Chapter 3
Infinity
- - - - -
Buffy arrived at Grimmauld Place shortly after dawn the next morning. She was still rather tired and wasn't in the mood to talk. She was rather relieved when she found the dining room to be completely empty except for Sirius, who was standing in the pantry, unloading an armload of groceries.
"Good morning," he said, recognizing her as she stepped out of the fireplace.
"Hello," she said, calmly approaching him. "Do you always do your shopping in the middle of the night?"
"What?" he asked, and then he noticed her staring at the stack of cans and bags in his arms. "No, it's just that… your gathering yesterday cleaned out the paltry stores. Tonks and Remus were kind enough to bring a few more things, since there is to be yet another meeting today." He saw her then, standing there in a button-down blouse and jeans. She looked both refreshed and… sad. He saw it in her eyes, how down they looked. "Are you all right, Elizabeth?" he asked, depositing the rest of the stores on the shelves and stepping out of the pantry. "You look… forlorn."
"Didn't sleep too well, I guess," she said with a shrug. "It was a rough night."
"That much I can tell," he said, as they both sat down at the table. "Would you like some breakfast? There are croissants and jam, but I'm afraid there is little else unless you wish for me to cook."
"That's all right," Buffy said, waving an impatient hand. "I'm not really hungry."
"You must eat," Sirius said, fixing her with a stern look. "James would kick my bottom if I didn't look after his only daughter." He leaned over and grabbed a kettle and a mug and poured her a steaming cup of water. Buffy rose and walked to where the tea was stored and lifted a box before joining Sirius back at the table.
"I suppose," she said, adding a teabag to her water. Sirius gave her a gentle smile before rising and starting to prepare breakfast. "Is everyone else asleep?"
"The Weasleys have decided to stay until the gathering is over," Sirius replied, pulling out an armload of pots and pans. He paused, choosing his next words carefully. "Harry arrived last night."
"Good," she said, folding her hands. "I sort of need to talk to him, but…" She stared at her hands for a moment before glancing up at her brother's godfather. And then it struck her how strange it was for her not to have a godfather of her own. But another question was pressing her mind. "Do you believe in prophecies?"
"Considering that a prophecy brought me back to life," Sirius said, glancing sharply over the stack of pans in his arms as he started unloading them on the table.
"I had another dream last night," she said, feeling not as uncomfortable as she'd felt before. "Faith was in it, too."
He stopped pattering about and sat down, eager to hear more. "What happened?"
"We were dead," she explained. "Faith kept telling me it's because there was this other prophecy. "Harry had to kill us because unless we were dead, Voldemort would exist and evil would reign supreme. Yeah, Harry killed me and my death killed him. Let's just say it wasn't a happy ending of roses and puppies I was imagining." She paused. "The end of the world is coming, and it's going to swallow me whole."
"It's going to choke on you," Sirius said, taking her cup from in front of her and gently removing the bag inside of it. "Face it, Buffy, you're a hell of a lot stronger than I think even you-know-who knows. You're smart enough to pull yourself out of the country before the final battle starts."
"Maybe," she said, shrugging. "I just don't know what I'd do if something were to happen to Harry…" Her voice trailed off and she decided to ask the other question on her mind. "You knew my parents, right?"
"Your father was my best mate," Sirius replied, pushing her tea back into her hands. "Why?"
"Did I have godparents?" she asked curiously. "Did my parents care about me long enough to have godparents?"
Sirius started looking mildly uncomfortable. "You did," he finally said. "And, let me say, after I saw that you were alive, I was not too thrilled knowing that your godfather lives, too."
"Don't tell me it's Voldemort," she said, wrinkling her nose.
"No," Sirius said, watching her face carefully to gauge her reaction. "It wasn't you-know-who. It was Peter."
Her eyes widened and she nearly dropped her mug of tea. Running a hand through her hair, he tried not to laugh at her amazed expression. "Now I have heard everything," she muttered, sipping her tea. "Is that the truth or are you just trying to be nice and not hurt my feelings?"
"Would you rather it be Severus Snape?" Sirius asked, not quite looking her in the eye.
"To tell you the truth, I'd rather adopt someone else to be my godfather," she said, sighing loudly. Then a wicked grin spread across her face. "Maybe I should ask Professor Snape."
"You wouldn't dare," Sirius said, his eyes narrowing.
"Then you could tell me the truth," Buffy said, smiling prettily.
"I have," Sirius said evenly.
"You mean that man that betrayed and helped to murder my parents is my godfather?" she said, her voice rising as her brain started to comprehend this fact. "Oh, God!"
"Now, Buffy," Sirius said, standing up and backing slowly away from the woman glaring at him from his own dining room table, "he wasn't bad back then… in fact, he was the only other person aside from Remus that Lily would speak to, since Lily was so ticked at James…"
"Don't talk about my parents like that," she roared, jumping to her feet, her chair falling with a crash behind her. The other chairs shivered and edged closer to the table as Buffy advanced on Sirius. "Why couldn't I have a normal godfather, like Lupin? Where was he in all of this?"
"You have no idea how much we all adored you," Sirius said, his voice dropping nervously. She was really starting to scare him with that Lily-like temper of hers. "Peter loved you, so Lily was nice enough to include him as your godfather." He looked startled at the revolted look on her face and gently reached forward to take her hand as she sat down again on a chair. The other chairs let out tiny moans of protest and edged away from her, but nothing could get the look off of her face.
"Why does everything I stand for turn to black?" she asked suddenly, glancing up at Sirius. "Look at me. I'm the oldest daughter of two whose parents were killed. My brother is supposed to be some savior of the universe. I'm a Slayer that's been Marked and apparently filled with the soul of a demon…" She sighed and started chuckling darkly. "Look at me… all full of self-pity Buffy."
