Re: FIC: Of Human Bonding [1/2] - Desert Rose

["bighotvirgo" <BHV@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Ahhhhhh, I like a writer that can see into the future! 


--- In buffywantswillow@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx, "hd_genscher" <
HD.Genscher@u...> wrote:
> TITLE: Of Human Bonding [1/2] - Desert Rose
> AUTHOR: HD_Genscher (hd.genscher@u...)
> RATING: PG-13
> PAIRING: B/W
> SPOILERS: for "Intervention"
> DISCLAIMER: All characters and places belong to Joss 
Whedon, Mutant
> Enemy, et al.
> ARCHIVE: HD's Fan Fiction Archive, http://www.u34.de/hdffa/ . If 
you
> want it too: take it!
> FEEDBACK: If you liked it, I'll appreciate your feedback. And if 
you
> didn't like it, it'll help me a lot if you point out what I did wrong.
> ---
> 
> 
> OF HUMAN BONDING
> 
> 
> Part 1. DESERT ROSE
> 
> Sand. Nothing but sand, withered blades of grass between 
rubble and
> some more sand, as far as the eye could see.
> 'What else do you expect in a desert,' Buffy scolded herself as 
she
> let her gaze wander over her surroundings.
> Going out into the desert to get some answers to her 
questions from
> the first Slayer had seemed to be a good idea when Giles 
brought it
> up, but now Buffy wasn't convinced of that anymore.
> 
> **
> 
> The night before, while she was following her guide, a 
mountain lion,
> Buffy contemplated what she would ask the first Slayer once 
she
> reached her.
> Who am I? That was the most fundamental question, and she 
felt she
> could answer that question easily. "I'm the Slayer," she replied 
to
> her own question aloud. The mountain lion paused for a 
moment, looked
> at her as if to reprimand her, then went on leading her 
to...wherever
> they were going. 
> 'What am I doing here in this world?' Buffy asked herself the 
next
> question. Another easy one, she thought. "I'm the one girl in all 
the
> world, fighting the forces of darkness, yadayada..." But was that 
all?
> Was her whole life supposed to revolve around slaying? 
Wasn't there
> supposed to be something else, more than being just a killing 
machine?
> This had been bugging her for a while now. It came down to 
the
> question about the meaning of life. No, not *the* meaning of 
life,
> *her* meaning. For many people, the meaning of life was 
gaining as
> much money, or reputation, or both, as possible. Bitchy-Cordy 
(as
> opposed to Scooby-Cordy) was a prime example of that. 
Others were
> striving for immortality--through their works, for example. She 
didn't
> have an example for that category...Principal Snyder, maybe? 
Buffy
> quickly discarded that thought.
> Buffy decided she didn't know anything about reputation or
> immortality, nor wanted to. For her, the things that mattered 
were
> giving herself away to others, caring about others, having a 
family
> and friends--in no particular order. She realized that all those 
were
> emotional, and all were opposed to the burning rage that drove 
her on
> when she was slaying. Buffy reluctantly had to agree with Faith 
as far
> as slaying was concerned. When she was in the midst of a 
fight, when
> things were getting really rough, she enjoyed it. She couldn't 
deny
> that. But when it was over, when she came down from the
> adrenaline-induced high, she always reminded herself of why 
she did
> all this. She didn't do it to feel that burning rage. She did it for
> the people around her, especially for *her* people: her friends, 
her
> family--the people she loved.
> All the emotions she had named, they were all about the same 
thing. It
> all came down to compassion...and to love. 
> And with that she was at the heart of the matter, the essence of 
her
> grief, because there wasn't just friendly love, or family love, 
there
> was also...'love' love.
