Gone... But Not Forgotten: Part 3
by Jai L
"Falen." Willow murmured in a tone that caused Buffy and Xander tense up.

"Give the red-head a prize." Falen replied in a nasty tone. "Tell her what she's won Johnny. Well, Falen. The half-breed vampire has won... a bloody death at the hands of a nasty group of demons."

Suddenly, from behind Falen came a chorus of snarls. A large horde of vampires came into the moonlight, grinning evilly.

"Run." Willow said.

"What?" Buffy asked.

"Run, to the house. Now!" Willow screamed.

Angel picked up the sword laying at his feet and said, "I'll hold them off. Go!"

The horde snarled in unison and attacked...


* * *
Xander ran with the group towards the house/castle. He stopped abruptly and turned towards the horde. He watched as five vampires of the horde surrounded Angel. The rest stayed in the shadows of the trees a few yards away. The five vampires snarled at Angel. Angel in turn brandished the sword with a smile. His face went under a demonic transformation. Xander watched as the vampire's brow furrowed and his cheekbones rise unnaturally.

Xander stared as the vampires attacked Angel. Angel was holding his own. He had already cleanly sliced off the heads of two of the vampires, causing them to explode in a shower of dust. Angel quickly turned around, slashing a gash in two of the other vampires. He pulled out three staked from his pocket and plunged one of the three in one of the vampire's chest, and abruptly plunged one of the two remaining in the other one's chest. Angel turned to face the last remaining vampire, but was hit across the face with a large rock.

Xander watched in helplessness as Angel fell to the ground. The remaining vampire picked up Angel's fallen sword and plunged it into Angel's heart. Angel shrieked in pain as the vampire withdrew it from his heart. Xander watched as the vampire raised the sword again, this time to take off Angel's head.

"Noooooooooo!" Xander screamed.

In a flash, Xander Harris was running at an incredible speed. A speed brought on by a huge adrenaline rush. Xander slammed his body into the shocked vampire's body. Xander quickly picked up Angel's stake and brought it down on the vampire's chest, causing it to erupt in dust.

Xander ran to Angel, who was groaning in agony.

"It'll be all right. Don't worry man." Xander said reassuringly as he put the 240 something year old vampire's arm around his shoulder and lifted him off the ground. Using the traditional fireman hold, Xander started to run towards the castle. He heard Falen laugh heartily behind them. The sick bastard.

As he got close to the castle, he heard Falen and his horde running after them. As he neared the door, he saw that Buffy, Willow, Cordelia, and Giles were standing there, waiting for them. Xander could hear the vampires close on his heels.

As Xander neared the door, he yelled, "Get ready to close the door!"

Xander jumped trough the doorway with Angel on his shoulder. He turned around to see Buffy, Willow, Cordelia, and Giles close the two massive oak doors. Willow brought a large wooden beam and fit it in two slots, securing the door closed. The group heard massive pounding from the other side of the door.

"We got to get to the library." Angel managed to get out. Willow turned to her long lost friends and said, "Come on. That door won't hold them for long."

Willow led Xander, who was still carrying Angel, Buffy, Giles, and Cordelia up some long marble steps. When they got to the top of the steps, they headed down the hall, until they came upon a massive wooden door. Willow opened it and allowed her friends to get inside. After they were all in, she started to close a number of locks. She then fitted two wooden beams onto the door, as had below.

The library was quite spacious. Xander noted that it was the size of a apartment. It was decorated with old antique carpets. There were large showcases against some walls, which housed a rather large collection of weapons. There was also hundreds of books lining the walls. And on one wall, was a group of large windows, where he could see the garden. He walked over to a couch and laid Angel's body on it. The vampire was slowly recovering from his injuries. Thank god.

"How can vampires come in here? They weren't invited." Cordelia asked.

Willow looked at them sheepishly and replied, "This place was kinda theirs, until two years ago."

"You stole their home?" Giles asked with astonishment.

"Noooooo." Willow responded. "We cast them out. And now they want revenge."

"Wait, wait, wait. If that big door down there won't stop them, what makes you think this one will?" Buffy asked.

