Willow paused at the airport gate, turning back to looked at the young woman who had driven her there from the reservation. "Thank you," she smiled, reddish brown hair falling into her eyes as she fidgeted with her bag. "No, thank you," Michelle smiled at her gently, her tanned hand resting on Willow's shoulder. "I don't know how we would have handled Raven otherwise," she said, glossy black hair flowing in a wave down her back. "You would have come up with something," Willow looked away. Looking down at her with a compassionate look Michelle asked, "Or sleeping together still bothers you, doesn't it?" Willow's face went beet red. The two of them had held an unofficial victory celebration in Michelle's home the night after they had defeated Raven, along with a few young men and women who knew Michelle's secret. Drinks had flowed freely, herbal smokes had come out and when Willow had been sufficiently mellow Michelle had made her move. Drawing Willow into the bedroom as the part continued in the living room Michelle had boldly kissed the smaller woman. Mildly surprised by her own passionate response they had collapsed together onto the bed, soon lost to a night of wild lovemaking. The next morning Willow was feeling terribly guilty, while Michelle treated it all quite casually. "I guess I'm old fashioned," Willow admitted, blushing. Michelle checked the clock, "I think we have some time till your plane comes, let's talk." Drawing her over to some nearby chairs she sat them both down, "I hate to ask, but how many girlfriends have you had?" "Two," Willow confessed uncomfortably, "along with a few unrequited crushes." Michelle looked a bit started, but she recovered quickly. "After that night," she said with amusement, "I figured you were a lot more experienced." With a thoughtful look, "I wonder what you'll be like with practice?" "Michelle!" Willow protested with a blush. "Sorry," Michelle gave her a unrepentant smile. A bit more seriously she said, "Once you start to date a bit more, you'll find out that women expect different things from relationships." Tentatively Willow asked, "Like?" "God," Michelle chuckled, "women are so various! They might want a serious commitment, a casual fling, fuckbuddies or even just a one night stand." "Fuckbuddies?" Willow repeated with a squeak in her voice. "You have a lot to learn," Michelle squeezed her hand, "and I hope you'll have a fun time doing it. Just try not to get your heart broken too many times while you're doing it, huh?" "I'll try," Willow said, still blushing a bit. The announcement for her flight was made and she got up, "I gotta go." Michelle walked her to the gate, "Thank you, again." Gently she drew Willow close and kissed her on the lips, "If you ever come out here again stop on by, I'd love to see you." "I will," the fiercely blushing Willow promised before turning away, heading up the boarding tube to her plane. Even a hour or so later as the plane touched down in Seattle, Washington, the memory of that kiss lingered, tingling on her lips. A fine misty rain fell on the city, the sprawling buildings and port so different from Sunnydale. Part of why Willow had chosen to live in this city was because of that difference, trying to get away from her past and everything she had left behind. She had settled here not long after her case with Angel and his partners, though she stayed on the road much of the year. The bus ride to her apartment was mercifully short, and after dropping her bag at the front door Willow all but collapsed on her bed for a much needed rest. Waking up a few hours later she padded through the apartment in a battered old set of sweatpants, taking note of what she needed to clean and to stock up on. Sitting down at her desk Willow turned on her computer then called up her email program, checking for new messages. Dealing with business first Willow saw Giles had sent her a message asking about her case in the midwest involving a hydra, while several other emails from Slayers waited to be answered. In part of a deal she made with the Watcher's Council Willow received funds from them in return for being a magical troubleshooter and consultant Finishing composing replies she opened up the other email, several of which were from friends. Xander had sent her a long message about what was going on with him, as well as comments from many of the younger Slayers there. Dawn had broken her silence at last, thankfully, and Willow was amused to see how her like was going. Giles, it seemed, had more or less adopted her and she was annoyed by all the restrictions, in a fond sort of way. Sadly there was nothing from Kennedy, despite all her protests that they would stay friends even after they broke up. 'I broke up with her,' Willow reminded herself firmly, 'it's understandable that she'd not be interested in talking to me.' Still, she wrote a separate email to Kennedy even as she answered all her friends messages, finally ending up with only one unopened piece of mail. Clicking it open Willow read the message quickly, soon blinking in surprise. "In response to you submission we are very interested in the quality of your work... would like to discuss contract details.. please reply soonest!" "The erotica contest," Willow blurted, her brain finally figuring out what was going on. A few weeks ago Willow had been feeling particularly... needy, and in her frustration began typing on her computer. It hadn't taken her long to pour out her fantasies onto paper, not to mention more of her wilder impulses, but originally she had no intention of doing anything else with it. However while visiting a local coffee shop she had seen the notice for a erotica contest and on a lark sent the novel in under a pseudonym, not expecting anything to come of it. "Thank god I came up with a fake name," Willow muttered, composing a reply. She'd feel much better about having a book of erotica out under the name 'Willow Rosebloom' than with her real name on the cover. "And that depends on if they publish it or not," she added. Making this sort of deal would certainly help, as the Watcher's Council money barely let her break even. Rent of the apartment, food and magical supplies ate up a lot of her money, not to mention transportation costs. Buying a car was out of the question, with the base cost, insurance and gas, and most other methods of transport cost too. "Of course I could try magic to get around," Willow got up, stretching after she shut down her email, "but that's dangerous, too." Riding a broom was just a fairy tale, but there were other methods of magic transportation. However, teleporting or any other transport spell ate up a lot of mystical energy and were very visible. Early in her travels Willow had learned there were creatures that hunted magic users, and large energy use spells drew them in like bugs to a lamp. 'Not that I can't handle them,' Willow added mentally, 'but why take chances?' Looking up at the clock Willow decided she had enough time to do some shopping. Changing to a nice set of slacks and collecting her umbrella she took the elevator down to the lobby, then headed out into the rain. Her building was in a older part of town, and among the cafes and stores were a few more unusual shops. Nestled in between a gay and lesbian book store and a gallery was a magic shop, much like the one back in Sunnydale. "I see you're back in town," Matt smiled as she came in, the handsome young man almost automatically charming. Thankfully the blonde was also gay, his manly charms really focused on any guys who came in. "Guess I am," Willow agreed. Matt was a terrible gossip, so she was very careful what to tell him, but he was also a great source of information. Moving around the store Willow collected her supplies then went up to the desk, "Anything news?" Cheerfully Matt filled her in on any changes in the couples of the magical community, then gave her a quick overview of what else was going on. Even as he chattered away he rang up her order, took money and made change. "So," he said as he bagged her herbs and other ingredients, "did you get lucky why you were gone?" "Of course not," Willow protested, but a flush was coming up on her cheeks. "You did," Matt laughed, "ooh, tell Uncle Matt!" "There's nothing to tell," Willow blushed harder. "Yes there is," Matt grinned. "If you don't," he threatened, "I'll tell all the gay girls in town you're single and looking for a partner." "You wouldn't," Willow visibly paled, knowing how many lesbians came into this shop for various reasons, from serious magic to new age wackos. Matt purred, "Try me." With a sigh Willow gave in, quickly coming up with an edited version of what happened. "It happened in the southwest..."
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