Here's one of the optional requests I got in the
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cya_ficathon.(And look! More headings!)
Title: Small Spaces
Rating: G
Word Count: 1360
Disclaimer: Doritos are not my comfort food.
Warnings: mispronounciation, milk moustaches, shoelaces, and uncertainty
[A/N - The original request will be listed at the end of this post.]
Small Spaces
Disobedience
There was a small child underneath the table.
She was wearing dungarees and trainers, and had her hair in bunches.
She grinned. “Hello.”
“What are you doing there?”
“I’m reading. See?” She held up a book, and explained, “Because it’s a library. You read in libraries.”
“Oh, right.” There really was no way to answer that. “Good for you.” He straightened up, and was about to walk away when a question came:
“Are you a Watcher?”
Wesley paused. And then looked under the table again.
“Who are you?”
“You look kinda like Mr Giles – and he is.”
“How did you know that Mr-”
“Buffy said he was fired.”
“Yes, but-”
“Are you the new librarian?”
“What? No!”
She grinned again. “I like your glasses.”
A short pause.
“Thank you.”
“So – Balthattar’s amulet gave him special powers, right? Does it do that for everyone?”
Wesley didn’t respond.
“Can I put it on, and see?”
He frowned, and said sternly, “The amulet of Balthazar is now property of the Watchers Council. How did you know about it?”
No reply.
“Have you been listening in?”
“Well, dur…”
“Why?”
“When Buffy talks about this stuff, she always leaves out the good bits. It’s much easier to find out this way.”
“You’ve been sitting there all afternoon?”
“Uh-huh. And last night, too.”
Stern voice again. “These discussions are confidential, and not for your ears. I’m afraid I must ask you to leave the room.”
She laughed at him. “You’re weird.”
“Get out of there at once!”
She shook her head, and didn’t move.
Wesley contemplated, very briefly, crawling under there and dragging her out by force. A fairly foolish idea, on reflection. After all, children were not his responsibility.
He’d get one of the Slayers to do it for him.
Reassurance
There was a little sister underneath the table.
He knelt down and looked at her. “Shouldn’t you be at home?”
“I like it here.”
“Oh. Okay.”
He waited.
“How long-distance can she go?”
“I’m sorry?”
“Buffy. Can she read minds long-distance, or do they have to be up close?”
“From what I’ve observed, proximity is fairly essential to the process.”
A blank stare.
“Not very long-distance,” he explained.
“So she can’t reach here from her bedroom?”
“I shouldn’t think so.”
“Good.”
She hugged her knees, looking unsure what to say next.
“Would you like a drink of milk?” ventured Wesley. “I think Giles has some in his office.”
“Okay,” she nodded.
He poured out a glass, and brought it over to the table. She sipped it happily for a minute before looking up.
“Stuffed pigs can’t think, can they?”
“Er… no. Probably not.”
“So he won’t be able to tell her about me being in her room?”
“Who?”
“Mr Gordo.”
“Um…”
“Probably not,” she concluded. “But that would be really fun.”
Wesley just nodded.
She returned to the milk.
He waited a moment, and then asked, “Does your mother know that you’re here?”
She shook her head.
“Well, I should probably call her and let her know. Or else I could drive you home, and you could let her know yourself.”
A pause.
“Does Mr Giles have Doritos?”
“Pardon?”
“Doritos. They’re my comfort food.”
“I’m not sure. I can go and check…”
“I’m not sure. I can go and check…”
“No. It’s okay.” She crawled out, and handed him the glass. “I’ll go home. We have Doritos there.”
Invisibility
There was a spy underneath the table.
He almost kicked her accidentally when he sat down, but he managed to keep his face blank so as not to alert the others.
Which was not the correct way to handle the matter – not at all. She should be revealed, and summarily banished from the room before she heard any more of their conversation.
That was certainly what the Council would recommend for this situation. And the Council was correct, obviously. But these days… he was starting to wonder if, maybe, they sometimes got it wrong…
Xander restarted the video.
