The air was thick with incense, and the only light came from the circle of candles on the floor. Behind each candle sat a girl, chanting softly. In the middle of the circle, the leader held her hands high, signaling silence. The chant fell away, and the middle figure smiled. In the candle light, her red hair looked like fire.
"Not bad guys." She told them cheerfully, her voice much younger than her ancient eyes, "You're doing a lot better at concentration." She waved her hand almost casually, and the light switch flicked on, causing several of the girls to blink in the sudden brightness. Willow brought her hand in a sweeping gesture over the candles as she stood, and they flickered out. "Okay, you guys go ahead and get some munchies, we'll finish up later." With her dismissal, the girls rose and departed, chattering happily to each other and calling goodbyes to her on their way. Her serene smile became a triumphant grin. She was immensely proud of her students. She had never had an opportunity to teach like this, and she was most definitely enjoying it. She remembered Giles telling her she would do well as a Watcher, and found herself thinking more and more along those lines. With the original Watcher's Council destroyed, and new slayers all over the world who needed training and guidance, the Scooby gang really had their work cut out for them. It was Willow's optimistic hope that they could build a new Council, one that was run for and mainly by the slayers themselves. But, one thing at a time. For now, she was content to teach her small group the basics of magic, a good healthy bit of respect for forces bigger than themselves, and some Latin to make researching easier.
At the moment, they had the supreme information capabilities of Wolfram and Hart behind them, but Willow knew that Buffy would never allow them to rely solely on Angel's new law firm. Once she had gotten herself focused again, healed a little, Buffy was sure to move them out of the hotel and find more permanent headquarters. And then it was back to musty book land for research. Willow opened her window wide, looking out onto the city. The view was amazing to all those from Sunnydale, who were used to seeing only the houses across the street from their windows. Here, the lights of the glittering building sparkled in the darkness, enchanting all those who looked upon them. Or so it seemed to her anyway.
A light breeze sent her shivering, and she looked around for a moment to find her shawl. She'd been communicating with one of the new slayers, who lived in Tibet, prior to her arrival in L.A. When she'd come, the girl had brought the beautiful hand woven wrap to Willow as a thank you gift. It was black at first glance, but a great deal of colors were woven throughout, so that it changed color depending on the light. Willow loved it. She pulled it around her shoulders, humming softly as she stepped over the candles on her way to the door. She wasn't really hungry, but she thought she should go downstairs and check on everyone else now that she had some time. She'd been so busy lately, she'd barely seen the Scoobies. She flicked off her light on her way out and left her door open a crack. She kept the door closed during lessons, so most in the hotel knew that if it were open, she was elsewhere.
She turned around quickly, looking forward to spending her free time with her best friends. Xander was always with his gaggle of girls, teaching them self-defense and attempting to look as though he wasn't wildly enjoying the attention. Buffy was easier to get a hold of, in theory anyway. She'd been distracted lately, and the only one she really seemed to spend time with was Angel. Dawn had told Willow not to worry about it, that eventually the pair would be able to mingle again. Willow wasn't so sure, but figured if anyone knew, Dawn would. The former key had been coming amazingly into her own since the move. She was happy here, and confident. The red-headed witch shook her head in the midst of her musings, too distracted to notice that she was about to collide with the person who'd just come out of one of the bedrooms.
"Oh goddess, sorry!" she cried, backing up quickly. Something so familiar… he looked up. Willow's mouth hung open for a moment, and she could have sworn she'd felt her heart stop. "Oz." She said softly. Then realization dawned and she repeated his name in surprise, "Oz! Wh-what are you doing here? An-and when did you get here, and what are you doing here? And… when?" Her stammered words came out stunned, then ended timidly as she watched the man before her. Oz. Her Oz. There was no point in her mind telling her that he wasn't hers anymore, it was simply ignored.
"Hi, Willow." He said, and she felt her smile return, unbidden. His voice was so soft… "I just got here, about a half hour ago. I heard about Sunnydale."
"Oh. Yeah, with the not being there anymore." She nodded, looking behind him to the room he'd just exited. "Are you… staying here?" Now he nodded, and opened the door wider, his gaze giving her permission to enter. She stepped hesitantly inside, and he closed the door. For a moment, they simply watched each other in silence. She felt uneasy, after everything, being in the scrutiny of him, who she hadn't seen in so long. Then a small, somehow lonely seeming smile slipped across his face.
"I missed you." He said simply. Again, her smile returned, and she closed the distance between them to hug him. Warm and safe and just so right.
"I missed you too." She told him. He held her close, one arm around her back, the other at the back of her head, his fingers in her hair. The embrace was familiar, and she felt for a moment like she was sixteen again, young and innocent and head over heels in love. It seemed like eons before she came back to herself, her twenty two year old, much more sensible self. They separated slowly, smiles still lighting their faces even as they pulled safely away and sat down; him on the edge of the bed, her in the chair across from him. She fiddled with the tassels on her shawl, marveling at how little he had changed.
"Where have you been?" she asked him softly.
"Budapest." He replied, "At least most recently. Before that, I spent a while in New Orleans. Wild place…"