Watchers Council

Chapter 15

“But she’s Jewish” Alex reminded Buffy for the second time the next morning.

“I know but she always celebrates Christmas with the rest of us” Buffy explained patiently. “And you’re not Jewish” she said and turned to check with Alex.

“Nope, I’m not much of anything” Alex shrugged. “Don’t get me wrong, I’ll definitely be there for the party and I’ll tell Will when I see her later”

“Good, that just leaves Xander” Buffy said and turned to watch the other girl as she slowed down a little next to her. “Are you OK, want to rest for a minute?” she asked.

“Blasted knee again” Alex grumbled and slowed down to gingerly rub her left knee. “I think I jarred it a bit yesterday in the gym and it’s starting to play up again”

“You should see one of the doctor’s in the infirmary” Buffy suggested and stood watching with her hands on her hips. “One of the benefits of the Watcher’s Council, we have some pretty good doctor’s on tap”

“I’ll try running it off” Alex suggested and stretched her hamstring a little. They continued through the grounds for another five minutes before she winced and pulled up quickly. “Nope, I think I’m finished for the day” she doubled over to get her breath back.

“Can you make it back?” Buffy asked and tried to gauge the distance through the trees.

“You offering to carry me?” Alex grinned and shook her head. “I’ll be fine, once we get back I’ll put some ice on it and let the doctor have a look”

*****

Forty minutes later she was sitting up on the doctor’s couch and gritting her teeth as he moved her lower leg. “Yep” she winced. “That hurts” she nodded and took a deep breath. Buffy helped her stand and gave her an arm to rest on while the doctor washed his hands and wrote some notes. “So, what is it?” Alex finally asked and limped slowly towards the chair in front of his desk.

“I think it’s your cruciate ligament” the doctor finally looked up at her. “I’ll be more certain once we’ve done the scan but it doesn’t seem too bad”

“Says you” Alex winced again and glanced sheepishly at Buffy. “You are remembering that I’m not super powered?” she checked.

“Perhaps you could remind me to use an anaesthetic if we get that far” the doctor grinned and turned round to lift a bottle of tablets from a locked cabinet behind his desk. “Take a couple of these every four hours and rest it as much as you can tonight, we’ll schedule the scan for tomorrow morning” he held the door open for them as Alex leaned on Buffy’s arm.

*****

“Alex?” Willow looked up in surprise as Alex leaned against the door frame. “I thought you’d gone straight home after training”

“Slight change of plan” Alex sighed and motioned for Buffy to help her into the office.

“What happened?” Willow said in a dangerously quiet voice, staring at Buffy.

Buffy shook her head and grinned at Alex as she made sure she was comfortable in the chair. “Give me a call in the morning if you want me to go with you” she waved and closed the door behind her.

“Willow” Alex said impatiently and waited for her to make eye contact. “I’ve hurt my knee and Buffy helped get me to the doctor’s” she held out her hand. “He’s going to do a scan tomorrow but he doesn’t think it’s anything too serious”

“What happened?” Willow asked in a slightly softer tone of voice.

“I jarred it yesterday and then twisted it running earlier” Alex shrugged. “It was already weakened from the last time so it was probably just waiting to happen again”

Willow bit her lip and returned to her own chair. “Are you in a lot of pain?” she didn’t dare make eye contact.

“The usual amount” Alex shrugged and watched the battle taking place on her girlfriend’s face. “The doctor gave me some painkillers so I should be OK till they can fix it”

“Do you want me to take you home?” Willow still wouldn’t look at her.

“No, it’s OK” Alex looked confused. “I know you’re busy, perhaps you could call Rupert and see if he could drop me off on his way home”

“Sure” Willow picked up the phone and explained the situation to him. “He’ll be down in ten minutes” she finally looked up. “Can I get you anything, some juice or tea?” her hands fluttered on the desk in front of her.

“No, I’m fine, you can get back to whatever you were doing, I don’t mind” Alex pointed to the computer screen. “What is it you’re working on anyway?” she asked, trying to get Willow back to normal.

