![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Hey! I've been getting people asking me about this! All worried, like!
Hee! Kinda cool.
Anyway, sorry it took me so long to get this out - i don't know why it did... I mean, i know where i'm going with it, i was just...being lazy, i guess.
Sorry!!!
As always, you can find previous chapters here, and also at Scarecrow Horses.
Enjoy!
Will woke slowly, muzzy from a late night. Second night of a gig and it had been great - they'd stayed up and partied and taken a walk on the beach, having a blast. They were - where? Somewhere near L.A. He couldn't actually remember. He grinned to himself a little.
*Getting old, if I can't remember where I am. Not like I did any real partying.* And he hadn't partied, because... Will stretched a little, and then snuggled back down, curving himself closer around the furnace-warm body that was pressed against him, back to chest.
*Because getting wasted with Xander around is a bad idea. And I don't need to get drunk when I've got this.* Will ran his hand slowly up and down Xander's forearm - linked their fingers together and let his lips rest on the silky hair that was tangled over Xander's neck and shoulders.
Four months, since - everything. Four months since the hospital and Xander finally calling him Will. And they were finally sleeping together. Not sleeping together - just - sleeping, cuddling. Frustrating each other to no end but they both wanted to go slow - they were both a little scared. Xander was still prone to slipping, a little. And Will - was just afraid of hurting him, of pushing him too far, too fast. Xander still had that little-boy quality about him for all he was only three years younger than Will, and it made him feel protective and...
*Makes me wanna be responsible. Makes me wanna do it right.* Will had had his share of sex - you got a lot when you were in a band, even if the band wasn't famous. Groupies of both sexes waited outside your dressing-room door or by the van. Kids who just wanted to touch that other world for a while - wanted to be up there with the stars, even if it was all a sham.
But with Xander - he just wanted it to be...right. Wanted to make it perfect and Xander was nervous. He wasn't a virgin - or so he said - but he confused what he'd done with what his other had done, and he couldn't be sure.
*But I can wait,* Will thought, and inhaled deeply the warm scent of the boy - musk and sweat and smoke from the club - a little lavender oil and clean cotton. Too tired to shower last night so Xander had just pulled on a clean t-shirt and underwear and fallen into the bed, and Will the same except no shirt for him, because Xander was so warm, he didn't need to.
*Not even naked! Devon would laugh his ass off.* Devon did laugh, from time to time - he'd heard the stories and knew Will had his 'past'. But as funny as he thought the shrinking virgin routine was, he didn't say anything about it around Xander. Nobody did. They all took their cue from Will and his dad, and treated Xander as if his occasional slips into the world of vampires and demons was just - someone telling war-stories, or talking about a book they were writing. Even Tara - when Xander had grabbed her hand one night and pulled her into a hard hug - told her he was so glad she wasn't dead. She'd just - hugged him back, told him she was glad too. Will had left her a ten-dollar tip, that night.
Xander was getting better - he really was. He was really living in this world now - taking part and pushing the other stuff away. Coming to terms with it and letting it be what it was - dreams that seemed real, but weren't - couldn't be. He wasn't letting them take him over, anymore. He'd even looked up his foster-dad and gone for a visit. He'd made Giles and Will come, and they'd met in the park. The other man - Wood his name was, Robin Wood, a tall African-American man - had stood stiff and still, ex-military obvious in his bearing. And then he'd broken down and cried, and hugged Xander too him, called him son and told him how much he'd missed him - how he'd been trying to find him and help him but Social Services didn't know anything, and all the red tape, and how was he, was he okay? Xander had been on cloud nine - had remembered that man, and how much of a father he'd been. Had remembered love. They got together now - they were trying to bridge the years when Xander had just been gone, and Robin - was becoming part of the family.
Xander was twitching just a little - his breathing was getting uneven - and Will got up on one elbow, leaning over him. Rubbing his shoulder and chest, trying to calm him. He was having nightmare, Will was sure, and he wanted to try and get him out of it before it got bad.
"Xan? Love, wake up - it's okay. I'm right here, love it's -" There was a sudden, low rumbling - a bone-deep sound that hurt, somehow, and then everything in the room shuddered. The bed vibrated, slipping sideways, and the soda cans and assorted junk on the dresser juddered and rattled, skipping towards the edge.
"Christ! Xan - wake up! Xander, come on, we have to -" Xander jerked in his arms - lifted his head and stared, wide-eyed. Will scrambled awkwardly over him and hauled him out of the bed, dragging him towards the bathroom doorway.
"C'mon, Xan! It's a quake! Just a - little one - come on -" Xander stumbled after him, his hand clutching Will's in a bone-cracking grip and they both braced in the doorway, watching their toothbrushes and combs bounce to the floor - watching the plaster over the toilet crack and rain down a fine veil of dust.
