One Day in Your Life
by Kennie Gajos
Disclaimer
I do not own Buffy the Vampire Slayer or any of it's affiliates (except some merchandise and some lovely, lovely autographs!). That honour belongs to 20th Century Fox Film Productions (and by extension News Corporation), Warner Brothers Film Production, UPN, Kazui Enterprises, Sandollar, Lazy Dave Productions and Mutant Enemy. I make no profits from the writing of or display of this fanfic
Moral copyright is extended to all original characters and concepts created by me, the author, within the confines of this fanfic. To the uninitiated this means you must first seek permission before you play with my toys.
Somewhere Over the Rainbow
Angel rolled over and thrust a questing arm out for Willow. His arm met with the cold bed. Groggily, he pushed himself up and looked around for Willow.
Willow. Angel's soppy grin returned. She'd given him so much and he loved her all the more for it. She'd shown him time and time again in the course of the night that he could have his perfect happiness and still retain his soul. Shaking his head slightly, he wondered how she'd managed it. How had she tamed the demon enough to bind his soul permanently? He wondered where she was so that he could show her again how much he loved her.
Willow turned from her perch in front of the window and looked over at Angel. He was wide awake and staring at her with that ridiculous smile. Despite herself, she returned his smile with one of her own. Then she turned back to the sunlight. She'd missed the sun. But she was glad that Angel had been able to experience it, even for a day, even if it meant that she had been deprived of it.
"Willow? What's wrong?"
She turned back to him and stepped out of the sunlight.
"I'm going back to Sunnydale with Dawn." She told him.
Angel leapt out of the bed, dragging the sheet with him. "What? But, we agreed, no regrets."
"No, no regrets." She agreed with him. "But I don't belong here."
Angel's eyes blazed. "That's crap Willow and you know it! You belong here, with me. I lo-"
Willow shook her head and placed a finger on his lips, her eyes shining with tears she was determined not to shed. Angel kissed her finger, trying to tell her how he felt without the words she'd just forbidden.
"Maybe, maybe some day. When Buffy... When she's gone. But for now my place is by her side. I'm her friend. I owe her so much."
Angel couldn't argue.
Willow knew that, and it still broke her up inside. Deep down, she'd been hoping that he would manage to find a perspective she hadn't thought of and convince her to stay. But they both knew it was hopeless.
Silently Angel dressed and they made their way downstairs.
"Do you think we should wake her?" Fred asked.
"Leave her be, she needs her rest." Wesley told them, his eyes on the book Darcy had discarded.
"We should at least turn the computer off, she's drooling on the keyboard." Gunn pointed out.
"Ew! I use that keyboard!" Cordelia exclaimed, and shook Darcy awake as Angel and Willow came down the stairs.
Darcy sat bolt upright. "True Love!" She exclaimed.
"Come again Sweetpea?" Lorne asked her.
Darcy looked around at them excitedly, convinced she had hit upon the answer. "True Love breaks all spells."
Darcy's revelation was too painful for Willow and she fled back upstairs. Angel looked after her helplessly. There was nothing he could say to comfort her, and his presence could only distress her more.
He looked at the group gathered around Darcy and met their gaze.
"You already figured that out, didn't you Angelcakes?" Lorne asked him sympathically.
Angel nodded morosely and headed towards the kitchen for some blood. His demon was screaming at him for being so useless.
Cordelia turned to the others. "They're back!" She said wonderingly. "But that means..." She trailed off as the full magnitude of what must have happened last night hit her. "Oh God! Why are they so miserable? And why isn't Angelus back?"
Darcy scraped her chair back. "I'll take Angel."
"I'll go after Willow." Wesley offered.
Lorne gently restrained him. "Let me."
"Hey Connor." Willow cooed to the baby in her arms. "I'm leaving today, and I guess I just wanted to say goodbye. I'm sure it's not going to be the last time we meet; I've got a lot of unfinished business here in LA. But I'm gonna make sure you're not part of it." She began to croon softly to the small child.
