Seven months

Disclaimer: The characters belong to Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy and the WB, I've just borrowed them for a while.

Rating: PG 

Author's notes: Dedicated to Louise and Cri who at the time I wrote this fic had just celebrated seven month anniversaries with their boyfriends.

Seven months.  Seven whole months.  That was the time it had taken to change Willow’s world.  Spin it into something that was something so special, that she had no right to be this happy, and yet she was. 

She gazed out of the window, watching the sunrise.  The dark sky slowly turning a myriad of colours as the golden glow of the morning sun rose higher in the sky, the birds welcoming the new day wholeheartedly with their beautiful dawn chorus.

As she watched the stillness of the morning, her mind wandered back to that moment seven months ago when her world changed, forever.

Seven months earlier

It had been nearly six months, six months since Anya and Tara had left them, well not left them in the together kind of way.  Anya had been lured back into the service of D’Hoffryn after realising just how much mortality frightened her and Tara had decided that life with Willow was not what she wanted, she wanted more out of life and magic, more than what was left in Sunnydale, especially after the Hellmouth had closed.

Since the Hellmouth had closed and the mystical convergence disappeared to another country, life had become simpler, well less life threatening.  It was hard to get used to, hard to adapt, but they had.  Well most of them had.

Willow sat on the porch watching the stars in the sky.  It was a luxury she’d missed, missed for almost ten years.  She could finally feel safe sitting in the dark, without the fear of vampires or demons.  Although, she wore a cross on a chain around her neck and a stake was carefully tucked into the waistband of her jeans.  She still wasn’t completely at ease at night; it was better to be prepared, than openly offer yourself to a vampire for an evening meal.

She didn’t hear the soft footsteps approaching from behind her, until two hands gently covered her eyes, blocking out the beauty of the shimmering stars alerted her to his presence.

She smiled, relaxing, knowing in an instant that the hands belonged to her friend.  “Xander?”

“Who else would creep up and cover your eyes?” He asked softly.

“Well, if it was a vampire, I think they’d just have gone straight for my neck, and as you’re the only one who ever covers my eyes like that, my options were limited!”

Xander removed his hands and sat down next to her, gazing at her from the corner of his eyes.  “So… What ya doing?”

Willow turned to look at him, a small smile crossing her lips.  “Watching the stars.  Just remembering the last time that I actually could sit safely outside and watch the stars without fear of a vampire wanting to eat me for supper.”

“It’s been a long time, hasn’t it Will.  A long time for a lot of things.”

“Hmm.” Willow agreed, not quite sure what Xander was hinting at.

“Will?”

“What?”

“Do you miss it?” He asked softly.

“Miss what?” She asked, a puzzled expression crossing her face.

“Miss us?”

“Us?”

“Yes. Us.  Best friends.”

“But we are friends, Xand.  We always have been and I hope we always will be.” Willow replied, grasping her friend’s hand reassuringly.

“But are we, Will?  We’ve not had the same relationship since… you know?” He paused.  “The Fluke.”

“Our relationship might have changed, Xander.  It’s not the same, it never was going to be, but it made us stronger.  It made me realise something.  Realise that then was not the right time for us.  Maybe there will never be a right time for us.  But there is something I learned during that time.” 

“What?”

“That however our relationship changes, you’ll always be my best friend, because when I’m with you, I remember all of the happy times.  Remember our childhood, remember everything we’ve ever done, and I smile.  I smile because I have you and I have our memories.  That’s worth more than any other relationship I’ve had.  You know me, and I know you.”

“But is friendship enough?” He asked quietly, staring uncomfortably into the night sky.

“What do you mean?” She asked, her heart pounding in her chest.  Suddenly the conversation had changed, changed into something that made her nervous, yet excited at the same time.

“Will.”  He paused again, the silence of the night suddenly becoming deafening.  “Since Anya and Tara left, we’ve been rebuilding our friendship, it’s turned into something important again, not exactly like it used to be, before Buffy, but better than it has been in a while.  I don’t want to lose it, but…”

“But what?” Willow asked, her voice rising with panic.

