Categories > TV > Buffy the Vampire Slayer > Ordinary Lives
It was the morning of the trial. Giles was still staying half of his nights with Joyce. The other half, he was staying at home. This was a particular one that he felt he had to stay at home. Willow would need him more then anything. Well, she needed one thing more. But that just didn't seem like it was going to happen anytime soon.
In a short few minutes, he was going to be sitting behind his niece as her trial started. It all felt so surreal. How could somebody as sweet and innocent as her have to go through all of this. It just didn't make sense to him. A lot in the world did not make sense to him. This was just another one of those.
Giles drank down the last bit of his coffee. Normally, he would rather have tea. It helped to relax him and to help him think. But today, he wanted to be alert. He wanted to be there for his niece no matter what. It wasn't everyday that one went on trial for the murder of your significant other's father.
Quickly, he made his way to the door and picked up the newspaper. He had only a spare few minutes to skim through it. He wanted to see what the headlines were saying about his niece so that he could prepare her as best that he could. Not that she would ever truly be prepared for what was ahead of her.
Nothing prepared him for the headline that he read. It had nothing to do with Willow or the trial or any of the latest disappearances. Instead, it had to do with someone that he had once been deeply in love with. Someone that he thought might very well have been the one for him. Until things had gone so wrong.
The headline read 'Local High School Teacher found Murdered'. It was quite the shock indeed. The last he knew about Jenny's whereabouts was the fact that she was spending a lot of time with his half brother Ethan. And he knew what kind of guy that he had turned out to be. Was murder below him? Or would he do anything to get his way.
The librarian threw down the newspaper. There was no time to do anything about it now. He heard Willow and Faith coming down the stairs. Dawn was soon to follow he was certain. And he had to be the strong one for all three of them. He was the adult. The one with the cool, calm, and collect. When all he wanted to do was be the one that had taken care of things. That way Willow wouldn't have to go through this.
He put on a smile for everyone. Again, it was up to him to be the brave one. But lingering on his mind was that article. There had been a picture of Jenny, one from the yearbook. He remembered how he had teased her about the picture. It was so much more conservative a look then she would normally where. But yet, she looked so beautiful to him. She always looked beautiful to him.
A thought struck him as he and the others silently made their way to his car. What if it was Ethan? How was he going to prove that? And if he couldn't prove it to the police, would he take matters in to his own hands? For if anyone deserved to be punished it was his half brother. No questions about that.
But how could he do that? He was the only one that was there for Dawn and Willow. He couldn't leave them to fend for themselves. Life was getting more complicated. Just as he had sought closure between he and Jenny, she was gone now. And there was no way of finding out the answer that he had so wanted to know. Like, did he truly love Joyce? Or was she just a substitute for the one that was now gone.
Spike and Xander stood outside the warehouse. Both should be in school. Or better yet for Xander, he should be at the courthouse now being there for his best friend in the entire world. Willow had called and told him what had happened with Tara. And he knew how much she needed her friends and family by her side. But this was something that he just had to do.
From an anonymous tip, the two young men had found out where they thought that Buffy and Anya were being held. They had tried telling the police about what they had discovered, but they thought that they were just two teenagers that didn't know what they were talking about. And that really irritated Spike.
So, here they stood. Outside this giant warehouse that had no windows and only two doors. The building was hidden behind a bunch of similar looking warehouses. And they could see that there were what they would term guards standing outside the doorway. Several guards that had little bulges in their pockets.
"Look Spike. I'm as convinced as you are that our girls are in there." Xander peered out from behind the closest warehouse trying to keep hidden. "But it's looking like an army base or something. I don't think that the two of us really have the skills necessary for this."
"Skills mean nothing." Spike took a peek as well. "I was raised in the mob, remember. My daddy taught me things in hopes that some day I would help Angel run the business. Course, told him hell no to that. But well, at least I have the knowledge that he passed down to me. Could come in mighty handy."
Xander shook his head and sighed. "What are we going to do? We have no weapons. And you just know that those guys do. We don't know for sure where inside they are being kept. And even if we get passed the guards outside, you know that there are more inside waiting for us. I say that this is just plain suicide."
"Or, you are just scared." Suddenly, Spike stood up. He inched away along the warehouse until he made his way to the end. He peeked around the corner to see the guards looking the opposite way. "Now is our chance."