He gently handed her a tissue and she wrenched it from his hands, dabbing at her eyes. "I know it's not what you wanted to hear," he said, watching her jerky, aggravated movements.
"You think?" she asked sharply as she tossed the used tissue into the fire. She dropped her head onto her knees and wrapped her arms around them. "It's been a rough night."
"I know," Sirius replied, gently stacking all of the unused pans and slipping them back onto their shelf. "Don't… don't worry about who's who on the family tree, Buffy. I may be Harry's godfather, but you're still family, no matter who you are."
She lifted a face that was full of exhaustion and gave him a tired smile. "If it helps, Faith's always been like family. You know, we're all we had for awhile and now…" She trailed off and shrugged as she replaced her head on her knees. "I bet she's pretty glad she's not part of this psycho life right now."
"I imagine she misses it," Sirius said slowly, disappearing into the pantry.
"Oh, yeah, she misses the fact that she has to send her friends to the hospital the day after they arrive," Buffy snapped irritably. "She probably also misses the fact that the entire Order has been recalled in order to stop someone no one but my brother can stop."
"It's reality, Elizabeth," Sirius said, his own voice grumpy as he pulled back out, sacks and a carton of eggs in his arms. "Now, come on and help me with breakfast. Harry told me last night you're taking cooking lessons."
"Not that they help," she protested, standing up and starting to remove the eggs and packages of bacon and bags of potatoes from his arms. "What are we making and can I have some?"
Fifteen minutes later, the dining area was filled with the sizzle of bacon and fried potatoes, while a large kettle boiled in the fireplace. Buffy had tossed her tea despite Sirius calling her a full-blooded Yankee and made the strongest pot of coffee she could muster with her wand. It was surprising how much better she was at cooking with her wand than with anything else.
As she moved around, Sirius saw the tiny blue pendant she'd been wearing a lot. "Why do you still wear that thing?"
"It keeps me safe," Buffy replied, her automatic answer to the same question nowadays. He watched as she poured herself a rather large mug of coffee before settling down at the table. Sipping it, she let out a long breath and a beautiful smile. "I love coffee."
"You're such a Yankee," Sirius grumbled as he turned back to his potatoes.
"Buffy?" a voice asked from the doorway. She turned and saw a sleepy, disheveled figure walk in, wrapped in a plaid bathrobe.
"Oh, Hermione!" Buffy squealed, leaping to her feet and throwing her arms around the other girl. "It's so fantastic to see you!"
Sirius watched them with a fond smile before turning to the copious amounts of smoke pouring from the potatoes.
"It's good to see you, too," Hermione said, sitting down in the chair next to Buffy and reaching for the pot of coffee. "Everyone's been so worried. How is Willow? Is she going to be all right? Did they find who attacked her? Did she—"
"Okay, stop Hermione," Sirius said, lifting his hand in an attempt to hush the other girl, who promptly closed her mouth and gave him a guilty smile.
"Willow's going to be fine," Buffy assured her, taking another long drink of coffee. "She wasn't hurt too badly. The healers at St. Mungo's do a pretty good job. And they know the Death Eaters attacked her, so the Aurors could get them away from the scene." She paused. "Have you talked to Harry yet?"
"No," Hermione replied honestly. "But I know that your Aunt is dead, your cousin is in St. Mungo's and your Uncle is missing."
"You're still as smart as a busy little bee, aren't you?" Buffy muttered under her breath just as Sirius set the large black pot of hot tea in front of them.
"I just want to know everything, that's all," Hermione said with a cheerful little smile.
"I remember when you were once upon a time a little golden girl," Buffy said, arching one eyebrow as she finished off her coffee. "You know, inquisitiveness is one thing, but it's another thing to be so damned nosy, Granger."
"You sound like Professor Snape," Hermione said, sticking out her tongue.
"Oh, that's mature," Buffy said, giggling.
Sirius quickly intervened before the two started throwing hits at each other, no matter how light-hearted and mocking they were, he'd been around his mother and knew a feisty temper would end in nothing but bloodshed. He was thankfully spared with the arrival of Molly Weasley, dressed in a housedress and fluffy pink slippers. She looked pleased to see Buffy sitting there at the table, although she was looking rather tired and pale.
The same questions were asked and Buffy gave the same response. She found herself repeating the same words until she could probably say them backwards having repeated them so often. When Harry finally walked in last, cleaning his glasses, she gazed at him warily.
"You better not…" she said warningly, dropping her fork on her plate.
Yet when he opened his mouth, she let out a loud shriek and leapt to her feet. "Is that all you people care about? All of your bloody meddling, it's enough to make this blonde insane!"
Brushing past Harry, she disappeared upstairs. Harry's eyes were wide as he watched her storm away on the landing before turning meek eyes to the dining room, where every single person was staring at him. "What did I do?" he asked innocently.
Buffy retreated to the third floor and her comfortable bedroom across the hall from Faith's. Closing it tightly, she relaxed her head against the wood and closed her eyes, breathing deeply. Oh, they were all so trying her patience right now.
She moved to her bed, smiling at it fondly. Sinking down upon it, she rested her head on a pillow and soon fell asleep.
- - - - -
The meeting was just about to begin when a lone figure moved onto the third floor and made his way through the stacks of trunks and cloaks loitering the crowded hallway before pounding on a door. "Buffy! Buffy, are you in there? Buffy!"
Percy tried the doorknob, but found the door locked. "Oh, I do not have time for this," he snapped, pulling out his wand. "Alohamora!"
The door burst open just as Buffy gasped and sat up. She turned in a bit of panic to the doorway to see Percy Weasley stepping inside. "Damn it, Perce, give me a heart attack, why don't you?"
"You were sleeping? Again?" he asked incredulously, closing the door behind him and flicking his wand so the lights in the room would light up.