"Well, the door down there is solid oak, but this door is different. This door is made of thick tempered steel, covered by oak. Even vampires can't get through it. Angel was hoping to have the rest install by tomorrow." Willow replied.

Through the door the group heard a loud crack, which indicated that the vampires had gotten through the front door. They heard some shuffling, then a loud bang as they tried to break this door down as well.

"Don't worry." Willow said. "They can't get through that door."

"Yeeaahhhh." Cordelia said. "But they can come in through the window."

The group turned and saw two vampires smash through the windows. They were soon followed by three more. The room was slowly starting to fill up with vampires.

* * *
The group turned and saw two vampires smash through the windows. They were soon followed by three more. The room was slowly starting to fill up with vampires.

"Shit!" Willow exclaimed. "Spread out."

The group spread out as Willow ordered, even Angel, who was still injured. Buffy and Willow, being the only uninjured, superpowered beings, stood in front of the rest of them.

"You know. Why can't they look like Tom Cruise?" Buffy asked out loud.

"You mean, 'Interview with a Vampire'?" Willow asked with a grin.

"Yeah. I mean these guys are in a gruesome way of lookin' and Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt were sooo excellent." Buffy replied as the vampires stared at them in confusion.

"What about Antonio Banderas?" Willow asked.

"Nah, he wasn't that good." Buffy replied.

Willow laughed and looked back at the confused vampires. Seeing that they were taken aback by the casual nature of the conversation, Willow pounce at one of the vampires while at the same time she pulled a stake from up her sleeve. She plunged the stake into the vampires chest and watched with satisfaction as the vampire erupted into dust. She turned around and saw Buffy give a vampire a vicious kick to the jaw, causing it to fly over the other vampires and collide with two vampires trying to get into the room. The three vampires fell out of the window and plummeted below. The three connected to the ground with a sickening crack.

She turned around and launched herself into the fray.


* * *
Xander spun around and swept the vampire's feet from under it. He then delivered a powerful uppercut which caused the vampire to crash into a bookcase. As the books fell onto the vampire's head, Xander grabbed the leg of a wooden chair and snapped off a piece. He abruptly turned and slammed the former leg into the chest of the vampire. But before he could watch the vampire get dusted, Xander was grabbed from behind and flung across the room.

But Xander was not the boy he was two years ago. He had studied various forms of self defense and had practiced with Buffy. As he flew through the air, Xander used his momentum to flip in the air and land gracefully across the room.

Xander swung around and viewed the carnage before him. Willow and Buffy were in the thick of things. They were staking vampires and throwing the rest out the window. Angel was not doing as well as them, considering his condition, but was able to hold his own with the vampires. Giles and Cordelia were doing fairly well themselves. They both were armed with crosses and stakes. They were using the crosses to distract the vampires, then they staked them.

But Xander couldn't fool himself. They were losing. There were more vampires coming in then they were getting rid of. Unless a miracle happened...

Then it did. Xander spotted something in a showcase that could help turn the tide. He swung his fist into the glass, shattering it. He grabbed the weapon and remembered what he had heard over two years ago.

"... They hurt like hell."

The perfect distraction. As he held the weapon, Xander's palms began to sweat. He felt anxiety fill him. He loaded the 9mm and took aim at the group of vampires and mortals. He took a deep breath. I can do this, he thought to himself as sweat beaded on his forehead. I just have to let my instincts take over. Xander took a deep breath and fired.

Then again.
Then again.
Then again.

Purely driven by instinct, Xander Harris shot the gun. He watched as the vampires fell. He picked them off so quickly that they didn't notice until it was too late. As for his friends, they stood as still as statues. They watched in total trust as Xander took down Falen's troops. They didn't hide, or duck, or cover. For one sole purpose.

They trusted him.
They knew he wouldn't hit them.

When Xander unloaded the last bullet in the clip, he lowered the gun in disbelief. The remaining vampires were running off, dragging their injured comrades with them. They jumped out the window, injured and uninjured alike, with the solitary goal of surviving. In less then five minutes the vampires were gone from the room.


* * *
From outside they heard Falen shout to them, "This isn't over! You're dead! You hear me?! Dead!!"

