FIC: The red headed Slayer 7/?

["jend1205" <jend1205@xxxxxxxxx>]

Author: Jen D
Disclaimer: I don't own just like it. 
Rating: G-R and all points between mostly language and violence
Pairing: Willow/ Buffy
Spoilers: I guess all of the shows this is A/U but some of it might 
come up.


Willow walked into the deserted library and looked around.
"Giles?" 
she yelled.

"Willow, what a pleasant surprise. What brings you here?"
Giles said 
as he came out of his office.

"Nothing really. I hope you don't mind but I told the lady
down in 
the office that I was a former student of yours and needed some help 
on a project. I figured it might be a good cover if I ever needed to 
talk to you through the day."

"Excellent idea if I say so myself. So where is the little one 
today?" Giles asked not seeing the toddler.

"She's at her first day at day care. I have to say I'm a
little 
bored. Before when she was there I always had school. I was kind of 
hoping maybe we could talk for a few minutes? I have the pleasure to 
get to know Joyce and Buffy quite a bit but I haven't had the
chance 
to get to know you."

Giles sat down at the table, "Of course, what would like to
know?"

"How did you become a Watcher?"

"My father was a Watcher and his father before him and on and on.
I 
guess for him there wasn't even a thought that I would do
anything 
else."

"And you?"

"I bloody hated the idea and I let him know."

"So you had as much of a destiny as I do?"

Giles studied the red head, "I suppose your right but it
didn't mean 
I had to like it. I rebelled and I got into quite a lot of trouble 
doing it. In the end I become a Watcher and my father was a happy 
man."

"What about you? Are you happy?" 

"I am now. I have a beautiful, intelligent wife and a wonderful 
daughter, who I thankfully don't have to keep my secrets from. I
have 
a bright Slayer, who I think will probably be with me for a while. I 
don't think I could ask for a lot more, do you?" Giles asked.

"No I suppose not and I definitely plan on being around for a
long 
time."

"Good and know that I will do everything in my power to make sure 
that you are prepared and have all that you need to be successful. 
Joyce and I both."

"Why? I mean I know that it's your job to look after me but
what the 
two of you have done goes way beyond what's called for."

Giles took his glasses off and began to clean them, "I'm
going to be 
honest here, Willow. I hope that you understand my thinking. Joyce 
and I have a personal interest in keeping you alive and well. We 
found out a few years ago that Buffy is a potential slayer and we 
want to do everything in our powers to make sure she is never
called."

"Oh god. Buffy's never said anything to me about it,"
Willow said as 
she began to pace around the library.

"She doesn't know."

"What?"

"We decided that we wanted her to have as much time as possible
to 
have a normal life. I taught her self-defense and what I can without 
her Slayer powers. If by some chance she is called she will have a 
good start."

"Wow"

"I know that I have put you in a awkward position of having to
keep 
our secret but I hope you can see why we have kept it from her."

"Yeah I think so. I know what it's like to miss out on your 
childhood."

"How old were you when Merrick first found you?"

"Ten, I trained three years with him before I was called. Giles,
we 
need to make sure she never has to be called."

"I know, Willow, we will," Giles said.

"So tell me about this shop we're going to be training
at?" Willow 
asked.

"It's owned by a friend of mine and run by his niece, Jenny. 
He 
spends all his time in England now that he has gotten up there in the 
age. I suppose someday he will leave it to her."

"What kind of shop is it?"

"It's a magic shop actually," Giles said hesitantly,
knowing that 
Merrick tended to stay away from magic.

Willow cocked her eyebrow, "Magic? Like pulling rabbits out of
hats, 
sawing people in half, magic?"

"No, more like making vamps go poof with a light spell,
magic."

"Oh well that could be helpful," Willow said after thinking
about it 
for a minute.

"I'm glad you think that way because Jenny is having a young
witch 
who attends the university stop by today for us to meet. Jenny seems 
to think that this girl could be of some use to us. Seems she is 
quite powerful."

"Umm?ok, I leave that up to you but I can't say I like
bringing 
anyone in," Willow said mildly, not meeting his eyes.

"Willow I know that it has been pounded into your head from the 
beginning that the Slayer works alone, that your not allowed to have 
friends and the council isn't real happy for you to have family
but 
it's not how it's going to work here. You didn't have any
problem 
letting Angel or Spike help. Why the hesitation here?"

"They're already dead. I just soon not have someone's
life in danger 
because they choose to help me," Willow voice rose slightly as
her 
she spoke, the fear of someone's death on her shoulders creeping
in.

"I understand, how about we meet her and go from there?"
Giles asked 
trying to calm her before she became any more upset.

"You're the boss," Willow said and stood to leave.
"I'll see you 
later, Mr. Giles."

Giles watched the doors swing shut after her, "Well that went
well. 
Mr. Giles? I guess I really pissed her off."







