Shadows
in the West Wing
Author: Saileyn
[email protected]
Title: Shadows
in the West Wing
Author: Saileyn
Status: 1 - 4 of ? (Unfinished)
Pairing: Willow/Spike (as per usual)
Rating: PG-15.. for now
Summary: The Scooby gang in a completely different universe, where Spike
meets Willow in the 1800's
Disclaimer: In simple/Tarzan terms: Joss own Buffy. Mya people own
lyrics. I not own either.
Feedback: Do I even have
to ask? I do?? Ok, pretty please? Why you ask? It makes my day just that little
bit brighter. Makes me write more too...
Author�s Note: There's about a million period fics like this one
around and I thought I'd throw my own one out into the mix. But this one's a
little different, well I hope anyway. And I don't like Buffy much, so that's why
she's well.. a spoilt little brat. Thanks to everyone who's given me feedback
thus far...
Part
1
Willow tucked her red hair
behind her ears as she crossed the courtyard near the west wing of the manor
house. Walking past here always gave her the chills, like a thousand cold eyes
were watching as the wind rustled through the trees and the abandoned section of
the house. It was always dark and gloomy in that courtyard but Willow managed to
gather her courage and her skirts to hurry past, back into the bright sunlight.
Willow breathed a small sigh of relief as she once again survived yet another
treacherous crossing of the courtyard. She weaved her was through the familiar
path between the trees and shrubs until she was finally at her destination, the
rose gardens.
Settling down on a low bench
amongst the roses, Willow pulled a small worn book from her pockets. She
remembered the first time she had found the small garden, quite by accident. It
was her first week as a serving maid at the manor and she was requested to go
and find the young master of the household. She had looked everywhere and
inadvertently gotten lost. After wandering around aimlessly she had crossed
through the gardens, admiring the flowers as she went by and entered the
courtyard. When she arrived back at the house she had found the young master
Alexander sitting on the front steps awaiting her arrival. He had bowed to her
and apologised for being the cause of such bother and headed back into the house
with a smile. She had commented to the cook about the rose gardens and was told
that no such thing existed. After then Willow had never again mentioned the
little rose garden and kept it as her own personal hideaway. But she knew that
someone else must have known about it because ever since then it was always well
kept and watered.
The mistress of the house,
Joyce Roberts was a kind-hearted woman. As part of the running of the household
she allowed every servant to have at least an hour off every afternoon. These
breaks were staggered so that there was always someone around for assistance if
need be. Willow was amazed at this woman's generosity as staff at any other
household could never dream of such luxury. The staff at the house were always a
pleasure to work with, Jenny the cook had taken Willow under her wing the moment
she stepped into the house. Willow now saw Jenny as the mother she never had,
seeing as she was orphaned at the age of twelve. Jenny was always filled with
wild fairy stories from her homeland about gypsies and curses. Willow had
already learned to read and write English so Jenny was teaching her to speak
Latin some evenings, claiming that it was an important language for someone such
as Willow to learn.
As well as teaching Willow to
speak Latin, Jenny was also teaching another serving maid, Anya proper decorum.
Willow smiled remembering how the young maid was always getting into trouble for
speaking out of place and Joyce had kindly advised that she learn some manners
if she still wanted her job at the house. She had become close friends with Anya
as there weren't many other servants their age. Willow was quite fond of the
girl's bluntness and humour and didn't know what she would do without her. Both
girls had also been friends with the young master Alexander. Even though it was
highly inappropriate for them to even speak with one another, Alexander has
always insisted that they were stupid rules and done so anyway. He also insisted
that everyone dear to him call him Xander, that included Willow and Anya. Willow
even suspected that Anya had a crush on Xander but never spoke her mind on the
matter.
Anya having a crush on Xander
would be quite unacceptable seeing as he was already betrothed to Miss Cordelia.
Miss Cordelia's father Wesley Windnum-Price was a close friend with Giles
Roberts, master of the household. In true fact Xander hated the girl, saying
that she was too stuck up and acted exactly like his spoilt brat of a sister
Buffy. Willow had to agree with him there on that point Buffy had given Willow a
headache from the first moment she set foot in the house. Buffy always wanted to
be waited on hand and foot and couldn't do anything for herself. The thought of
Buffy always made her feel ill. Willow decided to turn her attention away from
the spoilt Buffy and back to the small book of poetry she had found lying about.