> Was she able to really love at all and be happy with the one 
she loved
> ever after? She'd loved Angel, and she'd loved Riley, but both
> relationships had failed. Rationally, Buffy had to admit that a 
Slayer
> loving a vampire somehow had the label 'doomed' attached to 
it. But
> love wasn't about rationality, plus, she wasn't so much into the 
whole
> 'thinking it through' thing. Anyway, once she was almost over 
her
> relationship with Angel, she had thrown herself into Riley's 
arms,
> only to be painfully disappointed again. Buffy wondered if she 
was the
> one to blame. Maybe she wasn't able to love? Or some 
dreaded Slayer
> destiny prophecy thingy prevented her from loving? 
> In this context, her initial question maybe had to be 
approached
> differently. "I'm Buffy Summers, the one girl in the whole world
> looking for love with all the wrong guys..." she muttered.
> 
> When they finally reached the sacred spot with the first Slayer, 
she
> almost blurted out the most urging question that was on her 
mind.
> "What about love?" Buffy asked.
> "You're full of love. You love with all your soul," the Primitive
> answered. "Love. Give. Forgive. Risk the pain. It's your nature. 
Love
> will bring you to your gift..." she added.
> That answer confused Buffy. "What is my gift?" the blonde 
wondered.
> "Do I get one? Or do I have a gift to give to someone else?"
> But the first Slayer refused to answer her question. "Don't 
search for
> answers when you aren't ready for them. They'll find you once 
you
> are," she explained before she disappeared.
> 
> Not satisfied with what the First Slayer had told her, Buffy 
decided
> to stay in the desert for some time. Contemplating what 
question to
> ask the primal Slayer had helped her to realize a couple of 
things,
> right? Maybe the answers she was looking for were out here 
somewhere,
> and she just, well, had to wait until they found her?
> 
> **
> 
> Now Buffy was sitting cross-legged on her jacket, and had 
been staring
> out into the desert since the sun had come up a couple of 
hours ago.
> In more than one way, this was a place of extremes, of sharp
> contrasts...and of solace. The night's cool was the desert's 
solace
> from the heat of the day. A storm was the desert's solace from 
the
> silence, and rain was the desert's solace from dying of thirst. 
Loving
> was her solace from the aggressiveness of slaying...
> The desert's hostile environmental conditions had caused her 
to adjust
> her attire a bit. Her shoes were the first to go. Buffy had soon 
found
> out that their only use was to catch the sand. Later she had 
torn off
> the lower half of her tank top and made a makeshift headscarf 
from the
> resulting cloth. Now her jacket had to serve as a blanket. If 
things
> were going on like this, she'd soon be running through the 
desert
> naked.
> The Slayer could feel the sun's rays burning on her skin. If 
there was
> life somewhere here (and she was sure there was), it knew 
quite well
> how to hide from the sun's merciless stare. 
> Buffy shielded her eyes and scanned her surroundings once 
more, taking
> notice of a small cobweb-like cloud in the distance. 'Nope, 
nothing
> seems to be out here,' she thought. Then she closed her eyes. 
Maybe
> there wasn't anything to be seen, maybe it was to be heard...
> She listened to what would have been silence to non-Slayer 
ears,
> sorting out the different faint sounds. There was the trickling of 
the
> grains of sand, obviously moved by the light wind that had 
come up
> during the last hour, and there was the desert breeze itself.
> "Huuuuiiiiillloooooooow," it made. Now that was strange! That 
almost
> sounded like her best friend's name.... Buffy shrugged. Maybe 
she was
> already hallucinating due to dehydration?
> "Willow," the breeze whispered again, however.
> Time seemed to stretch somehow, while Buffy listened to the 
soothing
> whisper. A sudden gust of wind dishevelled the Slayer's hair 
under her
> headscarf, causing her to open her eyes again.
> The once small cloud had grown significantly since Buffy had 
first
> noticed it a while ago, and it was darker now. Buffy rose to her 
feet
> and calmly observed the unfolding spectacle of nature. There 
wasn't
> anything nearby to provide shelter from the storm; all she could 
do
> was to face the danger, like she always did. Faster and faster 
the
> cloud grew, soon covering the whole sky, and the freshened 
wind bore
> witness to the things to come.