Willow wondered around the streets of Sunnydale after picking Dawn 
up from day care enjoying the slower pace of the smaller town.
"You 
know Dawnie, if it wasn't for the vampires and demons that roam
the 
night this could be a really nice place to settle down in,"
Willow 
whispered to the toddler. It had been a long time since she had just 
allowed herself to just walk along and enjoy the sun on her face. It 
seemed like in recent years most of her daytime activities consisted 
of running to someplace or running from someplace. Run to class, run 
to training, to the day care, to training, to home for dinner and an 
evening of homework and housework. All to soon it seemed to Willow 
they were standing in front of the address that Giles had given 
her. `The Magic Box, how cute,' Willow thought. A bell above
the door 
announced her arrival as she stepped into the shop. 

The woman behind the counter smiled and waved her in, "Hi,
I'm Jenny 
and I'd bet the store you're Willow and Dawn."

"And you would win," Willow said, a smile working it's
way to her 
eyes.

"Well welcome to slayer central. Rupert's in the back making
sure all 
the training equipment is set up."

Willow looked around the comfy store, "Slayer central?"

"Yeah with Joyce keeping the baby at home at night he wanted to
keep 
things as far away from there as possible, you're not a student
at 
the school and most of the research books are here anyway so we 
decided that we should just use this as a meeting place."

"I see," Willow said nodding her head.

"Plus all the good places to eat are close by for those late
night 
research party munchies."

"Giles said that you have a friend who is a witch that you wanted
us 
to meet?" Willow asked looking around.

"Yeah she should be here any minute. She called and said she got
held 
up at class. I think she just got caught up in this new girl she met 
a few days ago," Jenny laughed.

"Oh young love."

Jenny winked, "More like great sex form what she said. She's
not the 
falling in love kinda girl. If she was I'd be right there beating
on 
her door. I just don't think I want the casual sex thing right
now. 
Not that there's anything wrong with it, it's just not for
me."

"Oh no nothing wrong with casual sex, nope not a thing, it can be 
your best friend sometimes but I get what you're saying."

Giles stuck his head out the door at the back of the shop and walked 
out, "Good afternoon, Willow. I see you found your way here and
met 
Jenny."

"Yes she did and you interrupted a good sex talk, Rupert,"
Jenny 
smirked at the red faced Watcher.

"Um?ur?well?" Giles sputtered but was cut off by the
bell above the 
door as it opened.

"Hey Jenny, sorry I'm late. That damn professor went on and
on," Tara 
said as flew through the door not noticing Willow or Giles standing 
the corner. "Are they here yet."

Jenny pointed the pair out in the corner, "Willow and Rupert,
I'd 
like you to meet Tara the witch. Tara this is the Slayer and her 
Watcher."

"You're a witch?" Willow yelled.

"You're the Slayer?" Tara yelled at the same time.

"Bloody hell," Giles sighed.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Willow asked.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Tara countered, approaching the
pair.

"Oh right because I can just walk up to people and say `hi
I'm 
Willow, the vampire slayer'. That goes over well."

Jenny raised her hand, "Ok time out, would someone please fill me
in 
on what's going on here?"

"Remember me telling you about the woman I met on campus?"
Tara asked 
turning to Jenny.

"Yeah cute, funny, great sex?oh boy," Jenny trailed off
finally 
getting the picture. "Willow?"

"She gets in one," Willow said sarcastically. 

"Ok I can understand why you didn't tell me but what I
don't get is 
that I thought Slayer's were teenage girls. Will, how long have
you 
been the Slayer?" Tara asked turning back to the red head.

"Three years," Willow whispered knowing she was going to have
a lot 
of explaining to do.

"And how old were you when you were called?"

"Tara, I think we need to talk privately."

Jenny pointed to a door off the side of the shop, "You can use my 
office."

"Thank you," Willow said gratefully.




"So how old?" Tara asked after shutting the door.

Willow sighed and sat down in a chair in front of the 
desk, "Thirteen."

"But that would only make you sixteen?"

"Seventeen in a couple of weeks," Willow answered.

"You told me you were twenty. I don't understand how you
could be 
seventeen and have custody of Dawn? I really confused here Will."

Willow sighed and pointed to the other chair for Tara to sit 
down, "Ok I'm going to start from the beginning, give you the
readers 
digest version. Merrick, who was my Watcher until his death a couple 
of weeks ago, came to me right before my tenth birthday and told me 
about my calling. I was called right after I turned thirteen. My 
mother got sick when I was fourteen and I knew that there was no way 
the council would let me stay in a foster home with Dawn if anything 
should happen to her. So I changed a few records here and there and 
then I was eighteen."

"So you changed your age? Why didn't you tell me?" Tara
asked.

"Tara, it's not something I tell anyone."

"But everyone else knows? Don't you trust me?"

Willow shook her head at Tara, "It's really not a matter of
trust. 
Dawn?how do I say this?Dawn is the reason that I get through
the day. 
Hell she's the reason I didn't give up a long time ago. Tara,
I don't 
think I could even begin to tell you how hard things are for me 
sometimes. I can't take the chance of anyone finding out about
what I 
did to keep her. I can't lose her."

"I guess it's just a little confusing to think that
you're only 
sixteen," Tara said.

