The Scratching Post

Interest meme

2008-07-16T22:19:09Z

Comment on this post, and I will choose seven interests from your profile. You will then explain what they mean and why you are interested in them. Post this along with your answers in your own journal so that others can play along..

These were picked by oreadno1.

1. madrigals - I was in choirs from 7th grade through my second year of college. In junior high school and high school, I had an awesome teacher. We had one of the best choirs in the state because of her. One year our choir was struggling until she discovered that the choir that year was really great at singing English madrigals. So, for the last two and a half years of high school we performed many madrigals. Most of them were composed by Thomas Morley. I still seek out English madrigals and choral music in general to listen to.

2. renaissance faires - When my husband and I were dating, he took me on a date to the local Renaissance Festival. I was instantly hooked, especially once I heard the music that was performed. Some of it was the same as I had performed myself. I have gone to the festival every year since then.

3. sca - This stands for The Society for Creative Anachronism. It's a re-enactment group, but it's really much more than that. People research the time period of the characters they create for themselves so that they can accurately portray the character. Names, clothing, language, food, drink etc is all researched, and then we all get dressed up and go play at events. It's a lot of fun.

4. medieval history - I became interested in medieval history after visiting the Renaissance festival and joining the SCA. Mostly, I enjoy learning about the food and music of the time and how clothing was made. I have made my dresses for the festival and SCA events, and my husband has made his own clothing as well.

5. leather - Well, this interest came about because my husband used to work for a leather supply store. He no longer works there, but he does continue to make things out of leather. He makes clothes, boots, shoes, bags, and much more. I enjoy seeing all the creative things he makes.

6. dragons - I don't love them to the extent my husband does, but I do enjoy dragon artwork. I think they are beautiful creatures.

7. tea - I love hot tea. I have a whole cabinet full of nice teas. I drink black tea, green tea, white tea, herbal tea, mint tea, and flavored teas. My favorite is a white and green tea blend.

Fic: Reflections [Willow genfic, FRT]

2008-07-15T16:35:05Z

I have no idea why this isn't showing up on anyone's flist. It's in my LJ and public.

Here's the link to the story.

Title: Reflections
Rating: FRT
Pairings: no pairing
Summary: While staying with the Coven, Willow is visited by three special people.
Timeline: Between BtVS seasons 6 & 7
Disclaimer: These are not my characters. They belong to Joss, Twentieth Century Fox, UPN, WB & Mutant Enemy. This is purely for fun.

Read it here.

Help.

2008-07-15T16:17:58Z

I posted my CYA fic. It shows up when I view my journal, and my links go to the entry. However, when I view my flist, I don't see it. Yes, I have myself friended. I can see my other entries.

Can you guys see my entry on your flists?

Anyone online and able to do a quick beta?

2008-07-15T15:21:45Z

I finished my Willow story for cya_ficathon and need a quick beta. It's 1900 words and genfic. It's due to be posted today, but I have to leave to go to work in 2 hours. I just need someone to check for typos and possibly suggest a title.

I never meant to worry anyone.

2008-07-14T23:22:30Z

I haven't been online much in the past week. Don't worry. I'm not sick again, unless you count headaches from listening to construction all day at work.

I've worked seven days in a row, and I have to work tomorrow too. Where I work is in a strip mall. The shops on each side of us are empty, but they are doing construction because store will be going in soon. There is also construction behind our store where they are building a new store. So there is construction on three sides. It gets really loud with all the jack hammers going all day long. By the time I get home after work, my head hurts so bad that all I want to do is lie down in a dark room. I don't know how much more I can take.

I've also been trying to finish up my cya_ficathon story. It's due tomorrow. I work a closing shift tomorrow, so I hope I can finish and get it posted before work. There are three parts to the story. The first is written and beta'ed. The second is written but not beta'ed. The third part is in process of being written. If nothing else, I will post parts one and two tomorrow, and then I'll finish and post part three on my day off on Wednesday.

If anyone watches Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, be sure to watch on October 1st. They are currently working on a house not far from where I work. They were in my store on Saturday and bought fabric and pillows from my department. One of my coworkers asked if they still needed volunteers and was told yes. So, a group of people from my store are going to go help with the house tomorrow. I really wish I could go, but I have to work.

Anyway, that's what's been going on with me. I know I'm really behind on my award sites. I'm hoping to get things done there this week. Thanks for being patient with me.

Fic: Reflections [Willow genfic, FRT]

2008-07-07T17:35:15Z

Title: Reflections
Rating: FRT
Pairings: no pairing
Summary: While staying with the Coven, Willow is visited by three special people.
Timeline: Between BtVS seasons 6 & 7
Disclaimer: These are not my characters. They belong to Joss, Twentieth Century Fox, UPN, WB & Mutant Enemy. This is purely for fun.

