the best thing that's ever happened to me!'
'Oh, Willow, I'm so happy for you,' Buffy stood up and gave her a hug.
'Hey, where's Dawn?' Kennedy asked.
'Out at the mall with a friend,' Buffy answered plainly.
'Oh, do you know when she'll be back? Cos we talked to Xander, and he said he'd come over tonight with a movie and we could all watch it together.' Kennedy explained.
'I dunno, I'll call her cell.' Buffy picked up the portable phone, clicked a few digits on it, and put the phone to her ear. But before anyone answered, Dawn and Xander walked in through the door. Buffy hung up the phone.
'Hey guys!' Dawn said, wincing slightly because of all the bags she was carrying. 'Guess who I ran into?' She indicated towards Xander.
'Hey Xander,' Buffy said. 'Hey Dawn, you spend your college fund on what's in those bags?' she asked teasingly.
'It's just some stuff I've wanted to buy,' Dawn protested. 'Really, it's not as bad as it looks,' she assured.
Just then, the phone Buffy was holding rang. She answered it automatically. 'Hello?'
'Hey Buffy, it's Cordelia,' the voice at the other end said. The connection was a bit scratchy; she assumed it must've been Cordelia's cell phone.
'Hey, Cordelia!' Buffy was surprised, and her voice showed it. Everyone in the room was looking at each other with curious expressions. 'What's up? Is something wrong?'
'No, nothing's wrong. Jeez, I call and you immediately assume something's wrong. What has become of our friendship Buffy?'
'Oh, we had a friendship then?'
Cordelia had made a face that luckily Buffy couldn't see. 'Ha ha,' she said sarcastically. 'Listen, I'm gonna be dropping by tonight, I have something to bring to you.'
Buffy's face contorted. 'You're coming up all the way from LA? Is it really that important?'
Cordelia glanced at the people in her car. She didn't want to give anything away, but thought she'd just tease Buffy for a while. 'I think you'll agree that it's pretty huge.'
'But nothing's wrong?'
Cordelia smiled. 'Nope, everything's great.'
'Then what's so urgent that you need to drive up here straight away?' Buffy was getting worried.
'Oh, for G-d's sake, am I welcome there or not?!' Cordelia was getting frustrated.
'Of course. . .you are,' Buffy however was just confused.
'It's a surprise, OK? I'll be there in a couple of hours.' She hung up.
'But, wait. . .' she heard the tone and took the phone away from her ear, staring at it. 'That was weird.'
'Cordelia's coming down? What could she possibly want?' Willow asked, a bit angry. She'd never really liked Cordelia much; she'd teased Willow a lot at school.
'I really don't know,' Buffy replied, still staring at the phone. 'She said it was a surprise.'
'A surprise from Cordelia?' Xander spoke up. 'That's never good.'
'She said she'd be here in a couple of hours. . .'
'And nothing's wrong?' Dawn checked.
'She said everything was great. . .y'know, she was being really secretive about something.' Buffy finally put the phone down.
'Well, whatever it is, we'll find out in a couple of hours, right?' Kennedy said. They shrugged in agreement.
'Why don't we watch the movie?' Willow suggested, and they all made their way to the living room.
**********
'Was that Buffy?' Spike asked tentatively.
'Yeah, y'know that girl's got an attitude problem,' Cordelia protested. Spike and Anya exchanged looks, realising that it wasn't Buffy with the attitude problem.
'Anyway,' Cordelia continued. 'They're expecting us.' Then she smiled slyly. 'I mean, they're expecting me and a surprise. . .' She looked at Spike and Anya in the rear-view mirror and winked at them.
'So how long 'til good old San Fran, Cordy?' Anya asked.
'A couple hours,' she replied. 'So, what do you guys plan to do after the big reunion?'
Anya and Spike made funny expressions. 'What do you mean?' Anya asked.
'Well, so you say, "Hi, we're not dead, great to see you again" to the whole gang. . .then what? Where are you gonna go?'
Anya and Spike were a bit shocked, because in reality, they hadn't really thought that far ahead. There was a certain 'and they lived happily ever after' essence about this, and whenever it was like that, they didn't bother to think ahead. They both realised they were thinking the same thing, so they tried to brush Cordelia off with a simple answer.
'We'll cross that bridge when we get to it,' Spike said. 'What matters to us now is moving on from this period, starting our lives over.' He smiled to himself. 'Wow, I actually have a life now. . .' he privately celebrated.
'Hey Cordy, I was wondering. . .what's up with Angel and his date? Has he been on dates before?'
Cordelia absently changed gears and talked casually. 'Oh, no, Angel's not really the "going out" type. He hates dating. But Laura. . .they've both had a thing for each other for ages after he rescued her from a bunch of vamps. Angel felt guilty though about "betraying" Buffy or something by going out with another girl.' Cordelia paused. 'But now that she's shown she doesn't need him. . .he felt better about himself, and decided to ask her out. She said yes, and hey presto,' Cordelia took her hands off the wheel for a second and made a 'voila' hand gesture, 'Angel's got a girlfriend.'
'Wow, really? Really a girlfriend? One who's name is not Buffy and who's not a Slayer?' Anya commented amazed.
Cordelia smiled appreciatively. 'I'd say so. But, y'know, I'm happy for him,' Cordelia concluded. 'The poor guy's spent the last four years locked up, miserable, obsessed with work, and now he's gotten a ray of hope.'
'And she doesn't mind the whole vampire thing?' Spike asked. Cordelia shook her head.
'No, not at all. She knows about vampires, and knows that one with a soul is different. In fact, I specifically remember her telling me she preferred guys who weren't so ordinary.'
Spike smiled, knowing from personal experience that a vampire with a soul was much more than 'not so ordinary.'
There wasn't much talk from then on in the journey; just an enormous amount of anticipation as they got closer and closer to the reunion - the confrontation - that awaited them in San Francisco.
**********
Author's Note (again): If you're wondering about the Willow/play thing, it's an idea I was gonna use for a future fan fic. There is a sequel to this story, and I'm also writing the third part, so I hope you are all enjoying (I get from the reviews that you are!) because there's a lot more to come with this 'version' of post-S7.