A/N: Last chapter of Izzy. Very LONG chapter of Izzy. Discussion of future
Izzy-ness is at the bottom. Also, if you want to see the characters of
Izzy, go to my profile page for a link to a site on which I have photos of
all the characters! On with the last (fluff filled) chapter.
* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~
"Happy birthday to you," Izzy sang tunelessly, carrying the tray carefully, on which she'd arranged a pale yellow rose in a little white vase, a cup of coffee, and a plate of toast and honey as a breakfast-in-bed. She placed one sneaker-ed foot in the doorway, and bumped the door with her hip. Willow sat up in bed, and smiled sleepily.
"Yay me," she yawned, stretching her arms above her head, the white linen covers falling further down. "Breakfast-in-bed." She grinned at Izzy and raised her eyebrows. "Does this come with an antidote?"
"Mom!" Izzy complained, setting the tray down, and folding her arms. "Its just breakfast."
"Yeah, but is it lethal?" Willow muttered good-naturedly, picking up a piece of warm toast, and biting into it. Honey ran down her fingers, and kid-like, she licked them. "Mm. A perfect yum."
"Good," Izzy nodded, a little grin breaking out on her face. "Happy birthday."
"Yup. Always a good thing. There'll be cake, and ice cream, and the little jellies, in cups?" Willow shaped them with her hands, smiling happily. A frown suddenly crossed her face, and she looked up at Izzy, pleadingly. "There will be those little jellies in cups, won't there?"
"Sometimes, for a forty year old woman, you scare me utterly," Izzy stated, raising one eyebrow. "Aren't you supposed to be over jello and ice cream at the age of, oh say five?"
"Yeah," Willow shrugged, and flashed her daughter a beaming smile. "Who cares? I want my jello!"
"You're so childish," Izzy informed her. Willow held up a finger, holding her toast in her right hand to take another bite of dripping crispy breakfast.
"Don't forget the forty years old and childish," she said sweetly, swallowing. Izzy rolled her eyes.
* ~ * ~
* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~
"Sweetie, are you sure Aunt Willow wants that?" Dawn asked desperately. Her policy on present buying had been to let the kids pick, and they sure came first in the 'originality' stakes. However, whether Willow wanted handpicked gifts from a five and three year old hadn't crossed her mind until they'd paid for everything (Lexi had had a slight crisis with the little boy from pre-school she hated) and now it was way too late, other than if the bath oils, and soaps and stuff she'd gotten was from all of them.
"Yup," Lexi nodded, her two little pigtails bobbing high on her head. She grinned happily at her mother, showing off a mouthful of tiny white baby teeth. "Aunt Willow wants it." Dawn surveyed the princess crown that Lexi had been eyeing in the toy store for several weeks, and wondered exactly when Aunt Willow had expressed a desire for gold plastic set with tiny fake jewels.
"Ryan?" she turned to her son. He shoved his hands in his pockets with typical Spike-like attitude.
"Why'd you choose this for Willow?' she asked, her forehead creasing in bewilderment. The guinea pig in its cage snuffled a bit, and twitched its nose. Ryan shrugged.
"It said it liked Willows," he answered in a very five-year-old way. "And I want one, to keep Aunt Willow's company."
"Ryan, sweetie, last week, you wanted a dog," Dawn reasoned. "The week before, it was a monkey."
"And 'fore that, it was an llaligator," Lexi supplied helpfully, bending down to poke the guinea pig.
"Lexi, honey, please don't do that," Dawn said, slightly frazzled. "Wills?"
"Mommy, Will want turt," he announced, hugging the brightly colored stuffed turtle that he'd picked out for Willow. The turtle's stitched on face had a slightly desperate look about it, as if two-year-old cookie crumbs, and drool, and mystery stickiness had already let it know it was doomed.
The doorbell rang, before Dawn could do anymore.
"Hey," Xander called. "Door open, we came in."
"Hi guys," Dawn replied, scooping up the gifts, and grabbing the wrapping paper, and tape.
"Hi," Libby said cheerfully, with a bright smile. She was remarkably similar to Anya, with longish pale brown hair, big brown eyes, and a gleeful aspect to all things money-ish.
"Ooh, pretty present," Dawn stopped to admire the green packaged box with it's little gold prints. She looked closer. The prints were from Libby's stamp set, the latest one hundred dollar bill stamp. Anya had also instilled in her several manifestoes.