Note: This was written for cya_ficathon. My assignment was:
Characters/Pairings you want the story to focus in: Willow
Characters/Pairings you want in the story too: Doesn't matter.
Timeline: After the end of season six. I'm interested in seeing Willow's reflection on dark magic, and what it's done to her.
Things you don't want: Angsting over Tara.
Extras: No higher than R

**********

Willow knew they wanted to help her without removing her magic, but she wished they would just take it all away. Her last session with the coven had not gone well at all. Nothing happened the way it should have. She'd been sent to her room while Giles talked to them. That was hours ago. She began to wonder if they'd given up on her.

When she had finally relaxed and decided to just get some sleep, there was a knock on the door. It wasn't loud and sounded like it might have been someone bumping into the door as they walked by. Willow ignored it and kept her eyes closed. She was almost asleep when she heard the door open.

"Hey, Will. I knocked but you didn't answer." It was a voice she hadn't heard in years. "Giles said I could come in and talk to you."

Willow sat up in bed, wide awake. "You're not here. You can't be here." She watched as her visitor walked to the small window in her room and looked outside.

"This view is awesome. If I were you, I'd spend all day here."

Willow stood and walked toward the window. "Are you real?"

"Is anybody real?"

"Oz," she whispered. "I never thought I'd see you again."

He turned to her and said, "Look, Will. I don't have a lot of time."

Tears ran down her face as she backed away from him. She wanted to fall into his arms, but she knew that would be bad. "You should leave."

"But I just got here," he said. "And you need my help."

"No one can help me. Giles tried. The coven tried." She sat on the bed and stared at the floor. "I killed someone, Oz, and I tried to end the world. I can't come back from that."

"Yet you're here, and the world's not gone." Oz sat beside her on the bed. "The Willow I know could never destroy the world."

"I'm not the same Willow you knew." She wiped the tears from her eyes.

"You'll always be my Willow."

Willow didn't want to try to convince him. She just sat in silence and hoped he would leave.

"Did I become a different person when I became a werewolf?" he asked.

"That's different," she mumbled.

"How?" he asked. "How is it different?"

Willow stood and marched over to the window. "You didn't choose to become a wolf."

"I can't imagine you woke up one day and said, ‘I think I'll destroy the world today.' Did you choose to become evil?" he asked.

"No, but ..."

Oz stood and walked to the window. "There's always that little bit inside us that wants to do what's wrong. We just have to control it."

"You couldn't control the wolf."

"Now I do. Now that I know the secret, I keep him under my control. You don't let it control you, Will. You control it."

"I don't know how to control this," Willow protested.

Oz took her face in his hands and kissed her forehead. "You will. I know you will." He kissed her head again. "I gotta go."

"Oz," Willow whispered. She had so many things she still wanted to say.

"I know. I love you too."

She closed her eyes to try to stop the tears. When she opened her eyes, Oz was gone.

**********

Willow didn't know how much time had passed since Oz had left. Really, she wasn't even certain he had been there at all. It had felt real enough when he'd kissed her. She reached up and touched her forehead where he'd kissed her twice. "Oz," she whispered. "Come back. I need you." She collapsed onto the floor as she cried. "I miss you."

"Willow? Are you alright?"

Giles' voice sent a chill through her. She knew he was genuinely concerned, but she worried about what news he was bringing from the coven. She stood and wiped her eyes. "I'm fine," she mumbled. "Just thinking about old friends."

"I heard you mention Oz," Giles said as he offered her his handkerchief.

"He ... uh ... I was just thinking about him," she said as she wiped her eyes and nose. She looked up at Giles. "Did the coven reach a decision?" she asked.

"Not yet," Giles said. "I came to see how you're doing. Being alone in these rooms can be a bit much to take sometimes." He held his hand out to her. "Take a walk with me."

"I can't leave the room. They put a spell on it." Willow looked at the writing covering the window and door frames.

"It's alright, Willow," Giles said as he took her hand in his. "If you're with me, you can leave." He tugged her towards the door. "I promise."

Hesitantly, she followed him. When nothing bad happened, she breathed a sigh of relief. She walked beside Giles for a while in silence. He still held her hand, and she found that both strange and comforting. After several minutes, she broke the silence. "What's going to happen to me?" she asked.

They had reached the door leading to the gardens. Giles stopped and opened the door for her but still held her hand. "I don't know. I suppose it all depends on you."

"I've already done everything they asked, and I've failed." She said as she stepped outside and stopped. "How can it depend on me?"

Giles led her to a bench and waited for her to sit with him. "They still have one test for you. It will determine what course of action they take."

"Giles, I can't handle any more tests. That last one ..." She tried to pull away from him, but he held on tight to her hand.

"I know this frightens you, but the coven can help," he said. "They will try all possible solutions before -"

Willow looked up into Giles' eyes. "Before killing me," she finished for him.

"I'm certain it won't come to that. They didn't kill me when I came to them for help."

Willow sagged a bit. "That was different. You killed that guy to save lives. I killed Warren out of revenge."

"That's true, but I chose to use dark magic. I used it for fun, and that caused the tragedy. You ...," he brushed a strand of hair away from her eyes with his free hand. "You experienced the tragedy first. I can only imagine that discovering Buffy had been shot as well only added more fuel to the fire. No one can blame you for wanting revenge. The dark magics made it all too easy for you."