> 
> Then, with a furious roar, the desert storm was there. The first
> squall hit her like a giant fist and caused her to stagger. The
> whirled up sand reached for her, and it was everywhere soon: 
in her
> mouth, in her nose, even in her eyes.
> "Is that all you have to give?" Buffy defiantly shouted into the
> inferno that raged around her and pressed against it with all 
her
> strength.
> "WILLOW," the desert storm thundered, and shredded the 
remainder of
> her clothes to emphasize that.
> The next squall hit her with unrivaled intensity, smashing her to 
the
> ground. 
> Finally Buffy understood. It was the simplest thing and it had 
been
> right in front of her all the time: Willow was her gift--the faithful
> redhead that she immediately bonded with, the girl that was 
always
> there for her, always by her side--except this time.
> Buffy tried to get up, but she was too weak and fell back into 
the
> sand. 'What irony!' she thought. Finally all her questions had 
been
> answered, and she would have to pay that knowledge with her 
life...
> With all of her Slayer strength used up, Buffy gave in to the 
darkness
> that was rapidly approaching her.
> 
> **
> 
> Willow and Giles were waiting for the Slayer's return near the
> Watcher's car. The witch felt a growing uneasiness. Buffy was 
gone for
> at least six hours now and there wasn't any indication of her
> returning soon. Once more she listened into the desert. In the
> distance, the rumble of a thunderstorm could be heard from 
time to
> time, but besides that the desert was silent.
> "I really should go after her. She doesn't have anything with 
her, not
> even a stake. What if there are some nasty desert vampires 
out there?
> And weren't there reports of a giant lizard...demon...living in this
> area? A-And what about mountain lions...or...sand worms? I 
bet they'd
> all be happy about a little Buffy snack..." she babbled while she
> paced back and forth nervously in front of the car.
> Giles tried to calm her. "Buffy's the Slayer, Willow. She knows 
how to
> take care of herself. Besides, you'll endanger the results of this
> endeavour if you go after Buffy now."
> "Damn it, I don't care about the results! Buffy's in danger, I can
> feel it!"
> Resolutely, the redhead grabbed a stake and some other 
items from the
> trunk of Giles' car, then trudged into the desert.
> 
> Willow found Buffy lying unconscious near a parched tree, the 
lower
> part of her body covered by sand and her clothes ripped up.
> The witch kneeled down next to the Slayer, and grabbed her by 
her
> bare, scratched shoulders, trying hard to ignore the other very 
naked
> Buffy body parts.
> Buffy's eyes flickered open, gummed up with sand. With 
difficulty, she
> blinked at the redhead.
> "It's okay, Buffy. I'm here," Willow whispered.
> Buffy opened her mouth and tried to say something, but all she 
managed
> to get out was a croak.
> Dipping her fingers into the bottle she had grabbed from the 
car with
> foresight, Willow slowly moistened Buffy's lips with her 
fingertips
> first. Pulling her into her lap so she was sitting up at least a bit,
> she then let her best friend drink carefully from the bottle. Buffy
> eagerly swallowed the refreshing liquid until the vessel was
> completely emptied, then closed her eyes again and let out a 
long
> sigh.
> "Buffy?" the redhead panicked. Her friend seemed to drift away 
again,
> and Willow desperately tried to think of something to help her. 
She
> did the first thing that came to her mind: she kissed the 
blonde.
> Sweet, moist lips brushed Buffy's ever so slightly. "Willow," she
> sighed happily, and a single tear rolled down her cheek. It hit 
the
> sandy ground, where a red rose sprouted magically, 
immediately
> directing her face to the sun. 
> The desert was alive at last, and Buffy had found what she 
came there
> for: 
> Solace. Love. Willow.
> 
> 
> To Be Continued...
> 
> ...in part 2, "The Tree And The River"