A minute later and it was over. Will could hear the wailing of car alarms - fire and police sirens - and he took a deep, gulping breath, sagging back against the doorframe, his heart pounding painfully fast.
"Fuck! I don't think I'll ever fuckin' get used to that," he said, grinning over at Xander. And then not grinning, because Xander's face was white and he was sinking to the floor - he was shaking and Will felt the dread rise up - felt his stomach knot.
*Oh god - fuck - what now, what now -*
"Xander? What is it, love? It's all over now -" Will crouched down next to him, reaching out to touch his shoulder and Xander shuddered - lifted his eyes to Will's and they were wide and empty.
"It's gone," Xander whispered, and Will squeezed his shoulder.
"What's gone, love?"
"S-sunnydale. It's - gone, it's...just a hole, just a p-pit-" Will thought his heart stopped for a second, and then he was shaking his head, feeling the sweat break out all over him.
"No, it's not! Xander - c'mon love, just... It's not gone, Xan, that was just a tiny little quake, that wasn't anything."
"No - Will, no, it - it's gone, it's - they were fighting it, they were fighting something so - so terrible and Spike - oh god, oh god -" Xander curled down around himself, crying now, and Will had the desperate urge to shake him - to shout at him, and knew it wouldn't do a bit of good.
*Get yourself together, damnit! He doesn’t need you losing it, too! Nothing's wrong back home - they probably didn't even feel that, he's just - having a nightmare, not awake yet, he's - bloody fucking hell, it's not real!* But it felt real, or at least the fear did, squeezing his throat tight and making his stomach roil. Because despite everything it was still so real for Xander, and sometimes - sometimes deep inside, in the very darkest part of the night, Will thought it was real, too. And that scared the hell out of him.
"Xander? I'm - I'm gonna get the phone. Just don't move, okay? Don't move." Will scrambled up and across the floor - retrieved the cell from where it had fallen, cushioned by a tangle of dirty clothes. He hit memory one and got back to Xander fast, getting down on the floor next to him and pulling him close. Staying under the door-way just in case there were aftershocks. The phone rang once - twice - a third time.
*Fuck, I don't even know what time it is! He's probably asleep, damnit -*
"Hello?" His dad's voice, sleep-fuzzed and hesitant, and Will let out a shaky breath he hadn't even realized he'd been holding.
"Dad? Hey - dad - s-sorry I woke you up, I -" Will could hear his voice - trembling and small - and he knew he was probably freaking his dad out but -
But Xander was crying, damnit, Xander was shaking like a leaf and it was freaking Will out.
"Will? What's wrong? Is everything all right? Are you hurt?" Instant awareness - his dad's voice getting sharp and a little loud, and Will took a deep breath, calming himself down.
"Yeah, I - we're fine, everything's.... Listen, dad, I'm sorry. We just got - there was a quake. Just a little one. We just got woke up by it and - Well, Xander really - freaked out. He said - he said Sunnydale was gone, just a big - pit - and... I kinda lost it, too." There was long moment of silence on the other end, and then Will could hear rustling - could hear his dad getting up, probably, or at least sitting up in the bed.
"Bloody hell," Giles murmured. "But you're all right - the two of you are all right?"
"Yeah, we're fine. It was a small one. Just - you know - a little plaster dust in our hair." Beside him Xander shuddered, scrunching closer, and Will rested his cheek on Xander's hair - hugged him tight.
"It's okay, love - it's okay..." he whispered.
"What was that? You're all right. And - I'm fine as well. I understand - well, it's perfectly normal to be a little - overwhelmed. But I can assure you," his dad said, and there was an edge of laughter to his voice, "that Sunnydale is fine. I didn't feel a thing so I'm sure that - that your quake didn't even reach us."
"Yeah - okay. God, I'm sorry, I didn't meant to - to call you and freak you out, I was just -"
"It's all right, Will," Giles said softly. "I'm glad you called. Let - would it help if I spoke to Xander?"
Will thought about that for a moment. "Yeah - it probably would. Hang on, okay?" Will set the phone down and got his hands on Xander's shoulders - made him sit up. Xander's face was still shocked and pale - he was crying, but silent, so silent. Will wiped at his cheeks, smiling at him a little.
"Love - love, hey, it's okay. Xander? My dad's on the phone - he wants to talk to you. Sunnydale is fine, love - it really is. Would you - would you talk to him?" Xander stared at him - sniffed, and wiped his nose, and took a hard breath.