"Somewhere over the rainbow
Way up high
There's a land that I heard of
Once in a lullaby
"Somewhere over the rainbow
Skies are blue
And the dreams
That you dare to dream
Yes they do really do
Come true
"Some day I'll wish upon a star
And wake up where the clouds are far
Behind me
Where troubles melt like lemon drops
Way above the chimney tops
That's where you'll find me
"Somewhere over the rainbow
Oh, Bluebirds fly
High
Birds laugh
Over the rainbow
Why, oh why,
Can't I?
"If happy little bluebirds fly
Above the rainbow why
Oh why
Can't I?"
A tear that Willow had decreed would never fall fell on Connor's head and Willow gently brushed it away.
"You're leaving." Willow jumped at the sound of Lorne's voice and turned around to face him. "Why?" He asked.
Willow put Connor back in his cot before replying. "It's for the best."
"You're the best thing that's happened to that brooding lug of a vampire in a very long time and you and I both know it Angelcakes. You're his mate."
"Will you still say that after Buffy stakes Angel, because he dared to look at another woman, let alone her best friend?" Willow demanded.
Lorne frowned. "Well, no. But that might never happen."
"You see people's destinies. You know that if I stay here it will happen. And I just can't do that to them."
Lorne bowed his head, knowing that what she said was true.
Down in the kitchen, Swift was quivering in ecstasy. He'd just discovered another tub of ice cream. So he didn't hear Angel enter the room.
"Swift!" Angel shouted at the adolescent dog, sitting down heavily.
Swift looked round guiltily. "Food!" He barked back. "Food, food, food, food, food, food!"
Angel grabbed the small dog by the collar and dragged him out of the kitchen, closing the door firmly on his expectant face before turning and snatching a mug from the cupboard
"Angel?" Darcy called, entering the kitchen.
She was greeted with a fierce growl.
Two can play at that game, she thought, and growled back at him.
Angel threw his mug at the wall.
"Angel, what's going on?" Darcy asked the vampire she considered to be family. Just not family in the totally evil, wanting to turn you and use you in a ritual to blow up the world kind of way.
"She's leaving." Angel growled. "For all of the right reasons damn it."
Dawn wandered into the kitchen, yawning. She took one look at the scene in front of her and did a sharp turn back out.
Darcy wanted to cry. She wanted to rip Willow's heart out and present it to Angel, but she had a pretty good idea that Willow had already done that for her. She wanted to kill, maim and destroy. She wanted to make it all right. Damn the pair of them, they were both too selfless for their own good. "God Angel, I'm so sorry."
Angel growled again, and she gave him the privacy he so obviously desired.
The small bag Angel had brought from Sunnydale was packed and Willow was ready to go. Almost. There was one thing she had to do first.
She found Angel in the basement, pounding a punchbag.
"You're going then?" He asked, carefully not looking at her.
This was killing her. She loved him more than life itself, how could she ever leave him. "I'm all packed."
"See you around." Angel said carelessly, punching the bag even harder.
"Yeah." She picked up her bag and walked away.
Angel caught up with her in two strides and spun her into his arms. He kissed her with a fierce desperation and she felt her knees weakening. Winding her arms around his neck, she returned Angel's kiss fiercely... And then walked away.
Angel let her.
Dawn was quiet on the journey home, something which Willow would always be grateful for. Perhaps she had guessed a little of the life shattering events that Willow had experienced. Perhaps not.
Willow closed her eyes. No matter what else happened now, she would always have her memories. Her memories of their short time together and the memories that Angelus had given her of the times when he had watched her. When Angel had watched her, his feelings burgeoning, but something that he had deliberately denied, telling himself that he didn't deserve her, that she could never love him. And when Angelus had watched her, always plotting, always planning a way for them to be together forever.
Those memories were precious to her. Who knew when she and Angel would meet again.
Wimp. Angelus chuckled mockingly.
Willow's eyes snapped open.
THE END