"So what if I was?" she asked irritably as she ran a hand through her hair. "What time is it?"
"It's nearly ten," Percy replied. "The meeting starts soon."
"Just my luck, I'm out of time," Buffy muttered as she rose slowly to her feet, stretching. "I've been here two days and already my best friend was nearly killed, my cousin just flew over the cuckoo's nest, and my best friend is sitting here blasting my door open telling me this meeting I'm some part of is about to begin and I haven't had time to shower or even look at myself properly in the mirror, or—"
"Good lord, Buffy!" Percy said, a look of mingled agitation on his face as he walked over and pried her away from her bed. "You're worse than Mum."
She glared at him, crossing her arms. "I'm going to pretend you didn't just say that," she said crossly.
He just shook his head, latched onto her wrist, and pulled her bodily from the room.
In the hallway, she met with Harry, who looked half-fearful and half-angry at the sight of his disheveled sister.
"Can I talk to you?" he asked in a small voice.
"Yeah, take her and make sure she doesn't run off again," Percy mumbled, handing Buffy's hand to Harry, who took his sister's hand warily. Her eyes were cold and the aura around her was even colder. Percy, still muttering under his breath, passed by both of them and disappeared.
"Look, whatever I did to make you mad, I didn't mean to do it," Harry began, just as she turned to look at him, her eyes narrowed.
After a moment, she shook her head and pulled her hand away. He stood with bated breath for just a moment when she suddenly burst into laughter. "Oh, my word… I am so sorry, Harry!" she said, throwing her arms and drawing her astonished brother into her embrace. "I've been walking around here all pissy and bitchy and you just catch me at the worst times. Oh, you must really hate me!"
"I was actually worried that you might hate me," Harry said, chuckling nervously.
"Why would I hate you?" she asked, her laughter dying off abruptly.
"You've been all avoiding-the-Harry since yesterday," he replied, his own nervous chuckles falling away into nothingness. "I just… wondered if you were mad about what happened to Willow."
"Harry, listen to me," she said, pulling back and gazing at him, a fond glisten sparkling in her eyes. "You're my brother. I love you, even if you are a little spoiled brat now that big sis is in town. I don't hate you for what happened to Willow. It would have happened anyway and I was glad she was there to take the hit, otherwise you'd probably be dead now. I owe Willow my life… and so do you."
"I… I guess," Harry said, shrugging uncomfortably. "I just don't know what to do now that… I mean, we've already lost our family…"
"About that, Harry," she said, wrapping an arm around his shoulders and leading him towards the staircase to go to the gathering. "I saw Dudley last night."
"How is he?" Harry asked as they reached the top of the stairs, carefully maneuvering around all of the storage just crammed onto the landing.
"He's pretty much insane," Buffy said sadly. "But… I made myself a promise last night and I promised I wouldn't stop until it's all over."
"I made that promise sixteen years ago," Harry said dryly, his hand moving up to the lightning-bolt shaped scar on his forehead. "This is kind of my daily reminder."
"I just wish they would have put something pretty like that on my arm," she said, scowling at the skull tattoo on her left arm. "This is so friggin' ugly… you'd think someone with that much power would have a sense of style, but no. Once again, Buffy gets the short end of the staff."
"Do you always talk about yourself in the third person?" Harry teased as they walked downstairs.
"Only when I'm with you," she said back, grinning. "It's fun to irritate you."
"And you're just so damned good at it," he agreed, earning him a timely slap on the back of the head.
They walked downstairs, but Harry hesitated going inside the drawing room, which was beyond full of people again. There were people standing in three rows behind the seats, which were all full except for the spot right next to Percy. Buffy turned back to see Harry standing in the doorway. Neither Ron nor Hermione were inside. Waving her off, he turned and walked downstairs. Ron and Hermione were with Ginny in the dining room, cleaning away the mess from breakfast. All three of them glanced up when he walked in.
"Hello, Harry," Ginny said with her usual warm smile as she moved past him and went, giggling, upstairs. Ron just shrugged and followed them. Feeling as though his friends had planned this, Harry sighed and glanced back inside at Hermione, who was sitting down, folding a small stack of towels on the table.
"Why do I have the feeling you planned this?" he asked lightly, taking the seat across from her.
"Because I asked them to," she said directly, giving up on the folding so she could look at him. "I felt like we needed to talk about… well…"
Harry wasn't quite sure what to say. Hermione had been his first 'real' girlfriend. Well, second if he counted Cho, and he really wasn't up to doing that. Things had been so tense for them for so long that his heart ached when he thought about how much he'd come to care for her – care, but not love.
She was gazing at him, uncertainty in her eyes. He didn't know how she felt. He knew his sister didn't, mainly because this was the first time she'd seen Hermione in weeks. Hell, he didn't even know why she still looked at him like that, because if she'd blown him off like he'd done to her, he would have been beyond furious. There certainly wouldn't be any mushy looks. If her looks could be considered mushy, that is.
She finally turned away and reached for another towel. He reached out and pulled the stack out of her reach and gently removed the towel in her trembling hands. "Hermione…"
When she looked up at him, he was startled to see the tears in her eyes. "Look," she said in a small voice, "I know you blame me for what happened to Buffy and I don't blame you, but there comes a point when you just have to forgive and forget, Harry."
"I know," he said firmly. "I mean, I have."
Her eyes changed almost instantly, sparkling with warmth he hadn't seen in months. "You have?" she asked, a bit of hope in her voice.
"I forgave you a long time ago," he admitted. "I just never… never got the chance to tell you."
Her face fell slightly as she stared at the heap of things in front of him. "Oh," she said, trying not to sound as though her feelings had been hurt. "I understand."