"I - I saw it -"
"I know you did, love. But - here is fine. Here's here, love. It was just a dream, yeah? Just another dream, love. Will you talk to him?" Will held out the phone and Xander looked at it - reached a trembling hand out and took it.
"G-giles?" Will watched him - watched him sag in shock and relief as his dad answered him.
"Okay - okay..." Xander whispered finally, and handed the phone back - leaned into Will's chest, shuddering.
"I guess I'd better go," Will said, and he could hear water running.
"All right - call me when - well, call me later. I'm going to watch the news - see how much damage was done. It might be difficult to get out of there for a couple of hours."
"Yeah. I'll call in a while. Thanks, dad," he said softly, and he heard his father sigh down the line.
"Of course, Will. Thank god you're all right. Do you - would you like me to come down? I can, if -"
Will laughed, and it was shaky and a little strained, but it felt good. "No, that's okay - we'll be okay. Be home soon, I hope... Love you, dad."
"I love you too, Will. Goodbye."
"'Bye." Will clicked the phone shut - put his arms around Xander and held him close. "Now tell me, love - tell me what happened."
Xander sniffed - sat up a little, wiping his eyes. "God. I was - I mean, he - the other one. He was - in the school. They -rebuilt it, you know? In the same damn - place. And - something was there - something...horrible. It was killing - all these people, it was - it was telling them lies and... It had you - it - I mean, it had Spike, it hurt him, it..." Xander took a deep breath and pushed his hands back through his hair, and Will put his hand on his knee, rubbing gently.
"It's okay. Just go slow, yeah?"
"Yeah," Xander said. "Anyway, there was just - these monsters. Everywhere. And - S-spike was the only one... He was the only one who could save them all. And I - he - was c-crying because... He had to die. He had to - God, Will - he's dead. Spike's dead, and Sunnydale is gone and - and I - he - he just wants to die, too." Xander looked up at him, pain and loss etched across his face, and Will felt a lurch of fear and horror go through him. That other - his double? His - self. Was dead. It was...creepy.
"Oh, love - I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." Will pulled Xander close for a hug - kissed his temple and they both leaned there for a minute.
"I - I don't know what to do, Will. He's so unhappy... He just wants to - to jump down into that crater... It's a fucking crater, Will! The whole damn city is just - gone, and Spike's gone and...everybody's crying but..."
"Maybe - maybe you can make him feel better? Maybe - I dunno... There's magic there, love - maybe he isn't really dead. Maybe... I mean, he's a vampire, right? Maybe he'll survive it." Xander was shaking his head but finally he stopped and sighed - wiped impatiently at his face.
"Yeah, maybe. I mean - they brought Buffy back. She was dead and Willow - resurrected her. So maybe..." He sighed again, and then raised a small smile. "Sorry I - I scared you. I didn't mean to."
"Oh, honey, it's okay. I don't care. Hell of a way to wake up, huh?" Will had to laugh - nerves and tension and left-over adrenalin from the quake and Xander laughed with him, the both of them holding on to each other and rocking back and forth until someone pounded on the door.
"Will! Hey, Will, Xander - you guys okay?" It was Oz and Devon and they pushed inside when Will opened the door, laughing as well, grabbing them and pounding them on the back - hugging. Oz and Devon were both in jeans, water on their arms and backs, hair wet.
"We were in the shower when - I mean, Jesus! Oz is fuckin' awesome but I never came so hard the building shook!" Devon said, and Will thought he'd hurt himself, he was laughing so hard. Xander blushed bright red but he was laughing too, hanging on Oz's shoulder while Oz just rolled his eyes, as unruffled as always.
"Christ, Devon - only you," Will choked out.
"Hey - I really did think it was Oz for a minute," Devon said, slinging his arm around the shorter man and kissing his cheek and Oz poked him in the side.
"You're such a dork," Oz said. "So you guys are okay, right? It wasn't too bad."
"Nah - we're fine. Just freaked us out a little. We were sleeping. Did you turn on the news? Think we'll be able to get out of here any time soon?" Will went over to the TV and turned it on, and they all settled on the beds to watch CNN - to see fire trucks and ambulances threading their way through the streets. Not bad, really - a small quake and some damage, but nothing horrific. Xander went to take a fast shower and came out brushing his teeth and Will got a shower too, dressing while some anchor-woman showed them the extent of the quake. And his dad was right, the shocks hadn't even been felt in Sunnydale. Xander ginned at him, pulling on clean jeans, and Will grinned back. Things were - just fine.
Also? I have a question...Currently, everything i write, fic-wise, i write in Word2002. I save everything as a .doc file. And i go in by hand and put the little code for italics because... I don't know how else to do it. IS there another way to do it without, possibly, downloading some client? I WAS given a tutorial - but i did it wrong or didn't understand and lost the YM archive it was in and... *hangs head in shame* and basically felt too dumb to ask again.
