FF - Love Changes...Everything (1/?)

[mr_pointy2001@xxxxxxxxxxx]

TITLE : This Life - Love Changes...Everything (or Leaving & Returning)
AUTHOR : LMK
PAIRING/RATEING : Buffy/Willow - lets just say 18/NC-17 that way I 
can do anything all the way through. : )
DISCLAIMER : Everything `Buffy' belongs to Joss Whedon and Mutant 
Enemy Productions While and everything `Charmed' belongs to Aaron 
Spelling and WB Productions everything else is probably created by me.
DISTRIBUTION : If anyone wants to post this anywhere that's fine just 
please tell me.
SPOILERS : Anything pre-Season three is fair game.
AUTHORS NOTES : This is pretty much my first non-fluff not-short fan-
fiction story so please be gentle with me and any `CONSTRUCTIVE' 
criticism is welcome. Also this prologue is only a situation setting 
piece the story really only starts to get going in the first chapter.
SYNOPSIS : What if Buffy realised her feelings for a certain red 
haired witch while fighting the mayor and did a runner ALA end of 
Season three.

Prologue

Buffy looked at the still burning remains of Sunnydale High. 
Despite all her troubles there, all the times Snider put her in 
detention, all the times Cordelias 'friends' put her down for being 
friends with Willow..and Xandar, she found she was actually going to 
miss the place. Because as the school went up in her flames, so did 
the last of her protection from facing the 'Adult' world.

"We got off pretty cheap considering." Xandars voice shook her 
form her thought.

"Seems like we did." Buffy glances back at the school for a 
second. Then she and Xandar turned and slowly start to walk away from 
the 'physical' remains of a lot of memories, both good and bad.

They walked a few more steps then Buffy stopped still looking 
around. Xander stopping beside her buries his hands in his pockets.

"He made it through the fight.." Buffy whipped around to look at 
him realising who he means. "..Guess maybe he.." Xandar stops and 
takes a breath thinking how to continue. "..he took off after." 
Buffy blinked and looked down. Xander looked at his friend then 
turned and walked away. Realising their was nothing her could say or 
do.

She stood there, again looking around, Giles comes up to her and 
puts a gentle hand on her shoulder. 

"Are you all right?" He asks simply. She lays her head to one 
side.

"I'm tired." She replies softly. Giles smile slightly

"I should imagine so. It's been quite a couple of days."

"I haven't processed everything yet." Buffy says tiredly, she 
lets out a small, tired laugh. "My brain isn't really functioning on 
the higher levels." She takes a deep breath. "It's pretty much: fire 
bad; tree pretty." Giles shakes his head. 

"Understandable. Well, when it's working again congratulate 
it on a good campaign. You did very well." Buffy nods. 

"Thank you. I will." Giles puts his glasses on. 

"I...ah..I managed to ferret this out of the wreckage. Now, 
it may not interest you, but.." He reaches into his jacket and pulls 
out a slightly tattered high school diploma. I'd say you earned it." 
He hands it to Buffy who looks at it for a moment before taking it. 
Giles takes a deep breath and looks around.

"There is a certain.." He takes off his glasses with one hand 
and waves it .".. dramatic irony that's attached to all this. A 
Synchronicity that borders on predestination, one might say." Buffy 
looks at him.

"Fire bad; tree pretty." She says again simply. Giles looks 
at her. 

"Yes, sorry." He puts his glasses back on. "I'm going to see 
to Wesley, see if he's is still.." He barely suppresses a laugh.".. 
whimpering." Giles walks off into the crowds and Buffy looks after 
him. 

Suddenly a familiar feeling washes over her, she turns around 
with a slight frown on her face. Her eyes lock on something and her 
face clears. She sights Angel standing beside a fire truck looking at 
her. She looks back. They Both just stare at each other. Buffy 
blinks, her face blank. She hugs herself a little closer. He is 
blocked form her sight, First by some firemen walking by, then by a 
cloud of smoke. The smoke blows by and he steps back, he slowly 
turns around and walks off. Buffy watches him leave. She watches as 
he disappears into the smoke and out of her life. She thinks she 
should feel more about him leaving, she doesn't.