"It's to promote general good feeling and happiness, with much riches," she said, equally cheerfully. "I got her a money box. Shaped like a pig. Daddy said it was retro."
"Uh huh," Dawn nodded, wondering if any of Willow's gifts were going to be what the redheaded wicca really wanted.
"Dawnie? Got a freezer I can borrow for the ice-cream?" Xander asked, hefting a five pint haul of chocolate cookie dough ice cream.
"Whoa, that's a lot of sugar," Dawn exclaimed, her eyes widening. "I mean, uh, whoa, that's a lot of sugar."
"We enjoy ice cream," Anya said happily, touching Xander's arm. "It can be eaten in a variety of ways, including off body parts, which is nice within sex. Also, it's cold. Much stimulation," she nodded. Xander blushed.
Libby however, was completely unfazed. Instead of learning sex ed from the playground, she'd recited positions from the Kama Sutra to a whole host of disbelieving classmates.
"Moving on," Dawn smiled brightly. 'Willow's party. Decorations needed."
* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * `
"Why the blindfold?" Willow asked, a reasonable tone in her voice, as she fumbled her way up the steps to Dawn's house.
"It's tradition," Izzy encouraged. "C'mon, jello, ice-cream and cake is only a short walk away."
"Yay," Willow grinned. She stumbled on a step, and knocked her knee. "It better be red jello," she grumbled.
"What is it with you and red jello?" Izzy mumbled, following her mom into the house. Willow stepped over the threshold. Several party poppers exploded, sending multicoloured streamers that caught in her red hair.
"Happy birthday!" people shouted. Izzy caught Nate's eye, and looked away, blushing slightly.
"Ooh, yay," Willow smiled.
"Party," Dawn said simply, wandering out from the kitchen, then back in again.
The kids led Willow over to the couch, and music began playing in the background.
"I'm gonna get the cake," Xander announced.
"Left over frosting," Dawn called from the kitchen. Anya and Xander exchanged furtive looks.
"Cake," Xander repeated. "I'll help with that," Anya added. They scurried towards the kitchen, and excess frosting.
"Mommy and Daddy are gonna go have sex," Libby announced to the room at general.
"Hi," Izzy said, touching Nate's arm lightly. He looked up from the CD stack he was flipping through, and gave her a lopsided smile.
"Hey," he drawled, letting his eyes drift over her. Izzy felt her cheeks heat up.
"Uh, how are things at Lin's?" she ventured, trying not to sound so much like a twelve year old with a crush. He nodded thoughtfully, his dark eyes on hers.
"It's good," he said non-commitally. He smiled again. "I'd better go help or something. I'll see you later."
He walked away, leaving her kind of puzzled, and bewildered. He grinned to himself.
The music played in the background was soft, and mellow as they finished off the ice cream and cake.
"Okay, presents!" Willow announced, setting down her blue pottery bowl, and clapping her hands.
"Okay, first from Anya and me and Lin," Xander handed Willow a small package. She smiled excitedly, and shredded the yellow paper, printed with little smiley suns. She pulled out a DVD of Moulin Rouge.
"Cuz I know your copy got scratched, and stopped at chapter 32 because you didn't like the ending," Xander explained. Willow's smile softened.
"Thanks Xander, Anya, Lin," she replied, admiring the DVD. "Okay, now gimme gimme gimme."
"Grabby," Buffy said, with raised eyebrows. "I got you a bibbity bobbity. Don't know what it does, but Giles picked it out for me." She handed Willow a polaroid.
"Buffy!" Willow exclaimed, her eyes wide. "This is like, rare are. Extremely rare. As in, three or four copies in the whole entire world!"
"So it's a cool bibbity bobbity," Buffy shrugged.
"My present," Lexi announced, shoving a badly wrapped present, covered in bits of sticky tape. Willow picked it up, and spent five seconds picking tape off her fingers.
"I wrapped it," Lexi said proudly, bouncing up and down on the couch, her skirt flying up.
"It's lovely, Lexi. A very pretty crown," Willow put it on her head. "See? Queen for a day."
"Mine mine," Wills shouted loudly. Willow took the squishy package from the little boy, and unwrapped it. The little turtle, with its bright colours looked a little happy to be first rescued from the small toddler, with dirt- magnetism, and then paper.
"Oh, a cute turtle," she hugged it, hoping that the dubious looking stickyness would come off the cute turtle. Wills' eyes opened wide in indignation.