But i'm writing some stuff for Summer of Spike and they're longer and i do NOT wanna do the code by hand. So please, please, please, if anyone can help me... Do!!! :)
In other news? I got REALLY behind while i was away for the weekend. I AM catching my flist up, but i don't think i'll get everybody comment-wise. Rest assured, if you write fic that i usually read and commment on? I read it, i'm just scattered and - i loved it!
Hee.
If you want me to read something in particular and comment, just send me a link, yeah? And i will.
*hugs flist*
Too many talented friends, that's the problem!!
Hee! Kinda cool.
Anyway, sorry it took me so long to get this out - i don't know why it did... I mean, i know where i'm going with it, i was just...being lazy, i guess.
Sorry!!!
As always, you can find previous chapters here, and also at Scarecrow Horses.
Enjoy!
Will woke slowly, muzzy from a late night. Second night of a gig and it had been great - they'd stayed up and partied and taken a walk on the beach, having a blast. They were - where? Somewhere near L.A. He couldn't actually remember. He grinned to himself a little.
*Getting old, if I can't remember where I am. Not like I did any real partying.* And he hadn't partied, because... Will stretched a little, and then snuggled back down, curving himself closer around the furnace-warm body that was pressed against him, back to chest.
*Because getting wasted with Xander around is a bad idea. And I don't need to get drunk when I've got this.* Will ran his hand slowly up and down Xander's forearm - linked their fingers together and let his lips rest on the silky hair that was tangled over Xander's neck and shoulders.
Four months, since - everything. Four months since the hospital and Xander finally calling him Will. And they were finally sleeping together. Not sleeping together - just - sleeping, cuddling. Frustrating each other to no end but they both wanted to go slow - they were both a little scared. Xander was still prone to slipping, a little. And Will - was just afraid of hurting him, of pushing him too far, too fast. Xander still had that little-boy quality about him for all he was only three years younger than Will, and it made him feel protective and...
*Makes me wanna be responsible. Makes me wanna do it right.* Will had had his share of sex - you got a lot when you were in a band, even if the band wasn't famous. Groupies of both sexes waited outside your dressing-room door or by the van. Kids who just wanted to touch that other world for a while - wanted to be up there with the stars, even if it was all a sham.
But with Xander - he just wanted it to be...right. Wanted to make it perfect and Xander was nervous. He wasn't a virgin - or so he said - but he confused what he'd done with what his other had done, and he couldn't be sure.
*But I can wait,* Will thought, and inhaled deeply the warm scent of the boy - musk and sweat and smoke from the club - a little lavender oil and clean cotton. Too tired to shower last night so Xander had just pulled on a clean t-shirt and underwear and fallen into the bed, and Will the same except no shirt for him, because Xander was so warm, he didn't need to.
*Not even naked! Devon would laugh his ass off.* Devon did laugh, from time to time - he'd heard the stories and knew Will had his 'past'. But as funny as he thought the shrinking virgin routine was, he didn't say anything about it around Xander. Nobody did. They all took their cue from Will and his dad, and treated Xander as if his occasional slips into the world of vampires and demons was just - someone telling war-stories, or talking about a book they were writing. Even Tara - when Xander had grabbed her hand one night and pulled her into a hard hug - told her he was so glad she wasn't dead. She'd just - hugged him back, told him she was glad too. Will had left her a ten-dollar tip, that night.
Xander was getting better - he really was. He was really living in this world now - taking part and pushing the other stuff away. Coming to terms with it and letting it be what it was - dreams that seemed real, but weren't - couldn't be. He wasn't letting them take him over, anymore. He'd even looked up his foster-dad and gone for a visit. He'd made Giles and Will come, and they'd met in the park. The other man - Wood his name was, Robin Wood, a tall African-American man - had stood stiff and still, ex-military obvious in his bearing. And then he'd broken down and cried, and hugged Xander too him, called him son and told him how much he'd missed him - how he'd been trying to find him and help him but Social Services didn't know anything, and all the red tape, and how was he, was he okay? Xander had been on cloud nine - had remembered that man, and how much of a father he'd been. Had remembered love. They got together now - they were trying to bridge the years when Xander had just been gone, and Robin - was becoming part of the family.
Xander was twitching just a little - his breathing was getting uneven - and Will got up on one elbow, leaning over him. Rubbing his shoulder and chest, trying to calm him. He was having nightmare, Will was sure, and he wanted to try and get him out of it before it got bad.