“See: there we are, minding our own business, and Destructo Dog comes smashing through the window.” He shrugged. “Only Sunnydale could make clothes shopping into an extreme sport.”
She giggled at that – and Wesley wondered why no-one else had noticed. But they all seemed fairly engrossed in Xander’s description.
“He takes out three clothing racks, a full-length mirror, and Tuxedo Guy, and we’re all just standing there with no idea what to do, or how to take him down.”
There was a whispered suggestion from floor-level: “A flamethrower would have worked…” and Xander turned.
“What was that, Buff?”
“What was what?” She looked blank.
“I thought you said something about flamethrowers.”
“Er, no. That was me.” Wesley cleared his throat. “But moving on… why don’t you play the video again?”
It wasn’t as if their discussion was entirely confidential. The attack had occurred in public, after all. In fact, as a citizen of Sunnydale, the sooner she learned the dangers surrounding her, the better… and what was he doing? When had he become someone who came up with excuses like this?
He shook his head, and tried to concentrate.
Giles was explaining the creature’s origins: “…bred during the Machash Wars. Trained solely to kill. They feed off the brains of their foes.”
There was a soft “eww!”
“Look!” Cordelia exclaimed. “Right there. Zoom in on that.”
Xander rolled his eyes, and started explaining the mechanical capabilities of VCRs.
Wesley took the opportunity to slip an open bag of liquorice under the table. It was taken out of his hands, and the underneath-furniture portion of the room lapsed into silence.
The others still hadn’t noticed a thing.
Oz sat up. “What’s that? Hey – pause it.”
The video froze mid-massacre, and they all crowded around the television to look at the young man standing just outside the shop.
Wesley got to his feet. It was unlikely that he’d recognise the boy, but there was always the possibility that his knowledge and experience would prove useful… and his shoelaces were tied together! She’d actually tied his shoelaces together!
He sat down, quickly.
And no-one else had even noticed.
Wesley put his face in his hands, and wondered how many years he’d get for first-degree murder.
Solace
There was a friend underneath the table.
He pulled the chair aside, and crawled in too.
“Hello.”
“Hi.”
It was quieter under here. The chairs and table legs formed a barrier: their own personal cave. You could keep the world away forever in here.
Wesley looked over to her. “So… how are you doing today?”
“Mom’s packing lots of suitcases.”
“Why?”
“I think we’re going to Aunt Arlene’s for a couple of weeks.”
“Oh.”
If they pulled the last chair back in behind them, no-one would ever guess where they were. They could stay there for years, if necessary. And the world, with all its expectations, and responsibilities, and betrayals, and accusations, and insanity – the world would never find them. Never again.
Of course, they’d need supplies…
“What about you?” she asked.
“Me?”
“Mmm.”
Wesley shifted nervously. “I… think I’ll be packing too.”
She didn’t ask – just nodded. And they both fell silent.
What else was there to say, after all?
“Is Buffy going to win?”
…apart from that.
And that was really the point, wasn’t it? Winning, triumphing, doing whatever it took – no matter the cost. No room for emotions, distractions, conflicting feelings. You did the job, and you did it right.
That was what he’d always done.
That was the whole basis for…
And now…
Now…
“Wesley?” She was still sitting next to him. “Is she going to win?”
“That depends on what you mean.”
“With the whole evil-Mayor thing. Will she win?”
“I’m not-” he hesitated, and amended the sentence: “I hope so.”
A frown. “Shouldn’t you be doing lots of Watchery stuff with her?”
Oh please, can’t the world just stay away for a while?
“I don’t think that she wants me doing… Watchery stuff… anymore.”
“Then what are you going to do?”
And there really was no way to answer that.
He just looked at her – and she smiled reassuringly and handed him the Doritos.
They sat there together, munching quietly, and waited for it all to get better again.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
The request: "Insert Dawn into season 3 of BtVS. I'd like to see her interact with Wesley."
Page Summary
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Designed by chasethestars
chasethestars
Comments
there's definitely a similarity between a young Dawn who doesn't really know what's going on and young(ish) Wesley who is ignored and berated by everyone
I thought there was. Really, if you think about it, Dawn is one of the few people who might have sympathised with Wesley back then - she understands what it's like to be an outsider.