"I still don't think it's the same. You had to kill to save your friends," Willow protested. "Would the coven have killed you for that?"

"Yes, if I hadn't passed all their tests."

"They'll kill me. I know it, Giles. They're just trying to decide how." Abruptly she stood. "Giles, I don't want to die."

"They won't -" Giles fell silent as Willow yanked her hand out of his and pulled away. She stumbled backwards and hit something soft. When she turned to see what it was, she realized she was back in her room. She had run up against her bed.

"Giles?" She turned around, but he wasn't there.

**********

Willow sat on the bed and waited. She knew the coven would be coming for her soon. They had one more test for her. She knew she would fail it; she'd failed all the others. She sighed and flopped back on the bed.

"Hey! Don't give up now. I can't live without you around."

Willow shot to her feet. "Xander!" She ran to him and fell into his open arms.

"Did you think I'd let you go without a fight? You're my Willow." He hugged her tight. "I saved your life and kept you from destroying the world. You can't just quit."

She pushed away from him. "You don't understand."

"Then explain it to me," he said as he sat on the bed. "Because the Willow I know wouldn't give up. She'd fight until the end."

"Xander, it's not that simple." She looked at him for a second but had to turn away.

"I think it is that simple,Will." He watched her as she stared at the floor. "Look. I know you like the magic. I also know it scares you right now. That's a good thing because it will keep you from doing bad things with it. You broke the yellow crayon again, and you're afraid of the punishment you'll get. But there's not going to be punishment. They just want to help and make it better."

Willow looked up at him. "This isn't the same as breaking a crayon, Xander. This is much worse."

"Yeah, but the emotions are the same." He paused a moment as he watched her. His eyes hadn't left her since he'd appeared in the room. "When you broke that crayon, you were terrified. You really thought something bad would happen to you because of it. Later you found out that if you'd just told someone, they would have given you a new one."

"They can't give me new magic, Xander. It doesn't work that way."

He softly giggled at that. "I know, but they can repair it. You just have to let them. Remember how I taped the crayon together for you once you let me help?" He stood and walked over to her. "Once you calmed down and let me help, it was okay again."

Willow stared at him for a long time. He had a point, but she still didn't know how she could fix everything. "I've been getting help. They've tried to fix it. Nothing works. I've failed all their tests. I can't control the magic."

"Not right now," Xander said. "You're still too emotional. You need to calm down before they can help you."

"That doesn't make any sense," she protested.

He smiled at her. "Remember when Oz left and you did that spell? The one that made Giles blind and made Buffy and Spike want to get married?" he asked.

Willow nodded. "I don't think I'll ever forget that."

"Giles said it went all bad because you were too emotional when you did the spell. Bad things happen when you mix strong emotions with magic." He pulled her into another hug. "I don't want to lose you, Will. I just saved you. Don't let me lose you now."

She pulled back and saw tears in his eyes. "Xander ... I ... You're right."

Xander wiped a tear from her eye that was about to fall. "Close your eyes and make a wish."

"That only works with eyelashes," she said, but she closed her eyes and wished anyway. She wished for strength and calm to get through the last test.

Slowly she opened her eyes, already feeling better about everything. Xander was gone. Somehow she knew he would be.

A few minutes later, there was a soft knock on the door. "Come in," she said.

Giles opened the door and stepped inside. "The coven wants to see you," he said, smiling. "You've passed their final test. They want to begin with your training."

"Thank you, Xander," she whispered.

"Hmm?" Giles said.

"Nothing," she said as she followed him, but she smiled at the thought that Xander rescued her again.

~~~~~~~~
The End
~~~~~~~~

Still sick

2008-07-06T01:00:22Z

I was online a little this morning and afternoon. The computer made my head hurt more though. I ended up taking a nap, and then I watched some tv and dvds. It's only 9pm here, but I feel like going to bed for the night.

Thanks to everyone that wished me well. I read and appreciated your comments even though I didn't reply.

Not feeling well today

2008-07-05T16:29:17Z

I've been fighting a cold or something all week. I think it's winning today. My head really hurts. My stomach is a little upset. I also have that all over achy feeling starting.

I do not want to spend all day in bed, but I might take some cold medicine and take a nap. My toast and mint tea are not helping at all.

My Dad

2008-07-03T21:32:51Z

This Saturday will mark eleven years since my dad passed away.

I made a post about the events surrounding the day he died last year. You can read it here if you like.

As it turns out, I have the day off work on Saturday. I think I would rather work that day. The work keeps me from thinking about it too much. Normally, it wouldn't be a problem, but I'll be home alone on Saturday. I'm also coming down with a bad cold or something. That's not a great time for me to be sick.

If anyone's online Saturday, drop me a note. I'm sure I'll need people to talk with.

Fic: Keys to Heaven [Chapter 8 & Epilogue]

2008-06-28T03:53:55Z

Title: Keys to Heaven
Rating: FRT
Pairings: mostly genfic, but there is some Giles/Willow
Summary: After the final battle with The First, Rupert Giles faces something worse than any demon: a human determined to save the world at any cost.
Timeline: Post-chosen
Disclaimer: These are not my characters. They belong to Joss, Twentieth Century Fox, UPN, WB & Mutant Enemy. This is purely for fun.