“Just some figures for next year’s budgets” she shrugged and glanced at the clock on the wall behind Alex.

“Are you OK?” Alex checked, trying to work out what was causing Willow so much discomfort. “It’s just my knee, you don’t need to worry” she reassured her.

“I’m fine” Willow stood up abruptly. “I’ll just get you that juice” she nodded and headed down the corridor.

Alex watched her disappearing out of the door and frowned. Giles pushed the door further open five minutes later and found her sitting alone and fuming. “Your carriage awaits” he graciously offered her his arm and looked concerned when she stood up abruptly and swore under her breath. “Alex?” he asked and steadied her with his other hand.

“Can you just take me home please Rupert?” she blinked away the tears and swallowed.

“Are you sure, perhaps you should go back to the infirmary” he suggested and watched as she wiped her eyes with the back of her sleeve.

“No, please I just need to get home” she sniffled and started limping towards the door.

He looked around the office and frowned as he noticed Willow’s absence. However, he knew better than to start a discussion on such an obviously sensitive subject and concentrated on getting Alex to the car as gently as possible. He didn’t see Willow watching their progress from the corner of the corridor. Fifteen minutes later he had drawn up outside the apartment. He opened her door and helped her stand up. “Take your time” he advised, it was the first thing either of them had said since the office.

“Not running off anywhere soon” she assured him and limped forwards only to stop at the bottom of the stairs up to the apartment. “Damn” she took a deep breath and blew it out.

“I think my back can stand it” he smiled and held his arms out, waiting for her nod before bending down to pick her up. “OK?” he asked quietly as he bent down slightly to allow her to open the door with her key.

“Thanks” she took a few deep breaths before grinning up at him a little weakly. “That should confuse the neighbours” she suggested before leaning her head against the sofa cushion as he put her down.

He went into the kitchen and poured out two glasses of water, placing one near her and sipping from the other one. “You’ve got some painkillers?” he checked and nodded when she dumped a bottle on the table next to the water. “Do you want me to make you a snack or some dinner?” he motioned towards the kitchen.

“No, I’ll be fine” she sniffed and desperately tried not to cry in front of him. “Thanks for the help Rupert” she gave him an unsubtle brush off.

“If you’re sure” he shrugged. “You’ve got my number if you want anything else” he knew she wanted to be on her own. “Anything” he emphasised and pulled the front door closed behind him.

She waited till he’d made it down three stairs before she finally gave in to the sobs. Half an hour later the combination of the painkillers and her emotionally drained state combined to make her sleep. Her wristwatch alarm woke her three hours later and she jerked awake before cursing as she jolted her knee. Once the initial shock had faded she instinctively felt the emptiness around her and turned to take two more painkillers and some water. Pulling the cover from the back of the sofa she tried to get a little more comfortable. “Willow” she said quietly and wiped the new tears with a corner of the blanket.

*****

Willow trudged along the road, perfectly aware of the reasons behind her slow pace and reluctance to get home. She was so wrapped up in berating herself with her own thoughts that she didn’t hear him behind her till it was almost too late. She ducked and raised her hand instinctively, warding off the blow with a word and turning to face her attacker. “You picked the wrong person” she snarled at the vampire. “In the wrong town” she focussed her power and saw his eyes widen in fear as she grew the fireball in her hand. “On the wrong night” she threw it towards him and watched him writhe and scream within the flames for a few seconds before he dusted. Looking round she made sure that he didn’t have any friends. Gathering herself together she also checked to make sure none of the neighbours were showing any interest in the impromptu floor show. “Just like Sunnydale” she shook her head and turned for home with a little more speed than before. “Alex?” she asked as she opened the door on a dark and cold apartment. Taking a few steps she switched the lights on with a muttered phrase under her breath and saw her girlfriend lying crumpled on the sofa. The blanket was pulled up under her chin and her leg was lying at an awkward angle. She gently shook her shoulder. “Alex, honey, come on wake up” she continued for a moment or two before the sleeping form finally started to rouse. When the eyes started to flutter open she leaned down and kissed the furrowed brow gently before gathering her in her arms.

