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Disclaimer: I don't own any of the BtVS characters. They belong to Joss Whedon, WB, etc.
Willow sat at the slayerette's usual table at the Bronze idly watching Xander and Cordelia dance while Buffy roamed the premises. She was strangely upbeat for the third night of the full moon cycle. Of course, she was disappointed by the lack of Oz time that evening, but she smiled when she thought about what was waiting for her when she got home.
"What's this?" A surprised Willow asked as Oz presented her with a somewhat large basket.
"I was feeling bad since this is the first time the full moon is on a weekend since we...well, since we know what happens to me. Especially since your parents haven't exactly been hip on the idea of a lot of weeknight dates lately. So...I put together one "Full Blue Moon Kit" for you. It's kind of silly, but..." Oz ducked his head feeling a little embarrassed with his gift now that he had given it to her. < Maybe it's not as good an idea as I thought. >
"Oh..."
< Lame idea, lame idea, lame idea. She hates it. >
"Oh...that's so sweet!" Willow's face broke out into a huge grin. "What's in it?" She asked happily.
< Whew! She liked it! >
"Well, open it and see."
Willow put the basket on the coffee table and excitedly pulled the mass of tissue paper out and dropped it on the floor in her excitement. "Ohh!" A bottle of bubble bath, < Vanilla, my favorite! >, a giant bag of animal crackers, < Of course >, a few assorted scented candles, < More vanilla! >, a large thin paperback book, a smaller, leather bound book, and a cassette tape soon littered the table.
Willow inspected the paperback more closely to find that it was a copy of nursery rhymes with "The Man In The Moon" illustrated on the front cover and "Hey Diddle Diddle" on the back. She couldn't help but burst out laughing at the obvious moon theme. "I love it!" She threw her arms around Oz's neck and kissed his cheek.
Oz grinned at her enthusiasm. "Are you even going to ask about the rest?"
"Well, the bubble bath, candles and animal crackers really don't need explaining do they?" She cocked an eyebrow. "But I'll bite...um, I mean..." Willow stuttered as her face turned red.
"Hey, I thought we agreed on no biting." Oz couldn't help but tease. < Willow looks so cute when she got flustered like that. > "I know what you meant. The tape has some different music on it. Some songs from different people that follow the theme and... a little bit of instrumental stuff I played and recorded for you." It was Oz's turn to blush.
"Oh." Willow didn't know what to say. She stared at him for a minute before remembering the other book. "And this?" She asked as she started to leaf through it.
Oz turned even redder. < Oh please don't let her think it's stupid. > "Well, it's a journal. I...well, I thought of a whole bunch of things Iwanted to tell you just before, well...before I chained myself up last month. So I got myself a journal and thought I'd write it all down if I had time. Kind of a last words and thoughts before I get all hairy and loose I.Q. points. It's probably a stupid idea...but I thought...maybe...." He stared at the pattern in the couch's upholstery.
"What?" Willow asked softly.
"Well, that maybe you would want one, in case you had anything you wanted to tell me or maybe what I missed. It's a stupid idea. Just use it for whatever you want or you can even take it back..." Oz was feeling worse by the second. < She hates it! I am such an idiot! >
"I will do no such thing!" Oz's head snapped up at the forcefulness of Willow's response. < She sounds almost angry! What? >
"I love it! It's a wonderful idea!" She beamed at him. "We can both write in them and maybe...in a few months trade or something..." Now it was her turn to feel unsure as she looked at the carpet. "That is if you want to."
< She's so sweet! > "Of course I'll want to!" A small smile worked its way across his face. Reaching over, he tipped her chin up a placed a soft kiss on her lips before wrapping his arms around her and pulling her in for a deeper one.
Willow was startled from her revere by the change in the music blaring from the club's speakers. Xander and Cordelia were still dancing but a quick scan of the dance floor and surrounding area told her that Buffy was not to be found on the first floor. < She's been so down lately...maybe I should find her. > Willow got a drink from the bar and went off in search of her friend.
Another quick scan, this time of the second floor, produced an unhappy Slayer. Willow watched as Buffy turned down some guy from one of her classes before heading downstairs. < She needs to move on or at least try. > Walking over to her she asked, "Hey! You're bailing?"
"Yeah. I'm gonna stop by the library and see if Giles wants me to patrol, and then sack it."
Willow frowned slightly. "You've been doing that a lot. Patrolling and sacking. In fact, you've kind of been All-Work-And-No-Play Buffy."
The Slayer frowned a bit herself. "I play. I have *big* fun. I came here tonight, didn't I?"
"You came, you saw, you," Willow glanced up at the balcony, "rejected."
"You mean that guy? Just not in date mode right now."
Willow smiled encouragingly, "Well, maybe you need to date to get in date mode."
Looking down at the floor and back at her friend Buffy responded, "I don't think I'm ready for that, Will."
"You're thinking too much. Maybe you need to be impulsive." Willow couldn't help but smile. < Look at me telling Buffy to be impulsive! >
"Impulsive? Do you remember my ex-boyfriend," Buffy lowered her voice, "the vampire? I slept with him, he lost his soul, now my boyfriend's gone forever, and the demon that wears his face is killing my friends. The next impulsive decision I make will involve my choice of dentures."
"Okay, the Angel thing went badly, I'm on board with that, but that's not your fault. And anyways, love isn't always like that. Love can be..." Willow thought about her oh, so sweet boyfriend and her "Full Blue Moon" basket and smiled, "nice!"
Sighing contentedly, Willow finished her third entry in her new journal and set the book on her nightstand. She giggled softly as she listened to the last notes of "Blue Moon" fade into a slow guitar solo. < He's so talented! > Turning off her light, she snuggled under her covers and waited for Oz to speak over the soft music. "Good night Willow, Sweet Dreams. And, I love you."
With another contented sigh, she closed her eyes and thought < Love really can be...nice. >