Chapter 6: At Long Last
Author's Note: Sorry for the wait; I've had this chapter ready for a few days now but my ISP was giving me problems. Also, did anyone catch the previous i>Angel /i>? Anyway, the Cordy in this fanfic still lives. :)
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The sun shone brightly outside; an hour or two had passed since sunrise, but there was still a little while to go before noon came around: The sun still had a little way to go before reaching its highest point in the sky that day. A small breeze blew through Willow's open kitchen window, and the Wicca, who was standing at the stove making funnily-shaped pancakes (much like the ones Tara made for the redhead when she dropped by Willow's house some mornings) welcomed it with a small smile. Her heart leapt as she remembered, for the thousandth time that morning, that she would get to see Tara today, very, very soon. To tell the truth, she wanted to go over to the blonde's house right now, but she had a guest to tend to... And Willow was not usually one to ignore a guest. Flipping a large, funny-shaped pancake over as she attempted to clear her mind of Tara-esque thoughts, Willow called out to Fred, "Hey... Fred? If you could just set the table and get the juice..."
"It's been done," Fred replied simply, grinning as she poked her head through the kitchen doorway, breathing in the yummy and delicious smell of pancakes-in-making. She knew well that Willow generally wasn't that great of a cook, but this was one thing she seemed to be able to cook properly. As Willow said her thanks, the brunette cocked her head to one side, her grin growing larger as she strolled back into the dining room, rolling her eyes and jokingly saying with a melodramatic sigh, "What would you do without me, Will?"
A small pout formed on Willow's face. Not wanting Fred to win this verbal battle (which really wasn't a verbal battle), the redhead opened her mouth to retort when she was interrupted by the ringing of the doorbell. i>Hah! Fred is saved by the bell... Wow, that was incredibly lame. /i> The Wicca reached a hand out to turn the stove off so she could answer the door.
"I'll get it! You just keep cooking those yummy-smelling pancakes!" came Fred's enthusiastic voice, causing Willow to retract her hand and let out a small sigh.
Cooking it was.
That was, until she heard the familiar voice...
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"Willow!" Anya exclaimed loudly in joy as the door was flung open, and the ex-demon immediately flung herself onto the woman she thought was Willow, causing the woman to gasp in surprise, before she realized that whoever she was hugging had dark hair... And that whoever she was hugging had a smaller frame - compared to Willow's, of course. Letting go and pulling away from the brunette, Anya frowned and accused, "You're not Willow."
"No," Fred replied with a sheepish tone, brushing her clothes off as she smiled unsurely in greeting as her gaze fell upon the four others who had accompanied the exuberant woman who had hugged her - one of whom she recognized as Buffy, the Vampire Slayer. i>Not that Buffy's the Slayer anymore... She's just one of many now, right? /i> Snapping herself out of her thoughts, Fred decided to extend a hand to the woman who had just hugged her accidentally, "I'm-"
"I know," Anya replied in a conspirational, yet clearly audible, tone. Just then, a sudden realization struck the ex-demon, and her tone changed from a secretive one to one that showed sheer excitement as she spoke triumphantly, easily oblivious to Fred's look of confusion, "I know! You must be Willow's orgasm friend! Her sex buddy!" Anya paused here and, before anyone could stop her, added as an afterthought, "Did you have good sex?"
"Erm," Fred began, left speechless at Anya's daring as a blush settled her face. Her mouth opened and closed soundlessly, and in the end, Fred decided it was best to remain silent, since she had no idea what she would say if she ever regained her speaking abilities.
"I'm sure she did," came Willow's voice, though the Wicca herself had not yet reached the entrance hall. She was getting a little exasperated with Anya and her constant prodding into her personal life; sometimes the ex-vengeance demon could be so much worse than the media. So she decided that she and Fred could easily play Anya's game. Why not go along with what Xander's girlfriend thought they did - just for a little while? The smirk that had formed on Willow's face while heading towards the entrance hall immediately faded and was replaced with a bright smile when she saw that Anya was not alone - that Buffy, Tara, Xander, and Dawn were with her.
"I- I didn't think you guys were here!" Willow squealed in delight, the playing of Anya's game momentarily forgotten as she allowed her friends in and pulling each of them into a hug, giving Tara a lingering hug, as she repeated, "You're all here!"
