Categories > TV > Buffy the Vampire Slayer > The Greatest Gift of All
Default Chapter
0 reviewsSet just after season 7, Willow has been with Kennedy. But she knows that she can't truly love anyone. Not like she loved Tara. The powers that be enter the picture. What gift shall they bestow on ...
0Unrated
Willow stared out her bedroom window. Well, it wasn't really her bedroom window. The only ones that she had ever know were gone. They had all been destroyed when Sunnydale had collapsed upon itself. That was mostly because she had found the power and the ability to control that which she had been gifted with.
A lot of things had been destroyed when Sunnydale had been. Even though they knew the end was coming, there wasn't enough time to gather any of their personal belongings. The only thing that Willow had managed to sneak out of the rubble was a picture of Tara and herself. It was taken during Tara's twentieth birthday party. The one that had nearly not happened because of her family.
The picture was quite faded and was torn at the corners. It seemed strange that was the only thing that she had managed to salvage. Strange because she was now supposed to be with Kennedy. The former potential was very much in love with her. But Willow just could not quite return those feelings.
It was true that she cared for her. If anything happened to her she would be upset. But it would not be like when she lost Tara. When she lost her everything, she had nearly lost her mind. It had lead to her nearly destroying the world. If it had not been for Xander, she was not sure what she would have done.
Kennedy simply did not understand that. Perhaps she was jealous that Willow's love for another woman was so powerful. Or perhaps she was not really ready to experience love. Perhaps she was still that young woman that was looking for a good time. Those had been the slayer's words to describe her past relationships with other women.
It really did not matter what the reason was. The fact that Willow still pined for Tara was the key. Though she sat in the bedroom in the east wing of a mansion a couple thousand miles from the only home she had known, she was not really there with Kennedy. Her mind could never really allow her to love another. Not the way that she had Tara.
Breaking up with Kennedy was going to be hard. And yet, there was a sense that the young woman would actually be relieved that she no longer had a steady relationship. Again, Willow got the feeling that Kennedy would rather be out in the bars picking up a one night stand then to be with her.
Still, breaking up with someone was never easy. When she thought of how it felt when Oz had left her, she felt sorry for Kennedy. Even worse was when Tara had left her. It was with good reason. She just could not admit it back then. It had made their relationship that much stronger. Though it was only short lived.
A tear formed in the corner of her eye. Quickly she brushed that away. It was not because she did not want to mourn for Tara any longer. It was because she had to keep her composure while she finally did what she had known she would have to do. In her heart, she had always known that she could never be with another woman.
A few hours later and the young witch was on the road once again. After the gang had gathered in LA to heal their wounds with Angel's help, they had gone their separate ways. Xander was finally going on that trip around the country that he had planned right out of high school. Buffy was taking a break from slaying. She was on a tour of Europe at the moment. Dawn had decided to stay in LA. Her father was there still living with his secretary. Though she hated him for not caring enough to come after her when her mother died, it was the only way that she could stay in LA. Giles had once again gone back to England. This time it was to resurrect the watcher's council.
Willow and Kennedy had done their share of traveling as well. They had ended their travels once they had arrived in Kennedy's home town. Long Island New York was known for the better half. That would be an understatement when describing how Kennedy lived. It was daunting for the young witch, to say the least.
She had managed to settle in a bit. But there had always been something that had been nagging her. It was as if there was something out there waiting for her. Of course with her past experiences, she was not so sure if she was ready or wanted what that was. But she just knew that she had found it.
Kennedy had taken the breakup in her usual style. She had appeared as if it was no big deal. Willow had learned to read people. She knew that if the slayer ever admitted it, it was killing her inside. The witch just hoped that the slayer would not get sloppy while slaying. For she knew that she would throw herself into that to escape.
Willow had been driving for hours. She had pointed her car west and had kept going. It was as if she were being drawn to something. All of this was about being pulled to something. What, she was not sure. All she knew that she had to keep going. The pull was so great that she simply could not resist it.
That was when there was a flash of light. It made the witch slam on her breaks. The car skidded to a stop. When she opened her eyes again, she was no longer in her car. She looked around herself to see nothing but pure white. She could not tell if there were walls or not. All she knew that it was like heaven had been described to her.