I'm glad you liked it!
Oh, so true! It probably would have worked out better if he was her 'Watcher', really--they both just needed someone to pay attention to them and look out for them and care for them.
and this was great. especially like the bit during Earshot. Wesley could be so sweet when he tried - or, btter, when he didn't try. Poor boy was at such a loss in Sunnydale!
q. May I rec this at
especially like the bit during Earshot. Wesley could be so sweet when he tried
He really could.
I sort of pictured him being like he was in Spin The Bottle - trying to comfort Fred, and settling for patting her on the arm and making vaguely reassuring noises...
ETA:
(sorry, I accidentally posted halfway through...)
Recs are always welcome! Feel free.
Good luck with your fic - getting the characters to do what you want can be so hard.
I'm glad you liked this!
I had so much fun with this request - the idea of Wesley meeting Dawn just sounded fascinating. It was a great suggestion.
I'm so glad you liked this!
You know, there's a simple solution for that...
You must keep writing...
I intend to.
Thanks!
I think Dawn and Wes would have gotten along fairly well...
It is kind of like the Spike&Dawn friendship - I hadn't really thought about it...
Glad you enjoyed this!
I'd never pictured these two characters in the same room together. You made it work really well.
I'd never pictured these two characters in the same room together.
Neither had I! I'm glad scratchingpost1 suggested it though, because it was incredibly fun to write...
Little mini-Dawn would have been so cute, wouldn't she?
I'm glad you liked this!
After all, children were not his responsibility.
He’d get one of the Slayers to do it for him.
Your stuffy!Wesley voice was perfect. Annoying, but still somehow endearing. And the way he interacted with Dawn was just priceless.
and his shoelaces were tied together! She’d actually tied his shoelaces together!
He sat down, quickly.
..and wondered how many years he’d get for first-degree murder
Hee! So Wesley, and so Dawn.
There was a friend underneath the table.
He pulled the chair aside, and crawled in too.
“Hello.”
“Hi.”
And I'm melting.
I loved the balance between funny and sweet - you have a knack for that - and the character voices were spot-on.
Fantastic job, darling. -squishy hugs-
Your stuffy!Wesley voice was perfect. Annoying, but still somehow endearing.
I'm glad he sounded right - I've never written much Wesley before.
And I really loved him back then. I mean - I love shotgun-carrying stubbly dark!Wes too, obviously (because he's AWESOME), but the moment him and Giles started simultaneously cleaning their glasses I just went a little bit nuts about him...
I'm glad you liked this!
-nods avidly in agreement, and drools slightly-
but the moment him and Giles started simultaneously cleaning their glasses I just went a little bit nuts about him...
YES. Yes. And more yes. That was a great scene..
you really keep finding ways to spark people into thinking about new perspectives on characters, and the perceptions of characters, in the Buffyverse. I can honestly say I would never have thought that a Wesley (I've never found a way to like him) & Dawn friendship - or should that be 'developing friendship?' - story would ever work, but, once again, you've found a way to make it work. Excellent stuff.
Thanks again for challenging my pre-conceived notions about a Buffyverse character,
Ray (kerkevik@btinternet.com)
I'm so glad you liked this.
How'd I miss this one? Never mind, I'm just glad it was on your list. This is beautiful. I love how Dawn's intelligence and personality shine through in just a few bits of dialogue, and you've got Wesley down pat - I love how he starts thinking about what supplies they'd need if they were going to hide under the table for a long time...just perfect.
I'm a HUGE sucker for 'insert Dawn here' pieces, and this one's beautifully done.
*applauds*
I love mini!Dawn...
This request was so much fun - especially because they're two of my favourite characters.
Beautiful! Poetic! And so sweet. *huggles the young watcher and young Dawn*
I especially liked, the underneath-furniture portion of the room lapsed into silence.
Oh! Wesley's brief victory, easily countermanded with tied shoelaces!
*swon*
I had a lot of fun writing this.
Lovely work.