AN: See? Look at me being true to my promises! Go me! lol.
So here's some more Chosen, the winner of the 'who gets an update' contest. Em is still catching Naomi up on the Scooby Gang's past endeavors. A little bit more in the next chapter and then the re-cap is done and the real story begins. And if it seems like Emily is sort of rushing through the story, that's because she is. Lol. I want the real story as much as the rest of you do. And Em just wants to get it out of the way so she can spend some quality time with Naoms. So here it is. Enjoy.
Emily
I wake up feeling more rested than I have in a long time. After sharing a room with my sister, Katie, my entire life, sleeping in a room alone, especially one this size, has be challenging to say the least. But right now, I feel more relaxed than I have in ages. I smile to myself and try to turn over onto my back so I can get up. 'Try' being the operative word, because there is a weight across my back, making it a bit difficult. I turn my head to look at Naomi and find her smiling in her sleep. I can't help but smile, myself; I wonder what she's dreaming of. As cute as she is, though, I need to pee; so I really need to get out of this position.
"Naomi." I say, quietly, trying to wake her as gently as possible. Her smile turns to an adorable frown and she lets out a little whimper. I think I may melt. Reluctantly, I call her again, a bit louder this time. She turns onto her back, scrunching up her nose and whimpers again. My smile grows at her unimaginable cuteness, but I roll from the bed and jet toward the loo. On my way out the door, I run head on into a solid mass.
"What the fuck?" I say aloud as I catch myself from falling on my arse.
"Language, Sweetie." The solid mass says.
"Willow!" I say, surprised to see her, "What are you doing in my doorway?" I ask.
"Just looking." She says, "Getting along well with the new recruit, I see." She adds, raising her eyebrows, suggestively.
"It's not like that." I defend against her teasing, squeezing past her and heading towards the toilet.
"Not yet." She continues as she follows me. I peer over my shoulder at her and flash her a playful look.
"Taking advantage of the newbies is your thing, isn't it?" I tease her.
"I'll have you know, Kennedy seduced me!" she defends, and my playful demeanour suddenly changes at the mention of her name.
"I know." I bite back, more harshly than intended. She sighs.
"Emily, please." She begs me through the bathroom door as I walk through it and close it in her face.
"What, Will?" I scold her through the door, "I'm not just going to wake up one day and magically be ok with it!"
"That could be arranged." She tries to joke and I throw a bar of soap at the door, effectively informing her that I'm not amused.
"Ok!" she relents, "but Emily, you're going to have to let it go one day. I'll always love Tara, you know that. But she's gone, now. And I couldn't just keep pretending she was still here. I had to move on. You don't think Tara would have let me do that to myself, do you?" her voice breaks as she finishes and I sigh. Why do I always end up making Willow cry when it's Kennedy that deserves it? I finish up, quickly, wash my hands and open the door. Willow looks up at me with red, watery eyes.
"No, I don't" I tell her as I wrap my arms around her, she squeezes me back, "I just…"
"I love her, Emily." She pleads with me, "What have you got against her?" I step away and stare at the ground.
"It's not my place." I mutter, almost inaudibly. It's the same answer I've given her countless times before.
"You're like a kid sister to me, Em, It's as much your place as anyone's" she tells me and I shake my head.
"I can't be the one to tell you." I explain, hoping she'll understand, "I can't do that to you." Willow sighs.
"I'll talk to her, ok?" she asks me, clearly hoping that will be enough. I smile.
"That's the way it should be." I tell her, "She needs to be honest with you." I start to walk away and am hit with the image of how she'll react when she finally finds out.
"Hey, Will?" I call after he, she looks at me, expectantly, "I love you." She smiles, oblivious to my dread.
"Love you too, Kiddo." And with that she turns on her heels and walks away.
XXXXXXXXXX
When I get back to our room, Naomi is already awake. Her face flushes red when she sees me and all thoughts of Kennedy evaporate. I giggle.
"So you were at least a little conscious, then?" I ask, amused. She covers her face with her hands, adorably.
"You were warm, okay?" she mumbles and I break into another fit of giggles.
"Yeah," I play along, "human sun, over here." I tease.
"Oh, piss off!" she huffs and throws herself back onto the bed, throwing the duvet over her head. I smile at her a moment longer and decide to stop teasing her.
"Hey." I say as I climb onto the bed and try to pull the blanket from her face. Finally I manage to uncover at least her crystal blues. "So you had a cuddle in your sleep. It's not a crime, is it?" she narrows her eyes at me. "Besides, I didn't mind," I admit, "I could get used to it, in fact." We end up in a staring match after that, I goes on for a long time, until finally, Naomi's expression changes to one of surprise and she squirms.
"Oh god! I need a wee!" she exclaims and I chuckle.
