10 [Location: Castle Summers / visual] Everything will be okay

[slayersidekick]

It's taken Willow a really, really long time to work up the courage to make this broadcast, and even when she convinces herself she can't wait any longer, she still has to have some measure of comfort. Colette, her calico kitten, is tucked in her lap, purring contentedly as Willow leans back against the back of the chair she's sitting in. She's in her bedroom, the one she shares with Tara, and she looks nervous as she flicks on the feed.

"Uh, hi, Taxon!" She's using a falsely bright tone at the moment, because it's easier than acknowledging the fear and worry she's trying to keep at bay. Come on, Willow. You can do this.

"I-I know most of you probably know me by now, but, uh, if you don't, my name's Willow and I've been here for a couple of months now."

Pause. Breathe. Stroke the cat for comfort.

"What I really wanted to talk about is... my glitch a couple of months ago. Back in February. I know it's been a really long time and words aren't gonna make up for everything, but... I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt anyone."

Well, yes, actually she had, but that was her glitched self, so that doesn't count at all.

"I'm a witch and I have some really powerful magic. I just... I'm learning how to control it so that doesn't happen again. My magic's just a part of me and I-I'm... sorry any of that happened."

Before she can beat herself up any more, she switches the feed off and waits to see how the rest of Taxon responds to her apology. Castle Summers residents can find her in her room. She'll be happy for visitors.

Comments

[Location: Castle Summers]

[tothelightshown.livejournal.com]

DG wasn't actually a resident of the castle, but she'd visited plenty of times during her stay in Taxon. (She'd even temporarily swapped bodies with the owner, once.) She'd actually spoken to Willow once or twice since her glitch, but not properly. They'd always had something else - from zombies to vampires - to worry about.

It was about time they fixed that.

Armed with hatched apple pie, DG used the tablet to find the right room and knocked on the door.

"Willow? It's DG."

[Location: Castle Summers]

[slayersidekick]

The knock at the door surprised Willow. She hesitated for a moment and then turned towards it, getting up and depositing the cat on the bed so she could see who it was.

Pulling open the door, she offered her friend a nervous smile. "Uh, hi, DG. I-if you're looking for Tara, she's not here right now."

[Location: Castle Summers]

[tothelightshown.livejournal.com]

"I was looking for you, actually," she said, offering Willow a smile that would hopefully put her a little more at ease.

From here, it was a lot easier to see the toll that her glitch had taken. She couldn't hide her anxieties behind a cheerful mask as easily as she could when she was using the tablet. DG recognised that as well, just like she recognised the glitch itself. Willow wasn't the only person here who had hide the damage that they'd done while under the influence of the aliens. She wasn't even the first one who had been forced to use dark magic by the aliens.

"I saw your post. The one about your glitch?"

[Location: Castle Summers]

[slayersidekick]

If the visit was any surprise at all, the fact that DG was looking for Willow was a bigger one. Willow blinked.

"Oh, uh... d'you want to come in?" she asked politely, stepping back to offer DG space to come inside. Colette's still on the bed, clearly not phased at all by the sudden interruption.

Willow's eyes wandered to the pie in her friend's hand as she shifted nervously. "I thought it was time to make a public statement." Or something like that. It had been a hard but necessary thing and she felt a little better for it, but still not great.

[visual]

[imperial-long.livejournal.com]

Long's face isn't smiling when he responds, just carefully neutral on the small screen.

"For myself, I accept your apology. Learning to control your magic is wise. However, will any amount of control over your magic when you are ... yourself... will that do anything to prevent you from having another 'glitch'?

"I will assume from your words you remember everything that happened in the duration."

[visual]

[slayersidekick]

Oh no. Willow knows who this is all too well and she winces as he speaks. "Y-yeah. I remember everything." She can't really blame him, exactly, for being hesitant to believe her. She'd probably be the same in his shoes, but it still stings.

"No one can prevent the glitches. They're the work of the aliens. But if I have a better grasp of what I can do, then there's less of a chance of me getting out of control again on my own."

[visual]

[imperial-long.livejournal.com]

"Then I wish you luck in your quest to better understand the nature of the power you command, Miss Rosenberg."

Long sighed, looking at the face of the young woman on the screen. Perhaps if you had done so before, this might have been averted...

No, it wasn't really the moment for the easy words of I-told-you-so, he supposed, however much he might personally feel they were deserved. There was such a thing as kicking someone when they were down.

He cleared his throat slightly. "Looking on the bright side, as it were, nobody was permanently harmed, I believe?"