"Apparently you don't," Harry said quickly, pushing the laundry aside. "I don't know… I didn't know how to say I was sorry. I don't really know how you feel at all. I'm… lost about what to do, and since you're my best friend, and, well, you were… yeah."
"Harry," she said, leaning over and placing her hand on top of his. He stared down at it with widening eyes. "I wasn't just your girlfriend. I was your best friend once. I know things have changed since she came… but she's going now. All you have now is us… and I don't want to lose you as my best friend—"
"You won't, ever," Harry assured her, setting his other hand on top of hers. "I care for you a lot Hermione. It's just that I don't think I can… I don't want you to get hurt. If something were to happen to you, I don't know what would happen. I've known you forever and I don't want anything bad to happen to you."
"Nothing will, Harry," Hermione said. "I promise I won't do something stupid to get you killed, but that doesn't mean I'm about to throw away what we had."
"It was the greatest time of my life," he admitted, meeting her eyes at last. "But I'm not going to do it again."
"You don't want to be with me," she said. It wasn't a question; more of a harsh realization.
"Not now," he amended. "Maybe someday when all of this is over and I can finally learn how to live a normal life… but for now…"
"Friends," she said quickly, pulling her hand away from his.
"Best friends," he said, giving her a half-smile and rising. "I think I'm going to go back to the flat and get some things. I think I'll stay here till we go back to Hogwarts next week."
"It's a good idea," she said, watching as he disappeared upstairs before glancing down at her trembling hands. "It's a great idea," she added tearfully, quickly running her finger up to her eye to catch the tears threatening to blur her vision.
Some time passed after Harry had gone through the fireplace. Ron found her in the same spot, dabbing at her eyes with a dishtowel, clearly in some distress. "Hermione?" he asked quietly.
He watched her drop the towel, rub her face anxiously and turn to give him a forced smile. "Hi, Ron," she said lightly. "How's the meeting going?"
"I think they're almost done," he said slowly. "Are you all right?"
"I'm so happy," she said, although her face denied her words instantly.
But by nightfall and the meetings' end, everyone staying at the house knew that Hermione was miserable. On a morning the following week, Buffy gently knocked on the door to the room Hermione and Ginny shared. Ginny had been awake for hours, but Hermione hadn't been down for brunch yet.
"Hermione, are you in there?" she asked, opening the door slightly.
The fireplace was dark, but a single lamp was turned on near Hermione's bushy hair. Her back was facing the door as Buffy walked in, gently closing it behind her. Moving to the bed, she sat on the end and began to rub Hermione's back until the girl stirred and opened her eyes, staring blearily at the figure sitting five feet away.
"Buffy," she said softly, sitting up, holding her covers to her body. "What are you doing here?"
"What did he say to you?" Buffy asked directly.
"It doesn't matter," Hermione said, breaking eye contact and running a hand through her hair. "Nothing matters."
"Bullocks," Buffy replied quickly. "My brother is a great many things, but even at his best, he's as blind as a bat. He told me what happened this morning."
"And you wanted to check up on me for him," Hermione said bitterly. "How kind."
"I didn't do it for him," Buffy said irritably. "I did it for me. You stuck by me since last summer, Hermione. I owe you a lot. I'm going to start paying some of that back. Come on," she said, standing up and pulling the covers off the younger girl. "Get up. We're going out."
"We're… what?" Hermione asked, a bit breathlessly.
"We're going into London, so get dressed!" Buffy said cheerfully, walking over to the window and pulling open the blinds, letting brilliant morning sunshine in. She could feel the heat of the warm English morning through the double-paned glass. "It's about time we did something for you!"
Hermione obliged, and after a quick shower and rummaging through her Muggle clothes, she found something she could wear around London. Buffy was waiting for her downstairs, and the only other person she saw was Sirius.
After a taxi ride into London, the two started browsing and window shopping and didn't stop until lunchtime, when Hermione felt absolutely faint from not eating or drinking anything before walking around the hot streets of England all morning. The two took refuge in an adorable outdoors café.
"Thank you," Hermione said, sipping from her water glass as their waiter pulled their menus and strode away. "It's been a great morning."
"You should have said you weren't feeling well," Buffy said, setting down an entire armful of bags. She'd been buying things all morning. Hermione had been slightly curious, since Buffy's wardrobe could make those wealthy girls in Slytherin jealous, but had chosen not to say anything. Until now.
"I didn't want to worry you and your shopping," Hermione said, curiously eyeing the bags. "What did you buy?"
"Clothing," Buffy said with a shrug. "I was also having a slight shoe fetish. Feel free to borrow them when I go, since my feet are about the same size of yours, and—"
"You're going?" Hermione asked, frowning. "Where are you going?"
"Crap," Buffy muttered under her breath, setting down her water glass with a slight thud. "I really wanted to tell Harry first, but considering… well, you are his best friend… I'm leaving on Saturday."
"That's the day before we return to Hogwarts," Hermione said, stunned. "Where are you going?"
"At the meeting yesterday it was decided that I should begin my work for the Ministry, and my first assignment is in Eastern Europe, or, at least, I think it is," Buffy continued, frowning. Their waiter returned and served them both sodas and salads before departing. "Hmm… do you know where Bulgaria is?"
"You're going to Bulgaria?" Hermione asked, horrified. "Oh, Buffy! That is in Eastern Europe! You're going to be so far away!"
"It's not that far, when you consider how speedy the Floo is," Buffy assured her. "I'll only be gone until Christmas."
"That's almost four months!" Hermione cried, aghast. "Oh, Buffy, you're leaving and Harry just told me he didn't want to be with me and oh, I don't know! I don't know what's going to happen! I don't know if I'm going to live through these next few months! I don't know what I want to do with the rest of my life! I just don't know!"