Willow had no idea where the
small book had come from and had found it lying in a garden one morning while
she was helping Anya with the washing. She had shown Jenny who simply said,
'Finders keepers'. Willow loved the poetry that was written inside, it always
managed to cheer her up and chase any thought even remotely related to Buffy far
away. The poet's warm words and emotions caught her heart and she imagined that
the words were written for her. She knew very well that they weren't but it
still made her feel special anyway. The constant use of the word 'effulgent' by
the poet always made her smile, showing her that he must have had a very complex
mind and great knowledge. In the distance Willow heard a familiar ringing sound,
the bell that told her she had a few minutes left on her break. She stood and
placed the book back in her pocket and smoothed her skirts before heading back
in the direction she came. As she crossed the courtyard she felt the familiar
feeling of eyes upon her and quickened her pace. From the safety of the shadows
a lone figure smiled and watched as the little redhead hurried back to the main
part of the house.
Part
2
Spike walked back inside the
mansion and headed towards the large sitting room. He pulled a twig from inside
the fire and lit a cigarette. Spike was still amazed at how oblivious the humans
of the manor house were. They didn�t even have a clue that someone, well a
whole lot of someones, were living in the abandoned West Wing. They weren�t
exactly quiet and smoke could be clearly seen coming from the chimney but still
the humans didn�t notice. It was either that or the humans knew what was good
for them and preferred to ignore their vampire squatters.
�You�ve been watching the
little tree again haven�t you?� A sweet voice echoed around the room. Spike
still didn�t know where she�d come up with the �little tree� nickname
for the red headed beauty but he decided to go with it as usual.
�Yes as a matter of fact I have Dru.�
Spike replied, paying little attention as the vampiress giggled and danced
around the room.
�The little tree knows the words, they�re
in her heart.� She whispered. �In her mind...� Spike sighed, Drusilla had
been carrying on about Red knowing some words but she didn�t know the words
existed. Well something along those lines, Drusilla wasn�t exactly one to be
specific.
�Dru, would you quit it with the bloody
words, you�ve been going on about them for weeks now.� He snapped. Drusilla
immediately began to whimper and hugged Miss Edith even tighter.
�Miss Edith, Spike doen�t love his
princess any more, the little tree�s wrapped around his heart.� She sobbed.
�Maybe we should wrap our hands around her throat to fix it all better.� She
spat venomously.
�Whoa Dru, isn�t that a bit drastic? We
can�t have Spike mooning over a lost love again.� Angelus smirked.
�Remember last time, the sobbing, the poetry, it was really quite pathetic
don�t you think?�
�Oh just sod off will you!�
Spike yelled. �And for your information Angelus, the poetry wasn�t that
bad.�
�Oh that�s right I forgot,� Angelus
said dramatically, �The little redhead likes it, and that�s all that
matters. Tell me Spike my boy, why haven�t you claimed the little thing
yet?�
�Because it isn�t the time yet and is
none of your concern.� Spike snapped.
�Spikey�s right Daddy, the stars say we
must wait and then I shall have a little grand-daughter.� Drusilla nodded
sagely and clapped with glee. �The little tree must learn that she has the
words before she can play in the dark.�
�Again with the words.� Spike muttered.
�Hey Dru? How about we leave little Spike
with his thoughts and do something a little more fun?� Angelus said, more of a
statement than a question. Drusilla giggled and jumped into Angelus� arms.
�Can we play some games? Let me be
Daddy�s little Princess forever?� She cooed.
�Forever and then some baby.� Angelus
replied, sweeping them both out the door.
�Bloody hell.� Spike
muttered, throwing his spent cigarette into the fire. He rubbed his brow trying
to figure out what to do. He�d been captivated by his Red since the first day
he�d caught sight of her. Through one of the windows he�d seen her weaving
in and out the shrubs until she�d stumbled upon the old rose garden. He
remembered the look of awe as she�d spotted the roses. He�d tidied up the
garden in hopes that she�d return, she did everyday, like clockwork. Ever
since then he�d go out every night to water the garden and catch her lingering
scent. Occasionally he�d wander over to her quarters at night to catch a
closer glimpse of her sleeping form. She
was beautiful and highly intelligent from what he�d seen. From his
observations he knew she could already read and write and that one of the other
women in the house was teaching her Latin. Spike had gotten a strange vibe from
this other woman and knew that there was something more to her. She wasn�t a
threat to his Red, he felt that, he guessed that she may be the one to teach Red
whatever she needed to learn. Teach her whatever Drusilla had been prattling on
about.
Spike felt drawn to her and
ever since Angelus had managed to get rid of his soul that the gypsies had
cursed him with he�d felt left out. Drusilla never really gave him a second
thought because she was too busy with her �Daddy�. Darla hadn�t even been
around for a long time, from what he�d last heard she was cavorting around
with �sophisticated� vampires trying to open a Hellmouth somewhere. Angelus
knew he was smitten with her and managed to rub it in every second he could.
Drusilla went from being insanely jealous to over protective of the little red
head. He had to make his move soon, to at least talk to the girl. So far he
hadn�t even learned her name and had been calling her Red to the others. Red,
it seemed fitting it matched her hair and the delightful shade she turned when
she was reading some of his poetry. Tonight, he�d make contact with her
tonight. Now all he had to do was wait until sunset. Spike started pacing, he
never was very good at waiting.
