Chapter 12
Buffy looked up from her spot on the couch to see Willow and Giles walk in from the street. “Did you get everything?” She asked anxiously.
Willow gave her a little smile and shook her head no. “Sorry sweetie.” She shrugged. “Turns out a couple of the things we need aren’t so easy to get as I thought.” At Buffy’s concerned look, she continued. “The magic store is ordering it for me. It won’t take more than a couple of days.”
Buffy glanced at Giles and couldn’t help but wonder if the delay was caused by an inability to get the ingredients or by his desire for her to reconsider.
Willow caught her suspicious look. “Turns out I was a bit spoiled in SunnyD with an excellently stocked magic shop.” She slid her hand around Giles’ arm.
Giles acknowledged her obvious show of support with a small but warm smile. “Yes, well, that is particularly surprising considering the tendency for my stock to simply walk away unaccounted for.”
Both girls glanced away guiltily.
Giles chuckled.
Spike put the game controller in his hands down and turned to look at Willow. “Is there any reason for the rush? Am I gonna disappear or …” He shrugged.
“No I think we have some time.” She smiled “actually, I think we have forty days from when you were first returned.”
Spike chuckled. “Is that right?”
Willow giggled and nodded.
“Don’t suppose I have any new talents do I? Maybe that water and wine thing?”
“Don’t know. But if you wanna try, I prefer a smooth white.”
Buffy watched the two dissolve into laughter again with a confused expression. “Umm anybody want to explain what that was all about?”
Giles shook his head and sighed. “Forty days has a great deal of significance for most Christian religions. In this…” he gestured between Willow and Spike “scenario it would appear Spike is the figure of …Christ.”
The distaste in his tone sent the two into another, though quieter, fit of laughter.
Buffy shook her head. “Why do all my friends have to be nerds?”
“Oi!” Spike turned to her. “I’ll have you know I was at Woodstock.”
Buffy giggled. “That doesn’t so much make you cool as old Spike.”
Spike gaped at her for a second. “That hurts slayer; that hurts.”
Buffy giggled softly and shook her head at Spike’s performance. She turned back to Willow and stood up. “You’re sure you’ll be able to get the stuff soon?”
“Yep. It’s all under control.” She grinned. “How rarely do I get to say that?”
Buffy smiled back. They certainly didn’t get to say things like that often enough. Or they did, and just didn’t mean it. She glanced back to Giles, who was still standing just inside the front door. He looked uncomfortable, she realized with a small sigh. Of course, she knew that was nothing new; their relationship had never really recovered after he’d tried to stall her so that Robin could kill Spike. Actually, if she was going for really honest; things hadn’t been very good since he’d tried telling her that she might have to kill Dawn. A wry grin spread across her lips. See, she thought, if he’d just stop trying to off the people I love everything would be fine. But as confident as she was with her views, she also knew that things weren’t simple. She understood that he had meant well. Maybe, she thought, I should tell him that. The question of how still remained though. How do you tell your teacher that you know better then he does? And how do you do it gently? More importantly, how do you tell him that you still need him? She took a step towards him. “It looks almost sunny out there.”
Giles looked up at her and nodded. “Yes. It is quite pleasant out.”
“Seems like a crime to just waste it. Do you maybe want to take a walk?”
Giles looked startled for a moment before nodding. “Well yes, yes a walk would be fine.”
Willow smiled and watched as Buffy walked over to the couch to grab her sweater. She noted the quick glance Buffy gave Spike and his small nod in response and wondered if it was important or just a ‘see you later’. She missed silent communication; she and Tara had had that. They hadn’t needed to say the words to hear them. Of course, Willow acknowledged, I can chat psychically with anyone but it really isn’t the same thing. She turned slightly to watch her best friends head out and sent a small prayer to the goddesses to help them talk to each other.