“Ow, ow, ow” Alex finally mumbled as she pulled back from the kiss. “Give me a minute” she grunted and slowly turned her leg to rest the knee on some cushions. “Hey, I’m not speaking to you” she pointed her finger at a sheepish looking Willow. “What the hell was wrong with you earlier?” she tried to sit up but slumped back when it proved too much.

“I’m sorry” Willow whispered and gently brushed Alex’s hair from her forehead. “I’ll explain later but everything’s fine now, I promise” she kissed her again and felt the familiar tingliness start in her lower back. “We need to stop” she sighed as she unhooked Alex’s hands from behind her neck.

“I thought I was dreaming” Alex smiled up sleepily and covered a yawn. “What time is it?” she reached for her watch. “Where have you been?” she started tt ant angry again.

“Honey” Willow put her fingers on Alex’s lips to stop the rant. “We need to get you undressed and into bed before we talk but I promise we will talk” she waited till Alex nodded and removed her hand.

“I think it’ll be easier if I just sleep here tonight and I’m too knackered to get undressed” she shrugged.

“Let me help you?” Willow stood up slowly and pulled the blanket from her. “You’ll get too cold out here”

“My knee’s too sore to think about changing, don’t worry, I’ll be fine here” Alex protested as Willow moved the coffee table a few feet to the left. “What are you doing, you can’t carry me” she protested.

“Trust me?” Willow turned back to her and licked her lips. “I promise I won’t hurt you” she met her gaze. “Remember the day I told you about being a witch?” she asked and flexed her fingers in front of her.

“Honey I’m doped on painkillers, I barely remember my name” Alex yawned again and shivered a little. “But I trust you” she smiled and held her hand out towards Willow.

“That’s my girl” Willow smiled and taking the hand she gently levitated Alex off the sofa and floated her towards the bedroom. “Don’t wriggle about” she admonished Alex and laughed. “But you don’t need to make like a plank of wood either, just relax” Once they were safely through the bedroom door she closed the curtains with a flick of her fingers and leaned down to kiss a still floaty Alex. “This might tickle a little” she whispered in her ear before standing back and concentrating for a moment.

“Tickle?” Alex asked and turned her head to watch her. “Why would it, oooohhhh” she turned back to stare at the ceiling and a lazy grin appeared on her face.

Willow smiled and shook her head as she concentrated on piling the clothes neatly cha chair as they removed themselves from Alex’s body. The jeans seemed to dissolve from around her leg and reform once they were on the chair. When she was down to her underwear Willow took her hand again and gently guided her down onto the bed.

“Hey, you forgot the rest” Alex pouted as Willow tucked the duvet under her chin.

“I’ll get the rest in a minute” Willow promised and went out to collect the painkillers and water from the other room. When she had placed them on Alex’s bedside table she turned and slowly started stripping off her own clothes the old fashioned way. “Now then, what is it you think I’ve missed” she asked in a sultry voice as she crawled under the covers and started to remove Alex’s bra with her hands.

Alex finally pulled back with a moan. “I’m really sorry but I’m too spaced and sore to do anything tonight” she ran her fingertips through Willow’s hair. “I’ll make it up to you when I’m better” she promised.

“I don’t want anything more tonight” Willow whispered in her ear. “I’m sorry for being weird earlier, I just don’t like to see you hurt”

“You won’t do anything to me while I’m sleeping?” Alex asked quietly and saw the pain flash across Willow’s face before she slowly shook her head.

“I promised, didn’t I?” she asked and leaned down to kiss her again. “Besides, can’t you feel the magic in your system from before?”

Alex stared at the ceiling for a minute. “Kind of like a low grade buzz?” she asked and looked towards Willow.

“Normally it’s buzzier but the painkillers will be dulling everything a bit” Willow assured her. “You’ll get that every time you’re involved in magic, it’s kind of an after taste.”

“I don’t remember it last time” Alex said then yawned. “Sorry” she apologised and snuggled under the duvet a little more.

