Buffy and Kennedy
"The slayer and the SIT"

Disclaimer: I don't own it!
Pairings: B/K
Summary: Season 8

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Chapter 21: Finding out the how

Cemetery

They buried her today, everyone was gathered, even people Buffy hadn't seen since High School. Of course they needed to bury and empty coffin because there was nothing left of her, because the demon had taken over her body, which meant the body no longer existed.

Buffy and Xander stood alone together, as their respective others stood with the rest of the people. Buffy and Xander were truly Willow's family. Her parents had moved away from Sunnydale once Willow moved into Oz's off campus house her first year at UC Sunnydale. So she had lost contact with her parents yet it never seemed to bother her.

Because to Willow her family was her friends, because they were the ones that were there when she needed them. After her first sexual experience, her first job, finding out that she was gay, and even until the end of the world. There was nothing in this world that her friends and herself didn't experience that's why to Willow they truly were her real family. Buffy can remember one time when Willow had told her that Joyce was more of a mother figure to her than he real mother.

"It is time to lay this child to rest, before her time, but God wanted her now." The priest was saying but Buffy toned him out. He didn't know, God did not want her now because a demon had taken her from them. Buffy would see to it that this demon got his due, that he paid his price for taking Willow away from them.

Everyone was beginning to leave until it was only Buffy, Xander, Cordelia, Giles and even Oz showed up for the funeral. They all said there goodbyes and circled around Buffy. She looked them all in the eyes as tears flowed from hers. "She saw my friend, not matter what happened she was always there for me." She looked at Xander. "I loved her more than anything, and I am going to miss her beyond belief." She then looked at Giles. "Find me this demon," she said as she looked at Willow's casket. "I am going to send his ass to hell."

Slayer Central

Kennedy was waiting in her bedroom, not hers and Buffy's, the one that was just hers. The one she and Willow used to share, before she moved out of the room and moved in with Buffy. She sat on the bed looking at a picture that was taken of the two of them before Willow had broken up with her.

They had been happy then, before all the drama with the challenger. What would have happened between them if the challenger had never entered her body? Would they still have been together now? Kennedy didn't want to think of it like that because she loves Buffy and she loved Willow, but Willow was part of her past and Buffy was her future.

Kennedy looked around the room and she remembered all the happy times that they had shared together. That's when she broke down, tears running free from her eyes. She couldn't believe it, the once happy, bubbly, redhead that brought a smile to everyone's face was now gone. Taken away from them in an instant.

Kennedy wanted revenge more than anyone because Willow died thinking that she hated her because of what she tried to do to Buffy. Sure she had told her that she was forgiven but with Willow Kennedy knew more was needed, but she never got a chance.

There was a little knock at the door and Kennedy looked up to see Buffy standing in the doorway. Again Kennedy began to cry and in a instant Buffy was at her side. "I don't know what to do," she said. "It doesn't seem real because I am still expecting her to come walking through that door and laugh at us for crying like babies." Kennedy said with a laugh.

"It's okay Ken," Buffy said as she held her girlfriend tight.

"Look at how stupid I am," she said. "I should be the one comforting you, she was your best friend," Kennedy said looking at Buffy.

"And I knew her all her life," Buffy said. "I have thousands of memories of her that will always make me smile." She continued. "But you, you didn't have a chance to see her, to get to know the real her. I had eight years where you had two," Buffy said.

"But still," Kennedy said. "How are you not torn up about this?" she asked.

"Because I am going to focus all my strength of defeating the fucker that took her from us," she said as a tear slipped from her eye. "You wanna help?" Buffy asked.

Kennedy looked up at her through reddened eyes. "Hell yeah," she said.

Giles Office

He sat in his office and they were all gathered around him. Everyone from the past and he present. People he didn't think cared about Willow but he was surprised at the people he saw now. Oz, her ex-boyfriend; Percy, the boy she had helped in High school; Riley, all the way from Asia; and many more.

"I know you are all deeply saddened by our lose but I need to inform you that this demon isn't like other demons. We will lose a great many of you in this battle, so I believe the question is are you willing to die in this battle because if your not than please leave now." Giles said looking at them and he noticed that no one moved.

He looked at them and nodded, sometimes they could still surprise him. "This is not going to be easy," she started. "The only way to kill this beast is to kill him from within," he said.

"How do we do that?" Buffy asked confused. "How do we get inside him?"

"That is the tricky part," Giles said. "He needs to swallow you," he said. "That means someone needs to sacrifice themselves to be eaten," he said. "He doesn't chew so he swallows you whole which will give you time to kill him, but I am afraid that the acid that resides within him will in fact kill whomever goes inside." He explained.

"Any volunteers?" Kennedy asked as she looked at everyone.

No one raised their hands and Giles didn't expect them to. This was something big that the world was asking of them. But he knew someone had to step up and be the hero.

"I'll do it," they all looked at her as if she was crazy.

"No you're not doing it," Kennedy said.

"I have to…she was my best friend and I know she would have done the same for me," Buffy said. "Who knows made I'll survive," Buffy said with a shrug of her shoulder. "After all I survived other things that were supposed to kill me," Buffy said with a smirk.

"Buffy I won't let you!" Kennedy said and Buffy noticed that Giles was starting to get people out of the offices so they had time to themselves.

"You won't be able to stop me," Buffy said.

"But what about us?" Kennedy asked in a little kid's voice. "We're just starting out," she added. "I don't want to lose you too," she added.

"I'm sorry but this is what a slayer is, someone who risks everything for the world, hopefully one day you'll realize the importance in what I am going to do." Buffy said as she got up and left.

"Buffy," she said.

"Goodbye Kennedy…I love you," she said as she closed the door behind her, she needed to get ready.

"I love you too," Kennedy said to herself as she stood alone in Giles' office. Kennedy began to cry for the second time that day.

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AN: Next update June 23rd. Sorry for missing the last update date but someone died in the family and I had to go out of town.