With My Life in Her Hands

"While I admit Briar's hair is rather distracting, shouldn't someone get rid of the tracker indicating where we are?" Giles is almost yelling by the last part.

Xander jumps up and is quick to take the scissor like tool with the still beeping tracker.

"Does that happen much?" I ask Willow.

"Kinda sorta no. I mean there usually isn't a tracking beeping tracker but usually we're looking up demons to slay...you know bad demons?" She specifies seeing my eyes widen.

"What about ex-demons?" Anya demands to know from her seat. "I don't care about bad demons."

Willow stops to think.

"Ex-demons should be safe because they don't know they exist. I mean they had trackers and you don't look demon-y so I think you're of the good."

Giles walks a little closer to me and begins speaking.

"While it is a surprise to meet a...partner of Willow's, it is a one of a kind occasion to meet you. If you don't yet, my name is Giles."

Giles extends a hand and I smile when I recognize the gesture.

I take the larger hand in mine and shake it.

"I have heard of you. Willow said you're part of the Scoobies?"

Giles smiles before nodding in agreement.

"I suppose you could say that. I used to be official Buffy's watcher but I guess you could say I'm unofficial."

Willow speaks from beside me.

"He used to be the librarian at Sunnydale High before it went kablooey."

I turn toward Willow questioning.

"Kablooey?"

Xander decides to answer that question.

"Kablooey. Big boom. Explode. You know..those types," he finishes by sitting right back on the dark couch.

"I can't say that's ever happened to me," I muse out loud.

Willow squeezes my hand and looks at me.

I really like how soft Willow's face when she looks at me.

It makes my heart beat faster in my chest looking at her fawn colored eyes.

"We are on a hellmouth. It attracts demons like crazy. This is probably a big first."

"So this means you're not having sex?" Anya randomly asks. "Cause I've had a lot of sex with boys and girls and it's a lot of fun!" She finishes with a smile.

Xander's eyes become glazed as he looks over at us.

A loud smack echoes though the room and I recoil in surprise.

"Ow," Xander whines and rubs the blushing hand print mark against his cheek.

"You can only think of us having sex not them having sex. I'm right here and I love sex!" Amy's scolds him.

I bite my lip to hide my amusement.

Normally, the idea of men thinking about me sexually makes me aggressive but there seems to be nothing remotely evil about Xander.

"Don't even think about it," Willow warns and tugs my hand.

"I'm not," I say softly and make sure to be quiet. "He doesn't seem evil or disgusting just primitive but nice all the same."

Willow smiles at me and I can't help smiling in response.

"That's a new one. I don't think anyone's ever said that about Xander."

With a gentle insisting pull, I am settled on a small couch sitting close to the Wiccan.

I settle myself deeper into the cushion finding the seat very comfortable.

This couch is very comfortable.

Willow keeps her hand in mine and it feels so warm against my own hands.

I like this feeling when I'm touching her even if my stomach feels funny when we touch.

"Is the a wiccan thing? Is this a college experiment? You know I won't mind either way."

His voice is soft as he speaks to Willow.

Xander turns his head in my direction. "Are you even Wiccan?"

I can feel my eyebrows furrow in confusion at the questions and why they mattered.

Willow though is almost wide-eyed at his words but looks so calm I can feel myself relax in reaction.

"This isn't a wiccan thing," the Wiccan disagrees shaking her head. "This is a like-me-like-you thing and what does Briar being wiccan or not matter?"

Xander shrugs his shoulders.

"Magicks. Admit it. Some of those spells get a little," he makes a strange high pitched sound in his throat.

Willow blushes a red almost as bright as her fiery hair and I wonder if I'm missing something once again.

"Why are you telling us now? Why not keep it a big secret? A wiccan secret," Xander keeps questions clarifying.

"It would hurt Briar's feelings and your feelings. It would hurt everyone's feelings really. Briar would get upset and I don't like when she's upset."

At that, fawn eyes with a green rim look into my eyes and I feel myself melt like snow in sunlight.

"While I admit finding that Willow has a new...," Giles struggles to find the right word to describe me and I grin thinking I'm not the only one with that issue. "-companion and it is very...surprising," -Giles stops to clean his glasses. "I believe we should be concentrating on the Initiative."

"This is almost as important!" He argues looking completely serious. "Thes e are real life lesbians! And not just your run of the mill lesbians but wiccany magicks lesbians!"

I glance at Willow and raise an eyebrow.

Are wiccany magicks lesbians real?

Willow answers back with wide eyes and shrugging shoulders.

"Can we focus on something on something other than them for a second please," the ex-watcher says frustrated. "No offense but we are in considerable danger right now so can we please answer this question."

The room is in complete silence with no one refusing to speak and myself too new to contribute.

"Is the Initiative safe?"

Xander asks that question everyone doesn't want to answer.

"They've been kinda helping in a way. I'm all for killing things that go bump in the night but the guys like Soldier Boy make me wonder."

"The Initiative isn't safe. The military is never of the good especially when it's in power and here it's in power. Sure. Yay, they're attacking demons? But what else are they doing to the demons? They already have Spike all good but what else can they do?" Willow asks establishing her opinion.

"Red," the almost white haired vampire almost growls at Willow. "I'm sitting bloody right here!"

I clench my teeth at the blatant disrespect of this male.

What exactly can he do?

"Sorry," the Wiccan says a little sheepish. "I mean they tried to get Big Bad Spike all good."

"We're safe. There are no demons in this room so there's nothing to worry about."

I exchange glances with Willow at the comment.

"No,"a soft feminine voice interrupts and I look up at the unexpected voice.

Her hair is a unfamiliar gold color and the woman stands in the doorway watching all of us but not seeming to see anyone at all.

"No one is safe with the Initiative."

She freezes and her hazel eyes seem almost like ice.

"Not even the Slayer."