"Xan? Love, wake up - it's okay. I'm right here, love it's -" There was a sudden, low rumbling - a bone-deep sound that hurt, somehow, and then everything in the room shuddered. The bed vibrated, slipping sideways, and the soda cans and assorted junk on the dresser juddered and rattled, skipping towards the edge.
"Christ! Xan - wake up! Xander, come on, we have to -" Xander jerked in his arms - lifted his head and stared, wide-eyed. Will scrambled awkwardly over him and hauled him out of the bed, dragging him towards the bathroom doorway.
"C'mon, Xan! It's a quake! Just a - little one - come on -" Xander stumbled after him, his hand clutching Will's in a bone-cracking grip and they both braced in the doorway, watching their toothbrushes and combs bounce to the floor - watching the plaster over the toilet crack and rain down a fine veil of dust.
A minute later and it was over. Will could hear the wailing of car alarms - fire and police sirens - and he took a deep, gulping breath, sagging back against the doorframe, his heart pounding painfully fast.
"Fuck! I don't think I'll ever fuckin' get used to that," he said, grinning over at Xander. And then not grinning, because Xander's face was white and he was sinking to the floor - he was shaking and Will felt the dread rise up - felt his stomach knot.
*Oh god - fuck - what now, what now -*
"Xander? What is it, love? It's all over now -" Will crouched down next to him, reaching out to touch his shoulder and Xander shuddered - lifted his eyes to Will's and they were wide and empty.
"It's gone," Xander whispered, and Will squeezed his shoulder.
"What's gone, love?"
"S-sunnydale. It's - gone, it's...just a hole, just a p-pit-" Will thought his heart stopped for a second, and then he was shaking his head, feeling the sweat break out all over him.
"No, it's not! Xander - c'mon love, just... It's not gone, Xan, that was just a tiny little quake, that wasn't anything."
"No - Will, no, it - it's gone, it's - they were fighting it, they were fighting something so - so terrible and Spike - oh god, oh god -" Xander curled down around himself, crying now, and Will had the desperate urge to shake him - to shout at him, and knew it wouldn't do a bit of good.
*Get yourself together, damnit! He doesn’t need you losing it, too! Nothing's wrong back home - they probably didn't even feel that, he's just - having a nightmare, not awake yet, he's - bloody fucking hell, it's not real!* But it felt real, or at least the fear did, squeezing his throat tight and making his stomach roil. Because despite everything it was still so real for Xander, and sometimes - sometimes deep inside, in the very darkest part of the night, Will thought it was real, too. And that scared the hell out of him.
"Xander? I'm - I'm gonna get the phone. Just don't move, okay? Don't move." Will scrambled up and across the floor - retrieved the cell from where it had fallen, cushioned by a tangle of dirty clothes. He hit memory one and got back to Xander fast, getting down on the floor next to him and pulling him close. Staying under the door-way just in case there were aftershocks. The phone rang once - twice - a third time.
*Fuck, I don't even know what time it is! He's probably asleep, damnit -*
"Hello?" His dad's voice, sleep-fuzzed and hesitant, and Will let out a shaky breath he hadn't even realized he'd been holding.
"Dad? Hey - dad - s-sorry I woke you up, I -" Will could hear his voice - trembling and small - and he knew he was probably freaking his dad out but -
But Xander was crying, damnit, Xander was shaking like a leaf and it was freaking Will out.
"Will? What's wrong? Is everything all right? Are you hurt?" Instant awareness - his dad's voice getting sharp and a little loud, and Will took a deep breath, calming himself down.
"Yeah, I - we're fine, everything's.... Listen, dad, I'm sorry. We just got - there was a quake. Just a little one. We just got woke up by it and - Well, Xander really - freaked out. He said - he said Sunnydale was gone, just a big - pit - and... I kinda lost it, too." There was long moment of silence on the other end, and then Will could hear rustling - could hear his dad getting up, probably, or at least sitting up in the bed.
"Bloody hell," Giles murmured. "But you're all right - the two of you are all right?"
"Yeah, we're fine. It was a small one. Just - you know - a little plaster dust in our hair." Beside him Xander shuddered, scrunching closer, and Will rested his cheek on Xander's hair - hugged him tight.
"It's okay, love - it's okay..." he whispered.
"What was that? You're all right. And - I'm fine as well. I understand - well, it's perfectly normal to be a little - overwhelmed. But I can assure you," his dad said, and there was an edge of laughter to his voice, "that Sunnydale is fine. I didn't feel a thing so I'm sure that - that your quake didn't even reach us."
"Yeah - okay. God, I'm sorry, I didn't meant to - to call you and freak you out, I was just -"
"It's all right, Will," Giles said softly. "I'm glad you called. Let - would it help if I spoke to Xander?"
