Author: Lucinda

Rated t for teen

seventh in the 'Small Favor' series

Disclaimer: anyone you recognize does not belong to me, though I may not be able to give all the legal who’s that do own them. The Sunnydale folks from the screen belong to Joss & co. Remy belongs to Stan Lee & Marvel Comics.

Distribution: by permission. If you have permission for the first six, then you may also have this one.

Notes: AU post season 4 BtVS, AU in general from X-Men. Tara was a demon & left after that was uncovered. Remy never joined the X-Men.

Part of Willow wanted to dismiss last night as a horrible dream. To convince herself that Buffy hadn't dragged her into a cemetery, that she hadn't been involved in a fight with six demons who could pull sharp blades from their backs and throw them at people. That those demons hadn't been intent on seizing a small jeweled box that had been hidden in the coffin. That Buffy hadn't tossed the box to her with an indifferent "Giles said you could handle it." That she hadn't been left to find her own way home or to the dorm injured and carrying the magical box.

She hadn't minded finding Remy in her parents' house that much. Hadn't minded having someone willing to help her tend her wounds.

It only took her a few minutes to gather some clean clothing, identify that Buffy had left a bruise where she'd dragged her along into the cemetery, and collect a towel before shutting herself in the bathroom for a nice, soothing shower.

When she stepped out, still rubbing at her hair with the towel, dressed except for her bare feet due to the vague memory that Remy had stayed, there was something strange. Something that hadn't happened in this house for years. She could smell someone else cooking breakfast.

"Remy?" Willow walked towards the kitchen, trying to make sense of what was going on and wishing for some coffee. "Remy, is that you?"

"Anyone else likely to be moving aroun' in here?" Remy's voice replied. He then added the most wonderful words, "Remy made coffee if you want some."

Willow moved into the kitchen, tossing the towel into an empty corner. "Breakfast and coffee? You are a wonder, Remy."

She didn't say anything else until she had a mug of coffee, strong and almost too hot, with a half spoon of sugar to sweeten it. "There haven't been too many breakfasts cooked in here. I think maybe once or twice my senior year... and when Aunt Naomi visited the summer after Sophomore year, she cooked almost every day."

"You skip many breakfasts?" Remy slid a plate towards her, holding eggs and some sort of sweet smelling pastry.

"Behold the wonders of cereal and glasses of juice. I normally wasn't awake enough in the mornings for anything more complicated," Willow admitted.

"Normally, parents cook for their children," Remy glanced at her, placing another of the little pastries on his own plate.

"My parents travel," Willow sipped at her coffee. "They've been going to seminars and conferences since I was little, I used to stay over with Xander or Jesse. When I was thirteen, they decided that I was old enough to stay home by myself. They normally wouldn't be gone more than a few days, but they'd go to a lot of things. By the time I started high school they were away as often as they were here."

"Have you even seen them this year?" Remy's voice was quiet.

Willow nibbled at a pastry as she considered his question. "I think we talked some at Passover. They missed graduation, which was probably safer for them. And..." Willow sighed and tried to pretend that it didn't hurt, that she wasn't upset by the fact that she hadn't actually seen her parents in person for several months. "yeah. Passover."

"Passover is close to Easter, no?" Remy refilled her coffee mug, and scooped some more eggs onto her plate. "You need to eat some more. Running from scary demons takes a lot of energy."

Willow gave a small sigh, unable to argue with his statement. Besides that, Remy's eggs were delicious. "The Jewish holidays move a little more than the Christian ones, but Passover is fairly close to Easter. How about you, do you see your family more often than I see mine?"

"Oui. Remy grow up in de Guild, Papa does a lot of the paperwork an' organization. Got a brother named Henri, an' I think he's going to find himself married fairly soon now. Tante Mattie's tried to keep Remy out of trouble, but some t'ings are too much for one woman to manage," Remy's smile spoke volumes about the affection and trust in his family.

"So ending up mauled by a robot dog that may or may not have been demon possessed isn't that unusual for you," Willow grinned at him, and took another bite of the food.

Remy shrugged, attempting to look innocent and failing utterly.

"If someone were to move out to New Orleans, or someplace close to the city, would you be able to help them find a martial arts instructor? And maybe someone to help with meditation?" Willow didn't quite look at Remy, letting her mind wander about the various ramifications of leaving Sunnydale, leaving everything familiar. Leaving swarms of demons and vampires. Leaving the Hellmouth. She was part curious, part intrigued, and part terrified at the idea, and certainly not willing to make any firm plans. Not yet. But there was no harm in asking a few questions, gathering a bit of information...

"Most people would start wit' a phone book for instruction, or looking online," Remy paused to sip at his coffee. "Very least, if you come back home, we can make sure you find someone capable, someone who won' be more trouble than they're worth. Meditation... easy to find someone who help you figure out meditation, a lot harder if you want to learn magic. More magic, Remy should say. Can't make promises about magic lessons."

"Would you... maybe be able to let me know if someone who could offer magic lessons was trouble? If I were to move, that is," Willow asked. She understood that he wasn't able to promise what other people might do, or who they might teach, and didn't feel that she had any right to ask him to find her a teacher. Especially without a promise of going.

"We could do that," Remy nodded, smiling at her.

For a while, the kitchen was quiet, with only the soft noises of two people enjoying breakfast. Willow savored the peaceful company, the feeling of not being alone and having someone who could at least appear to care. It was more than her parents had done in a long time.

"So, you don' see your family much, maybe you come to N'Awlins during winter break? Remy could show you around, give you a chance to look at somewhere else, have a bit of fun before you make any final decisions..." He looked over the rim of the mug, his expression hopeful and tempting. "Safer than this town."

"That sounds nice," Willow whispered.

As Remy put the dishes in the sink, he murmured, “Remy needs to take the potion home, but I can be back in town the week after T’anksgiving. Maybe we can work out details for where to show you during winter break?”

“Sure,” Willow smiled.

This year would be different. No moping at home because her friends were off with their families for the holidays. No awkward time with her parents repeating traditions that her parents didn’t enjoy. No wandering about the dorm listening to Buffy complain about Angel leaving and Riley being Riley and those soldiers running around. She almost couldn’t wait. New Orleans sounded wonderful… especially with Remy to show her around.

End Small Favor 7: Planning Ahead.