CHAPTER FIVE: THE TWO WILLOWS
Buffy didn't know how he managed it, but Professor Dumbledore managed to intercept she and Willow before she could make it to the Gryffindor Common Room.
"Miss Summers," Professor Dumbledore greeted her. "There's someone who is eager to see you and to meet Miss Rosenburg."
Buffy looked at the Headmaster curiously, trying to read his expression. She had never been able to work out what Dumbledore was thinking, but she knew that whomever it was that wanted to see her, it wasn't a bad thing. Buffy and Willow exchanged curious glances and shrugged nonchalantly, following Dumbledore to the Entrance Hall.
They walked down the marble stairs into the large open space. Buffy gasped and ran across the room to where a girl stood conversing with Giles.
"Hermione!" Buffy yelled.
Hermione turned and found herself being nearly barrelled over by Buffy's enthusiastic greeting. The two girls hugged tightly, Hermione excited to see her other best friend, the first female best friend she'd ever had.
"What are you doing here?" Buffy asked.
"The same thing you are," Hermione replied. "Dumbeldore figured that the two of us should work together to complete our sixth and seventh years together."
Buffy's eyes lit with excitement. "Are you serious?"
Hermione nodded and the girls hugged again. Buffy pulled back and Hermione's eyes were drawn to the redhead lingering behind Buffy. Buffy looked to see what had drawn Hermione's attention. She grinned and put her hand out to Willow, gesturing for her to join them.
"Hermione, this is Willow Rosenburg, my best from Sunnydale. Wills, this is Hermione Granger, my best friend from Hogwarts," Buffy introduced the two girls.
They shook hands politely.
Hermione regarded the girl curiously. She looked to Buffy. "Isn't that your owls name?"
Buffy nodded and laughed sheepishly. "Yup. A piece of home in Hogwarts."
"Your owl?" Willow repeated curiously.
Buffy nodded. "Mode of communication. Kinda like postmen, but with owls."
Dumbledore joined the small group and looked between the three girls.
"Perhaps you could help Miss Granger up to her room with her luggage," the Headmaster suggested. "Miss Rosenburg, if you'd like to stay the evening here at Hogwarts, you'd be more than welcome."
Buffy turned to look at her friend, hope in her eyes. Willow smiled and nodded, "thank you Professor," she said politely.
Dumbledore nodded and turned to Giles, the two of them loosing themselves in conversation. Buffy looked between her two best friends, nearly bouncing with excitement.
"Let's go."
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Willow was led into the Gryffindor Common Room, her eyes comically wide as she took in the large open space decorated in red and gold. She was completely fascinated by the moving portraits and the secret passwords, not to mention the ghosts that popper up every now and then. Buffy helped Hermione lug her trunk up the stairs to the girl's dormitory. Willow walked in first, Buffy close on her heels, wanting to see Willow's wide-eyed reaction to the place.
Hermione and Buffy set the trunk down at the foot of Hermione's bed as Willow wandered towards the window that over-looked the grounds. A soft hooting startled her, and she turned to see what had caused it. She smiled when she saw a small orangey-red owl on a perch beside Buffy's bed.
She walked towards it and gently stroked the small creature. Buffy moved to stand next to her, touching the owl that had kept her company on many sleepless evenings.
"This is Willow," Buffy said, smiling at her best friend. "She got named after one of my favourite Sunnydale people."
Willow smiled and turned to look at Buffy, tears in both their eyes. They hugged fiercely and Hermione couldn't help but smile at the display. It was good to see her best friend smiling again. It hadn't been a regular occurrence the previous year.
Hermione quickly organised her belongings, unpacking book after book and placing them on her desk. She noticed Willow edging towards the books with a curious look on her face. Willow noticed Hermione looking at her and gestured towards the books.
"Would you mind if I-"
"No, please, go ahead," Hermione replied.
Willow nearly jumped at the chance to look through spell books and magic books and Buffy smiled at the excitement on Willow's face. She wondered whether or not Willow's type of magic would be compatible with the wand magic they learnt at Hogwarts. Then again, Buffy had been teaching herself the art of Wiccan Magic as well, so hopefully she and Willow would be able to teach each other.