Will thought about that for a moment. "Yeah - it probably would. Hang on, okay?" Will set the phone down and got his hands on Xander's shoulders - made him sit up. Xander's face was still shocked and pale - he was crying, but silent, so silent. Will wiped at his cheeks, smiling at him a little.
"Love - love, hey, it's okay. Xander? My dad's on the phone - he wants to talk to you. Sunnydale is fine, love - it really is. Would you - would you talk to him?" Xander stared at him - sniffed, and wiped his nose, and took a hard breath.
"I - I saw it -"
"I know you did, love. But - here is fine. Here's here, love. It was just a dream, yeah? Just another dream, love. Will you talk to him?" Will held out the phone and Xander looked at it - reached a trembling hand out and took it.
"G-giles?" Will watched him - watched him sag in shock and relief as his dad answered him.
"Okay - okay..." Xander whispered finally, and handed the phone back - leaned into Will's chest, shuddering.
"I guess I'd better go," Will said, and he could hear water running.
"All right - call me when - well, call me later. I'm going to watch the news - see how much damage was done. It might be difficult to get out of there for a couple of hours."
"Yeah. I'll call in a while. Thanks, dad," he said softly, and he heard his father sigh down the line.
"Of course, Will. Thank god you're all right. Do you - would you like me to come down? I can, if -"
Will laughed, and it was shaky and a little strained, but it felt good. "No, that's okay - we'll be okay. Be home soon, I hope... Love you, dad."
"I love you too, Will. Goodbye."
"'Bye." Will clicked the phone shut - put his arms around Xander and held him close. "Now tell me, love - tell me what happened."
Xander sniffed - sat up a little, wiping his eyes. "God. I was - I mean, he - the other one. He was - in the school. They -rebuilt it, you know? In the same damn - place. And - something was there - something...horrible. It was killing - all these people, it was - it was telling them lies and... It had you - it - I mean, it had Spike, it hurt him, it..." Xander took a deep breath and pushed his hands back through his hair, and Will put his hand on his knee, rubbing gently.
"It's okay. Just go slow, yeah?"
"Yeah," Xander said. "Anyway, there was just - these monsters. Everywhere. And - S-spike was the only one... He was the only one who could save them all. And I - he - was c-crying because... He had to die. He had to - God, Will - he's dead. Spike's dead, and Sunnydale is gone and - and I - he - he just wants to die, too." Xander looked up at him, pain and loss etched across his face, and Will felt a lurch of fear and horror go through him. That other - his double? His - self. Was dead. It was...creepy.
"Oh, love - I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." Will pulled Xander close for a hug - kissed his temple and they both leaned there for a minute.
"I - I don't know what to do, Will. He's so unhappy... He just wants to - to jump down into that crater... It's a fucking crater, Will! The whole damn city is just - gone, and Spike's gone and...everybody's crying but..."
"Maybe - maybe you can make him feel better? Maybe - I dunno... There's magic there, love - maybe he isn't really dead. Maybe... I mean, he's a vampire, right? Maybe he'll survive it." Xander was shaking his head but finally he stopped and sighed - wiped impatiently at his face.
"Yeah, maybe. I mean - they brought Buffy back. She was dead and Willow - resurrected her. So maybe..." He sighed again, and then raised a small smile. "Sorry I - I scared you. I didn't mean to."
"Oh, honey, it's okay. I don't care. Hell of a way to wake up, huh?" Will had to laugh - nerves and tension and left-over adrenalin from the quake and Xander laughed with him, the both of them holding on to each other and rocking back and forth until someone pounded on the door.
"Will! Hey, Will, Xander - you guys okay?" It was Oz and Devon and they pushed inside when Will opened the door, laughing as well, grabbing them and pounding them on the back - hugging. Oz and Devon were both in jeans, water on their arms and backs, hair wet.
"We were in the shower when - I mean, Jesus! Oz is fuckin' awesome but I never came so hard the building shook!" Devon said, and Will thought he'd hurt himself, he was laughing so hard. Xander blushed bright red but he was laughing too, hanging on Oz's shoulder while Oz just rolled his eyes, as unruffled as always.
"Christ, Devon - only you," Will choked out.
"Hey - I really did think it was Oz for a minute," Devon said, slinging his arm around the shorter man and kissing his cheek and Oz poked him in the side.
"You're such a dork," Oz said. "So you guys are okay, right? It wasn't too bad."