He took off before Xander could react. And before Xander could follow, Spike already had knocked the two guys unconscious with a pipe that he had somehow managed to find. Spike waved to Xander who reluctantly joined his friend. The two stood listening at the door before Spke used the keys he had found on the guard to open the door.
The instant that they opened the door, they had guns pointing at them. There were five men dressed in business suits with handguns. Out of the shadows lurked a figure that was very familiar to both young men. Someone they wished that they had not come across.
"Well now." Mr. Summers came to stand between the five men. "This is an interesting turn of events. You two should have kept your noses out of my business. Now it means that two more people from Sunnydale will have to come up missing." He shook his head sadly. "That's not a good thing. Too many people from Sunnydale come up missing, and all with a connection to my daughter and well things will start to add up for those ignorant so called police."
Spike didn't care bout the guns pointed at him. He took off for Mr. Summers. That's when he was hit from behind. He looked up groggily from the ground. Standing over him was a rather large man with a smug look on his face. "Should I take care of him now, boss?"
"No." Mr. Summers sighed heavily. "We may need both of them alive. Just what we need. Two more teenagers to babysit. And keep them away from the others. As far away as you can. We will have to come up with a convincing story for the police. Now go. Take these two trash bags out. But not to the dump. Perhaps later they'll find some landfill."
Faith stood off to the side, Oz at her side. Willow was already sitting at the defendants table. Her lawyer was shuffling through some paperwork. The prosecutors were standing at their table talking in whispers. The judge was not in the courtroom. Neither were any of the jurors. But there was already quite the crowd coming in. All interested to find out what happened that night already so long ago.
Giles sat in the front row right behind Willow. Dawn was right next to him. Willow looked around for Xander. She couldn't help but wonder where he was at. She knew that her best friend would want to be right next to her. Or in this case, behind her giving her the support she needed, so desperately needed.
One pair of people she thought she wouldn't see. Standing all the way to the back was her mother and father. The two people that rejected her because she was in love with another woman. She had been hurt, and they had still denied her their support. All because of how she loved differently then most people would consider the norm.
Her mother was the first to see her. She waved sadly at the young redhead that looked so much like her. If Willow knew how she really felt, then maybe they could be mother and daughter again. It was her father that was against her relationship with Tara. All that her mother really cared about was the fact that she was happy. And now, alive and well. Facing the death of her child was not something that she looked forward to.
A mother wasn't supposed to outlive her children. It just wasn't the way. No matter how that the death came about, it just wasn't right when the parent had to bury their young. And it brought tears to her eyes. Something she did a lot since Willow had been shut out of her life. All thanks to her uncaring and not understanding husband.
By the look on her mom's face, Willow could tell that this was hard on her. And that perhaps she suspected something else. Like there was the possibility that her mother really did love her and that she would do anything for her. It gave her a little bit of comfort to see that from her mother.
Of course, her father wouldn't even make eye contact with her. He was definitely still ashamed of his little girl. After all, what self respecting Jewish girl would turn her back on God and let herself go down the path of the devil all over some idea of lust. That was not how he had raised his daughter.
But she had her uncle. Giles was more of a father then her own had ever been. She was grateful that he was much more open minded then her father. And a lot of adults that she knew around his age. It would be too much to ask for if her father could actually love her unconditionally. That would just be too much to hope for.
There were other familiar faces as well. Wesley and Fred were here as well. Cordelia was with Angel which was weird to see. But Willow had heard the rumors about the abuse. It would be no wonder that she would alone. A little surprising to see her with Angel. Of course, there were the two detectives. The would probably have to testify. Even her other uncle, Ethan Rayne had shown up. It was quite the crowd indeed.
Her eyes kept wandering. Hoping beyond hope to see her. Even after all that had happened, she still desperately needed her there. Even if it wasn't right behind her. Or holding her hand. Or whatever maybe the case. Just knowing that Tara was there would make all the difference in the world.
And that's when blue eyes met green ones. And that familiar feeling ran throughout her entire body. She had had trouble sleeping because the one that she loved so much had not been next to her. The one that she would spend the rest of her life with. Just seeing that amazing face was enough to give her strength.
Tara smiled weakly. She didn't know if she was truly welcome or not. But she knew that no matter what happened, she had to be there for her girl. For Willow was still hers. There was no changing that fact. The two of them would forever and for always be connected. They would always be as one.