Buffy had dropped her napkin at Hermione's sudden outburst. Rubbing her temple carefully and trying to distract all of the prying eyes glancing at their table, she leaned closer to the distraught girl and put her hand on Hermione's arm. "Nothing is ever certain in this lifetime, Hermione. I don't know what's going to happen, but if this war ends, soon, as we're all hoping it does… well, I could always use a sidekick. You're handy to have around when someone's trying to kill me."
This brought a small smile to Hermione's face. "Thanks," she said, glancing down at her salad. The two ate in silence for a few minutes before she glanced up again. "Does Wood know?"
"I haven't told him yet," Buffy admitted, setting her fork inside her empty bowl and pushing it aside. "I don't know how to tell him I'm not coming back…"
"Has he heard anything yet on Quidditch?" Hermione asked, her brow furrowing.
"Nope," Buffy shrugged. "At least, not that I know of; he didn't come back last night."
"Oh," Hermione said, looking surprised. "I just thought that you two—"
Buffy was suddenly looking rather sad. "I really don't want to leave, Hermione, but we both know why I have to go."
"It's just going to be so hard without you around," Hermione admitted. "You may be Harry's sister, but I feel like you're also mine."
"I always wanted a little sister," Buffy said, her nose wrinkling slightly. "I mean, Harry's great and all, but can you imagine me trying to get him into my big sister clothes?"
Both women shared a laugh.
The waiter brought their dishes just then, and they ate in silence, paid and left. As they walked back through the market, Buffy suddenly pulled Hermione aside.
"I want you to have this," Buffy said, pulling out a small silver box as they waited for the taxi she'd called. "Consider it a 'sisterly' gift. I was going to wait for your birthday, but since I won't be around…"
"Buffy," Hermione said, opening the box. Inside was a beautiful blue phoenix on a long silvery chain. "What is it?"
"I charmed it myself," Buffy said proudly. "It's a lie detector or a spinning wheel or whatever it's called. It lets you know when foes are near so that you'll know when you need to call for help."
Hermione held it up to the weakening sunlight and beamed at it. Somehow, thanks didn't really seem like the right word to say.
- - - - -
Buffy was waiting on the terrace when Oliver returned home just past nine that evening. A bottle of beer sat on the railing next to her and she was just staring down at the busy streets of London below.
"Hello," he said, his arms encircling her waist. Resting his cheek on the top of her head, he felt her arms wrap around his. "How was your day?"
"It was… busy," she replied, turning in his arms, but he had already pulled away. She senses he was hiding something and decided to call him on it. "You know, don't you?"
"I'm going out," he said, sitting down on one of the two chaise lounges. "Quidditch starts again in two weeks and I'll be going to Scotland to train. I'm sorry I didn't tell you when I found out earlier."
"We're both leaving then," she said boldly, "because I'm leaving Saturday night."
"What?" he asked in disbelief, pulling her down onto his chair. "When did you find out?"
"Yesterday," she replied, taking his hand. "I found out yesterday. They think it's best."
"They do, or you do?" he asked suspiciously.
"We all do," she admitted, touching his face. "It's best for me to get away while all of this is going on. It's just going to get worse. Wil's finally being released from St. Mungo's tomorrow. I'm moving her into Oxford on Friday and then…"
"We only have three days left?" he asked, his voice soft as he reached out to touch her, yet she pulled away. "Buffy…"
"I know it's a lot to ask, and I'm really not comfortable in a long-distance thing," she said, turning back to look at him. "I'd understand if you want to, you know, end things?"
"Why would I want to do that?" he asked, pulling her back to him. "Buffy, you know I feel. You've known since I told you on Christmas. I don't want to pretend you didn't just shock me, because you did. That doesn't mean I won't stop loving you when you disappear!"
"I'm going to Bulgaria!" she said, bursting into angry tears.
His eyes widened. "Oh," he said quietly, pulling her onto his lap.
"I know!" she wailed. "I'll be stuck in some former Soviet country I know nothing about hunting vampires."
He rested his face on her shoulder, gently letting her talk out her own tantrum. "I don't know what's going to happen, but I'll be damned if I let you go that easily."
She turned to him with eyes full of surprise. "What?"
"You're going to be gone until what, Christmas? The end of the year? We can deal," he assured her, pulling her even closer. "That is, if you are willing to do your part."
"Always," she said, smiling at him as she kissed him gently. Pulling back, she rested her face in the chest of his shirt and sighed. "I just cannot believe I have three days left," she said sadly.
He kissed the top of her head and held her even closer. "Then I'm going to make sure you enjoy every last one of them, starting with dinner at my parents' tomorrow night."
"I'd like that," she said, giggling in her silly, Buffy-like way.
"I figured you might," he replied, chuckling as they both leaned back in the chaise, staring at the stars shining far above them. As their hands met on her shoulder, their matching rings connected, providing an invisible, magical bond between them.
It wasn't long before they had both fallen asleep…
- - - - -
"That's it… come on," Buffy said, gently pushing Willow inside her brand-new apartment at Oxford. Willow, still slightly groggy from her drugged Potions, glanced around the bright living room and gasped.
"What did you do?" she asked suspiciously, walking right inside. Buffy followed her, closing the door behind her.
"I felt like decorating a bit yesterday," Buffy said apologetically. "Besides, it gave Oliver and I some private time."
"You brought Oliver to my room?" Willow asked in a dazed voice. "What were you two doing?"
"Nothing naughty!" Buffy said, smirking as she walked next to her best friend and put her arm over Willow's shoulder. "We just made sure everything was shipped here like those nice guys at FedEx promised they would be. And then we decided to move some old furniture out of storage. I think you'll get a kick out of your bedroom; half of it came out of the Wood's storage lot."