“I think I remember giving you something else to think about when you woke up last time” Willow grinned sheepishly. “Anyway, I won’t be able to get away with that again so you need to rest and we’ll go see the doctor tomorrow and get you all sorted out the slow way”

“Sometimes you are so frustrating” Alex started before yawning again. “Let’s just get some sleep”

Willow lay awake with Alex in her arms for several hours, cursing her reactions to Alex’s injury and the vampire. Where Alex was concerned she had over-reacted at light speed and yet the vampire had practically typed her blood group before she had been aware of him. She vowed that she would spend some time with Buffy on patrol around the town, just to sharpen her reflexes again. Once she rid herself of the anger she allowed herself a short time to enjoy the power that was still bubbling near the surface. The attack had led to her instinctual response and she had used her powers when she returned home because they were still on tap. She had never thought she would ever be able to say it after Warren, but she felt good using her power again and tried to rationalise why she didn’t feel guilty about it. Evenly sly she gave up on the spirals of guilt and remorse that were threatening to surface and watched the sunrise lighten the window behind the curtain.

“Willow” Alex mumbled sleepily and tried to turn towards her.

“Oooh honey, don’t move around, I’ll come to you” Willow whispered and rolled into her arms, kissing the top of her head and feeling Alex’s hands slide round her waist. “Ssshhh, try to sleep” she mumbled and gently stroked her hair away from her forehead. Alex frowned for a moment before sighing and dropping back into a deep sleep. Willow smiled down at her, wandering what she had done to deserve to be so lucky twice in her life.

The alarm clock rang at six thirty and Willow quickly reached across to switch it off. “Sorry, I forgot to reset it last night” she giggled as Alex blinked sleepily up at her.

“You mean I’m not going for my run this morning?” she yawned and pulled the quilt back up.

“I don’t think so” Willow smiled and groaned as Alex’s hands roamed across her back before sliding down to rest on her butt. “You’re supposed to be resting” she reminded Alex before closing her eyes as they kissed for several minutes.

“Isn’t there something you can do with the floaty trick?” Alex finally asked, taking several deep breato gto gather herself.

“Floaty trick?” Willow mumbled as she nibbled on her earlobe.

“I mean, you know” Alex blushed and took several quick breaths as Willow kissed a particularly sensitive part of her neck. “You’re an intgentgent woman, how do we do this without me having to move my knee?” she bit her lip and moaned.

“Oh” Willow grinned and pulled away from the warm skin. “We don’t” she shrugged and slid out from under the duvet.

“Willllooooow” Alex growled and tried to sit up. “Get back here and finish what you started” she tried to sound threatening but realised it came out as pleading.

“There is nothing on this planet that would make me explain to Dr Crow how your knee got worse with bed rest” she shook her finger at her furious girlfriend. “When you’ve finished your breakfast and had some more painkillers you can get a floaty shower but that’s it”

“You are really in trouble now” Alex scowled at her. “Willow please?” she quickly changed to pathetic when the anger thing obviously wasn’t working.

Willow shook her head and pulled on a dressing gown. “Relax, I’ll bring breakfast through in a couple of minutes” Once she was safely out of Alex’s line of sight she leaned against the wall and blew out a deep breath. She knew that the lingering after effects of last night’s spells would leave her turned on for a few hours yet but she had forgotten how quickly that could be fanned with a few simple touches. Her head rolled to to rest against the wall and she stared at the ceiling for a moment before pushing herself towards the kitchen. “Breakfast is served, milady” she tried her best mock butler tones and carefully rested the tray across Alex’s lap. “Sorry for earlier” she whispered as she leaned down to kiss her before picking up the rose on the tray and handing it to her. “Forgive me?” she pouted a little and let her hair fall across her face.

“You are the most infuriating, stubborn, always right, gorgeous, sexy..” Alex ran out of epithets as her lips decided they liked kissing better.

*****

“So what’s the news doc?” Alex asked as she gingerly lowered herself into the chair in his office.

“As we suspected you’ve aggravated the cruciate ligament in your knee but it doesn’t require surgery” he finished writing some notes before putting the pen down and smiling up at her. “I’d give running a miss for a couple of months and work on strengthening the muscles around your knee” he suggested before looking at Willow. “I suppose you would agree with my diagnosis?” he smiled.