Willow could not hide the smile that was instantly on her face. Just seeing her brought back all those feelings. All those wonderful times that they had shared with one another. It was simply amazing all that they had been through. And had done it together. Without question they had stood by one another.
But what about that letter? Something was telling Willow to believe Tara. That the woman that she knew would never do anything like that. That even if she had wanted to end things, she never would have done it like that. She would have the guts and the caring to at least do it in person. Not a dear Jane letter.
Faith came beside Willow once she saw who was standing there. Far in the corner but where she would have a good view of the whole proceedings. "You want me to talk to her? Tell her to go? Or, maybe, something else?"
Willow sighed heavily. Was it decision time? True, her life was about to be decided for her. Whether she would live even. But this was one part of her life that she still had control over. And she would control it her way. So, she took a piece of paper out of her purse. She scribbled a few lines on it.
"I think, I've got another idea." Willow handed Faith the note. "Would you give this to her. It would mean a lot." Faith's eyes locked with hers for a moment. "Let's just say I think I figured out how stupid I've been. And I think she'll understand. I mean, this is Tara we're talking about. There's no way things would happen the way that they supposedly did."
Faith smiled big. In her heart, if she would listen to it, she would agree with Willow. For she knew what they had been through. And she knew what Tara had gone through growing up. It was like someone out there had made it so that these two could be together. And that someone else out there was trying to break them up.
As Faith walked over to Tara, her mind began to work. What if the same person that wanted Willow to take the fall for murder was also the same person that wanted Willow and Tara broke up. It made sense if you thought about it. Without Tara, Willow would give up on life. And she wouldn't care if she was convicted.
But now that these two were at least back on the road to recovery, that plan was shot to heck. And it made her wonder what next would this person try. And who the heck was this person and why did they have it out for her so much anyway? Was she just a convenient escape goat? Or was it personal?
Faith smile slyly as she handed Tara the note. Without a word, she made her way back to behind the defendants table. Tara opened the note and smile big as she read the few words. 'I'm sorry. Not sure what else to say. And we need to talk. Hopefully, later after the trial. Just you and me alone.'
Tara placed the note in her pocket. Willow looked back at her and received a nod. That was all she needed. She would have her girl next to her again. But first, it was the start of her fate. The judge walked out and all the people rose. "People versus Willow Rosenberg. The charge is murder in the first degree. How do you plead?"
"Not guilty." And with those final words, the trial for her life began.
In a short few minutes, he was going to be sitting behind his niece as her trial started. It all felt so surreal. How could somebody as sweet and innocent as her have to go through all of this. It just didn't make sense to him. A lot in the world did not make sense to him. This was just another one of those.
Giles drank down the last bit of his coffee. Normally, he would rather have tea. It helped to relax him and to help him think. But today, he wanted to be alert. He wanted to be there for his niece no matter what. It wasn't everyday that one went on trial for the murder of your significant other's father.
Quickly, he made his way to the door and picked up the newspaper. He had only a spare few minutes to skim through it. He wanted to see what the headlines were saying about his niece so that he could prepare her as best that he could. Not that she would ever truly be prepared for what was ahead of her.
Nothing prepared him for the headline that he read. It had nothing to do with Willow or the trial or any of the latest disappearances. Instead, it had to do with someone that he had once been deeply in love with. Someone that he thought might very well have been the one for him. Until things had gone so wrong.
The headline read 'Local High School Teacher found Murdered'. It was quite the shock indeed. The last he knew about Jenny's whereabouts was the fact that she was spending a lot of time with his half brother Ethan. And he knew what kind of guy that he had turned out to be. Was murder below him? Or would he do anything to get his way.
The librarian threw down the newspaper. There was no time to do anything about it now. He heard Willow and Faith coming down the stairs. Dawn was soon to follow he was certain. And he had to be the strong one for all three of them. He was the adult. The one with the cool, calm, and collect. When all he wanted to do was be the one that had taken care of things. That way Willow wouldn't have to go through this.
He put on a smile for everyone. Again, it was up to him to be the brave one. But lingering on his mind was that article. There had been a picture of Jenny, one from the yearbook. He remembered how he had teased her about the picture. It was so much more conservative a look then she would normally where. But yet, she looked so beautiful to him. She always looked beautiful to him.
A thought struck him as he and the others silently made their way to his car. What if it was Ethan? How was he going to prove that? And if he couldn't prove it to the police, would he take matters in to his own hands? For if anyone deserved to be punished it was his half brother. No questions about that.
