Title: The Night That Wins
Author: Bluebell
E-Mail: dvan1@utk.edu
Rating: R
Distribution: Ask away.
Disclaimer: You talkin' to me? 'Cause I don't see any anyone else ownin'
'Buffy' characters and pretending to be a poverty-line college student...
Note: Sequel of sorts to 'The Bereaved', although you don't have to have
read that one to get this one.
Summary: W/S. I thought I'd take something as cute and harmless as 'The
Bereaved' and dump blood all over it! Everybody's favorite demon, D'Hoffryn,
hasn't given up on our favorite little witch just yet.
Spoilers: Up to 'A New Man', with major spoilers for 'Something Blue', 'The
Wish', and 'Dopplegangland'.
Dedication: Sandycat and Marilyn K. If I get into grad school, drinks are on me!
Warning: Not beta's and written *very* early in the morning, so read at your
own risk!
******
For winter's rains and ruins are over,
And all the seasons of snow and sins;
The days dividing lover and lover,
The light that loses, the night that wins.
-A.C. Swinburne, 'Atalanta in Calydon'
******
Say that one again; I like it. So few things are worth the trouble of
consideration these days. I suppose I'm becoming jaded. The centuries crawl
by and so little changes. All these things seem to fade into dusk and sink
into the horizon, never to be seen again. The most lovely, the most
treasured, all are dust. Everyone that loves or has been loved, all that
fight and all that seek. Dust, one by one. It takes so little time. One
life, that's all. One life and then it's over. Is it so wrong to want to
keep a few of them around a bit longer? Just a bit of flesh pressed to my
side, a spark of warmth and hatred fresh as the moment that emotion rippled
from the ocean that first time, oh so long ago? Demons all of us, yet
fleeting as any other creature. There's power in the name, and so few even
bother to learn how to speak.
I'm becoming anxious again. Anyanka was an acceptable loss, but this new
girl is simply too interesting. I may have to push things a bit.
< Is that wise? >
I don't care. Shut your yap. If the Ancients want to hang out in their
marble halls and play games with the order of things, let them. It's
unreasonable to expect me to just wait on their beck and call. I have been
given a certain amount of autonomy in these matters, and I think it's time
that I exercised my rights a bit, don't you?
< My Lord, it’s not that I disagree so much as… >
Oh, piss off. I've just about had it with you. You can't tell me that you
haven't been following Wilma...
< Willow >
...That's what I said. Don't interrupt me. You can't tell me that Willow
hasn't intruiged you.
< I must admit, my Lord, it has been many a century since someone has used
the old magicks so deftly. Still, given her proximity to the Slayer, and
seeing as how Anyanka is so close to her, it seems like a rather fruitless
effort. Also, she has refused your offer once before >
Ah, but remember, dear friend, that it is a woman's perogative to change her
mind.
****
"Listen, all you have to do is let me work my magic. Just sit there and try
not to fidget, would that really be so hard?"
Willow sighed, uncomfortable. She hated it when Buffy got this way.
Something within the Slayer, something deep and shadowed, was absolutely
consumed with the desire to give the more reserved girl a makeover. Oh, she
could put off the impulse for weeks, months, even years if need be, but the
urge could not be denied forever. Skimpy clothes, an impressive array of
hair products, makeup straight off of the cover of 'Jane'...well, how could
it possibly go wrong?
'Except that this is the Hellmouth,' Willow reasoned silently, 'and anytime
I get hot I either turn into a ghost or am actually my vampire twin from
another universe. It's best if Willow stays Willow-y. Now all I have to do
is convince Buffy of that.'
"Look, Buffy, I'm glad that you want to help me get dates and stuff, but I
really..."
Buffy held up a hand, blue eyes narrowed in determination. "You have not had
a date in months," she intoned, "and that is something I cannot allow. Don't
you want to find someone, Will? I mean, I have Riley, Xander has Anya, and
even Giles has a special friend, so why not you?"
Willow squeezed her eyes shut, wishing that this were not happening, that
Buffy didn't really know how much these 'girl talks' hurt her. Less than
they had in high school, admittedly, but they still stung. And Oz was still
gone. And everyone still rolled their eyes every time she mentioned him.
'He's not coming back,' she reminded herself. 'He won't even talk to me.'
"Buffy, I just don't feel comfortable when I'm all...painted."
"Listen." Buffy sat down on the redhead's twin bed, taking Willow's hand in
her own. "You remember the last party you went to, where you heard Percy
call you...what he did?"
The young witch started. "You mean when he called me a nerd? Of course I
remember. That was right before I crawled into bed with a dead guy."
"Well, putting that aside, you have to take it as a sign, Will."