The group turned to a still shocked Xander. He dropped the gun onto the floor and soon followed it. The heard Xander wheezing for breath. Buffy has never seen Xander act like this.

Buffy turned to Willow and asked, "What's happening to him? Is he okay? I've never seen him do this."

Willow looked at her friend with a sad expression on her face and replied, "Since Xander's dad was always away, his father made him learn to use a gun since Xander was 11. To protect himself and his mom. It was a big responsibility. And Xander took it seriously. But when we were twelve, one of the kids in our class had played with a gun that his father owned. The safety was offed and the gun went off."

"Oh my god." Buffy whispered.

"Yeah. The kid died. Xander, Jesse and I were good friends with him." Willow continued. "From that moment, Xander hated guns. The sight of them caused Xander the freak out. To do what he just did must have..."

"Taken so much courage." Buffy finished.

Willow nodded and followed Buffy to Xander. They both knelt beside him. As the 18 year old looked up to them, they saw that he was pale. Very pale. Both girls were at a loss for words.


* * *
But Buffy was the first to regain composure. Willow looked at her friend as she wrapped her arms around Xander.

"It's okay." Buffy cooed. "It's all right."

"I... I... I... I don't know if I can handle this." Xander stammered out. "I... I hate guns. I can't believe what I did. It doesn't matter that they are vampires. I used a gun. I shot at something. I.. I... Oh, God."

"Push it away. You saved our lives. You stopped them." Buffy replied as she ran her hand through Xander's hair.

Willow stared at this, not knowing how to react. She looked at Giles, Cordelia, and Angel. Giles and Cordelia were helping an injured Angel. The three were not paying attention to them. She looked back at Buffy who was holding Xander in a reassuring embrace. Willow suddenly felt like an outsider. She looked at the two and asked herself, why was Buffy acting this way with Xander? She didn't? Did she? She couldn't? Could she?

Willow looked into Buffy's eyes. Buffy, who was paying sole attention onto Xander, didn't notice her friend's gaze. She was oblivious to Willow's curiosity. She didn't see Willow's expression change as she stared at them. She didn't see the shock in Willow's eyes. Shock from what Willow saw in Buffy's eyes.

Love.

For Xander.

* * *

Buffy closed the door to the room that Xander was staying in. He was pretty shaken up by what happened. She used to tease Willow about how she always monitored Xander's moods, his health, his blood pressure. But when she left, Buffy took on that role. She hated to see Xander was in such pain. Using that gun hurt him so badly. It was against everything he believed in. It had taken him a while to calm down from that anxiety attack, but when he did, she had taken him to one of the rooms in the huge castle. Angel had assured her that the fang gang wouldn't be back tonight.

Buffy walked down the hall to Willow's room. She already had the layout of the place. Willow's room was by the stairs, Buffy's was a couple doors down from hers, Cordelia's was next to Buffy's, Giles' room was down the hall and around the corner. Angel's and Xander's rooms were at either side of Giles' room. As she walked by their doors, she thought of how lucky they were now. They had found long lost friends. Friends they thought were lost forever. She wanted to talk to her friend. She knocked on the door, causing it to open. The room was gorgeous. Everything was made of oak, including Willow's bed. There was a marble fireplace across the room, which lighted the room in a soft orange glow.

"Willow?" Buffy called out.

"Yeah?" Came a soft reply from the terrace.

Buffy walked into the room and to the terrace and gave her friend a silly grin.

"Xander's all tucked in, and I read him a nice bed-time story." Buffy said.

"That's nice." Willow said absentmindedly.

"Hey, bestest bud. What's wrong?" Buffy asked with concern.

"Nothing. Nothing's wrong." Willow whispered back in a choked voice.

Buffy laid her hand on Willow's arm to try and find out what was wrong, but didn't get the chance. As soon as Buffy touched her arm, it caused something in Willow to snap.

"How could you do this to me!" Willow screamed as she punched Buffy with her clenched fist.

Buffy went flying into the room. She wasn't prepared for the blow, especially from Willow. Willow stalked into the room, her eyes ablaze. She didn't change into a demonic being like vampires, but there was a difference. Her eyes shined with a deep red. And she had an aura of darkness around her.