"But I'm not. I never got to be a normal kid. I mean think
about how 
you'd feel if one day some strange man comes along, tells you
that 
all the monsters under the bed that your parents told you didn't 
exist really did and you were the one chosen to fight them. I was 
raising a child at fourteen; no being sixteen was something I never 
got to be. As far as the rest of the world thinks I am going to be 
twenty-one in a couple of weeks. Tara, I like you and I really want 
to keep our friendship. I would have told you the truth sometime but 
I just wasn't ready to yet."

"Can we still have sex?" Tara smirked.

"I sure as hell hope so."

Tara smiled, "What about Buffy?"

"You want to have sex with Buffy?" Willow teased.

"Well I wouldn't turn her down," Tara countered back.

"Is there anyone you wouldn't turn down?"

"Hmmm?can I get back to you on that one? Seriously Will, she
really 
likes you," Tara said.

"I know we talked last night and someday I wouldn't be
opposed to 
seeing where things could go. I just don't think she's ready
to 
handle what a relationship with me would be like. She deserves to 
just be a kid for a little longer. We good?"

"Yeah, I guess. I don't think I could stay mad at you for
very long 
anyway," Tara said and led them back out into the shop.

Willow saw Giles, Buffy, Cordy and Xander sitting at a round table in 
the corner of the shop and walked up, "Hey guys what brings you
here."

"Dad wanted us to do some research on something he found in that
book 
the bleach boy brought him," Buffy said smiling at the red head.

"Mr. Giles, I can go as far as having Tara help out with the
magic 
but I refuse to have you involve these kids in this," Willow said
her 
voice full of anger.

"Willow, as your Watcher I have the right to involve anyone that
I 
see fit to help," Giles said standing.

"I think we need to talk, Mr. Giles," Willow said storming
off to the 
back room.

"Way to piss off the Slayer, G-man," Xander teased.

"Alexander, how many times have I told you not to call me
that?" 
Giles said following his Slayer.

Willow was pacing around the room with a staff twirling it as she 
paced, "Mr. Giles, they're kids."

"I know that Willow, kids who want to help keep you alive. Kids
that 
I would much rather see here looking through some books then out 
running around doing god knows what."

"But they should be talking about clothes and who dating who and
why. 
Not sitting around looking through dusty books, trying to research 
this weeks feature creature."

Buffy cleared her throat and walked farther into the room, "And 
knowing what we know do you really think that we could just talk 
about normal things? Will, we live on a hellmouth and my father is 
the Watcher to one of my friends who is a super human called to fight 
the evil of the world. Honey, normal went out the window a long time 
ago. We just want to help. I figure it this way if we find just one 
thing that is useful then at the end of the day we helped save 
someone. Makes us feel pretty important and useful. We're a team
now. 
We can be the Scooby gang, like the cartoon. Dad can be Fred, Cordy 
can be Daphne, I can be Shaggy, Tara can be Velma and we even have a 
little Scrappy in Dawn. Of course Xander is Scooby."

"You people are nuts," Willow sighed knowing that she had
lost this 
fight as soon as the blonde had walked into the room. 

"So does that mean that you'll let us help?" Buffy asked,
bouncing up 
and down.

"Will you keep bouncing like that?" Willow asked, completely
wrapped 
up in the sight. "I?um?yes." Willow blushed and
looked to see if 
Giles, who had moved to retrieve is own staff, had noticed her slip 
up. 

"Maybe," Buffy said moving to watch the training session. 

Willow noticed as she was fighting with Giles, that Buffy had picked 
up her own staff and was absently spinning it around as she watched. 
Willow was about to block a blow from Giles when she saw the blonde 
smack herself in the head with it and go down. "BUFFY!"
Willow yelled 
as she was knocked to the ground by the blow from Giles. She was on 
her feet and at Buffy side before Giles could even register that 
something had happened.

"Buffy," he said as he sat beside his daughter.

"Hey how'd I get down here?" Buffy asked groggily.

"You hit your head with the staff," Willow told her wiping
the hair 
off her forehead to check the knot that was forming there.

"You're bleeding," Buffy said, seeing the blood run down
the Slayer's 
cheek. 

"Giles why don't you go get some ice for her head,"
Willow told the 
Watcher.

Buffy tried to stand up but lost her balance pulling Willow down on 
top of her, "Hi."

"Hi, you need to take it easy for a minute. Let the dust settle
in 
your head."

"God you must think I'm some kind of dork. You just look so
good out 
there spinning and moving, I just wanted to be able to do that and 
all I did was knock my self out."

Willow chuckled, "You're not a dork. I've been training
for six 
years. I had better look good."

"I bet you didn't knock yourself out?"

"No, I knocked Merrick out, twice. He didn't like me much for
a few 
days," Willow laughed and soon Buffy joined her. "Feel like
maybe you 
can stand up now."

"Yeah, all the cobwebs are clear now."

"Come on lets go get some ice on the head," Willow said
helping her 
up slowly.

"Why are you bleeding?" Buffy asked.

"Your dad got a lucky shot in when I saw you go down."

"I'm sorry," Buffy whispered.

"Don't be, it'll be the last one he gets in," Willow
laughed, and 
together they made their way to the front of the shop.