"MINE MINE!" he repeated, shouting. Willow handed the stuffed animal to him, wincing.
"Ryan?" she asked, tentatively. Lexi was already twirling around wearing Willow's crown, and ignoring the rest of the gang.
"Here,' he shoved the box at her.
"Oh my god," Willow gasped, ripping off the paper. "A guinea pig?" Her voice was both surprised, and squeaky in that whole tonal range of 'what in hell?'
"You don't like it?" Ryan asked, crestfallen, poking out his bottom lip.
"Yeah, of course I do," she assured him. "I'll name him.. Jello. Red Jello."
"Obsessed," Izzy repeated incredulously.
"It's like a party favour," Willow said thoughtfully. "You know. Some people get balloons, I get a guinea pig named Red Jello." She poked her daughter. "Now. Gimme present."
"Did you turn four today?" Izzy drawled, raising her eyebrows from her perch on the arm of the couch. Willow pushed her off.
"Here, madwoman," Izzy muttered, shoving a red, shiny package at her mother. Willow shredded the paper faster than Lexi could produce a tantrum when she wanted something, and her eyes softened, a little glow lighting them up.
"Izzy, it's wonderful," she said quietly, looking down into Tara's laughing face.
"I used the computer to make it so we were in the picture," Izzy pointed out, leaning across. Willow stroked the glass of the silver photo frame with the tip of her finger.
"It's beautiful," she smiled up at Izzy.
"Birthday over," Buffy spoke up, where she was sitting holding tight to Wills. Willow nodded.
"Yup. Lets hope next year is a little less eventful."
"I don't know," Izzy said thoughtfully, glancing at Nate. "I like eventful." Lin glared. He didn't.
"Eventful is fun," Xander put in, he and Anya reappearing in the doorway.
"Okay, so here's to eventful," Willow said, lifting her empty little Dixie cup of jello. "May it be very so, next year."
* ~
* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~
A/N: And that is the end of Izzy! However.. if you recall the prophesy, you'll see, there is a whole new story to come, so.. keep your eyes peeled for the next in the series, 'Hell Child' (working title) in which Izzy, Lin and Nate star. In it, Nate and Izzy stir things up a bit, Ryan decides to build a treehouse, and Lexi makes a friend, who is new to the neighbourhood.
Of course, if you want the new fic, you're gonna have to let me know.
REVIEW!!
* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~
"Happy birthday to you," Izzy sang tunelessly, carrying the tray carefully, on which she'd arranged a pale yellow rose in a little white vase, a cup of coffee, and a plate of toast and honey as a breakfast-in-bed. She placed one sneaker-ed foot in the doorway, and bumped the door with her hip. Willow sat up in bed, and smiled sleepily.
"Yay me," she yawned, stretching her arms above her head, the white linen covers falling further down. "Breakfast-in-bed." She grinned at Izzy and raised her eyebrows. "Does this come with an antidote?"
"Mom!" Izzy complained, setting the tray down, and folding her arms. "Its just breakfast."
"Yeah, but is it lethal?" Willow muttered good-naturedly, picking up a piece of warm toast, and biting into it. Honey ran down her fingers, and kid-like, she licked them. "Mm. A perfect yum."
"Good," Izzy nodded, a little grin breaking out on her face. "Happy birthday."
"Yup. Always a good thing. There'll be cake, and ice cream, and the little jellies, in cups?" Willow shaped them with her hands, smiling happily. A frown suddenly crossed her face, and she looked up at Izzy, pleadingly. "There will be those little jellies in cups, won't there?"
"Sometimes, for a forty year old woman, you scare me utterly," Izzy stated, raising one eyebrow. "Aren't you supposed to be over jello and ice cream at the age of, oh say five?"
"Yeah," Willow shrugged, and flashed her daughter a beaming smile. "Who cares? I want my jello!"
"You're so childish," Izzy informed her. Willow held up a finger, holding her toast in her right hand to take another bite of dripping crispy breakfast.
"Don't forget the forty years old and childish," she said sweetly, swallowing. Izzy rolled her eyes.
* ~ * ~
* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~
"Sweetie, are you sure Aunt Willow wants that?" Dawn asked desperately. Her policy on present buying had been to let the kids pick, and they sure came first in the 'originality' stakes. However, whether Willow wanted handpicked gifts from a five and three year old hadn't crossed her mind until they'd paid for everything (Lexi had had a slight crisis with the little boy from pre-school she hated) and now it was way too late, other than if the bath oils, and soaps and stuff she'd gotten was from all of them.