Chapter 8

Buffy stood beside Faith. The other Slayers stood behind them. They all stood facing the terrified group of doctors and scientists.

"Now," Buffy said. "I've never killed a human before."

"I have," Faith added offhandedly.

"But that doesn't mean I won't start," Buffy said. "I have a whole bunch of reasons to want each and every one of you dead." She twirled the scythe in her hand. "Pretty, isn't it? Deadly too. This can cut a person in two." She held it up. "The long way." She paused to let it sink in, and smiled as they seemed even paler than before.

"We really don't want to kill you guys," Faith said. "But if you don't tell us where your boss is ..." Faith cracked her knuckles. "Let's just say we've been too long without a fight." She look at Buffy. "I don't know about you, B., but I'm just itching to kill something ... or someone."

Buffy just smiled.

~~~~~~~~~~

It was just after dawn when they opened the portal. Giles was thankful for that. With the sunrise, the vampires and most of the demons had slunk back to their homes. It would be hours until they ventured outside again. That gave Giles plenty of time to find Buffy and the other Slayers and bring them back.

Wesley and Fred stayed at the portal, one on each side of the door, to keep it open until Giles and Willow returned. Xander, Robin, Angel, and Gunn stayed behind to fight off any demons that might wander into the alley. Andrew and Dawn were keeping watch over the pertinent websites from inside the hotel.

Knowing they were as prepared as they could be for anything that might happen, Giles and Willow entered the portal and began their search.

It really didn't take as long as he feared it would. No one they encountered seemed to know anything was amiss. Giles hoped it was because Buffy had prevented an alarm from being raised.

~~~~~~~~~~

Buffy tapped her foot as she waited. She'd known they would give in. She just hadn't expected them to cave in so quickly.

When the door finally opened, it wasn't the doctor that walked through.

Buffy handed the scythe to Faith before she threw herself at Giles and Willow. "Oh my god, I am so glad to see you guys."

"I'm sorry it took so long for us to find you," Willow said. "I can't imagine being held prisoner that long."

"It's only been a week or two, Will," Buffy said. "I'm fine."

Giles and Willow pulled back and glanced at each other, then looked at Buffy. "Uh, Buffy ..."

"What?" Buffy asked. Clearly, there was something they weren't telling her.

"It's been almost two years," Giles told her.

"No way," Faith said. "You mean we've been locked in here and used as lab rats for two years."

"Yes," Giles said.

"He's really going to pay now," Buffy said. She turned to the group of doctors and scientists. "Where is he?" she demanded.

One of them spoke up while the others shrank away from her. "He said he was on his way. His office is a long way from here."

"Who?" Willow asked.

"The main doctor guy that brought us here. I don't know his name."

"Why should you? You're supposed to be asleep." The voice rang out behind Willow and Giles.

Buffy turned slightly toward Faith and tilted her head a bit. Faith tossed her the scythe.

"Nap time is over," Buffy said as she raised the scythe.

~~~~~~~~~~

Giles knew Buffy could handle most any threat, especially with the scythe, but she didn't know what she was up against with this guy. He couldn't warn her without giving away what he knew. He just hoped Buffy and the others would follow his lead.

"Dr. Hope," Giles said as he turned to face the man. "That is certainly an ironic name for a man who left all these girls without any."

"You're not seeing the big picture, Mr. ..." Dr. Hope said.

"Don't pretend you don't know me," Giles said. "We both know you did enough research to know all about me and the Slayers."

Dr. Hope chuckled. "Yes, Mr. Giles. I know who you are. I'm really surprised you didn't attempt a rescue before now. Though it won't do any good. In a few moments, you and your witch will be dead, and the Slayers will be asleep again. Did you know their blood can cure most any disease and illness? Not the blood of one of them alone, but different ones combined together with hers an do wonders." He pointed at Buffy.

"All this because science and medicine couldn't cure your wife and family?" Giles asked. "It seems a bit extreme."

"I'm saving people," he answered. "Giving them hope."

"You're taking away the lives of these young women to save others," Giles insisted. He hoped he could keep the doctor talking and distracted long enough for Willow to quietly work her magic, and he hoped Buffy would wait quietly for a signal.

"Sacrifices must be made for the greater good," the doctor stated without emotion.

"Oh wait," Buffy interrupted. "I've heard that line before. It wasn't true then, and it's not true now."

Giles smiled. "She right." He took a step forward. "There's one thing I still don't understand. Why bring everyone here? Why create this world for them?"

Dr. Hope's expression darkened. "Your world poisoned my family. It was because of the imbeciles there and their negligence. I want no part of your world. It has done nothing to help me. Why should I help it?"

"But you are," Giles said. "You are saving the people you bring here."

"They're my family. The rest of your world can go to hell," Dr. Hope spat.

Giles finally understood it all. The screening the doctor was doing was genetic screening. He was testing to see if the people were in his family tree. He only wanted to save his family.

"Enough of this!" the doctor shouted. "Say goodbye to your Slayer." He opened his arm wide and spoke a few words under his breath. A bright light appeared for a moment, but then it fizzled. "What?" he asked as he realized he couldn't move.

"Just a little binding spell," Willow said, smiling. "Well, not too little. You have a lot of power, but not as much as me right now." She raised her hand. She was holding the scythe with Buffy. Each of the slayers raised their hands. They were all linked in one long chain. "I got a little power boost."

"Now, we are going to leave," Giles said. "All of us. After we are gone and the portal is closed, the binding spell will release you. I hope you are happy in this world you created. It's the last one you'll see."

Without glancing back and without a word, they all filed out of the room.

One scientist block there way at the end of the hall. He held a gold urn. Before they could question him, he handed it to Willow. "I'm sorry about what happened. If I had known, I never would have helped him." As Willow took the urn, he said, "It's Kennedy's ashes. I saved them. Dr. Hope never bothered with the names of the Slayers, but I knew them all. I tried to keep them comfortable because I knew you would come for them some day."

Willow reached out and hugged the man. "Thank you."

"Go," he said. "I will make sure that no one follows or raises an alarm."

"We need to go now, Willow," Giles said.

Willow whispered another thanks before she ran off with the others.