"We couldn't wait to see our Wills," Xander said in an affectionate, chipper tone as he gestured to the women around him. He took a sniff and turned to Willow, "What's that smell?"
"Willow's making pancakes," Fred explained.
"They smell like good ones," Buffy added.
"They're like the ones-" Fred began, but was interrupted by an insistent Anya.
"So did you have good sex?" the ex-demon asked Fred again.
"Well, um, I, uh," Fred stumbled, flustered. Why couldn't she get the words out? Nothing of the sort had happened between her and Willow; all it took was a quick, simple, i>"No" /i> on her part. As words still failed her, she looked to Willow for help.
"She did," Willow smirked smugly.
"Willow!" Fred admonished, "You're not helping!"
"I know," Willow replied airily, sticking her tongue out at her ex-girlfriend.
"You're impossible."
"Why, thank you, Miss Burkle."
Perhaps it was because the two women were too wrapped up in shooting remarks back to each other, or perhaps it was the fact that they remained good friends (even after the break-up), but whatever it was, neither Willow nor Fred noticed that their ongoing conversation sounded like a confirmation of the explicit - that the way they were talking made it sound as though the both of them had truly slept together.
"I knew it!" Anya exclaimed victoriously, pumping a fist into the air as she turned to Xander, "I told you they slept together! I bet they came back here last night and had sex together, too!"
A look that resembled heartbreak flashed across Tara's face for a fleeting instant but, before anyone could spot it, was very quickly replaced by a faux smile.
"Ahn," Xander began, "We don't know this."
"Yeah," Willow agreed, her brow furrowing, "You don't. Besides, I never-"
"But only people who sleep together can act like that! Well, besides Xander and me; we act different. But I've seen it on TV countless times, and I've seen it back in my vengeance days - with the happy couples, of course," Anya interjected, explaining.
"I never said Fred and I... made love," Willow shot back, remembering what Xander had told her many years ago: i>"If you're doing it, you should be able to say it." /i> Willow assumed that also included "if you have done it," because she certainly hadn't slept with Fred recently.
"Maybe you didn't make love; maybe love had nothing to do with it... Maybe you had crazy monkey sex!" Anya offered.
"Can we please not talk about this?" Dawn, desperately hoping to get Anya off the topic of Willow's sex life, pleaded.
"Please, let's stop," Buffy agreed, and then suggested, "Why don't we go eat pancakes?"
"If Willow has enough for all of us, she means," Tara added politely, sending a smile to Buffy, though her voice was devoid of emotion, causing Willow to cast her a look of genuine concern before nodding a, i>"Yes" /i> to Fred and the Scoobies as she led them towards the dining room.
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A melodious tune that seemed to come from the kitchen suddenly started playing, causing everyone at the table to pause in mid-speech, mid-eat, or for some of them (mainly Anya, really), both. They all knew it was a phone, for it most certainly sounded like one, and they all had a guess to whose it was.
"Will?" Fred questioned as she realized why the ring sounded so familiar to her; Willow had been playing around with her phone's ringtones on the way home from the Sunnydale airport and, due to boredom, had decided to change her ringtone from a plain, normal, and boring i>ring! /i> to this tune. However, it was apparent that the green-eyed woman had forgotten this fact, for she wore a look of confusion on her face. So Fred took it upon herself to continue while still keeping her questioning tone, "Isn't that your cell phone?"
"Oh...! Right! Thanks!" Willow exclaimed as realization dawned on her, and she hastily excused herself from the table and headed into the kitchen, meekly adding to those at the table, "I changed the tune yesterday." A mere moment later, the same voice was heard, this time saying, "Hello? Willow Rosenberg here."
"I wonder who that is," Anya wondered aloud as she stabbed a fluffy pancake with her fork.
"Might be her parents," Dawn suggested, but the young woman was met with looks of i>"Yeah, right," /i> and many raised eyebrows. Sighing, Dawn added, "Okay, okay. I knew that probably wasn't who called, but you'd think her parents would at least call once in a while..."