But how could he do that? He was the only one that was there for Dawn and Willow. He couldn't leave them to fend for themselves. Life was getting more complicated. Just as he had sought closure between he and Jenny, she was gone now. And there was no way of finding out the answer that he had so wanted to know. Like, did he truly love Joyce? Or was she just a substitute for the one that was now gone.
Spike and Xander stood outside the warehouse. Both should be in school. Or better yet for Xander, he should be at the courthouse now being there for his best friend in the entire world. Willow had called and told him what had happened with Tara. And he knew how much she needed her friends and family by her side. But this was something that he just had to do.
From an anonymous tip, the two young men had found out where they thought that Buffy and Anya were being held. They had tried telling the police about what they had discovered, but they thought that they were just two teenagers that didn't know what they were talking about. And that really irritated Spike.
So, here they stood. Outside this giant warehouse that had no windows and only two doors. The building was hidden behind a bunch of similar looking warehouses. And they could see that there were what they would term guards standing outside the doorway. Several guards that had little bulges in their pockets.
"Look Spike. I'm as convinced as you are that our girls are in there." Xander peered out from behind the closest warehouse trying to keep hidden. "But it's looking like an army base or something. I don't think that the two of us really have the skills necessary for this."
"Skills mean nothing." Spike took a peek as well. "I was raised in the mob, remember. My daddy taught me things in hopes that some day I would help Angel run the business. Course, told him hell no to that. But well, at least I have the knowledge that he passed down to me. Could come in mighty handy."
Xander shook his head and sighed. "What are we going to do? We have no weapons. And you just know that those guys do. We don't know for sure where inside they are being kept. And even if we get passed the guards outside, you know that there are more inside waiting for us. I say that this is just plain suicide."
"Or, you are just scared." Suddenly, Spike stood up. He inched away along the warehouse until he made his way to the end. He peeked around the corner to see the guards looking the opposite way. "Now is our chance."
He took off before Xander could react. And before Xander could follow, Spike already had knocked the two guys unconscious with a pipe that he had somehow managed to find. Spike waved to Xander who reluctantly joined his friend. The two stood listening at the door before Spke used the keys he had found on the guard to open the door.
The instant that they opened the door, they had guns pointing at them. There were five men dressed in business suits with handguns. Out of the shadows lurked a figure that was very familiar to both young men. Someone they wished that they had not come across.
"Well now." Mr. Summers came to stand between the five men. "This is an interesting turn of events. You two should have kept your noses out of my business. Now it means that two more people from Sunnydale will have to come up missing." He shook his head sadly. "That's not a good thing. Too many people from Sunnydale come up missing, and all with a connection to my daughter and well things will start to add up for those ignorant so called police."
Spike didn't care bout the guns pointed at him. He took off for Mr. Summers. That's when he was hit from behind. He looked up groggily from the ground. Standing over him was a rather large man with a smug look on his face. "Should I take care of him now, boss?"
"No." Mr. Summers sighed heavily. "We may need both of them alive. Just what we need. Two more teenagers to babysit. And keep them away from the others. As far away as you can. We will have to come up with a convincing story for the police. Now go. Take these two trash bags out. But not to the dump. Perhaps later they'll find some landfill."
Faith stood off to the side, Oz at her side. Willow was already sitting at the defendants table. Her lawyer was shuffling through some paperwork. The prosecutors were standing at their table talking in whispers. The judge was not in the courtroom. Neither were any of the jurors. But there was already quite the crowd coming in. All interested to find out what happened that night already so long ago.
Giles sat in the front row right behind Willow. Dawn was right next to him. Willow looked around for Xander. She couldn't help but wonder where he was at. She knew that her best friend would want to be right next to her. Or in this case, behind her giving her the support she needed, so desperately needed.
One pair of people she thought she wouldn't see. Standing all the way to the back was her mother and father. The two people that rejected her because she was in love with another woman. She had been hurt, and they had still denied her their support. All because of how she loved differently then most people would consider the norm.
Her mother was the first to see her. She waved sadly at the young redhead that looked so much like her. If Willow knew how she really felt, then maybe they could be mother and daughter again. It was her father that was against her relationship with Tara. All that her mother really cared about was the fact that she was happy. And now, alive and well. Facing the death of her child was not something that she looked forward to.