She had often wondered if there was a heaven. Had she not survived the car crash? But then it hit the redhead. There had not been a car crash. All there had been was a flash of white. It was the kind that she often saw when she did one of her spells. Something was really starting to creep her out.
"There's no need to be afraid." Willow whirled around to see who had spoken to her. Standing in a white robe was a familiar face. "You aren't exactly in heaven. And yes, there is one. But it's not your time. In fact, the powers that be here have been watching you. They want you to live a long and happy life."
Willow squinted for a moment. She knew it was possible to be seeing who she was. She was just hoping that it was not The First trying to trick her. "I had a happy life once upon a time. Then something called human nature got in the way. It nearly destroyed me. I thought I was finding happiness once again. But I now know that I was just fooling myself."
"Kennedy was not your soul mate. And I know that you are concerned about her. Don't be. She will continue to live a long life. She will even one day meet her own soul mate and settle down." The familiar figured moved toward the young witch. "But that is not why you are here. You are here because you realized something. We up here knew it a long time ago. We just had to see if you could figure it out for yourself."
The witch shook her head to clear it. "If you are trying to confuse me Miss Calendar, you are doing a bang up job. All I realized was that Kennedy and I were better as friends then lovers. That and the fact that there was and will only ever be one true love for me. I would rather spend the rest of my life alone if I can't have her by my side."
"We know." Miss Calendar made her way toward Willow. "I'm here because I did my duty to the best of my abilities. I did not succeed in keeping Angel from losing his soul. I however gave my life so that he could once again have his soul returned to him. I was very impressed at how well you performed the spell. It was a preview of the power that you have inside of yourself."
"I'm happy that you are here in heaven." Willow took a cautious step backward. "You were a great person. Giles was never the same after you died. He tried to move on, but you could just tell that you were still too much a part of him. And I don't know what all this has to do with me and why I am here."
"I thought you'd be able to figure that out by now." Miss Calendar shrugged nonchalantly. "You are here for the same reason that I am. I received a gift. That gift was to get to take care of you and the other scoobies. Do you think that the squeak of the bringer's shoe was merely a coincidence? I thought it was a good way to alert Giles."
"You saved him?" Miss Calendar nodded. "That's so cool!" Willow paused and looked carefully at the woman before her. "You say that you received a gift. And that I'm here for the same reason. Does that mean I am receiving a gift? And if it does, no offense, but I'd rather not be here if that means being dead. Unless..."
"Unless you could spend it with Tara?" Willow swallowed hard at the thought. "The powers that be have a better idea for you. Though someday you will make a great addition to the guardians, we feel that you have a greater purpose on earth. You will travel from town to town and help the people there. They will not have ordinary problems. You knowledge of the craft will come in handy. But you will not be able to perform this task alone. You will need someone there that will be able to help you in every possible way."
Again, Willow swallowed hard. She was not sure if she was understanding everything. It could not be what she had been hoping and praying for. It just could not be true that she would have her everything back. That she would finally have her reason for living back. But what other possibility was there?
Before the witch could say anything, there was yet again another flash of light. When she opened her eyes, she fell to the ground. Tears were steadily falling from her eyes. There was no way that this was real. It all had to be a dream. The past few years were a nightmare. It was like she had ended up in hell.
The familiar figured slowly made her way toward the redhead. Willow was practically hyperventilating she was crying so hard. Then there was that familiar touch upon her cheek. That was the moment that she knew that this was all real. It had taken what seemed like a lifetime but she was finally back with her everything.
Willow took Tara in her harms. She held on so tight that breathing became an issue for both of them. They pulled back out of the embrace. The redhead carefully reached out and moved a silky blond strand of hair from her everything's face. "Tara? Is that really you? Are you back for good or is this all a dream?"
Tara put her hand on Willow's cheek. "I'm back once again. I'm here because you were able to overcome your fears. You were able to perform the greatest magick that the world has ever known. You saved humanity. And for that, you and I have received the greatest gift there ever is. We get to have a second chance at life."
Willow fell into Tara's arms. This was all so surreal. But she knew that it was real. There was that familiar smell that she knew. And that touch. Tara was finally back in her arms once again. And according to Miss Calendar, they would get to travel the world together. This truly was the greatest gift of all.