"Well, they don't," Buffy said, her voice hardening. Dawn looked at her, and the Slayer shook her head slightly, softening her tone while still remaining firm and comforting, "She's got us now, and we've got her. Her parents are missing out, and that's their loss. You know that, right, Dawnie?"
"Yes, I know," Dawn replied softly, and although she said nothing more, the stubborn and protesting look on her face gave away the fact that she wanted to add something more.
"It could be her actor friends," Xander suggested cheerfully after a short moment of silence that had followed Dawn's last comment passed.
"Or just friends of the non-actor variety... That is not us," Tara added softly, smiling slightly.
"It's more likely to be her agent," Fred said, and she blinked multiple times as she realized everyone's attention was focused on her, their faces curious and eyes asking the question they wanted to voice. Licking her lips, Fred explained, "Uh- It always used to be her agent who called."
"The ex-girlfriend always knows best," Anya muttered quietly, unheard by the others for once. But that was mainly because Willow had just reentered the room and was being bombarded with loud questions from her curious friends.
"Who was that?" came Buffy.
"Was it an actor friend?" Xander asked.
"An orgasm friend, maybe?" Anya added after Xander.
"Whoa, questions!" Willow exclaimed, putting her hands up in front of herself, as though she were surrendering, "One at a time, please. I didn't get most of that."
"Was that an orgasm friend?" Anya repeated.
"That was the one part I got," Willow muttered, causing her friends to chuckle, "And honestly, Anya, how many 'orgasm friends' do you think I have?"
"Well, anyone could be your orgasm friend, really," Anya said, "I could, too."
"Willow, who was that?" Buffy interrupted, thankfully before Willow had the chance to retort, easily ignoring the look Anya was sending her.
"My agent, Claire," Willow, glad to avoid the topic Anya was trying to bring up, replied, causing heads to turn toward Fred. Noticing this, Willow asked, "What?"
"Fred was right; she told us it was your agent," Dawn explained.
"Yeah, I'm not surprised Fred remembers," Willow responded, "Claire called - and still calls - all the time. Or very, very often. Inconvenient times, too." At Xander's raised eyebrow, Willow added, "Not those kinds of 'inconvenient times,' Xander. Get your head out of the gutter. Correction: i>Heads /i> - i>All of you /i> get your heads out of the gutter. I meant when I'm sleeping, or eating breakfast, or when I'm busy doing something else... Things like that."
"So, what did she call you for this time?" Buffy questioned.
"Just to remind me that I had to go to L.A. the day after tomorrow for a movie premiere for i>Random Encounters /i>, a movie I co-starred in," Willow explained. She paused for a moment, before turning to Fred, "You can go back to Wolfram and Hart after the premiere."
"Okay," Fred replied, smiling. "Perfect, then. Since I just planned for a short visit here. Angel will be pleased."
"Has Fred already been invited?" Buffy asked curiously, pouting slightly, "Because-"
"No, Buff," Willow smiled, "She hasn't yet. I'm inviting all of you to come. Claire said it would be okay, as long as you guys went in another car."
"We can't walk down the red carpet?" Anya protested.
"Well, I asked Claire, but she decided against it. She said it would be better if I just went alone, or with a date, or something. The fewer people on the red carpet at once... That kind of stuff. And I didn't think you guys would want to walk down there by yourselves and have everyone stare at you blankly."
"Who wouldn't be staring at me?" Anya questioned, incredulous. Gesturing to the women around her, she added, "And them, too. We're all pretty-"
"Honey, I'm sure everyone would be staring at you," Xander reassured his girlfriend, placing a hand on hers, though whether it was to reassure her or to be more protective, no one really knew. Looking at his best friend, Xander repeated with a questioning tone, "Willow said something about a date?"
"Uh... I'd really rather not say anything about-"
"Ooh! Go with me!" Anya exclaimed excitedly, jumping from her seat.
"No," Willow replied pointedly, though her voice held an edge of amusement in it as she smiled at Anya.
"I can pay you! Or I can have sex with you! I can do both!" Anya offered.
"Anya!" Xander exclaimed, shocked. Besides the shock, however, he was very unwilling to let his girlfriend sleep with his best friend. That was just... Not right.
"What?" Anya turned to her boyfriend, "It's not like I like Willow or anything. Besides, I can learn things - positions - from her an apply it when we-"
"This has to stop now! You guys are disgusting!" Buffy exclaimed.