Part
3
Willow flopped down on her bed
in her quarters. It had been a very exhausting day, she had been run off her
feet ever since she returned to the house that afternoon. She�d had to put up
with one of Buffy�s frequent tantrums and was feeling drained and upset. She
was about to undress and change into her nightgown when there was a knock at her
door.
�Willow dear?� Jenny�s voice called out
�I really hate to do this to you but Miss Buffy requests your presence
upstairs.� Willow closed her eyes as Jenny opened the door.
�What on earth does she want? Hasn�t she
bothered me enough already today?� Willow moaned, sitting up slowly. Jenny
smiled and laughed.
�Probably, but you know her royal
highness.� Jenny mocked. �Come along Willow, you don�t want her to have
something else to complain about. I�ll make you a nice hot cup of tea
afterwards if you like.� Willow smiled faintly.
�Thank you Jenny, I�d really appreciate
that.� Willow replied, �Well
I�d better be off, like you said.�
�You come by the kitchen later if you want
that tea. If not I�ll see you in the morning.� Jenny smiled as they headed
back up to the main house.
Willow knocked lightly on the
door to Buffy�s room. �Miss Buffy, it�s Willow. May I come in?� Willow
asked softly.
�Hurry up then, make sure you shut the door
behind you.� Buffy�s voice came from behind the door. Willow opened the door
and closed it gently and turned around to face Buffy.
�What may I do for you Miss?� Willow
asked politely as she curtsied. Buffy calmly rose from her sitting chair from
next to the fire and walked slowly over to Willow. She had a strange smile upon
her lips and she circled Willow as she spoke.
�My dear Willow I seem to have a little
problem and seeing as you�re such a nice sweet person, as lowly as you may be,
I thought you could be of some assistance.� Buffy paused for a moment. �You
see I have a baby green frog sitting in my drawer and I thought seeing as
you�re so fond of animals that you wouldn�t mind taking it back into it�s
natural habitat.� Buffy smiled sweetly. Inside Willow fumed, Buffy knew of her
fear of frogs and was doing it deliberately. Willow took a deep breath, it was
only a baby frog, she could handle it. If she didn�t Buffy could just as well
get her fired. Willow couldn�t let that happen.
�Sure.� Willow said softly
and started towards the drawers. Buffy smirked and pointed to the drawers.
�In there.� She grinned. Willow closed
her eyes as she pulled open the drawer. Opening her eyes again she saw the two slimiest,
biggest frogs she had ever seen. She jumped back and did the only thing she
could do, she screamed.
�Buffy what is it?� Xander burst through
the door his eyes darting around for danger. He noticed Willow sitting on the
floor sobbing.
�Wills? Hey are you alright?� He asked
softly hugging the sobbing girl. Willow latched on to Xander for dear life and
nodded slightly.
�Oh Xander it was horrible! Willow and I
were talking and she was going to do my hair. She went to the drawer to grab a
brush and there was this frog in the drawer.� Buffy said with false sincerity.
Willow was unable to speak, she couldn�t believe Buffy could be this mean to
her.
�It�s alright Wills how about we get you
some tea?� Xander offered helping Willow up.
�No, I�ll be alright on my own.� Willow
said, before running out the house and into the night.
When Willow stopped running she
found herself in her little rose garden. She sat down on the little bench and
put her head in her hands and started to cry.
�What did I ever do to her?� Willow
sobbed. �And, and then she just goes and does that and even lies to Xander
about it.� Willow knew that she shouldn�t be out at night alone, anyone or
anything could be lurking around in the darkness. But she didn�t care, she
just wanted to be away from everyone and felt safe in her little garden. It was
her sanctuary so she sat there and sobbed.
Spike had been on his way to
the servants quarters to check on his little red head when he saw a figure
streak past him a few feet away. He turned and saw her red hair streaming out
behind her and knew that this girl was unmistakably his Red. He followed her
quietly until she reached the rose garden and sat down on the bench. He watched
her for a few minutes as she cried until he couldn�t take it any longer. She
was so beautiful sitting in the moonlight, the light reflecting off her hair and
smooth skin. Here she was sitting right in front of him, in tears, Spike could
never help not helping a damsel in distress. Usually he would have
put an end to her misery and ate her but this time his intentions were
fairly honest.
�Why the tears pet?� Spike
asked, sitting down next to the little redhead and putting an arm around her.
Willow jumped slightly but was too upset to really notice exactly what was going
on.
�Buffy, she deliberately scared me and then
made like it was an accident.� Willow sobbed. �I�ve never done anything to
her but she always tries to make my life unbearable. Just because she�s
supposed to be better than me, she thinks she has the right. If I was ever a
young mistress of a household I would never so such a thing.� She babbled.