"Goddess I'm so jealous!" Willow exclaimed, looking up from perusing the Standard Book of Spells. "You're actually taught magic. I would have killed to have had a teacher last year."
"You do magic?" Hermione asked with interest.
"Just simple Wicca," Willow replied. "Floating pencils, fire from ice. Which you really shouldn't try while you're sitting on the bedspread."
Hermione and Buffy grinned, unable to help but laugh. Willow was definitely exactly as Buffy had described her the previous year.
"I'll keep that in mind," Hermione replied with a grin.
"So, 'Mione, did you see Ron in the holidays?" Buffy asked with a teasing grin.
Hermione went bright red and Buffy grinned at her friend, shaking her head and laughing.
"I'll take that as a yes then shall I?" Buffy asked.
Hermione nodded happily. "Yes I saw him. His family were so great about us being together. Well, with the exception of Fred and George of course, but what can you expect from them?"
"God it's gonna be dull without those two here this year," Buffy complained. She noticed Willow's confused look. "Fred and George are Ron's older brothers. They're twins, and they just graduated. They're absolutely hilarious. Like Xander, but far, far, far worse."
"Speaking of boys…have you seen Harry at all?" Hermione asked.
Buffy shook her head sadly. She had definitely missed him during her month long stay in London with her mother, her aunt and Draco.
"Nope. We've been owling each other though. Draco tried hijacking his letters the first couple of times," Buffy said with a laugh.
"He ended up bruised, didn't he?" Hermione asked.
Buffy gave a mock-scandalised look and shook her head. "No! Of course not! What kind of a cousin do you take me for? I'm not that mean."
Hermione and Willow gave her identical sceptical looks and Buffy couldn't help but laugh. This was what shed been missing the year before, her friends from Sunnydale. It was so hard to believe that she hadn't seen Willow in a year, yet she still felt so comfortable with her old best friend.
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The three girls chatted well into the evening, crawling into the four-poster beds at around three in the morning, and not rising again until nearly noon. When they stumbled into the Great Hall, they found their Professors already eating lunch.
Giles looked at them, one eyebrow raised in a gesture that Willow hadn't even realised that she'd missed.
"Don't tell me that the three of you are only just getting up," Giles said.
Buffy, Hermione and Willow glanced at each other and shrugged, taking their seats at the table and digging into the food. Buffy noticed that Snape was glaring at them more than usual, though that could have been because she, Willow and Hermione were making more noise than Buffy usually made by herself. Buffy just forced herself to ignore him though.
Of course, that approach didn't work as effectively when Snape finished eating lunch and came to stand in front of the three girls.
"You're tutoring shall begin today," Snape said coldly. He cast an annoyed look at Willow who tried not to shrink under his glare. She hadn't been raised on the hellmouth for nothing, and she refused to back away from the challenge.
"Yes sir," Buffy replied evenly. "Where and when?"
"Three o'clock, beginning with Potions. I believe you know where my classroom is," he said with a sneer.
Buffy fought to not glare at him.
"We'll be there."
"On time I hope," Snape warned.
"With bells on even," Buffy said before she could stop herself.
Hermione went pale, but Willow fought to keep her laughter to herself.
Snape leant in close to the girls, towering over Buffy. She met his gaze steadily. "You are still a student here Elizabeth Riddle. I don't care how much power you have, but you will treat me with the respect that I deserve. Understand?"
"I'm sorry sir," Buffy said softly.
Snape straightened and stalked off. Buffy shook her head, rolling her eyes. She couldn't believe that he'd let him provoke her like that. She knew that Snape would look for any excuse to take off house points from Gryffindor.
Willow looked between Buffy and Hermione. "I might need to revise that whole jealousy thing."
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Awww…no more Willow for a while. *sighs* A lot of ppl have asked for Xander to come in…well, I'm 19 chaps in and have no real way to introduce him just yet. I'm trying to work him in, but it doesn't seem to be working just yet. We'll see. No guarantees.
SNEAK PREVIEW:
Percy just eyed Buffy coldly. She met his gaze steadily, forcing herself not to look away.
"I will never trust his daughter," Percy said coldly.
Buffy at the Burrow.
Toodles.