"Seriously?" Willow asked, pushing past Buffy again and moving down the narrow hallway. Cracking open one of the bedroom doors, she peeked inside and disappeared. A moment later, Buffy heard a shriek and let out a knowing grin.
The door burst open as Willow reappeared. "Do you have any idea how cool this room looks?" she asked in an excited tone, latching onto Buffy's wrist and dragging her down into the small bedroom.
The idea had been ultimately Laurel's. She had accompanied them in the morning, looking rather bored as she sat on a chair and watched Buffy and Oliver tugging in furniture and then arguing for hours on end on how to rearrange it. Laurel had then gone into both bedrooms, glancing around before returning. Buffy had seen the look on her face immediately and fearing the little girl had gone and done something stupid to get her expelled from Hogwarts, she forced Laurel to explain her idea.
Apparently, it had been a good one.
Willow's room was built for the perfect Wicca. There were large circular cabinets on the walls which spun open to reveal secret compartments containing magical ingredients. The bed itself was large and circular. The walls were deep red, while the cabinets were royal blue and golden yellow. The bed had a royal blue comforter with large stacks of small, square-sized yellow, blue and red pillows. Two large windows overlooked the campus in the distance. The desk in the room was nothing but a long board coming from the wall with a weird chair. There was a small bookshelf stacked with both Muggle and Wiccan texts. A mirrored closet door blocked her closet from view, and the rest of the furniture had been painted either lemon yellow or bright red, including the vanity table and the dresser. Lastly, there was an antique-style telephone on the bright yellow vanity table. A small, blue-glass jar sat next to it, filled to the brim with fine green powder. Floo powder.
"I love it!" Willow enthused, her eyes on the far wall, where an actual aquarium had been installed. "Is this even allowed?"
"It was put there magically, so what the Muggles don't know won't hurt them," Buffy replied, smiling at Willow's reaction to her bedroom.
"This is just so not me!" Willow replied, dropping her purse on her bed and pushing past Buffy to go into the other bedroom and then the single bathroom. After a tour of the apartment which took a rather long time, considering its size, the two women stepped out onto one of the four balconies facing the campus. Even in the brilliant afternoon sunlight, the tall buildings of Oxford glittered in the distance.
"Can you believe I'm going there?" she asked in a soft voice.
"I believe it," Buffy replied, glancing down. Somehow having Willow moving into her new place was reminding her even more of that fact she was leaving. And tomorrow was the day she was going to have to say goodbye to everyone… "Want to go for lunch?"
"Let's!" Willow replied eagerly, and both women returned inside.
The sun was going down behind the buildings when Buffy and Willow returned to her apartment. They had been discussing so many things, from Sunnydale to the potential roommate Willow could find. Willow was advocating for another American exchange student, and Buffy was pushing for someone of the male species. She even offered to broadcast Willow's empty room to her Ministry friends, something that Willow seemed to automatically shy away from.
Buffy was finding that saying goodbye to Willow again was going to be even harder. Willow seemed to realize Buffy was being silent for a reason. She walked over and rested her hand upon Buffy's shoulder. "Buffy, don't…" she said quietly. "Just don't."
"I'm trying," Buffy said, offering a tumultuous smile. "It's just so hard, and you're like—"
"I know, Buffy," Willow replied, sitting down on her leather sofa. "But the thing is, you'll be back, right?"
"Intending on it," Buffy said tightly.
"Then this isn't a real goodbye," Willow said firmly. "At least, not like the last time was."
"I think I like the way your mind works," Buffy said, leaning over and resting her head on top of Willow's. "I'm gonna miss you, you know that."
"You'll be so busy being a real fightin' girl that you'll forget about us academic types," Willow said with a sad smile.
"Don't count on it," Buffy replied, kissing the top of Willow's head before taking her own purse. "And don't get killed? That's the one Buffy-rule I'm going to impose."
"Right. Now more Willow life-and-death situations. Got it," Willow said, giving her a tiny thumbs-up.
Buffy turned at the door and stared back at where Willow was going through the abstract art books heaped onto her coffee table. "I love you, Wil."
"Love you, too, Buff. Be good."
"Yeah," Buffy said, closing the door behind her. "Being good is what usually gets me dead."
She took a taxi back to her flat, feeling slightly morose. All of her things had been packed into two small bags, ready to be transported out as she was. All of her weapons had been packed in a single bag along with replacement weapons just in case. She felt like her mind was becoming an irreversible checklist as she considered taking the knife Faith had given her for Christmas.
All thoughts flew out of her head the instant she walked inside her flat.
It was rather dark inside, but there were hundreds of candles, some sparkling on the surface and others suspended in the air. They were all lit, giving off a soft vanilla scent.
"What's this?" she asked, dropping her purse on the floor near the door as she pushed it shut. Her eyes were filled with wonder as she took in the candles, which seemed to float into two separate lines, giving her a free path into the rest of the place.
"Surprise," said a quiet voice from behind her. She turned and saw Oliver standing, hidden, in the small kitchen space in the corner between the sink and the oven.
"You did this for me?" she asked, blinking as she glanced around the large room. "Oliver, this is amazing!"
"Of course it's for you," he teased, stepping into the light and reaching for a long, flat box on the island top. "So is this."
Buffy took the box from him and shook it lightly. "What's this?" she asked in a teasing voice as she pulled off the shiny white ribbon. Lifting off the top, she pushed apart the silver tissue paper and saw, nestled in the folds inside, a dress. "You bought me clothes?" she asked incredulously.
"Well, I figured I could share an afternoon with your closest friend from the states," Oliver said, grinning. "She was most helpful when it came to your style."
Buffy lifted the garment from the box and stared at it. "It's… blue."
He came up behind her and encircled her waist with his arms. "I think I'd like to see you change into that," he breathed into her ear, causing her to jump and giggle slightly. "And then, we'll have a little dinner. I decided to cater to tonight's palette."