[visual]

[slayersidekick]

Willow thought "I told you so" would have been perfectly justified and she was actually expecting something like that, especially after their fights. She nodded, trying not to look as nervous as she felt.

"I will. Thanks."

She paused to look down at the cat in her lap, much less confident than she had been months previous. "I don't think anyone was, no." And then glanced up. He deserved eye contact for this. "But I'm sorry... for everything, for hurting you while I was glitched a-and for arguing over my magic before that. I should've been more careful. And now I will be."

It was the least she could do for Taxon after the terror she'd brought upon them.

[Location: Castle Summers]

[aworldenchanted]

Tara gives Willow some time, between her broadcast and showing up in their room. She wants to give her privacy, if she's dealing with any immediate responses.

But that won't prevent her from being concerned. Her smile's a little worried, then, as she comes in. "Hey you."

[Location: Castle Summers]

[slayersidekick]

Willow looks up when the door opens and she smiles immediately. The cat's getting dumped on the bed and Tara's getting a hug. Willow could really use one right about now.

"Hey. I-I wasn't sure where you were. Thought you might still be at the shop."

[Location: Castle Summers]

[aworldenchanted]

"I was a bit ago. But I saw your broadcast." She returns the hug and then settles on the bed, not getting too far away. "Do you want to talk about it?"

She doesn't want to push, but it has been some time. She thinks it might do Willow some good.

[Location: Castle Summers]

[slayersidekick]

Willow settles back in her chair, curling her legs up under her and watching the kitten instead of Tara. Colette seems interested in the string on the bed, not her mistresses.

"I just... thought it was time I got that out of the way, you know?" Willow finally looks back at Tara, hoping she'll understand. "It's been weighing on my mind, what I did. I wanted everyone to know... that I'm sorry for it. I never meant to hurt anyone."

Was this how it felt for Tara to watch her go so far downhill the first time?

[ voice ]

[undoing.livejournal.com]

A glitch is nothing to be ashamed of.

[ it had taken angel a while to realize this himself, but the memory upgrade he received after the last time he was angelus before the two week revival last month did well to make him not dwell on it. ]

[ voice ]

[slayersidekick]

Maybe not, but... I ignored the warnings.

[ like, y'know, Tara telling her everything she'd do in her future. ]

[ voice ]

[undoing.livejournal.com]

Can't really say I heeded them myself when I first got here.

[ or like, you know, ever. angel: king of not giving any fucks about the what ifs of how things go down. see that one time he dropped los angeles into hell. good times, good times. ]

[ voice ]

[slayersidekick]

Guess we've all learned a little since then, huh?

[ it's kind of helping... but she does kind of know how angel works by now... in any case, this isn't a mistake she's going to make twice. ]

[ voice ]

[herotypical]

I've been thinking, Will...

[ she starts off a little cautiously. magical matters are just one step removed from her own job. she's always on an unsure footing when they come up. ]

[ voice ]

[slayersidekick]

...Buffy?

[ she'll... just let buffy come to it when she gets around to it. willow's not in any position to do any prying. ]

[ voice ]

[herotypical]

[ she changes tack about half-way through her previous thought. ]

It's pretty big of you to come out and make with the heartfelts. It's...impressive. Kudos."

[visual]

[littlestcastle.livejournal.com]

Having been holed up doing her best denial impression, Alexis has no idea what Willow is talking about, but she can see that Willow's obviously hurting. And Alexis isn't really one to let that sort of thing pass.

"I don't know exactly what happened, but Dad always said that intentions matter, so if you didn't mean it, then you didn't mean it, right?" There's a pause, and Alexis looks sheepish and uncomfortable, but still determined to help, to say the right thing. "I hope they'll forgive you."

[visual]

[slayersidekick]

Even though they haven't had anything to do with each other and Willow's pretty sure Alexis avoided the big magic glitch, the other girl's words help. Willow offers a very small smile in response.

"Thanks... I-I wish I could say it wasn't my fault, but... it was... I mean, I didn't do it because I wanted to."

But it was still her magic and therefore her fault, even if she'd been glitched.

[visual]

[littlestcastle.livejournal.com]

Alexis smiles back, still hesitant but glad that Willow's responded. "Right! And they're your friends so they'll see that, right?" She pauses, thinking of how her own friends had let her down, and immediately changes the subject. "Sorry, I should have probably introduced myself. I'm Alexis."

[ voice ]

[stacked]

Hey, Red?

[ voice ]

[slayersidekick]

[ Oh.... shit... this won't end well. ]

Y-yeah?

[ voice ]

[stacked]

Told you so.

[ FUCK MATURITY. ]