“I haven’t checked it out” Willow said quietly and kept eye contact with him.

“But I thought you two were…” he stalled on the correct phrase.

“We are but Alex wanted to seek professional medical advice” Willow quirked a smile, this was a phrase they often joked about over coffee.

“How on earth are you coping with that?” he asked in a surprised tone.

“I’m doing fine I guess” Alex shrugged before she noticed that he had directed the question to Willow. “Why would Willow struggle to cope?” she asked suspiciously.

He shook his head and turned towards Alex as Willow shrugged but kept silent. “Willow is the strongest healer amongst those practising magic in the compound” he began and leaned back in his chair. “As such she is very susceptible to the physical pain experienced by those around her. In most cases this is just a suggestion of a backache or a stubbed toe but for those who are particularly close to her the level of pain she experiences can reflect the amount of pain they are in” he explained circuitously.

“What the hell is he talking about?” Alex frowned and turned to look at Willow.

“In order to be a good healer you need to experience the pain for yourself” she shrugged and put her hand out to touch Alex’s. “When I’m working with someone I barely know then I can switch pai pain off when we’re done but it’s not so easy when I have closer links to the person”

“You mean you can feel the pain in your knee that I’m feeling in mine, right now?” Alex saw Willow shake her head.

“It’s not specific to the area, I just know you’re in pain because I can feel it here” Willow touched the palm of her hand to the centre of her chest. “It’s not so bad” she shrugged anrnedrned to the doctor. “So what do you suggest?” she asked, anxious to get the discussion back on conventional medical lines.

“I’d suggest a knee brace and crutches for a week or so and then physio to get the strength and flexibility back” he shrugged and turned to look seriously at Alex. “I don’t know why you’ve made this decision but you should reconsider, Willow can undoubtedly make this easier for you”

“You believe in healing with magic?” Alex asked, interested despite herself.

“I’m a man of science” he sniffed and saw Willow grinning out of the corner of his eye, this was his opening gambit on most of their arguments. “If this young lady can convince you that you are getting better by some mumbo jumbo chants and a few scented candles then who am I to gainsay her?” he stood up to open the door. “The placebo effect has long been an accepted part of the doctor’s arsenal and Willow is just one of it’s better proponents”

“I’ve missed our lunch break debates” Willow hugged him before turning to help Alex stand up. “We should get together next week, once the sports thing is over and done with” she helped Alex limp into a room across the corridor to pick up the crutches.

*****

“Willow I’ll be fine” Alex was getting exasperated as she caught sight of Giles out of the corner of her eye. “Rupert!” she shouted and saw him wave and walk towards them.

“Alex, how is the knee?” he asked.

“Fine” she shrugged and turned towarde tae tall woman standing beside Giles. “I’m sorry I didn’t realise you were busy”

“I’m sorry” Giles smiled and introduced everyone. “Ms Sinclair is the Principle at St Mark’s and we were just making the final preparations for their visit tomorrow”

“Nice to meet you” Willow shook her hand and sighed as Alex juggled the crutches to shake hands as well. “See what I mean?” she threw her hands in the air and shook her head.

“The doctor said I should rest but I don’t want to be cooped up in the apartment with everything happening this weekend” Alex explained sheepishly. “But I’m sure you’re not interested in our domestic disputes, we should let you get on”

“Actually we were just going for some lunch, would you care to join us?” Giles asked and Alex saw a pleading look in his eyes.

“If you’re sure we won’t be disturbing your business meeting?” Willow struggled to control the smile and nodded as Giles glared at her.

Ms Sinclair and Willow walked on ahead as Giles matched his pace to Alex. “Can you manage?” he asked as they came to the steps at the front entrance.

“Sir Galahad ready for another outing?” she grinned at him and nodded towards the others. “She’s a looker”

“Perhaps I should take the crutches away?” he suggested before looking over his shoulder to make sure they were alone. “She is, isn’t she?” he smiled bashfully.