"Yup," Lexi nodded, her two little pigtails bobbing high on her head. She grinned happily at her mother, showing off a mouthful of tiny white baby teeth. "Aunt Willow wants it." Dawn surveyed the princess crown that Lexi had been eyeing in the toy store for several weeks, and wondered exactly when Aunt Willow had expressed a desire for gold plastic set with tiny fake jewels.
"Ryan?" she turned to her son. He shoved his hands in his pockets with typical Spike-like attitude.
"Why'd you choose this for Willow?' she asked, her forehead creasing in bewilderment. The guinea pig in its cage snuffled a bit, and twitched its nose. Ryan shrugged.
"It said it liked Willows," he answered in a very five-year-old way. "And I want one, to keep Aunt Willow's company."
"Ryan, sweetie, last week, you wanted a dog," Dawn reasoned. "The week before, it was a monkey."
"And 'fore that, it was an llaligator," Lexi supplied helpfully, bending down to poke the guinea pig.
"Lexi, honey, please don't do that," Dawn said, slightly frazzled. "Wills?"
"Mommy, Will want turt," he announced, hugging the brightly colored stuffed turtle that he'd picked out for Willow. The turtle's stitched on face had a slightly desperate look about it, as if two-year-old cookie crumbs, and drool, and mystery stickiness had already let it know it was doomed.
The doorbell rang, before Dawn could do anymore.
"Hey," Xander called. "Door open, we came in."
"Hi guys," Dawn replied, scooping up the gifts, and grabbing the wrapping paper, and tape.
"Hi," Libby said cheerfully, with a bright smile. She was remarkably similar to Anya, with longish pale brown hair, big brown eyes, and a gleeful aspect to all things money-ish.
"Ooh, pretty present," Dawn stopped to admire the green packaged box with it's little gold prints. She looked closer. The prints were from Libby's stamp set, the latest one hundred dollar bill stamp. Anya had also instilled in her several manifestoes.
"It's to promote general good feeling and happiness, with much riches," she said, equally cheerfully. "I got her a money box. Shaped like a pig. Daddy said it was retro."
"Uh huh," Dawn nodded, wondering if any of Willow's gifts were going to be what the redheaded wicca really wanted.
"Dawnie? Got a freezer I can borrow for the ice-cream?" Xander asked, hefting a five pint haul of chocolate cookie dough ice cream.
"Whoa, that's a lot of sugar," Dawn exclaimed, her eyes widening. "I mean, uh, whoa, that's a lot of sugar."
"We enjoy ice cream," Anya said happily, touching Xander's arm. "It can be eaten in a variety of ways, including off body parts, which is nice within sex. Also, it's cold. Much stimulation," she nodded. Xander blushed.
Libby however, was completely unfazed. Instead of learning sex ed from the playground, she'd recited positions from the Kama Sutra to a whole host of disbelieving classmates.
"Moving on," Dawn smiled brightly. 'Willow's party. Decorations needed."
* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * `
"Why the blindfold?" Willow asked, a reasonable tone in her voice, as she fumbled her way up the steps to Dawn's house.
"It's tradition," Izzy encouraged. "C'mon, jello, ice-cream and cake is only a short walk away."
"Yay," Willow grinned. She stumbled on a step, and knocked her knee. "It better be red jello," she grumbled.
"What is it with you and red jello?" Izzy mumbled, following her mom into the house. Willow stepped over the threshold. Several party poppers exploded, sending multicoloured streamers that caught in her red hair.
"Happy birthday!" people shouted. Izzy caught Nate's eye, and looked away, blushing slightly.
"Ooh, yay," Willow smiled.
"Party," Dawn said simply, wandering out from the kitchen, then back in again.
The kids led Willow over to the couch, and music began playing in the background.
"I'm gonna get the cake," Xander announced.
"Left over frosting," Dawn called from the kitchen. Anya and Xander exchanged furtive looks.
"Cake," Xander repeated. "I'll help with that," Anya added. They scurried towards the kitchen, and excess frosting.
"Mommy and Daddy are gonna go have sex," Libby announced to the room at general.
"Hi," Izzy said, touching Nate's arm lightly. He looked up from the CD stack he was flipping through, and gave her a lopsided smile.
"Hey," he drawled, letting his eyes drift over her. Izzy felt her cheeks heat up.