Xander turned to look at her, admiring her beauty as the moonlight bathed her skin in its white light.  He noticed the look of panic in her eyes; it was the same look he’d seen when she thought he was going to move away with his parents when he was nine.  The same look when she’d found out about Faith.  He reached out and brushed her cheek with his fingers.  “But friendship isn’t enough anymore, Willow.”

Willow relished the sensation of his fingers gently dancing across her cheek, his dark eyes filled with something that she couldn’t quite determine.  “It’s not?” She almost whispered into the night air.

“No, Willow.  It’s not.

“Oh.”  She averted her eyes from his gaze, her head dropping so that his fingers fell from her face.

“No, Will.  I want more.” He paused, waiting for her reaction.  Those three words could have just blown their friendship, but it was a risk he needed to take.

Her head raised slowly, her eyes meeting his, searching them for the answer to the question that was plainly written over her face.  “More?” She asked her voice laced with hope.

He nodded.  “More.  Since we’ve been rebuilding our friendship, I realised something.”

“You did?"

“Yes.  I realised what I’ve been searching for my entire life has been hidden right before me, and I’ve been too stupid to see it.”

“You’re not stupid, Xander.  Never say that about yourself.” She admonished.

“I must be Will because I nearly lost something that was so important to me I would have regretted it my whole life.”

“Lost what?”

“Lost you.”

“You never lost me, Xander.  I don’t think you ever could.  We have this habit of finding each other when we need to.  Do you remember you said we’d be in neighbouring rest homes, I guess you’re right, we will be."

“I don’t want to be in neighbouring rest homes though, Will.”

“You don’t?”

“No.  I want to be in the same one as you.”  He smiled as her eyes widened, realisation finally beginning to dawn.  “I love you, Will.”

“Love me?” She paused.  “As in a best friend kind of way?”

He shook his head. “No.  Not in the best friend kind of way, but in the way that means I want to be with you forever, a way which is definitely more than the friendship kind of way.”  A deep redness began to creep up from his neck and spread across his face.  “That didn’t sound quite right, Will.”

“Nope, that sounded more than alright.” Willow replied, a smile illuminating her face and eyes.

“Would it be alright if I kissed you?”

“More than alright.” She replied, moving slowly towards him.

Their lips meeting slowly just as their friendship had been built.  As their kiss deepened a star high in the sky twinkled and danced across the night, a sign of the magic that had just begun and the hope of a future together that neither one had dared to dream of.

Xander lay on the bed, studying Willow as she watched the sunrise.  He couldn’t help but watch her.  She was beautiful, both on the outside and in.  She was his angel, his heart and soul rolled into one.  She was the one person in this world that made everything feel right.  He couldn’t believe how lucky he was, how he’d been given this chance to be loved by her, to love her.

He rose slowly from the bed and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her towards him, his head dipping so that he could plant a kiss on her head.  “Penny for them?”

Willow turned in his embrace, her emerald eyes meeting his.  “Just thinking about how special these last seven months have been.”

He nodded.  “We’ve got a lot to live up to.  But we’ve also got the rest of our lives to work on it, Mrs. Harris.” 

“Mrs. Harris.  Hmm.  That sounds strange and yet so perfect all at once.”

“I know.  But you’ll get used to it, that’s a promise.  However there are more important things to be experienced.”  His eyes glinted with mischief and his patented Xander smile graced his lips.

“We have?” Willow teased as her hands gently played with his tousled hair.

“Uh, huh.” He replied capturing her lips in a delicate kiss that deepened almost immediately. 

Finally relinquishing from the kiss, Xander gently pulled Willow into his arms.  “We’ve got the rest of our lives to build, starting with enjoying the rest of our honeymoon.”

“Xander!” She exclaimed, rolling her eyes for effect.  “Did I tell you yet today that I love you?”

He shook his head.

“Well I do.”

“I know. I love you too.  These last seven months have been the happiest of my life, Will.  I hope the next fifty odd years are just as good.”

“They will be if I have anything to do with it.” She replied as he laid her down on their bed.

He grinned. “Well it’s going to be fun trying.”  He leant forward capturing her lips once more in a searing kiss that signified the beginning of a future that was built from a tiny seed of friendship and had turned into a beautiful rose of love.

The End