AN Tell me what you think. Should I continue? I'll try and update this and 'Choices of Life' as well. If anyone wants me to. Thanks for reading. Hope you enjoyed.
A lot of things had been destroyed when Sunnydale had been. Even though they knew the end was coming, there wasn't enough time to gather any of their personal belongings. The only thing that Willow had managed to sneak out of the rubble was a picture of Tara and herself. It was taken during Tara's twentieth birthday party. The one that had nearly not happened because of her family.
The picture was quite faded and was torn at the corners. It seemed strange that was the only thing that she had managed to salvage. Strange because she was now supposed to be with Kennedy. The former potential was very much in love with her. But Willow just could not quite return those feelings.
It was true that she cared for her. If anything happened to her she would be upset. But it would not be like when she lost Tara. When she lost her everything, she had nearly lost her mind. It had lead to her nearly destroying the world. If it had not been for Xander, she was not sure what she would have done.
Kennedy simply did not understand that. Perhaps she was jealous that Willow's love for another woman was so powerful. Or perhaps she was not really ready to experience love. Perhaps she was still that young woman that was looking for a good time. Those had been the slayer's words to describe her past relationships with other women.
It really did not matter what the reason was. The fact that Willow still pined for Tara was the key. Though she sat in the bedroom in the east wing of a mansion a couple thousand miles from the only home she had known, she was not really there with Kennedy. Her mind could never really allow her to love another. Not the way that she had Tara.
Breaking up with Kennedy was going to be hard. And yet, there was a sense that the young woman would actually be relieved that she no longer had a steady relationship. Again, Willow got the feeling that Kennedy would rather be out in the bars picking up a one night stand then to be with her.
Still, breaking up with someone was never easy. When she thought of how it felt when Oz had left her, she felt sorry for Kennedy. Even worse was when Tara had left her. It was with good reason. She just could not admit it back then. It had made their relationship that much stronger. Though it was only short lived.
A tear formed in the corner of her eye. Quickly she brushed that away. It was not because she did not want to mourn for Tara any longer. It was because she had to keep her composure while she finally did what she had known she would have to do. In her heart, she had always known that she could never be with another woman.
A few hours later and the young witch was on the road once again. After the gang had gathered in LA to heal their wounds with Angel's help, they had gone their separate ways. Xander was finally going on that trip around the country that he had planned right out of high school. Buffy was taking a break from slaying. She was on a tour of Europe at the moment. Dawn had decided to stay in LA. Her father was there still living with his secretary. Though she hated him for not caring enough to come after her when her mother died, it was the only way that she could stay in LA. Giles had once again gone back to England. This time it was to resurrect the watcher's council.
Willow and Kennedy had done their share of traveling as well. They had ended their travels once they had arrived in Kennedy's home town. Long Island New York was known for the better half. That would be an understatement when describing how Kennedy lived. It was daunting for the young witch, to say the least.
She had managed to settle in a bit. But there had always been something that had been nagging her. It was as if there was something out there waiting for her. Of course with her past experiences, she was not so sure if she was ready or wanted what that was. But she just knew that she had found it.
Kennedy had taken the breakup in her usual style. She had appeared as if it was no big deal. Willow had learned to read people. She knew that if the slayer ever admitted it, it was killing her inside. The witch just hoped that the slayer would not get sloppy while slaying. For she knew that she would throw herself into that to escape.
Willow had been driving for hours. She had pointed her car west and had kept going. It was as if she were being drawn to something. All of this was about being pulled to something. What, she was not sure. All she knew that she had to keep going. The pull was so great that she simply could not resist it.
That was when there was a flash of light. It made the witch slam on her breaks. The car skidded to a stop. When she opened her eyes again, she was no longer in her car. She looked around herself to see nothing but pure white. She could not tell if there were walls or not. All she knew that it was like heaven had been described to her.
She had often wondered if there was a heaven. Had she not survived the car crash? But then it hit the redhead. There had not been a car crash. All there had been was a flash of white. It was the kind that she often saw when she did one of her spells. Something was really starting to creep her out.