"Nah - we're fine. Just freaked us out a little. We were sleeping. Did you turn on the news? Think we'll be able to get out of here any time soon?" Will went over to the TV and turned it on, and they all settled on the beds to watch CNN - to see fire trucks and ambulances threading their way through the streets. Not bad, really - a small quake and some damage, but nothing horrific. Xander went to take a fast shower and came out brushing his teeth and Will got a shower too, dressing while some anchor-woman showed them the extent of the quake. And his dad was right, the shocks hadn't even been felt in Sunnydale. Xander ginned at him, pulling on clean jeans, and Will grinned back. Things were - just fine.
Also? I have a question...Currently, everything i write, fic-wise, i write in Word2002. I save everything as a .doc file. And i go in by hand and put the little code for italics because... I don't know how else to do it. IS there another way to do it without, possibly, downloading some client? I WAS given a tutorial - but i did it wrong or didn't understand and lost the YM archive it was in and... *hangs head in shame* and basically felt too dumb to ask again.
But i'm writing some stuff for Summer of Spike and they're longer and i do NOT wanna do the code by hand. So please, please, please, if anyone can help me... Do!!! :)
In other news? I got REALLY behind while i was away for the weekend. I AM catching my flist up, but i don't think i'll get everybody comment-wise. Rest assured, if you write fic that i usually read and commment on? I read it, i'm just scattered and - i loved it!
Hee.
If you want me to read something in particular and comment, just send me a link, yeah? And i will.
*hugs flist*
Too many talented friends, that's the problem!!
no subject
no subject
It's all about the sex with you!
*snicker*
We'll see....
:)
no subject
Ooh you devious thing you, an earthquake just as Xander has a nightmare about Sunnydale disappearing, you sneaky thing you.
Talk about did the earth move for you?! Oz and Devon that was hilarious *snicker*
very nice chapter, my eyes thank you ;)
*hugs*
no subject
Devious? Moi?
*snerk*
Oh, i'm glad for your...eyes. :)
Hehe.
no subject
In other news--Yay! More 'Hero'!
And what a chapter!
They cuddle at night but they haven't had sex yet, aaaaaaaw.
And Xander's getting better! Whee!
This is so sweet, with an underlying level of minor angst, cos Xander's not quite better yet and other!Xander hs to be made happy before our Xander can get better, I think.
Yay!
no subject
Gotta 'splain slooowly, i'm not up on this stuff.
And i'm glad you liked the chapter!
I think only one to go, really. This is'nt going to be as long as 'Credence', that's for sure...
And...the other Xander... Well...wait and see! Hehe.
I know. Eeevol.
:)
no subject
Alternatively you can use the Find > Replace and put the relevant codes in the relevant boxes. Then hit Replace All and it does it for you. IIRC you'll need to do it at least twice, once for opening quote marks and once for closing quote marks. Maybe also for '--' and '...'.
no subject
BUT.
It's not punctuation i'm worried about, it's just the code for italics that i would like to have put in automatically.
Somehow.
*sigh*
no subject
no subject
:)
*sigh*
Might have to use a client. I don't WANT to use a client!
Why? I don't know. I just don't.
I'm a dork, what can i say.
no subject
To answer your question, in the File menu, there should be an option to Save as Web Page, or maybe Save as HTML. The only problem is that Word writes nasty code, so you may be spending just as much time cleaning it up as you would hand coding it.
I usually hand code, but one trick I've learned is to take full advantage of Word's Find and Replace functions. You can search for all italics text, which makes it easy to find out where you need to stick in i-tags, and you can insert p-tags around double paragraph marks.
no subject
Hrmmmm...
Word is so annoying.
*sigh*
I handcode when i do my final 'tweak', getting something ready to post. That works okay but...tedious, you know?
Thanks for the hint, though, and yeah - NASTY code every-fucking-where.
Blah.
no subject
i'm no help w/ computer stuff. sorry.
no subject
Thank you!
Glad you liked.
no subject
As for coding, I usually save mine as a webpage from word. I'll go back in later and use Dreamweaver to take out the Word specific coding (because the code Word saves in isn't exactly proper HTML coding), but that's just an extra step. You can do everything with Word.
I could swear the ability to save as a webpage is a plugin, but I'm not sure. It was with my previous version, so I'm not sure if it's something that comes with Word 2002 (the one I'm currently using).
Also, if I'm not mistaken the newest version of Semagic (LJ client) has a "what you see is what you get" editor built-in that should allow you to cut and paste from word and still retain the italics and everything.
no subject
I'm glad you liked it... Don't be suspicious! I'm not eeevol.
Well, not terribly.
You can save stuff in word as a webpage and a filtered webpage but BOTH put in an ungodly amount of extra code that is just...outrageous.
Hrmmm...Cat got Semagic for me, and i'm resisting - i hate having tons of 'stuff' on my 'puter... But, we'll see.