"You decided to what?" she asked him, confused. He just laughed and pulled away.
"Would you go? I have to get everything set out. You got home too damned quick," Oliver said, pushing her towards the stairs gently. Taking the rather large hint, she jogged up to her room and walked inside. It was so cold and empty inside, which was sad to see. Pulling off her blouse and trousers, she pulled on the dress. Seeing the last of her perfumes and makeup at the vanity, she sprayed herself with the perfume and touched up her concealer. Smiling at her reflection, she let down her hair and let it flow over her shoulders. Running a brush through her longer blonde mane, she finally set her brush down and stared at her reflection.
She hated to admit it to herself, but she was nervous.
She reappeared in her bare feet a few minutes later. Along with the candles now there were roses and quite a lot of them over every available surface. At the dining room table were two silver dishes with tops concealing their contents. A bottle of champagne had been uncorked and poured into two fluted glasses and rested inside a bucket of ice. Oliver was standing in the kitchen, discarding her box and the tissue paper. He gestured to the table when he saw her and she walked over and sat down. He joined her a few moments later.
"So now I get to see your famous cooking skills," she said teasingly as she pulled her cloth napkin into her lap. Lifting the top of her silver dish, she smiled at the steamed vegetables and fish entrée on the plate below. "Oh, my… this looks wonderful."
"I hope it tastes as good," Oliver smirked as they started eating in silence. They talked about everything and anything over their appetizing dinner and the rather bubbly champagne. After collecting the dishes, she protested the fact he wanted to clean up after preparing for her such a nice dinner. She stood next to him and wiped the dishes as he washed them.
"I hope you don't mind me staying here the next few days until we get our final assignments," Oliver said, handing her a stack of plates.
"Oh, not at all," she said, slipping them back into their cabinet. "I was kind of hoping you would, considering I think you live here now."
"I'm beginning to think I do," he admitted.
The next few moments after were rather awkward. Buffy leaned against the island, sipping her champagne and wishing fervently she'd put her hair up, since she was starting to feel warm. She watched Oliver move around, picking up random things and placing them down in other random places. It seemed as they were both uncertain of what would happen next.
One thing was for sure: she definitely had to thank him for making what could have been a sad night that much brighter. Dinner the night before at Oliver's house had been fantastic. It had been good seeing everyone again, since she'd spent the day with Laurel, too. The only person she had left to say goodbye to was Harry. Well, him and the entire household at Grimmauld Place.
When he passed her by again, she didn't hesitate. She set down her glass and leapt at him, knocking him back into the kitchen.
That was apparently all they needed.
Pushing her into the oven, she was able to get the leverage she needed to completely wrap herself around him. As they stumbled back and forth in the kitchen, finally tumbling onto the floor of the living room, they broke apart, laughing. The roses he had so carefully placed had been scattered everywhere. The candles still twinkled above them. Slowly, she moved over and placed her hands and chin on his chest, gazing thoughtfully at him.
"Thank you," she said with her pretty smile.
"I should think we established this," he said, pulling her face to his again.
Slowly, a smirk spread across her face. "I got a better idea."
"What's that?" he asked, pushing himself up on his elbow as she straightened to a seated position, pulling the strap of her new blue gown back into its place on her shoulder.
"A game," she said playfully as she helped him to his feet. Turning, she glanced at her bedroom a dozen silver steps away.
"I don't know if I want to play a game," he said. His gaze had turned serious as he stared at her. "I was kind of hoping that tonight would be the kind of night you'd remember forever."
"We've already had a few of those," she said, smiling gently as they both ascended the steps. "I was just thinking that maybe if I could try and goad you into something, I could seduce you the good old-fashioned way."
His eyes widened as he stared at her. Pushing open her bedroom door, she walked inside.
He walked in after her, using the edge of his foot to shut the door, sealing them inside. He watched as she sat down on her bed, slowly pulling her hair up. He moved until he was behind her and lifted one of the roses he'd carried upstairs, running it slowly up the skin on her left arm.
She froze slightly, her eyes slowly turning to see the soft red petals. She lowered her arms just as he started trailing kisses in the same path his rose had taken.
"I love you," he said, after pulling away and wrapping his arm around her, pulling her back into him. His hand gently caressed her arm, past the tattoo barely visible under her skin and back up to her face as he cradled her head delicately.
"I love you," she said, offering him a sly smile as she brought his face down to hers. His hand reached under the silky fabric of her dress and pulled her closer to him. Candles from downstairs had appeared in the bedroom, floating all around them, giving this moment and this memory a surreal effect.
Their brilliant light dimmed after a few hours as Buffy turned in her light sleep, her eyes opening as she wrapped herself in her red satin sheets. Oliver was sleeping next to her and she gently reached out a hand and trailed it down his brawny arm. She was going to miss those arms. She was going to miss those eyes and that accent… and she was probably going to miss his energy most of all. She sighed as she rested her head on his arm. His opposite arm came from behind him and wrapped itself securely around her and she closed her eyes, not wanting this night to ever end.
Bright sunlight floated into the room hours later. Buffy opened her eyes at the familiar tapping at the window and moved to wrap herself in a long red robe. Shuffling over to the window, she paid the owl for delivery and brought the Daily Prophet back to the bed and sat down on it as Oliver blinked up at her, yawning.
"Good morning," he said, sitting up and stretching as he looked at the paper over her shoulder.
"Good morning," she said, moving herself so that he could see what she was reading.
"When do you have to go?" he asked, kissing her shoulder lightly before moving away from her.
"Soon," she said, her voice sounding less than happy.
"Do you want me to come with you?" he asked, pulling on his own blue robe as the sheet fell away.
"There's time enough for that later," Buffy said playfully, tossing the paper aside. "I think I'm going to shower first."