"There's no need to be afraid." Willow whirled around to see who had spoken to her. Standing in a white robe was a familiar face. "You aren't exactly in heaven. And yes, there is one. But it's not your time. In fact, the powers that be here have been watching you. They want you to live a long and happy life."
Willow squinted for a moment. She knew it was possible to be seeing who she was. She was just hoping that it was not The First trying to trick her. "I had a happy life once upon a time. Then something called human nature got in the way. It nearly destroyed me. I thought I was finding happiness once again. But I now know that I was just fooling myself."
"Kennedy was not your soul mate. And I know that you are concerned about her. Don't be. She will continue to live a long life. She will even one day meet her own soul mate and settle down." The familiar figured moved toward the young witch. "But that is not why you are here. You are here because you realized something. We up here knew it a long time ago. We just had to see if you could figure it out for yourself."
The witch shook her head to clear it. "If you are trying to confuse me Miss Calendar, you are doing a bang up job. All I realized was that Kennedy and I were better as friends then lovers. That and the fact that there was and will only ever be one true love for me. I would rather spend the rest of my life alone if I can't have her by my side."
"We know." Miss Calendar made her way toward Willow. "I'm here because I did my duty to the best of my abilities. I did not succeed in keeping Angel from losing his soul. I however gave my life so that he could once again have his soul returned to him. I was very impressed at how well you performed the spell. It was a preview of the power that you have inside of yourself."
"I'm happy that you are here in heaven." Willow took a cautious step backward. "You were a great person. Giles was never the same after you died. He tried to move on, but you could just tell that you were still too much a part of him. And I don't know what all this has to do with me and why I am here."
"I thought you'd be able to figure that out by now." Miss Calendar shrugged nonchalantly. "You are here for the same reason that I am. I received a gift. That gift was to get to take care of you and the other scoobies. Do you think that the squeak of the bringer's shoe was merely a coincidence? I thought it was a good way to alert Giles."
"You saved him?" Miss Calendar nodded. "That's so cool!" Willow paused and looked carefully at the woman before her. "You say that you received a gift. And that I'm here for the same reason. Does that mean I am receiving a gift? And if it does, no offense, but I'd rather not be here if that means being dead. Unless..."
"Unless you could spend it with Tara?" Willow swallowed hard at the thought. "The powers that be have a better idea for you. Though someday you will make a great addition to the guardians, we feel that you have a greater purpose on earth. You will travel from town to town and help the people there. They will not have ordinary problems. You knowledge of the craft will come in handy. But you will not be able to perform this task alone. You will need someone there that will be able to help you in every possible way."
Again, Willow swallowed hard. She was not sure if she was understanding everything. It could not be what she had been hoping and praying for. It just could not be true that she would have her everything back. That she would finally have her reason for living back. But what other possibility was there?
Before the witch could say anything, there was yet again another flash of light. When she opened her eyes, she fell to the ground. Tears were steadily falling from her eyes. There was no way that this was real. It all had to be a dream. The past few years were a nightmare. It was like she had ended up in hell.
The familiar figured slowly made her way toward the redhead. Willow was practically hyperventilating she was crying so hard. Then there was that familiar touch upon her cheek. That was the moment that she knew that this was all real. It had taken what seemed like a lifetime but she was finally back with her everything.
Willow took Tara in her harms. She held on so tight that breathing became an issue for both of them. They pulled back out of the embrace. The redhead carefully reached out and moved a silky blond strand of hair from her everything's face. "Tara? Is that really you? Are you back for good or is this all a dream?"
Tara put her hand on Willow's cheek. "I'm back once again. I'm here because you were able to overcome your fears. You were able to perform the greatest magick that the world has ever known. You saved humanity. And for that, you and I have received the greatest gift there ever is. We get to have a second chance at life."
Willow fell into Tara's arms. This was all so surreal. But she knew that it was real. There was that familiar smell that she knew. And that touch. Tara was finally back in her arms once again. And according to Miss Calendar, they would get to travel the world together. This truly was the greatest gift of all.
AN Tell me what you think. Should I continue? I'll try and update this and 'Choices of Life' as well. If anyone wants me to. Thanks for reading. Hope you enjoyed.
Sign up to rate and review this story