Chapter 6
Dearly Departed
Joe's initial enchantment with the castle had died down over dinner. He hadn't said much, though Mickey was quite animated. Asking questions about the school, hearing ever more stories about his parents. Willow meanwhile filled Joe in on events in Sunnydale, up to a point.
Willow immediately noticed Joe's demeanor, it reminded her of how he'd looked after Theresa died. She tried to engage him in conversation, but his answers to her questions put her in mind of Oz. She was not used to dealing with a silent and taciturn Joe. She'd always known him as an outgoing theatrical sort. He was an actor after all. He seemed to come out of his brooding when she started talking about mutual acquaintances. She told him of Xander's finding of his niche in the world of construction and his failed nuptials. Joe expressed dismay at that, after trying to remember Anya, but they'd met only briefly near graduation '99. She stumbled a bit after that, after all, Joe and Mickey were not among those who knew of Buffy's true role in all of the supernatural events of their home-town. She merely told him that Sunnydale continued as it had always done. She wasn't sure how to describe Buffy's long absence, but played it off as a "retreat" to deal with her mother's death. A subject that also drew much sympathy from Joe. Mickey tore himself away from his conversation with Dumbledore to inquire about Amy, and was happy to learn that she was no longer a rat.
Mickey and Amy had been rather good friends in High School, and had been considering forming a coven among the few Wiccans in the school. He'd been there when Amy had escaped the stake by turning herself into a rat. He made a mental note to look her up as soon as he got back to the states. From the sound of things she needed a friend, what with the whole addiction to magic thing. Which was when Willow's attention turned more to Mickey, because he too had struggled with the whole Magic Addiction. He'd been lucky, both his parents were Magic Folk, and so had been able to help him through it. Willow's parents were Muggles, and Amy's mother was evil, and so far as he knew, still trapped in a cheerleading trophy somewhere.
Joe tuned out their conversation at that point and excused himself.
"What's with Joe?" Willow asked Mickey. "He's not his usual jolly self."
Mickey sighed. "Remember Ben?"
Willow grinned at the memory of that one. One of the minor notables of the Sunnydale Drama Club. He'd counseled her on being an understudy, since he had much experience in the field. The grin died quickly when she realized what Mickey meant.
"Oh no!" she gasped. "Ben's dead? How? When?"
"About a month or so ago. Did you see `Welcome to the Hellmouth`?"
"Yeah we all went to see it. Sunnydale made quite a production out of it." She remembered Spike and Buffy's reaction to the low budget indie movie written and directed by Joseph MacLeod. Written, she'd learned all throughout Joe and Mickey's high school careers. It had been the story of a Good Vampire, who'd teamed up with a Witch, and Werewolf, and a girl from the wrong side of the tracks to save the town from two Vampires, who much to Spike's dismay were quite obviously based on himself and Dru. "What about it?"
"Ben met this woman while we were making it. Apparently...she liked his portrayal of a Vampire quite a bit."
"Oh my Goddess," Willow dismayed. "He's a Vampire?"
Joe barely heard the pattering of footsteps behind him before he was tackle hugged from behind.
"Ack!" he cried, throwing out his arms to keep his balance. He looked over his shoulder, and a touch of his good humor returned. Hugs from this one tended to have this effect he'd been told.
"Oh dear. I seem to have sprouted a Willow."
Her voice was barely audible since her face was buried in his back. She tightened her arms. "I'm so, so sorry to hear about Ben." she said.
Joe felt his throat tighten. "First let's reposition ourselves." he suggested, managing to maneuver himself so that she was now attached to his front, not his back. "Much better for my neck this way." Then he returned her embrace. "Thank you." he whispered, feeling tears prick the corners of his eyes.
"Does his family know?"
"His brother and Izzy, you remember Izzy, his techie sister, do." he answered. "As far as the rest are concerned he's, well missing."
"Will they be okay?" Willow asked. "I mean, don't vampires usually kill their family?"
"I don't' think he will." Joe said. It hurt to talk about it, but at the same time, it felt good. "See, from what I know, things that are important to a person in life, is still important to them when they've Vamped. Like that Spike guy, I think he must have been a real romantic when he was mortal, cause he was just sick in love with psycho lady. Ben was so interested in his family history, that I think he'll keep his family alive just to see what happens to them."
"That makes sense." Willow said. She released him from her embrace, but took his arm, deciding to show him to his room.
"You lost someone too didn't you." Joe said quietly. "I saw how upset you got when I asked about your love life."
Now it was Willow's turn to hold back tears. She told him about Tara, and Oz's return. She told about Warren, Andrew and Jonathan.
"Jonathan went evil?" Joe said incredulously. "I mean, Warren was always kind of an ass, and Andrew," He scowled. "Don't even get me started on that little assclown. But Jonathan always seemed like an okay guy. Little quiet, but..." then he thought about it. "Actually, I can see him losing it. He did try to kill himself after all. I guess he just wanted attention."
Then she reached the end of her tale. Tara's death at Warren's hands, and her descent into the Dark Side of the force. "Which is what brought me here." she finished. "Dumbledore took me in when Giles brought me from Sunnydale. He's been helping me adjust. And scowly man has too. He was evil for a while but brought himself back from it. He's, not a hugely nice guy, but he can be with the right people."
"Well whatever has happened," Joe said, feeling better just having shared experiences with his old friend. "You always were, and always will be the right people. Even if you do think that acting doesn't require any talent."
"You are never going to forget that are you?"
"An actor never forgets my child."
Tbc…