She doesn't because a little while ago, strangely enough 
while she was running down the school halls form the mayor, she 
realised she didn't really love him. He was just a substitute for 
someone else. She'd been head over heels in love with someone else 
for, quite some time. It took a feeling of certainty of death to 
realise her feelings, now they we're out and in the forefront of her 
mind. She was confused. She was tired. Most of all she was shocked. 

Willow sat on a stone bench in front of the school, Xander sitting 
beside her on the ground and Oz standing behind her. Cordelia comes 
walking up to them with Giles. `All the scooby gang. Except for 
Buffy.' Willows eyes go wide with fear.

"Where Buffy ?" She asks no one in particular.

"It's all right Willow.."Giles squeezes her shoulder 
comfortingly for a moment."..I saw a few moments ago, she's safe." 
Willow visibly relaxes a little, but not fully. 

"Guys take a moment to deal with this: - we survived." Oz 
slips his hands in to his pockets.

"It was a hell of a battle!" Xander says nodding in agreement.

"Not the battle high school." Oz points out. They all looked 
quietly at the school and listened to the crickets chirping.

"We're taking a moment." Oz states, Willow gets up from the 
bench and walks away wanting to go home and to bed. "and we're done." 
Xander get up and walks off next to Cordelia 

"Well, School's done." Xandar quips. Oz puts an arm around 
Willow as they all walk off together.

A few feet away form the bench a maroon Sunnydale High 99 
yearbook lies open on the first page where the printed on is...

.... 'The Future Is Ours' 

***

When Willow finally got home she found a letter addressed to 
her had been slipped under the door. Planting her self tiredly down 
on the sofa she tore open the envelope and opened the letter in it.

Dear Willow,

Let me start by saying sorry, I'm sorry for taking off again but I 
need time think. While fighting the mayor I learned something about 
myself I wasn't expecting, something that I can't try to understand 
while I'm in Sunnydale. 
I'm not sure where I'll go, I just need to get away. I just thought 
that I should at least tell you so you don't worry to much. I promise 
you I'll be back before college starts and demon activity picks up 
again. 

Keep your self safe.

Buffy

Willow read the letter again just to prove to herself it said what 
she thought it said. Putting the letter down she picked up the phone 
and dialled Giles number. As she did she thought exactly what was 
going through Buffys mind and surprised that Angels leaving had this 
strong effect on her best friend.

***

Chapter One

A wave crashes on the sand. In the far distance a pier 
stretches out into the water. Buffy walks towards the ocean, walking 
barefoot across the sand. She stops and looks out over the ocean. She 
closes her eyes and raises her head to just feel the sun on her face 
and listen to the waves come in. A pair of hands reach around her 
waist and clasp in front, she covers them with her own. Shelooks back 
and sees the familiar fed hair glisten in the sun. She reaches upwith 
her hand and gently brushes it against her cheek.	

"How did you find me. ?" Buffy asks gently with a smile on 
her face. Willow tilts her face to look at Buffys. Their forehead 
touching and their lips only a breath apart.	

"I will always find you, I will always be with you, because 
as someone once said, `Love has power that dispels Death; charm that 
conquers the enemy.'	Buffy lowered her hand to take hers again at 
her waist and closes her eyes. She embraces Willows arms tightly to 
her.	

"Stay with me." Buffy asks gently.	

"Forever." Willow whispers back gently. "But only if `you' 
stay with me." Buffy's expression turns from contented to dismayed.

***

Buffy wakes, finding her self back at the P3, with Her New 
employers and friends Pru, Piper and Phoebe Halliwell standing 
infront of her with sardonic accusing looks on their faces.

"What?" Buffy asks with a questioning expression .....

**Hope you like it so far**

Chapter One continued in part 2....