"Uh, how are things at Lin's?" she ventured, trying not to sound so much like a twelve year old with a crush. He nodded thoughtfully, his dark eyes on hers.
"It's good," he said non-commitally. He smiled again. "I'd better go help or something. I'll see you later."
He walked away, leaving her kind of puzzled, and bewildered. He grinned to himself.
The music played in the background was soft, and mellow as they finished off the ice cream and cake.
"Okay, presents!" Willow announced, setting down her blue pottery bowl, and clapping her hands.
"Okay, first from Anya and me and Lin," Xander handed Willow a small package. She smiled excitedly, and shredded the yellow paper, printed with little smiley suns. She pulled out a DVD of Moulin Rouge.
"Cuz I know your copy got scratched, and stopped at chapter 32 because you didn't like the ending," Xander explained. Willow's smile softened.
"Thanks Xander, Anya, Lin," she replied, admiring the DVD. "Okay, now gimme gimme gimme."
"Grabby," Buffy said, with raised eyebrows. "I got you a bibbity bobbity. Don't know what it does, but Giles picked it out for me." She handed Willow a polaroid.
"Buffy!" Willow exclaimed, her eyes wide. "This is like, rare are. Extremely rare. As in, three or four copies in the whole entire world!"
"So it's a cool bibbity bobbity," Buffy shrugged.
"My present," Lexi announced, shoving a badly wrapped present, covered in bits of sticky tape. Willow picked it up, and spent five seconds picking tape off her fingers.
"I wrapped it," Lexi said proudly, bouncing up and down on the couch, her skirt flying up.
"It's lovely, Lexi. A very pretty crown," Willow put it on her head. "See? Queen for a day."
"Mine mine," Wills shouted loudly. Willow took the squishy package from the little boy, and unwrapped it. The little turtle, with its bright colours looked a little happy to be first rescued from the small toddler, with dirt- magnetism, and then paper.
"Oh, a cute turtle," she hugged it, hoping that the dubious looking stickyness would come off the cute turtle. Wills' eyes opened wide in indignation.
"MINE MINE!" he repeated, shouting. Willow handed the stuffed animal to him, wincing.
"Ryan?" she asked, tentatively. Lexi was already twirling around wearing Willow's crown, and ignoring the rest of the gang.
"Here,' he shoved the box at her.
"Oh my god," Willow gasped, ripping off the paper. "A guinea pig?" Her voice was both surprised, and squeaky in that whole tonal range of 'what in hell?'
"You don't like it?" Ryan asked, crestfallen, poking out his bottom lip.
"Yeah, of course I do," she assured him. "I'll name him.. Jello. Red Jello."
"Obsessed," Izzy repeated incredulously.
"It's like a party favour," Willow said thoughtfully. "You know. Some people get balloons, I get a guinea pig named Red Jello." She poked her daughter. "Now. Gimme present."
"Did you turn four today?" Izzy drawled, raising her eyebrows from her perch on the arm of the couch. Willow pushed her off.
"Here, madwoman," Izzy muttered, shoving a red, shiny package at her mother. Willow shredded the paper faster than Lexi could produce a tantrum when she wanted something, and her eyes softened, a little glow lighting them up.
"Izzy, it's wonderful," she said quietly, looking down into Tara's laughing face.
"I used the computer to make it so we were in the picture," Izzy pointed out, leaning across. Willow stroked the glass of the silver photo frame with the tip of her finger.
"It's beautiful," she smiled up at Izzy.
"Birthday over," Buffy spoke up, where she was sitting holding tight to Wills. Willow nodded.
"Yup. Lets hope next year is a little less eventful."
"I don't know," Izzy said thoughtfully, glancing at Nate. "I like eventful." Lin glared. He didn't.
"Eventful is fun," Xander put in, he and Anya reappearing in the doorway.
"Okay, so here's to eventful," Willow said, lifting her empty little Dixie cup of jello. "May it be very so, next year."
* ~
* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~
A/N: And that is the end of Izzy! However.. if you recall the prophesy, you'll see, there is a whole new story to come, so.. keep your eyes peeled for the next in the series, 'Hell Child' (working title) in which Izzy, Lin and Nate star. In it, Nate and Izzy stir things up a bit, Ryan decides to build a treehouse, and Lexi makes a friend, who is new to the neighbourhood.
Of course, if you want the new fic, you're gonna have to let me know.
REVIEW!!