Buffy staggered up and managed to get out a weak, "Willow...".

That was, before Willow decked her again, causing the slayer to fall to the ground.

"I thought you were my friend!" She screamed as she kicked Buffy. "You knew. You knew!"

"You knew." She whispered as she fell to the floor, crying.


* * *
Willow saw Buffy slowly pulled herself from the floor. She could tell that it was hard for her to breath, but her healing power was already working on that. Buffy looked at her, who was already feeling guilty for her deeds. Willow saw that Buffy was already starting to feel better, but could tell that she was worried. What had caused that? What did Willow attack me? These were possible questions in the slayer's mind.

Buffy crawled over to Willow cautiously and asked, "Knew what?" Willow's sobbing lessened and she replied, "You knew I love him."

Buffy's brow furrowed and she asked, "Xander?"

"Buffy, I know." Willow whispered. "I know..."

"Know what?" Buffy asked.

Willow looked at her with the most intense expression.

"I know that you love him."


* * *
Buffy listen to those six words and the world froze.

Me. Love Xander? No, he was just a friend... Wasn't he? Sure Xander was handsome, funny, sensitive, and brave... But Buffy loved Angel. She had cried herself to sleep so many times, trying to accept the fact that he was gone. But Xander was just her friend. Totally platonic.

Wasn't he?

Buffy looked up at Willow, Whose eyes had reverted back to the dark shade of brown. But that wasn't what got her attention. It was the expression of pure astonishment that Willow was directing at her.

"You didn't know." Willow realized.

Buffy shook her head and responded, "Willow, this is crazy. Xander is just my friend. I am not interested in him in any way."

But saying those words left a feeling of emptiness in Buffy. Why was that?

Willow shook her head and replied, "Buffy. As long as I've known you, you never lied to me. But, why do I get the feeling that you're lying to me right now?"

"Willow, that's silly." Buffy exclaimed.

"Buffy..." Willow started again.

But Buffy didn't let her finish. She looked at Willow sharply and said, "Look. I said that there is nothing between us. Those feelings Xander had for me two years ago was just a crush. He doesn't love me and I don't love him. Why are you continuing with this? It should make you happy that I am saying this."

Willow just stared at her. As if she could see the huge empty feeling that those words invoked.

"Fine." Willow said softly.

"Fine." Buffy echoed as she got up to walk out of the room. "Good night."

With that Buffy left the room, closing the door behind her. She let go of the breath that she had been holding as she left the room. She had hurried out of there in such a hurry. She had a feeling that Willow could see inside her. Her emotions, her feelings. But she would only see her love for Angel.

Right?

Another question rose from her heart. Why was she crying?

She realized that she had started to cry even before she closed the door to Willow's room. Buffy tried to dismiss it was a result of Willow's attack, or her sleepiness, or even jet lag.

But none of those fit the feelings she felt.

Pushing that thought out of her mind, Buffy headed towards her room to get a good night's rest and hopefully, some aspirin.


* * *
Willow sat on her bed. What had happened here? Buffy was her closest friend. She had not even apologized for her attack on the slayer. Willow could plainly see Buffy's feelings for Xander.

By the affectionate way she touched him.
By the loving way she brushed his hair from his face.
By the way she held him.

Willow felt the jealousy rise in her again, but this time she controlled it. Suppressed it. She had no right to be jealous over someone she couldn't have. Over someone who didn't love her in the same way.

Love.

Ever since she realized her feelings for Xander, she assumed it was love. But what if it wasn't? She was just a child when those feeling blossomed in her. Could those feelings be a crush? A crush that she let get out of hand.

No, a part of her screamed. Her feelings were genuine.

As genuine as Xander's feelings for Buffy two years ago? She had just assumed that his feeling were just a crush. A phase. But what if they weren't. What if Xander truly loved Buffy? Willow knew Buffy loved Xander. She could see it. But Buffy adamantly told her that she loved Angel.

But if she did, why did Buffy run out of the room so fast? Why did Willow sense the hurt in Buffy when she renounced her feelings for Xander?

Why did Buffy start to cry as she left Willow's room?

Would the truth of Love bring sorrow with it?



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