"Take a right down the hall. It's a big red door on the left side." I tell her and in seconds she's disappeared. As soon as she's gone, I throw myself down on the bed and slam my face into the mattress, repeatedly. I've been awake all of twenty minutes and already I've made one of my best mates cry and embarrassed the fuck out of Naomi. Well done, Fitch.
"Err… Do you need a moment?" I hear Naomi say from behind me a moment later. I release a heavy sigh.
"No." I tell her, "A good work out is exactly what I need." She watches me, sceptically for a long moment.
"You ok?" she asks and I shake my head.
"Not really, but that's a conversation for another time. Right now, you should get dressed. I believe we have a story to finish." I tell her.
Fifteen minutes later, we've made our way onto the grounds.
"So what are you going to torture me with, first?" Naomi asks and I grin.
"Watch it, Campbell." I tell her, "This routine is simple. I could easily make you swim the Channel." She looks at me, disbelievingly.
"Em, it would take all day just to get there! I doubt you would." I grin at her, again.
"Are you forgetting, I have friends that can make it take about 30 seconds?" I ask her and she frowns.
"My view on the state of reality is doomed, isn't it?" she asks and I chuckle.
"Afraid so." I tell her. She lets out a heavy sigh and shrugs.
"So, What are we doing?" she asks.
"Just a run to start us off." I tell her and wink, "Follow me." I say and take off. She stares, blankly, for a moment, but follows. When she catches up she flashes me and incredulous look and I smirk in return. She rolls her eyes.
"Ok, so , Faith." She says and my eyebrows scrunch up in confusion.
"Huh?" She smiles.
"That's where we left off." She explains. I blush. Duh.
"Oh, right." I say and make a mental note to keep my breathing steady. Storytelling while sprinting isn't exactly easy, even for a slayer.
"So, Kendra's death activated Faith, and as slayers, Faith and Kendra are polar opposites. Where Kendra was 'study hard, kill them all', Faith was more 'all work and no play make…'" Naomi chuckles.
"Ok, I get it." She says, "Faith just liked to party and the slaying was just some added fun. A way to get her rocks off."
"Pretty much." I agree, as that sums it up rather nicely, "So just before Faith shows up, Buff has about the worst thing imaginable happen. You remember Angel's curse?" She nods once, "Well it had a loophole. If Angel were ever to experience one moment of true happiness, the curse would be broken." Naomi appears to be thinking for a moment, but suddenly her eyes pop back up, as if she's figured it out.
"He and Buffy…" She starts and I nod.
"Imagine something so special with the person you love and the next morning they've transformed into a soulless monster that wants to kill you and all of your friends."
"Did he?" she asks and I look at her, puzzled. "Kill anyone." She clarifies.
"Just one. Jenny Calendar. She was a teacher at Sunnydale High. She and Giles had gotten… really… close."
"Oh, Man." Naomi mutters, her face looks as if the idea has caused her physical pain.
"Yeah." I agree and take a deep breath before moving on, "So then Angel tries to create an apocalypse and Buffy has to kill him, sending him into a hell dimension."
"Poor Buffy." Naomi muses and I agree, once again.
"That's why she runs away, for three months, actually. When she gets back, she meets Faith." I explain.
"And naturally, she's drawn to her." Naomi finishes my thought. I smile.
"Naturally." I say, and Naomi smiles as well. "So they became mates. Faith pulls Buffy into a little trouble, but no lasting damage… to Buffy, anyway." Naomi stops in her tracks and leans over, catching her breath.
"Sorry, running and conversation don't go well together." I nod my understanding as I step up next to her. "What do you mean?"
"Well, Faith has some trust issues. She knew she didn't quite fit and she started to feel like nobody wanted her around; got jealous of Buffy's relationship with her friends, and Giles. She didn't know how to handle it, got into even more trouble. Hit rock bottom when she accidentally killed a guy. She thought he was a vampire."
"Shit." Naomi muses and I nod. "Please tell me your experience as a slayer has been better!" she says and I laugh.
"Much." I tell her, "Any problems I have are completely un-slayer related." (Aside from the obvious: near death experiences, of course)
"Well that's a relief." She jokes and I nod.
"So a few fillers… Willow and Xander are both loved up; Xander with Cordelia, who is pretty much the American version of my sister, Katie. I'll make sure you get to meet her whenever we get to visit Bristol… Katie, I mean… And Willow with Oz, the lead guitarist for a garage band, and also a werewolf." Naomi throws her arms into the air as if to say 'why am I not surprised?' and I chuckle. "Angel only spent a few months in his hell dimension. Some sort of magic brought him back. And thanks to Willow and her dabbling in the magical arts, and Jenny Calendar's roots with the gypsies who cursed him in the first place, he came back with a soul." Naomi smiles.
"So, good for Buffy!" she says happily. I frown at her.
"It would be, except they can't really be together anymore, can they?" Naomi frowns deeply.
"That's not fair!" she says, angrily and it takes me by surprise. I'm quickly learning a lot about this girl. I regain my focus and shake my head.
