Fic: Subterfuge (16/?)

[inell@xxxxxxx]

Title: Subterfuge
Author: Inell
Email: Inell@xxxxxxx
Disclaimer: Joss owns them all
Distribution: My site, Kiss or Kill, 
http://members.fortunecity.com/kissorkill Anyone that has permission, take. 
Otherwise, just ask.
Rating: R
Pairing: Willow/Buffy
Last day of vacation. Sigh. 


SUBTERFUGE (16/?)


It was too bright, she decided as she closed her eyes tightly. That wasn't 
good enough, she decided as she pulled her extra pillow over her face. There, 
that was better. Buffy moaned softly as she tried to focus on getting the 
pain to leave her head. It wasn't working. The little men inside her brain 
were still using jackhammers it seemed. Didn't they know when a person was 
trying to sleep? She moved on the bed, unable to get comfortable. It was too 
hot, the sun coming in her window and bathing her body in its heat. She 
kicked at her covers, wishing that she had huge heavy curtains instead of 
thin pretty ones. When she finally accepted that she was not going to be able 
to go back to sleep, she moved the pillow beside her and groaned loudly as 
her hazel eyes slowly opened.


She felt horrible. There were muscles aching that had never been disturbed in 
years of slaying. Her head was pounding. Her vision was slightly blurry, 
though that may have been due to sleeping so she was reserving her right to 
whine about that aspect of her health until she had been awake for longer. 
She was also thirsty and could hear her stomach rumbling. She glanced at the 
clock, able to make out the bright red numbers after looking at them for a 
minute. It was after nine. She stood up quickly, falling back on the bed as 
she found herself caught up in a dizzy spell. After she let her head clear, 
she stood again, moving much more slowly. She was relieved when she was able 
to keep her balance. She took small steps to her door, listening and hearing 
nothing. The house was silent.


She found herself wondering what had happened to her the previous night. She 
had been fine, wonderful in fact. Then, suddenly she had found herself passed 
out on the floor. She could still remember how worried Willow had been, the 
tears in the redhead's eyes. For a few moments, Buffy could have sworn that 
Willow's love for her went beyond friendship. Of course, she'd felt too awful 
at the time to give it much thought or to try to deliberately pursue the 
suspicion. She could remember walking upstairs, changing then falling into 
bed. After that, things got a bit confusing. She'd dreamed a lot, weird 
dreams that had scared her but that had also made her feel happiness. Upon 
awakening, she'd not remembered any of them. They'd had to have been caused 
by the fever that Willow insisted she had since she was usually able to 
remember most of her normal dreams. 


Buffy moved along the wall at a slow pace, using it for support as she 
checked Dawn's room. Buffy was relieved to see that her sister had obviously 
left for school without her help. She looked into Willow's room, not 
surprised to see that the room was quiet, the bed neatly made and no sign of 
the redhead anywhere. She could distantly remember Willow holding her during 
the night, a wet cloth being run gently over her face, soft words whispered 
to her. With a sigh, she moved to the stairs, feeling her energy growing the 
longer she stayed on her feet. She was getting her strength back, though she 
didn't think she'd be slaying any demons for at least a few hours.


"Hey, Will, you here?" she called out softly, moving her tongue in her mouth 
to get rid of the strange taste. When she didn't get a response, she went to 
the kitchen. She smiled when she saw a note on the cabinet written in 
Willow's handwriting.

'Buffy~Dawn made it to school. Went to run errands. Back soon. Get your butt 
back in bed. You need to rest. Love Will'

Buffy sighed, knowing she wouldn't be going back upstairs. She felt much 
better than she had even when waking up. She poured a glass of orange juice 
and took a sip, making a face as she drank. It didn't taste right, seeming 
bitter and unusual. She drank anyway, needing to get rid of the weird taste 
in her mouth and throat. She didn't bother getting anything to eat, knowing 
she felt hungry but not sure she could keep anything down at the moment. She 
also feared that any type of food might also have the awful taste like the 
juice did. Instead, she refilled her glass and went to the living room. She 
laid on the couch, knowing she would be missing classes that day. She turned 
on the TV, smiling slightly as she saw that Courage the Cowardly Dog was on 
earlier than usual. She moved the pillow behind her to a more comfortable 
position as she settled down to wait for Willow, secretly pleased that her 
friend had skipped classes to be with her when she was feeling sick.