Oliver looked surprised at this, but just shrugged. "Fair enough. I'll wait."
She rose and walked over to him and took his lapels before kissing him deeply. "I never said I was going alone," she said, dropping the rather obvious hint as she turned, disappearing into the adjoining room. It took him less than an instant afterwards to follow her inside.
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Chapter 4... Buffy heads to... Bulgaria? And ten things to do when it's raining on a train...
Chapter 5... Faith realizes her story isn't over yet... and the lives it puts in danger is a bad, bad thing. Buffy begins to realize that world travel only works when the country you're trying to leave lets you leave alive...
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Random Notes
Before you sit there and wonder why Buffy's going to Bulgaria, of all places, just remember a vampire hunter once went to Albania. I just chose a random eastern European country, and since Bulgaria is familiar, well, why not. She'll be moving around a lot.
The next chapter will also explain a few more things you might like to know... such as, who made Head Boy and Head Girl, etc.
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Reviewer Comments
Judging from the reviews, some of you have NO idea what is to come! That makes me happy knowing there'll be more surprises and twists. The prophecy doesn't NECESSARILY mean the Slayers are going to die... but it does mean than SOMEONE will. Putting it together with their own prophecy from the other story should make some more sense... but, alas, that's all I'm giving away. There's only, like, 27 chapters left (or so I hope). I'll give out Christmas cookies, too, if you review! I want to know how this adds up to the first part!
And, for some reason, I'm feeling sort of writing-generous lately (maybe that's because I've already finished my Secret Santa fictions)… so if you have a request or something you'd like to see… I may just write it. I'm sort of getting ahead in this story again, and the last few chapters were just shipped to Grace!
To the comments...
AnitaBlake/BuffyFan-- Thank you :)
sparky24 -- Their dreams don't necessarily mean they're going to die... or something like that. I have it in my head, I know what I want to do, and I hope you'll just trust me enough to put it out. Tara may or may not come into the story yet... if she does, I have an idea of how she will. Spike probably won't, unless I want this one thing to happen, and I'm not sure I do. Gee, was that vague enough for you? My apologies!
Naitch03 -- Don't say that, or you'll jinx this story... and I'll go around killing ALL the little characters. Or, not... Anyway, I think Lupin got there from Buffy's warning, since he should have been at the meeting... in other words, he signaled the arrival of the cavalry, so to speak. As for Faith's role in what's to come, let's just say a certain You-Know-Who knows where she is... and he's just realized that this was the girl he was to have sacrificed in this honor. Little does she know that kind of responsibility is a curse... literally. And, yeah, Buffy not really blaming Harry for anything.
RedsLover03 -- oh, my... there was a bit in the previous story that said something about Buffy leaving England to do Ministry work. She's a vampire hunter, so she's leaving to do that. Where she's going is described in the spoiler above, and the reason why is in the next chapter. Why is she leaving? Because she wants a career of her own, and this allows her to do the Slayer stuff without threatening other lives, and she's far enough away from the action that she can be all Slayer-girl again.
Goddessa39 -- If I had a choice, I'd stay up and write for, oh, fifteen hours a day or so. That's how boring my life would be. As for the "bleeding", well, you'll just have to see what happens. Buffy and Faith are in this to the end. They're already connected with an ancient magic, one that binds them as Slayers and one that binds them through magic (ala the fact they did the spell to bring Sirius back). It doesn't mean they're going to die. And I can completely see Giles doing a little walk down the aisle... but the when and who is unclear so far. I have about three different paths to take... and while my beta is awesome in helping me figure these things out, she's almost as lost as I am. I'm going to say two out of three should have a happy ending. There may be all three, but definitely two. As for beta-reading, I'm okay-ish. I can do grammar and punctuation, and minor edits. But if you want really really strong edits and plot pickings and all that detailed stuff, I'll recommend Grace, my wonderful Beta. Or Alyson, my almost-a-sister-yet-still-a-Beta-and-newly-a-writer-herself. They're both staff betas for the guild I belong to.
Tigerfanfrv-- yep, chapter's up. And more to come... probably a lot more, sadly.
DarkAngelMali-- Death will follow... be careful what you wish for, it might just come true. :) Kidding... not really. You never know. I've brought Cynthia back... I need another female role... and she seemed like a good character to work on. You'll see if she's changed at all. I'm hoping to update twice a week, but that's even asking a lot. Blame my employers... Christmas time is the season when they overwork the hell out of us.
hermionefairy-- Your underscore disappeared! I feel bad... I hate spelling people's names wrong. Heh. Buffy's not mad at Harry. She has no reason to be. But that's Harry for you. As for the dream, it did mean something, it works with more dreams, and it has a reason. A meaning. And a purpose. You'll see soon. Thank you :)
jim hawking jr -- You didn't have to wait long. See? Everything's all right between the siblings.
General Mac -- I'm hoping no more cliffhangers. I used to adore using them, for the shock effect. And after reading a few too many (gives a death glare at a ertain author), I've grown to despise them. I'll guarantee one more though. And it's coming up shortly-ish.
CapriceAnn-- You are so right! Buffy and Oliver work well together. Harry needs his sister. Faith needs her brother. She may even need Harry. It's one whole big circle of need, need and more need! I've read your story... and all I can say so far is that it's a good beginning! It can also been seen as an "mmmmm" story, one of those you'd love to cozy up to late at night before a fireplace. Or at least, that's my opinion. As for your challenge, I might be able to work something out! I haven't written anything that... intense... since my old JetC days. But I'm willing to give it a shot... I'm only ask I can use this story though!
electric pancake -- not having homework is fun! Dreams are fun to write, especially when there are more to come! Thanks for reviewing!
lrachel2005 -- I really plan to finish it!
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