A mother wasn't supposed to outlive her children. It just wasn't the way. No matter how that the death came about, it just wasn't right when the parent had to bury their young. And it brought tears to her eyes. Something she did a lot since Willow had been shut out of her life. All thanks to her uncaring and not understanding husband.
By the look on her mom's face, Willow could tell that this was hard on her. And that perhaps she suspected something else. Like there was the possibility that her mother really did love her and that she would do anything for her. It gave her a little bit of comfort to see that from her mother.
Of course, her father wouldn't even make eye contact with her. He was definitely still ashamed of his little girl. After all, what self respecting Jewish girl would turn her back on God and let herself go down the path of the devil all over some idea of lust. That was not how he had raised his daughter.
But she had her uncle. Giles was more of a father then her own had ever been. She was grateful that he was much more open minded then her father. And a lot of adults that she knew around his age. It would be too much to ask for if her father could actually love her unconditionally. That would just be too much to hope for.
There were other familiar faces as well. Wesley and Fred were here as well. Cordelia was with Angel which was weird to see. But Willow had heard the rumors about the abuse. It would be no wonder that she would alone. A little surprising to see her with Angel. Of course, there were the two detectives. The would probably have to testify. Even her other uncle, Ethan Rayne had shown up. It was quite the crowd indeed.
Her eyes kept wandering. Hoping beyond hope to see her. Even after all that had happened, she still desperately needed her there. Even if it wasn't right behind her. Or holding her hand. Or whatever maybe the case. Just knowing that Tara was there would make all the difference in the world.
And that's when blue eyes met green ones. And that familiar feeling ran throughout her entire body. She had had trouble sleeping because the one that she loved so much had not been next to her. The one that she would spend the rest of her life with. Just seeing that amazing face was enough to give her strength.
Tara smiled weakly. She didn't know if she was truly welcome or not. But she knew that no matter what happened, she had to be there for her girl. For Willow was still hers. There was no changing that fact. The two of them would forever and for always be connected. They would always be as one.
Willow could not hide the smile that was instantly on her face. Just seeing her brought back all those feelings. All those wonderful times that they had shared with one another. It was simply amazing all that they had been through. And had done it together. Without question they had stood by one another.
But what about that letter? Something was telling Willow to believe Tara. That the woman that she knew would never do anything like that. That even if she had wanted to end things, she never would have done it like that. She would have the guts and the caring to at least do it in person. Not a dear Jane letter.
Faith came beside Willow once she saw who was standing there. Far in the corner but where she would have a good view of the whole proceedings. "You want me to talk to her? Tell her to go? Or, maybe, something else?"
Willow sighed heavily. Was it decision time? True, her life was about to be decided for her. Whether she would live even. But this was one part of her life that she still had control over. And she would control it her way. So, she took a piece of paper out of her purse. She scribbled a few lines on it.
"I think, I've got another idea." Willow handed Faith the note. "Would you give this to her. It would mean a lot." Faith's eyes locked with hers for a moment. "Let's just say I think I figured out how stupid I've been. And I think she'll understand. I mean, this is Tara we're talking about. There's no way things would happen the way that they supposedly did."
Faith smiled big. In her heart, if she would listen to it, she would agree with Willow. For she knew what they had been through. And she knew what Tara had gone through growing up. It was like someone out there had made it so that these two could be together. And that someone else out there was trying to break them up.
As Faith walked over to Tara, her mind began to work. What if the same person that wanted Willow to take the fall for murder was also the same person that wanted Willow and Tara broke up. It made sense if you thought about it. Without Tara, Willow would give up on life. And she wouldn't care if she was convicted.
But now that these two were at least back on the road to recovery, that plan was shot to heck. And it made her wonder what next would this person try. And who the heck was this person and why did they have it out for her so much anyway? Was she just a convenient escape goat? Or was it personal?
Faith smile slyly as she handed Tara the note. Without a word, she made her way back to behind the defendants table. Tara opened the note and smile big as she read the few words. 'I'm sorry. Not sure what else to say. And we need to talk. Hopefully, later after the trial. Just you and me alone.'
Tara placed the note in her pocket. Willow looked back at her and received a nod. That was all she needed. She would have her girl next to her again. But first, it was the start of her fate. The judge walked out and all the people rose. "People versus Willow Rosenberg. The charge is murder in the first degree. How do you plead?"
"Not guilty." And with those final words, the trial for her life began.
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