Willow frowned. "A sign that I'm a nerd?"
Buffy put a hand over her mouth, realizing what she's just implied. "No, no!
A sign that people haven't seen the cool, saucy Willow that's underneath
that drably attired exterior."
Willow stood and began to pace. Buffy had always had a talent for putting
her foot into her mouth, so she couldn't really hold her words against her
friend. She was comfortable with not being noticed. Not being noticed was
just how she liked it. Of course, it had been along time since she'd kissed
anyone...but it had taken Oz seventeen years to come along. Now here she
was, just a few months without a little sugar, and already she was letting
it get to her. 'Maybe if it weren't for everyone else having found the love
of their goddamned lives...'
"It's the Valentine's Day Seek and Destroy at Meyers Hall," Buffy
interrupted her thoughts, "and you have no choice but to go and be social.
We'll all be there, so you won't be alone. This throw-down is legend, Will.
We've been hearing about this thing since we were in high school, and it's
about damn time that we experienced the wackiness for ourselves, don't you
think?"
"I...guess." But her mind was still reeling away...love, love, what is it? A
knife in your back, a blindfold for those so eager to be lead...just as she
was eager to be lead. 'Anywhere but where I am right now'.
"Good, then it's settled." Buffy clapped her hands together briskly, as
though she were a matron summoning forth her army of servants. 'I suppose
that's what we are,' Willow mused, 'her servants.' Buffy had moved into her
closet, oblivious of her friend's bitter train of thought. "I have to go to
the mall to get new shoes for that dress I bought last week," the blonde
gestured towards her rack of stylish outfits, "so you just pick out what you
want to wear and when I get back, we can go to work. Sound good to you?"
Willow nodded nervously. "Sure. And, um, thanks for helping me get ready."
Buffy swept her powder blue suede jacket over her shoulders and smiled
brightly. "What are friends for?"
As soon as the door clicked shut behind the Slayer, Willow shuffled towards
the array of Buffy's clothes half-heartedly. They were all so tight and
revealing. And it wasn't so much that she didn't want to wear them as she
was afraid of what would happen if she did. She remembered the fit of her
vampire self's leather ensemble very well indeed; it had molded to her body
so carefully that there was no doubt it had been made just for her. It had
almost been like being naked. And when she'd seen the way that her altered
self had commanded attention, the way the hardened vampires of Sunnydale had
been hers to control in mere hours, the way every pair of male eyes, human
and otherwise, had followed her every move...well, it had been intoxicating.
She was so tempted to try it, and yet so wary of the consequences. If she
gave into one guilty pleasure, would she give into every naughty thought
that crossed her mind?
"It's not like I even have a choice," Willow informed one of Buffy's silk
Versus tie-back tops. "Buffy says I have to play dress up, so I'd better
pick out something good. God forbid I prove unable to color-coordinate."
Shaking her head, Willow plunged her hand into the folds of textures and
textiles, searching for something that wouldn't make her feel too
ridiculous. Something soft and thick brushed her palm and she pulled it away
from the rest impulsively. Well, well. Leather pants. "What is it with me
and leather?" She wondered aloud. Still, they were beautiful pants. And from
the supple feel of the leather, Buffy hadn't worn them but a few times.
Tossing them on the bed, Willow began to hunt for a shirt to go with it.
"It's a little like research," she mused. As she fumbled through the
possible selections, a bit of silver fell to the floor. Picking it up,
Willow's eyes widened in amazement.
"This thing is all straps," she breathed. "How could you possibly figure
this thing out? Much less put it on without...help." Blushing at the sudden
image of Riley wrapping this spangly bit of nothing around Buffy, Willow set
it next to the pants. She wasn't sure she knew how to get it back on the
hanger anyway. Settling on one of her own pairs of combat boots, Willow
quickly stripped off her own dark red jeans and 'Sunnydale Youth Basketball
Camp' tee. Picking up the pants, she studied herself in the full-length
mirror inside Buffy's closet door. In nothing but grey panties in a bra, she
didn't look very nerdy. Long and lean with compact but defined muscles from
fighting - 'and let's not forget running away' - from Buffy's side, she was
nearly flawless when naked. Her breasts were a little on the small side, but
Oz had liked them just fine.
"Enough with Oz," she scolded herself. With one last uncertain glance in the
mirror, Willow stepped into the pants and pulled them up, grateful that she
and Buffy were nearly the exact same size. Willow was a little taller, but
Buffy bought her pants longer so that she could wear them with heels.