They both watched the two women stop at the doors and turn back to make sure they were OK. Alex smiled and waved at Willow before concentrg ong on negotiating the steps. Giles stayed by her side but let her manage on her own.

*****

“So everything’s ready for tomorrow?” Alex asked the older woman as they settled themselves at a table.

“It would seem so” she nodded. “Mr Giles is very thorough” she smiled as she watched Giles and Willow carrying trays towards them.

“Salad?” Willow handed Alex her plate as Giles handed a similar plate to Ms Sinclair.

“You don’t look like you need to watch your figure” Ms Sinclair smiled at Alex and missed the serious looks cro crossed both Willow’s and Giles’ faces.

“I have a photo shoot in a little less than three weeks” Alex explained and caught the looks of the others. “And since exercise is out of the question I’ll need to be good over the holidays”

“Alex is a model” Willow explained and reflected that she still felt very strange telling people that about her girlfriend.

“Of course!” Ms Sinclair tapped the tabletop before rolling her eyes. “I knew I had seen you somewhere before, you are the young lady in the calendars”

Giles cleared his throat and saw Willow scowling. “You have one of Alex’s calendars?” he asked as the same thought crossed both of their minds.

“No, no” she shook her head and laughed. “It is one of the calendars most often confiscated from the dorm rooms” she grinned and patted Giles’ shoulder gently. “I think the form masters would prefer to keep them but the headmaster insists that they are all kept in his office” she winked at Alex.

Willow blew out a deep breath and unconsciously reached across for Alex’s free hand. The rest of the meal was taken up with discussions on the sporting events due to take place over the next two days.

*****

“She’s really nice” Willow whispered as Giles waved his visitor off. “And a hotty” she giggled and jabbed his ribs with her elbow. He winced and her hand flew to her face. “Sorry” she put her hand on his arm. “I forgot” she took a deep breath and flashed back to the exact moment she had heard his ribs break in the Magic Box.

“It’s OK” he assured her and stood a little straighter. “I think it’s as much old age as any lingering injury” he admitted. They walked across the parking lot towards his car. “I understand Alex is determined to be at the dance tomorrow night?” he changed the subject.

“Mmmm” Willow mumbled unhappily. “Apparently I’m not the only one who can do the resolve face” she shrugged before sighing. “It’s just difficult, I’m getting a bit twitchy around her because she won’t let me help her”

“Ah” he nodded and turned to lean against his car. “That’s what was wrong yesterday?” he suggested and turned slightly to avoid the sun as he watched her face.

“Yes and no” Willow acknowledged and turned to lean against the car next to him. “I could feel the pain but obviously couldn’t do anything” she admitted, flexing her fingers as she remembered the first rush of frustration as she’d realised the pain her lover was in. “But I also reacted pretty badly to her being hurt at all” she paused, trying to find the words to express such an amorphous feeling. “When Buffy helped her into the room I just got a sudden rush of panic that something had happened” she sighed noisily. “It only lasted for a second but it was like concentrated fear, pa fea fear, anger and did I mention fear, all rolled into one”

“You obviously have some unresolved feelings from Tara’s death” he suggested mildly and folded his arms.

“You think?” she turned on him and then closed her eyes and slumped against his arm. “I’m sorry, I’m just still a bit uptight” she leaned her head against his shoulder and sighed again.

“No, I’m sorry” he pulled her into his arms. “That was an inane remark, what I meant was that perhaps you should talk to the counsellor about your over- reaction and he may be able to help” he hugged her tightly before looking up at the students who were watching them. “You may also want to discuss the rumours with the counsellor” he suggested sheepishly and turned her round to see the spectators, all of whom managed to disappear quickly when they realised it was Willow.

“You only need to sing at an assembly and your reputation in this town will be set” she grinned up at his astonished face. “One of my nbourbours mentioned seeing you carrying Alex into the apartment last night” she admitted and laughed at his groan. “Just make sure the band pictures are more successfully hidden than last time” she leaned up to kiss him quickly. “I know the effect they had on one young student and I think we’ve proven I’m not unique”

He shook his head and watched her head towards her office before getting into his car and driving home.