~~~~~~~~~~

Epilogue

Giles was lost in thought as he stood at the window watching the sunrise. They had come a long way since the day they had closed the portal. The Slayers had immediately been scattered around the world to battle the demons and vampires. It had taken several months, but the world was beginning to get back to some sense of normalcy. He chuckled at that term. There was no such thing as normal in a Watcher's life. He wasn't even sure what normal felt like.

In an effort to keep the world safe and as normal as possible, Willow had used the scythe to once again activate new Slayers. This time, veteran Slayers were sent to be their Watchers. It had been Dawn's idea, and Giles wasn't sure about it at first. It did make sense though. Keep the 'regular Watchers', as Dawn called them, away from the front lines. They would be needed to do research and could be sent to the Slayers if and when they were needed. It was better to have experienced Slayers training the new Slayers.

Giles turned at the sound of the bed creaking. "Good morning, Love."

Willow stretched and yawned as she swung her legs over the side of the bed. "Good morning."

He walked over to stand in front of her. "Did you sleep well?" He gave her his hand and helped her stand.

"Better than the last few nights," she said.

"Do you know what today is?" Giles asked.

"Of course I know what today is, Silly," she said with a laugh. "It's five years today since we closed the portal and rescued the Slayers."

Giles laughed at the serious look on her face. "It's was also five years ago today that we first made love. I thought I should make this a special day."

"Oh really?" she asked, not sounding at all surprised.

"Really," he said as he bent down and kissed her very pregnant belly.

"And what are you going to do to make it more special than the last four anniversaries?" she teased.

In one fluid movement, Giles dropped to one knee in front of her and took her hand in his. Slipping a ring on her finger, he asked, "Willow, will you marry me?"

"Yes," she answered and tugged his hand up.

He stood and kissed her. This is what normal feels like, he thought.

~~~~~~~~
The End
~~~~~~~~

Fic: Keys to Heaven [Chapters 6 & 7]

2008-06-28T03:52:41Z

Title: Keys to Heaven
Rating: FRT
Pairings: mostly genfic, but there is some Giles/Willow
Summary: After the final battle with The First, Rupert Giles faces something worse than any demon: a human determined to save the world at any cost.
Timeline: Post-chosen
Disclaimer: These are not my characters. They belong to Joss, Twentieth Century Fox, UPN, WB & Mutant Enemy. This is purely for fun.

Chapter 6

Giles paced as he waited for Willow to finish speaking. Several times, he'd wanted to stop her and ask questions, but he waited. Willow had been researching non-stop all night. This new lead sounded promising.

When she was finished, he stopped and turned to her. "Let me get this straight," he said, running a hand through his hair. "He cured his wife and daughter, and now he's opened his 'health resort' to anyone that needs cured of any ailment."

"That's the word on the 'net," Willow said.

"It doesn't make sense." Giles started pacing again. "He must have a bigger agenda. There must be something we're missing. He invites them to his resort for free, promises to heal them completely, and doesn't ask for anything in return."

"And there's still no phone number or address, just the contact form on the website," Willow punched some keys on the laptop. "I'll search again. If we don't get Buffy and the Slayers back soon ..."

"I know," Giles said. The world was in trouble without the Slayers. Los Angeles was overrun with demons and vampires, even with Angel and his team out every day fighting them. He knew the rest of the world was worse. There were a few havens around the world where various covens had set up safe zones for people, but they would soon run out of room for new residents. It was only a matter of time before the vampires and demons outnumbered the humans. Then along comes this man with the keys to heaven, or so it seemed.

Giles stopped suddenly. "That's it!" he proclaimed, startling Willow. He sat down next to her and stared at the computer screen. "Does he say how long people need to stay?"

"No," Willow answered. "What ...?"

"He's got them all in another dimension. Right?" Giles asked.