"Yeah, Anya! Stop!" Dawn backed her sister up.
"Well, what do you think, Willow?" Anya asked, just as cheerful as ever. Her eyes sparkled brightly as she awaited Willow's response.
"How about, 'no,' 'never,' and 'never-ever'?" Willow, deciding it was better not to joke with Anya in case she took it seriously, retorted, "Besides, you have Xander."
"I just wanted to walk down the red carpet, and it'd look better if you had a date, since your actor friends will probably all have dates," Anya said honestly, shrugging, "But it's your call. And loss."
"I've gone alone before."
"Really? I remember Fred going-"
"I don't want to go!" Fred managed to squeak out.
"Are you crazy?" Anya demanded.
"Yeah, are you crazy?" Willow asked.
Tara's face fell again. i>Goddess, Tara. Get a grip on yourself. Whatever made you think Willow could ever love you? Of course she'd want to go with Fred. /i>
"I meant as your date," Fred pointed out.
"Oh," Willow muttered sheepishly, "Sorry. I thought you meant you didn't want to go, period."
"Are you crazy? Go as her date!" Anya repeated, her comment directed at Fred, "You get to walk down the red carpet - with Willow!"
"We... We're not girlfriends," Fred stated simply.
"Well, you don't have to be girlfriends to be dates! But since you want to, then hurry up and become girlfriends again!" Anya exclaimed.
"We're not girlfriends," Fred repeated.
"Yes. We're not. See? She makes sense," Willow added supportively, "Thank you, Fred. Anya, you have to live in the now; the present - not the past. We haven't been girlfriends for a while now."
Tara looked up at this, her heart leaping as a small smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. Here was evidence that Willow and Fred really didn't sleep together - though there wasn't any reason for her to believe they had in the first place. i>Oh, Tara... You think about these things far too much for your own good. /i>
"Well, are you going dateless?" Anya pressed.
"No," Willow said defensively.
"Who are you asking, then?"
"Tara," Willow blurted immediately, and when she realized she had said that aloud, her cheeks flushed a deep red and she stuttered, "I, uh... Said that out loud, didn't I?"
By this time, Tara had managed to turn as red as Willow - perhaps even more so, and she shifted uncomfortably in her seat as she felt herself begin to heat up. Willow wanted to go with her? No one wanted to go anywhere with her during high school... But that was then, and this was now, was it not? She shyly glanced at the redhead, her thoughts running a mile a minute. i>Wow. Oh, wow, oh wow, oh wow. Did she really say that? I must be dreaming. /i> Tara pinched herself hard to make sure she wasn't dreaming, and jumped as she felt a sharp pain on her arm, causing Dawn to turn and look at her with a small, curious and happy smile. Tara could only smile sheepishly in return as she rubbed the pinched spot, thinking, i>Oww... That hurt. But oh wow, wow, wow! /i> Of course, Tara did wish that she could think something other than i>"Wow," /i> but she was just too happy. Besides, it was difficult for her to think of anything under Willow's gaze.
"You did," Buffy grinned in answer to Willow's question as she cheered, "Way to go, Anya!"
"Thanks," Anya said cheerfully as she allowed Buffy to compliment her.
"Hang on... Did you guys set this up?" Willow asked, her eyes bulging.
"Nope," Buffy answered, "But way to go Anya, anyway!"
"My girlfriend finally got something out of you, huh, Will?" Xander teased, causing his best friend to blush even more - if that was even remotely possible, considering the redhead's face was already very flushed and heated.
Willow glanced around the table, and caught Fred's eye. The brunette nodded and smiled reassuringly.
"Er, well..." Willow began, looking at Tara and meeting the blonde's eyes, "So, um, will you go with me?"
And to Willow, the silence that followed was deafening. She could hear her heart thumping wildly and loudly against her chest and wondered what she would do if Tara said, i>"No." i> Besides, she didn't even know if the woman liked her in that way. For all she knew, the blonde could be hitting on Anya. Or Xander.
"Yes," Tara finally replied, her cheeks red and her head giddy with delight.
"Huh?" Willow asked as she was brought out of her reverie.
"Yes, I'll go with you."
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