Title: Free
Author: Karen U
E-mail: ksu2@juno.com
Catagory: BtVS
Disclaimer: All characters belong to the WB, Joss Whedon, and a whole bunch
of other entities that are not me; the song lyric comes from 'When I Get
There' by Dream
Distribution: Um, Charity and Temptation Embraced... anyone esle, please ask
first.
Rating: G
Spoilers: I guess post season four, after 'Restless,' but W/T never happened
Summary: A meeting...
Notes: It's been awhile since I wrote a BtVS fic, so I'm pretty sure this
really sucks... I just had to try...

~~*~~*~~*~~*~~

{... When I get there... I’m finally free... When I get there... I’m home...
When I get there... I’ll turn the key... When I get there... I’ll know... I
don’t know where I’m going... But I’m going and I’ll know it when I get
there... }

He had escaped.

They’d never suspected it, that he’d leave them, that he‘d try to find a way
out. They’d looked at him, the stoicism he always showed, and they had
never even considered that his mind was working triple time behind that
even, unrelenting stare, behind those unflinching eyes, but it had been.
He’d had a plan, he always had a plan, they had taught him to have a plan...

They had just never expected him to use that little skill against them.

The low branches of the trees and the greenery around him pulled at his
clothing as he ran, not sure exactly what he was running from, knowing that
no one was following, no one was after him... They didn’t even have a clue
that he was gone, so there was no reason to be running from them...

Maybe he was running towards her.

It had hurt to leave her alone, even for a moment, and it just about killed
him to watch the masquerade she was playing. But it had been necessary. It
kept her out of suspicion, away from any possible line of fire if something
went wrong.

It kept her safe.

He picked up speed as he ran, almost blindly moving through the darkness of
the night, headed to the one place he knew they would be safe, the one place
where he could be with her. No outside world to tell them that they
shouldn’t be together, no fighting friends or opposite sides.

No, there it would be just them.

Maybe that was what he was going towards... He was moving towards the
freedom he knew that was waiting there for him, the secrecy, the solitude...
The time alone with her. Yes, that was definitely a plus.

God, but he had missed her so much while he was away, how he had longed to
hold her in his arms, to pull her close and cradle her against him, to
protect her from everything that was going on around them. He had hated it,
knowing the danger that she was so constantly putting herself in, knowing
that he wasn’t there to protect her. Sure, the Slayer had been there, and
he knew that she was tough, but even now, even knowing how strong the girl
was, he still had trouble thinking of the petite blonde as an intimidating
figure.

Besides, not all evil was demon, some was human, and what use would a Slayer
be against that?

The cabin came into his view at that moment, and he quickened his pace even
more, driving himself almost to his limits in an effort to get to her as
quickly as possible. He came to a skidding stop as he reached the porch,
and he ran his hand over the door, almost unable to believe that he was
actually here, and he was free to be with her. He had received an honorable
discharge, believe it or not, thanks to some timely hacking that gave him an
unfortunate condition... And by the time the army figured it out - if they
ever did - he’d be long gone.

He’d be with her.

Shaking hands caused him to fumble with the key as he went to unlock the
door, and he cursed his own eagerness and nervousness as he finally managed
to get the key in the hole. He turned the key in the lock and shoved the
door open, wincing slightly as it banged against the wall, then recoiled
slightly. He quickly entered the cabin, his eyes searching for her in the
living room, then headed to the kitchen, frowning when he didn’t see her.
Worried, he made his way up the stairs, headed for the bedroom, reaching for
the door at the top of the stairs and yanking it open, heaving a great sigh
of relief when he saw that she was inside. She whirled around at the noise,
her vibrant hair swinging out as she turned to look at him, her eyes wide,
first with fear at the unexpected visitor, then surprise...

Then love.

“You’re here!” she cried out, flinging herself across the room and directly
into his arms. He caught her as she launched herself at him, pulling her
closer to him and whirling around in a circle, spinning her.

“Yeah, baby, I’m here. I made it,” he told her as he set her down, looking
into her brilliant green eyes.

“Is this for real?” she asked. “Are you really-”

“I’m here for good, Willow,” he told her, reaching up to stroke her face.
“No more Initiative, no more having to be away from each other... We’re
together now, and I’m not going anywhere, baby. I‘m not going anywhere,” he
promised, and she wrapped her arms around his waist, pressing her face
against his chest.

“Neither am I,” she whispered, voice muffled because of her position. “I
love you, Graham.”

“I love you, too,” he told her as he lifted her chin, gently urging her to
look at him, and he smiled gently down at her as she met his gaze, her eyes
bright with tears. A wide smile was on her lovely face, and he knew the
tears were of happiness. He felt about ready to shed a few of them himself.
“I love you so damn much,” he murmured to her. “And I’m never leaving you
again.”

“Promise.”

“Yeah, baby... I promise.”

The End