"That's the current theory," she said looking at him. "Giles, what do you think he's doing?"

He waved away her question and asked one of his own. "What ages is he targeting for this? What type of people?"

Willow looked back at the computer and typed in a few things before answering. "People in their twenties and thirties and single, divorced or widowed."

"He's creating a new world." When he saw Willow's puzzled look, he explained more. "He's so angry with this world that he doesn't care what happens to it, but he needs people to populate his new world. Once he has enough people, he'll close the portal."

"And we'll never get them back."

~~~~~~~~~~

Buffy wondered why she seemed to wake when the other Slayers didn't. Of course, maybe they did, and she just didn't know it. She really doubted it though. Something deep inside her told her that if they were ever going to escape this place, she was going to have to find the way. She couldn't count on the other Slayers or outside help.

This time when she woke, she risked a super quick glance at the clock before closing her eyes again. It was 9:52 am, Saturday. Why does it feel like I've been here longer than a week? she asked herself. Have I lost more time than I thought?

She was startled out of her thoughts by a sound that sent a chill up her spine. She hadn't realized that she'd become accustomed to the sound of all the heart monitors. The constant beeps that showed that they Slayers were still alive had become a comfort to her. Now that comfort was shattered as one of them blared the shrill noise of a constant flat note. One of the Slayers was dead.

Buffy lost all sense of time as she listened to them try to revive her again and again. The didn't stop until the sharp sound of boots hitting the floor drowned out the noise. The boot strikes echoed around the room.

Suddenly all the noise stopped except the constant beeping for the Slayers that were still alive. The silence was unbearable for her, and she knew it must be terrible for whoever had let this happen.

Finally, someone spoke in a weak voice. "It was the dreams, sir. They've been working to keep the Slayers asleep."

"So, what went wrong?"

"We think she had a nightmare. We can't control what they dream, only that they dream at all. She must have had a heart attack from the nightmare."

"Fix it! I don't want this happening with any of the others. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir," a chorus of voices answered.

Buffy listened as the doctor turned and left the room. Once the door closed behind him, she opened her eyes. The others weren't paying any attention to her, but she didn't care if they did. She needed to know which Slayer was gone. It was important that she know. She caught only a glimpse before they pulled a sheet over her face, but it was enough.

Her resolve strengthened, she set her mind to finding a way to escape.

~~~~~~~~~~

Giles couldn't sleep. He really wasn't sure why except that he had a restless feeling. So, he sat watching Willow sleep. He thought about what had happened since that fateful day when the bus had crashed.

Dawn and Xander had grown closer. Dawn had lost a sister, and Xander had lost a best friend. It was natural that they would comfort one another. At some point, they had decided to share a room. This didn't surprise Giles at all as he had chosen to share a room with Willow. Though with Willow, he had told himself it was because they researched together. It was more convenient. He kept trying to convince himself of that.

The truth was that they also found comfort in each other. They both felt responsible in a way. He had encouraged Buffy's plan to turn the potentials into Slayers, and Willow had performed the spell. It didn't matter that they couldn't have predicted this outcome.

He stood and walked around, trying to shake his sudden melancholy mood and the restless feeling. Moments later, he felt the loss of one of the Slayers. An instant later, Willow cried out and sat upright in bed. "No!" she cried.

Giles was at her side instantly. She fell into his arms, crying. He feared he knew what happened, but he had to ask. "What's wrong?"

"Kennedy died. I felt it," she said between sobs. "Didn't you feel it?"

"I felt one of them die. I didn't know which one." He held her tighter, trying to give her his strength. "I'm sorry, Willow." He pulled her with him as he lay back against the pillows. He held her until her crying slowed.

Willow looked up at Giles with wet, red eyes. "I'm sorry," she mumbled. "I just ... It shouldn't get to me like that. She been gone for a long time."

"Yes, but she was still alive," Giles said as he wiped a tear from her cheek. "There was still the hope that she would come back."

"I don't know why I hurt so much. I didn't even know her that long." She leaned back and looked into his eyes.

"Willow, you were with her when she became a Slayer," he said. "That's the bond you shared. That's why you could feel her. You were her Watcher." He brushed hair off her cheek. "I'm sorry you lost her, but it will get better. It won't always hurt."

Willow reached out and touched his cheek. "Thanks for being here when I needed you."

"I'll always be here for you," he said with a smile.

"I know. That's why I love you."

~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter 7

Something different woke Buffy. Something had changed. After listening for a while, she opened her eyes and looked around. She didn't look at the clock. The need to count the passing days had vanished, replaced by an urgent need to find what woke her.

As her eyes caught on the red and silver object, she saw movement from the door. They would never make it in time to stop her.