Thanks!
no subject
Bet you're not human. Or something.
no subject
Ummmm. Hey.
I am so human!
BWAAAAhahhahahahaa.
*ahem*
I take it you like?
:)
Lurve the icon.
no subject
"Credence" doesn't give me the same sense of dread, despite Xander's being sucked into the darkness, because I suspect that Xander is more than capable of giving that Spike a good "wise up!" alongside the head.
"Changes"--I so want to get the bois out of Sunnydale, but I know it's not going to happen, so I watch what happens by peeking through my metaphorical fingers. At least that Xander is strong and loved and secure. Xander and Spike have each other's backs, which is comforting.
no subject
Seriously? Really? Wow.
K.
*ponders*
I think you give me too much credit for deep thinking, or something. :)
Hee - 'wise up' alongside the head!
And hey! Changes is SO not angsty!
Not very angsty!
Okay, it'll get bad but it'll be all GOOD.
I never let my bois suffer like SOME writers do. There will be no perma-angst in my world!!
:)
no subject
Which is why I have your stuff bookmarked and occasionally on my Palm Pilot.
no subject
That just makes my day.
:)
no subject
no subject
no subject
Glad you liked it.
:)
Hero ch. 7
Marie
Re: Hero ch. 7
More soon, promise!
:)
no subject
no subject
Very good.
:)
no subject
no subject
Thanks, though - i'm glad you like it!
*bounce*
Picture!!!
*bounce bounce*
no subject
Oh, and Hello! ::waves:: I became desperately addicted to your fic from The Attic, and followed you to back to Scarecrow Horses. LJ was just the next step. :) ::evil laughter:: now you'll never get rid of me.
no subject
Hehe.
Actually, that's kind of cool.
:)
Thanks for the comment - glad you liked it!
More soon - this is 'bout done...
And hey! So long as you don't go all Hinkley on me, it's cool!
:)
no subject
Where do I start? I just love the Will in this, he's exactly the Will I always imagined, the way I thought he would grow up and learn to deal with life if Dru hadn't come along. And damn it, but how do you DO this? I never thought I would like crazy Xander either, but you've added that hint of doubt that makes me think that he's not crazy at all, maybe he's the only sane one out there! And damn but Will loves him and he loves Will and it's so convincing I want to change the way the show went!
Everyone's voices were just perfect, and in particular I liked your take on Devon because he's rarely written as anything more than a crack head and you've really brought out a personality here. The way you paced the interaction between Will and Xander was perfect too, because (as much as I hate to say it) they couldn't just jump into the smut fest like I normally want them to!
*sniff sniff* You're just so frickin good! I'm waiting impatiently for all your fic to just hurry up and write itself already! I started out reading just one story, and it was so good that now I think I might be reading them all, and it's just a giant conspiracy to keep me from studying my oh so facinating law books and passing my exams...if only they had slash in law books. *drools*
But just one more thing, I noticed a couple minor your/you're their/they're mishaps, and though I personally have no qualms with it whatsoever, just if you feel like it or you need one I would love to beta this or anything else for you. Because you rock my world!
no subject
That is some lovely, lovely feedback up there. I mean, totally delightful.
Thank you so very, very much!!
I love to write crazy - hence my love of Dru - but i know that it's soooo easy to make crazy a turn off. And...Devon! Has to have SOME redeeming qualities or why would Oz hang with him?
I'm just...blown away by your comments - i'm always a little worried that i'm putting too much MarySue into one character or another, but seems like this is working so i guess i'm safe!
Who needs law books! We don't need anymore lawyers! Put down the books and back away!! *fic is so much more fun*!!
'Hero' is totally unbeta'd except for what Word manages to catch. If you'd like to, you could beta Hero for me - i'd like it to be 'better', you know? And i'm finishing up the last chapter sometime tonight - if you could beta it in a day or so, i'd send it along... *tempt tempt*
Email what you think.
changeling at catbones dot com
no subject
Fic is WAY better than law books, and you know, since we don't need any more lawyers...
*throws law books away and runs around reading all the fic in the world*
Do we need more journalists? Cus technically, I need to be reading journalism books too! :P
no subject
Yes! Got another one!!
*adds spandypants to pile of students seduced into the world of sin*
Ummmmm....nah. Who needs news? It's all bad.
We need more smut!
:)
no subject
Journalism is over-rated any way, and you're so right! Who needs news, when you can write for trashy women's magazines? Who I ask you? And that could totally work out with the smut...
no subject
Not AGAINST you...just, you know, wanting to make your life a fuller and richer place!
:)
More trashy women's magazines with teh pretty and teh pr0n!!