Quickly disposing of her bra, Willow picked up the top and studied it. How
could this work? It was a scrap of fabric and and eight little straps. Lips
quirking in a smile, Willow shut her eyes and concentrated. Slowly, the top
floated out of her hands and pressed itself against her chest, making her
nipples tighten under the slightly scrachy texture and the ripple of magical
energy. The straps tied themselves, seemingly of their own accord. Willow
opened her eyes. From the front, it looked like a halter top. Twisting, she
admired her supernatral handiwork. The straps were crisscrossed over her
slim back in a complicated and eye-catching pattern.
Nodding in satisfaction, Willow pulled on her black boots and laced them
quickly before returning to the mirror. "Gosh," she whispered. She looked
more than a little like her demonic counterpart. The pants clung
suggestively to her hips and Willow touched a fingertip to her navel.
Something was missing. Turning to Buffy's dresser, she opened the other
girl's sizeable jewelry box and pulled out a simple silver belly chain.
Fastening it at the small of her back, she bit her lip. "Too much?" She
asked her reflection. 'Too much?' Queried her inner voice, 'there's no such
thing.'
"Hush," she chided herself. Hearing a key turning in the door lock, Willow
had to resist the almost overpowering urge to leap into bed and cover
herself with the blankets. "Hey Will," Buffy sang, a shopping bag dangling
from one hand. "Thank God, they still had the platforms I wanted. And get
this, they were on sale." Buffy locked the door behind her and turned to
face Willow. "Good...God, Will. You look like..."
"I know," Willow smiled sheepishly. "But hey, the look worked for her, right?"
"Um," Buffy fought the urge to haul out a crucifix, "I guess you could say
that."
Willow's smile faded. "I look like an idiot, don't I?"
The Slayer mentally slapped herself. "Are you kidding? Willow, you look
positively lethal." A mischevious idea crept its way into Buffy's brain, and
it showed in the sly gleam in her eyes. "Hey, Will...I've got an idea."
Willow took a step back. "Wha...what idea?"
"Well, seeing as how you are looking so delish, and considering how much
like a certain alternate-reality vampire you seem in that outfit, I think it
we should take this all the way and stop by Giles' before hitting the scene
tonight."
"You mean, play a trick on Giles and make him think I'm a vampire?" Willow
wasn't so sure about this.
"Come on, it'll be hilarious. I'll go in with you, to make sure no one
accidentally stakes you or something, and we can tell Xander, Anya and Riley
to meet us there too. They'll all think that the Evil Willow is back. It'll
be hilarious!" Buffy rubbed her hands in glee.
"Are...are you sure?" Willow sounded uncertain, but a part of her jumped at
the chance to scare the others a little bit.
"Hell yes, I'm sure." Buffy pulled her makup case out from under her bed and
motioned for Willow to sit down in front of her. "And when I'm done with
you, you'll be even more devastatingly gorgeous than you were the first time."
"I didn't know you though that the evil me was gorgeous." Willow sank to her
knees in front of Buffy and tried not to flinch when the blonde produced an
especially wicked looking eyelash curler.
"Are you kidding, Will?" Buffy dumped the rest of her makeup on the
bedspread, trying to decide how to maximize Willow's understated features.
"She had everyone doing double-takes. I even caught Angel staring once or
twice."
"Yeah?" Willow tilted her head thoughtfully. "Even Angel?"
****
I don't think the Slayer knows what she's started here. Already I can see
little Willow's wheels turning. She becoming more and more open to the
darkness within her each day that goes by, and it's only a matter of time
until she uses my amulet and calls me to her.
< If you think she’s going to take you up on your offer, my Lord, why are we
doing this? >
*We* are not doing anything, you imbecile, *I* am. And don't you forget it.
My reasons are simple. I'm bored. How many times do I have to explain it to
you? Besides, I've got an idea.
< Something to do with the Willow that the Wish created? >
No, you...oh, actually, yes. That Willow was something. But she seemed to
have lost some of that intelligent fire that I admire so much in this
Willow. It's a pity that What's-His-Name was unable to bite her. I think
that this Willow would truly have been something to fear as a vampire.
Blessing in disguise, though. I think I underestimated her when I offered
her the Vengeance Demon job. It's small potatoes for a talent like that. I'm
thinking about making her a Grey One.
< My Lord, have you that power? >
Of course I do, moron. I wouldn't have brought it up otherwise, now would I?
Tell you the truth, it was that cute little underwear set she was wearing
that gave me the idea. Strange the places that inspiration turns up, isn't
it? And I must say, I like the leather, don't you?
< I've alway been partial to redheads, my Lord >
Are you learning impaired? I didn't ask you about her hair, did I? Oh, look.
The Slayer has finished her little operation. My, my, Doesn't little Willow
look fetching? This is by far the most fun I've had in at least four hundred
years.
****