Buffy smiled as she reached out, summoning all her power.

~~~~~~~~~~

It had been days since they learned of Kennedy's death. Willow was coping better than Giles had expected. She had confided that she really wasn't sure that she loved Kennedy, not the way she had loved Tara anyway. She had just latched onto the first person that had shown interest.

Giles had felt the urge to kiss Willow the night Kennedy died. He wanted to kiss away all the hurt and tears, but he hadn't. It would have been taking advantage, and on that night he wasn't entirely certain where it would have led them. Instead, he had kissed the top of her head and held her in his arms as she fell back asleep.

Not long after that night, Willow had woken Giles from a sound sleep. He knew she hadn't meant to wake him, but she was excited about something. Even if he hadn't heard her brief squeal, he was certain he would have woken from feeling the excitement in the air.

As he opened his eyes, she jumped on the bed waving some papers in front of him. "I found it! I don't know how to open it yet but I found it!"

He dragged himself to a sitting position and grabbed his glasses from the nightstand. "What?" he asked, still not sure what all the excitement was about.

After he put on his glasses, she held the papers up for him to see. "I found the portal." She pointed to a spot on map she'd printed out. "It's been right here all along. We just didn't know it."

"Is that ...?" Giles started to ask.

"It's the alley behind the hotel," Willow confirmed. "I don't know why I didn't realize it before. This is why I had trouble with the locator spells before. I was too close to the portal. I thought it was pointing back to me, but it really wasn't. I really can't believe it. Wesley and Fred are trying to find a way to open it because I don't know much about portals. They couldn't believe it either. I found it. I actually found it."

Giles smiled as he listened to Willow babble. She did it when she was excited, and that hadn't happened in a very long time. When she started to go into details about how she discovered the portal, he decided that details weren't all that important to him. Without a word, he reached up and took her face in his hands. She continued to babble until his lips met hers. He kissed her slowly but firmly. When he pulled back moments later, she looked up at him with a dazed look in her eyes. "Willow?"

"Yeah?" she responded slowly.

"Are you alright?" he asked as he rubbed the back of his hand over her cheek.

"Uh ... I think so," she stammered. "I wasn't expecting that."

He pulled his hand back. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have -"

"Do it again," she whispered.

~~~~~~~~~~

Buffy saw the scythe move. At first she thought she had imagined it. Then it moved again, and she knew she'd done it. Taking a deep breath, she concentrated only on the scythe and how much she needed it. It flew into her open hand. As soon as it hit her palm, she felt the power surge through her.

People burst through the door as she broke out of her restraints and stood. One of them raised a hand towards an alarm button. "I really wouldn't do that," Buffy said. "I can stop you before you can blink." In a flash she was standing in front of them. "You see. This weapon here was made for me." She glanced at the other Slayers as she twirled the weapon in her hand. "Well, for all of the Slayers, but since I'm the only one who's awake ..." She looked back at them and smiled at the terrified looks on their faces. "Why do you think that is?"

"I d-don't know," one of them stammered.

"Are you going to kill us?" another asked.

