462 - Magnum Opus - Proposal - Dragon's Phoenix - BtVS

[dragonyphoenix.livejournal.com]

Title: Proposal (scene from second chapter)
Fandom: BtVS
Prompt: 462 - Magnum Opus
Rating: PG
Word Count: 663 according to http://www.wordcounttool.com/
Note: second posting for this prompt

Willow was pulling on her shorts when Buffy's gym bag dropped down onto the bench next to her with a jangle of metal. “Do I even want to know why you're carrying so many keys?”

“Home. Library. Mansion.”

Buffy had rattled off the list. She hadn't even tried to make a joke of it. “So what's up with turning that smile upside-down Buffy?”

Buffy stared as if Willow had grown a second head which, okay, Hellmouth so possible.

“I just mean you've been kinda down lately. With Angel being back I thought you'd be happy Buffy except not too happy Buffy because you do have Scott as a boyfriend now and a too happy Angel, that would lead to badness. Oh, you didn't do anything that would lead to badness did you?”

Willow breathed a sigh of relief as Buffy shook her head, a quiet sigh because she didn't want to be a suspicious friend but then Buffy hadn't been saying anything to Giles about Angel being back so it was sort of hard to tell what was up. “No, there's been nothing that would lead to badness. For that to happen I'd have to actually be able to get close to Angel.”

“Oh, so he's still afraid of you?”

“Yep.” Buffy's word had a clipped sound, as if there were something terribly final about it. “But that's where you come in, if you're willing. Please say you're willing.”

“Well of course. Um, willing to do what?” What could Willow do that Buffy couldn't? Oh. “Oh, oh, you want me to do a spell and make him not afraid? I could do that. I mean, I don't know how right now but I could be research girl. I could look it up and figure it out and do a spell and then he'd be happy with you again, but I mean not too happy just happy happy, not really happy happy.”

“I get what you mean,” Buffy said, “but no, no spell. I was, well, I was wondering if you'd feed him.”

“Feed? Angelus? I mean Angel because of course he's still Angel.”

“I didn't mean you'd have to actually feed him. Just bring him blood.” Buffy kicked off her shoes and started pulling down her pants.

“Blood. Right. Cause he's a vampire and blood is what they eat and I'd be perfectly safe because he's Angel and not Angelus.”

“Please Willow? It'd just be for a little while, until he was more himself.”

“Uh, right. He did save me from Pete. I guess it'd be okay.”

Buffy perked right up. “Thanks, you're a lifesaver Willow.”

“So that'd be no Magnum Opus for me then.”

“Huh? Magnum? As in P.I.?” Buffy asked as she pulled up her own shorts.

“I just meant, I'd been hoping I could do some magic, I mean real magic that would, you know, make a difference. You've go the Slaying fu. Giles has the research fu. I wanted to be magic girl fu, or sort of fu like.”

“You have fu. You have plenty of fu. You're research girl, on the Internet I mean. You find all kinds of stuff Giles would never come up with.”

“I suppose.” Willow sounded pathetic even to herself.

“And you have the helping friend fu, taking care of Angel for me.”

“Yeah, yay me.”

Willow tried to look confident. She wasn't sure she'd pulled it off but it didn't matter because Coach Harrold yelled through the door. “Pick it up, ladies. Into the gym. Chop, chop.”

“Yay me,” Willow said again as she followed Buffy out to the gym. Feeding a hopefully not crazed vampire instead of working the big mojo. Why wouldn't Buffy prefer that? It's not like Willow's last big spell had worked, well not the first time anyway, but only the second time when it was the worst possible time for it to work. Sure, she could see why Buffy wasn't a fan of the big Willow magic.