"No, it's not. But the story's not over yet." She perks up at that and I giggle. "First let's get down to the castle. We've still got training to do."
Naomi groans but follows me as I walk towards the castle. I spot Satsu and her crossbow sitting in the grass; I smile, apologetically. She is so looking forward to this.
"Not yet, babes. We've still got a wall to climb." I tell her and she shakes her head.
"Now or never, sweetheart. I've got other plans." I frown but nod my acceptance. "I guess Naomi will have to forgive me for not having her shot at today." I say, looking at Naomi with a playful smirk.
"How will I go on?" she says with an eye roll. Satsu looks between us a few times and then leans into my ear.
"Could you be any more obvious, Ems?" she teases and I shove her away.
"Piss off." I say, playfully and with that she turns and walks away. I walk Naomi around the side of the castle and we stand facing the wall. This side of the castle is covered in cracks and uneven stones (probably from an attack in its early days). It's perfect for climbing. I do it all the time, just to blow off some steam.
"We're doing this without ropes, aren't we?" Naomi asks as she takes in the sight of the wall in front of us. I smirk at her.
"You know, you should really come with a warning label, sharp as you are." I tease and she pokes her tongue out at me. "Ever done this before?" I ask through my laugh ad she shakes her head. "All you need to know is take it slow. As a slayer, you may heal well, but that doesn't mean we want you falling from a nine story building, and it doesn't make you invincible. Test your grip before you move."
"Got it." She says with a nod and steps up to the wall. I follow her example and soon we're both on our way.
"So where were we?" I ask. I know I keep losing my place, but give me a break, yeah? This girl is very distracting.
"Buffy's friends are all loved up, but she can't be with Angel. And Faith accidentally killed some bloke." She provides and I nod, a small smile playing on my lips. It's nice to know she's listening.
"Right, so Angel decides to go to L.A. to make life a little easier for the both of them. They ache, they pine, they wallow, but the try to move on. It's senior year at Sunnydale High and Faith is working for the Mayor, which seems harmless enough, except the Mayor is a bit evil. But despite that, he's like a father to Faith. Anyway, he wants to 'ascend to a higher being' and decides to use the graduation ceremony to do it because it takes place during an eclipse. His higher being turns out to be a giant snake and the gang ends up having to blow up the school to kill him." Naomi laughs loudly at this. The sound is breath-taking.
"I would have killed for a chance to blow up Roundview! If I were still going there, that is." I smile as a thought hits me.
"I would've gone to Roundview, too, you know." I tell her, "maybe we'd have been in the same form."
"Hmm, maybe." She says, "Although, as far as introductions go, I'd say showing up at my doorstep with the Watcher's Council telling me I'm destined to fight evil is far more interesting than anything that could have happened at college."
"Good point." I agree, "So back to the story. Buffy, Oz, and Willow attend university in Sunnydale and Xander decides to go straight into the working world. Cordelia moves to L.A.; she and Xander had broken up earlier in the year and she had unknowingly set a vengeance demon on the whole town. She ended up working with Angel for this P.I. company they organized." Naomi snorts.
"What?" I ask.
"Angel Investigations," she mocks, using her best radio voice, "When no one else will help, send an Angel." I smile at her.
"That was essentially the idea." I agree, "You actually got the name spot-on and their slogan was 'we help the hopeless.'"
"Catchy." She muses. I chuckle and nod.
"Yeah, so everybody's kind of got a new start. Things get rough for Willow for a bit when Oz's wolf becomes a problem. He meets another wolf and his 'animal instinct' kicks in. He cheated on her and ended up running off to Tibet to try and get a handle on things. Will went more or less suicidal for a spell. Pun completely intended." Naomi snorts. "You know that vengeance demon? Well they work like genies, make a wish and it comes true. She wished that Buffy had never come to Sunnydale. She had it in her head that all of her problems started when Buffy showed up, which was kind of true, but merely a coincidence. Anyway, it created this whole new world where the Master had never been killed and Vampires sort of over-ran things. Even Xander and Willow had been turned. Buffy was living in Cleveland and had never heard of Sunnydale. Everything was really, really bad. In order to stop Anya, that was her name, the vengeance demon, Giles destroyed this necklace she had. It was sort of her power source. She turned human and she and Xander became and item." Naomi gives me an incredulous look. "Ironic, I know." I tell her. And with that, we've reached the top of the wall and we both climb over, finding ourselves sitting on the walls of a watch tower.
"There's not too much story left." I tell her, "We can hang here until it's finished. We still have hours left and our next task requires silence."
"Mediation time, then?" She asks. I smirk.
"Really, Naomi, any sharper and you'd cut yourself."
AN: Ok, am I the only one who somehow ends up being dyslexic when using a keyboard, despite not being dyslexic any other time? Next to the space bar, my backspace key takes some serious abuse. Anyways. There you go. See you next time on HFF. :)