"That all depends on whether or not you help me."

~~~~~~~~~~

Giles forgot about everything except the feel of Willow's lips against his and the warmth of her body. She leaned into him and tossed the papers aside as he kissed her again. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close as he opened his mouth to her. She took the invitation and slipped her tongue past his lips. At the same time he felt her slide one of her legs between his.

He hadn't realized how much he needed this. It was obvious that Willow needed it too. He rolled her onto her back and trailed kisses along her chin and neck. She rewarded him with a moan and rubbed her thigh against his growing erection.

"Giles, I want you so much," she whispered in his ear. "I need you."

He groaned and kissed her hard. At that moment all he could think of was ripping off her clothes and taking her hard and fast. "Do you want -"

His question was cut off abruptly, and he suddenly felt like someone had dumped a bucket of ice water over him. He felt Willow shiver and knew she'd felt it too.

"Buffy," they both said together.

"She found the scythe," Willow said.

Giles jumped up and pulled on his shoes. "We need to find a way to open the portal." He grabbed Willow's hand and pulled her to her feet. "Right now."

They hurried out of their room and downstairs to find Wesley and Fred. Downstairs Fred and Wesley were running out of the office. "We got it!" Fred shouted. "We can open the portal."

Gunn and Angel came in from another room. "It's about time," Gunn said. "I've been wanting to shut this guy down for a long time."

"We need to go now, guys," Willow said. "Buffy is awake and has the scythe. She'll be looking for a way out."

"How do you know ...?" Fred asked.

"There's no time to explain now," Giles said. He turned to Wesley. "Get everyone who can fight or do magic. We're opening the portal in five minutes." He turned back to Fred. "What do we need to open it?"

Willow took notes as Fred detailed how they would open the portal. Giles recognized the spells needed. It would takes four of them to open it, but it wouldn't take long.

As Willow and Fred gathered the supplies needed, Giles began to plan his attack.

Continued in Chapter 8

Fic: Keys to Heaven [Chapters 4 & 5]

2008-06-28T03:50:22Z

Fic: Keys to Heaven [Chapters 2 & 3]

2008-06-28T03:47:07Z

Fic: Keys to Heaven [Prologue & Chapter 1]

2008-06-28T03:44:17Z

Finished

2008-06-27T03:00:40Z

My summer_of_giles story is finished. The final word count is 7,675 words, and it has 8 chapters, a prologue and an epilogue. It began as a gen fic story, but it became much more than that. It does have some Giles/Willow in it now.

I'll be posting it this Saturday if anyone wants to read it.

Birthday!

2008-06-24T14:08:05Z

Happy Birthday, shannon730!

I hope you have a great day.

This is the month from hell.

2008-06-23T12:37:44Z

I was rudely awoken at 8:00am this morning by several people with week hackers right outside by bedroom window. They have been working in that sane area for over a half hour now. They should at least wait until 9:00am. Telemarketers are not allowed to call before 9:00am. I shouldn't be startled awake by this at 8:00am. It wouldn't be as bad if they were just mowing the lawn. I could handle that, but this is just inches from my window. It always happens on the days when I should have been able to sleep in. I really hope July is a better month.

Out of money again

2008-06-22T20:58:48Z

Why?

Because over two-thirds of my paycheck is going to pay for gas! What's left over is buying things like food and medicine.

I have no money until Friday, and I really need to get a transmission tuneup for my car. The cat needs to go to the vet soon, and I need to see my doctor for a checkup on my kidney stones.

I lost all of today's writing.

2008-06-19T22:59:51Z

I don't know if I can re-create it or not.

I watched Semagic as it saved the draft, but it's not there now.

I know I shouldn't use Semagic and LJ to do my writing, but my word processor has been crashing my computer. I usually just save my story as private. Then I change it to public when it's done. But what I was writing earlier is just gone.

I think I'm going to cry.

Someone has a birthday today.

2008-06-17T21:58:57Z

Happy Birthday, cornerofmadness!

I hope you have a great day.

Quick post before I go to sleep

2008-06-16T04:28:44Z

I know some people have expressed worry over me not being online.

Well, mostly it's because of work and the weather here. Work has been crazy, and I've been working longer than usual, and we've been training on a new computer system.

And the weather around here has been worse than ever this year. I've never seen so many violent storms or so much flooding. I have to leave so much earlier for work now because I never know what roads will be closed. We have roads closed for high water and traffics light out all over the place several times a week.

Some of the bad weather hit really close to here on Friday. Less than a mile from here, there was a weak tornado that touched down. At least the news is calling it a tornado, but there seems to be some dispute over what exactly it was. All I know is that large trees were uprooted, and the side of a house buckled. Siding shouldn't look rippled.

I don't have a laptop. All I have is my desktop computer. So, when I know a storm is coming, I shut everything down. The time I have been able to spend on my computer has been spent writing my summer_of_giles story.

catzen20, I am working on your beta. I promise. I just hope the bad weather stays away so I can finish with it soon.

I hope the people on my flist that are in worse hit areas are doing well. I know some of you have family near the areas hit hardest by the flooding.

Writing stuff

2008-06-14T14:57:02Z

I know people have different methods of planning and writing stories. Some people make outlines. Some make flowcharts. Some just write a lot of notes. I know some people that just sit and write.

I always thought I was the type to just just sit down and write when I got an idea. Recently, I realized this is only partially true. Yeah, I sit down and just write from beginning to end without any notes or outlines. However, I've realized that my best stories were completely written in my head before I ever sat down to type.

My current story is a very long one in my head. I can see every little thing that happens from beginning to end. It's like a movie playing in my head as I write. If I wrote the whole thing, it would be way too long and take forever to write. Instead, I am just picking the most interesting scenes to write. I choose the scenes that will entice the reader and make them wonder what will happen next. The scenes I have chosen should keep the suspense going throughout most of the story. I have to keep the whole "movie" in my head and refer to the small details in it to keep the writing on track. Even though you may not read everything that happens, it has a big impact on how my characters interact.

Does anyone else write this way? Or is it just me and my weird brain?

Bad day at work

2008-06-13T23:20:09Z

I had a bad day at work, complete with one of "those" customers that everyone always avoids.

I had ice cream and chocolate cream liquor for dinner. I think I may be a little drunk now. It's taken me a very long time to write this post. So much for writing tonight. Maybe later.

If you've been wondering where I've been ...

2008-06-11T18:06:31Z

I've been working on my story for my day at summer_of_giles. It's going very well. I haven't had my muse be this cooperative in a long time. I hope everyone will enjoy the story once it's done and posted. I'm sure ladyforash, catzen20 and oreadno1 think I'm crazy. They have all read bits of it and have assured me that's it's good, but I still worry about these things.

I've been trying to keep track of my word count on this one. My word processor will do that for me, but it eats up so much of my computer's memory. Because of that, I haven't been using the word processor much. So, I went in search of something that will count for me, and I found a website that will do it. I think it's meant for students writing papers, but anyone can use it.

Here's the link if anyone wants to try it out.

http://www.wordcounttool.com/

Need a little help

2008-06-02T00:40:27Z

I'm writing my summer_of_giles story. As usual, I'm wondering about the quality. I've been away from writing so long that I just don't know if my writing is good or not. I know most of you are going to tell me I'm crazy for saying that, but it's how I feel right now.

So, will someone please take a quick read of what I have so far and give me an honest opinion on it. It's not too long, and it's gen fic.