Spike thought it was sweet and added it to his list. Beautiful, intelligent,
kind-hearted, innocent, blushes a lot, babbles... He still did need to find out
her name.
�There there luv, it�ll be
alright she�s not worth tears. Spoilt little chit that she is.� Spike
soothed. Willow looked up sharply.
�You shouldn�t talk about her in that
manner, why you could get yourself fired.� She said quickly. She�d never
seen this man around the manor before and he wasn�t dressed as a servant would
be dressed, her mind whirled.
�Never was hired in the first place.�
Spike smiled. Willow�s heart rate sped up as she leapt up and backed away
quickly.
�Then who are you sir and what are you
doing here? She stuttered. The little book of poetry falling from her skirt
pockets as she moved further backwards. Spike mentally kicked himself. Idiot,
don�t bloody well scare her off. Damn, need a distraction...
Part
4
�I see you were the one who
found my book? I�d thought I�d lost it.� He nodded towards the book.
Willow looked up at him guiltily.
�Oh I�m sorry, I didn�t know it
belonged to you. I didn�t turn it in because the poetry was so lovely. Did you
write it?� She asked timidly.
�That I did.� Spike smiled proudly, see
that Angelus they aren�t that bad at all. �And for that, I�ll let you
keep it.� Willow beamed, questions momentarily forgotten as she bent
down to retrieve the fallen book.
�Why thank you sir.� She exclaimed.
�Call me Sp - uh William.� Spike offered,
�How silly of me to forget the proper introductions. I am William Spencer,
owner of a manor a few miles down the road. And you are?� Willow curtsied and
nodded her head.
�My name is Willow Rosenberg, one of the
servants here at the manor. It is a pleasure to have met you.� She said
politely.
�Willow, the tree of course...� Spike
muttered to himself. That was what Dru meant when she spoke of the little tree.
He really had to learn to pay attention to her ramblings a little more. Willow
looked at him in confusion.
�Pardon sir?� She asked. Spike was caught
out for a moment and rummaged around in his head to find a plausible excuse.
�Nothing, you just gave me
the word I�ve been looking for the past few days for a poem I�m working on.
And please call me William.� He covered, flashing her a smile.
�Well it�s an honour to have been of some
assistance si - I mean, William.� She smiled. �If you don�t mind me asking
and I hope I am not out of my place in doing so, but how did you happen upon
walking out here this evening and losing your book near the servants
quarters?� Willow fidgeted with her skirts and hoped that she didn�t offend
William. Spike added a few more words to his list. Willow Rosenberg, polite,
curious, shy, not afraid to speak her mind or ask questions... Again he was
stumped for an excuse.
�Well you see the master of the house
sometimes holds poker games, without anyone�s knowledge of course and I was
merely taking a stroll in the fresh air.� He lied, �But you can�t breathe
a word to anyone about it as the Master would get very cross. Seeing as the only
people that know of our little gatherings is myself and a few other men.�
Willow gasped. Spike praised himself for his quick thinking.
�What even Mistress Joyce
doesn�t know about them?� Willow asked incredulously.
�Especially not her.� Spike confirmed.
�So as you can see secrecy is of the utmost importance.�
�Of course William I would never dream of
doing anything to betray Master Giles.� She breathed
�Yes Giles, good old chap, wouldn�t want
to cause him any trouble.� Honest and loyal, the words were added to Spike�s
little list.
�Well William I am sorry but I will have to
excuse myself. I did disappear from the house and everyone is probably terribly
worried about me. I�d better be heading back.� Willow apologised, in truth
she really wanted to stay and talk to the man who wrote beautiful poetry. �And
you should be headed back to your poker game or to your wife at home.� She
added. Spike noticed the small questioning look in her eyes and nearly laughed
out loud. She sure was an inquisitive little thing.
�You�re right, you
wouldn�t want to stay out here and catch a cold either pet. I might start back
shortly, nothing much to hurry about.� He said. �The poker game�s a little
dull and my house is quite empty.� He couldn�t help adding.
�Oh is you wife away visiting?� Willow
asked.
�No don�t have one yet pet. Why you
interested?� He joked. Willow blushed furiously and lowered her eyes.
�No of course not!� She exclaimed, �I
only thought that well, considering...� Willow trailed off. Spike chuckled.
�No harm done pet.� He smiled.
�Well I�m sorry, but I really must be
going.� She turned and headed of slowly, before turning to face him again.
�Perhaps I may run into you again some other time then? And see the poem
you�ve been working on... considering I did help you with it a small bit.�
She smiled and added hopefully. Spike nodded.
�You
can count on it pet. Good night.� He called as she scurried off back towards
the house.
Part 5 - Coming Soon!