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Author's Chapter Notes:
This is a new story I've been working on that has sort of turned into my 'baby'. I'm planning on a long story, but we'll see how that goes. Anyway, I hope you like it, and reviews are always appreciated.

I don't own any of the characters.

Thanks to Nichole, who's helped me a lot with, well, basically, all of my stories!
A new beginning


”Mom, we’ll be less than two hours away, you can come visit whenever you want.” Buffy Summers put the last of her bags in the trunk of her car and turned to her mother, “You know that.”

“I know.” Joyce Summers opened the door to the back seat and put her grandson in the car seat. “It just won’t be the same.”

“Yeah.” Buffy gave her mother a hug. “We’ll miss you too.”

“Cody hug too! Cody hug too!” The two women turned to the child in the car.

“You want a hug from Nana too, do you?” Joyce leaned into the car and gave Cody a hug. “I’m gonna miss you, sweetie.”

“Nana see us.” He smiled at his own idea.

“That’s right, sweetie, I’m gonna come see you as much as I can.”

“Well, you can’t come to see us if we never actually leave.” Buffy walked around the car and opened the door to the drivers seat. “We really have to go if we’re gonna make it in time for...” She looked at her watch as she got in the car. “... which we’re already late for. Shoot! We’re supposed to meet that girl, what’s her name, something about a tree, at two and it’s already after twelve.”

“Don’t worry, I’m sure she’ll understand.” Joyce closed the back door and came around to her daughter. “Drive safe, OK? And call me when you get there.”

“I will, Mom.” Buffy hugged her mother one last time through the window. “Tell Dawnie to call me when she gets back from camp, OK?”

“I will.” Buffy started pulling out of the driveway. “And don’t forget Cody’s nap at four o’clock, he gets so cranky otherwise.”

“Mom.” Buffy stopped for a moment at the end of the driveway. “I think I know how to take care of my own son.”

“I know, I just worry. I’ve always had you two here, all the time, having you so far away...”

“I know, Mom. It’ll be fine, you’ll see.” Buffy tried to give her mother a reassuring smile, even if she felt terrified herself.

“I know it will. Just promise to call me if you need anything, I’m only a couple of hours away.”

“I will. Bye!”

“Bye! See you next weekend!” Joyce waved until she couldn’t see the car anymore before she went back into the house.

*****

“Crap.” Buffy looked at her watch as she turned off the car on the UCS parking lot. Almost twenty minutes late. “Please still be here.” She got out of the car and got Cody, who had fallen asleep during the ride, out of his car seat.

“Mommy...”

“We’re here, baby. We have to hurry.” She locked the car and put the keys in her pocket before walking towards the building she knew to be administration. She found a sign that said ‘Student Information’ and followed it down a corridor until she got to the office. She opened the door and walked up to the desk inside where a blonde girl was seated.

“Hi, I’m a little late, I’m looking for...”

“Me!” Buffy turned to the other girl in the room, a red head she hadn’t seen when she walked in. “Sorry. I’m Willow. You must be Buffy.” She offered Buffy her hand.

“Yeah, sorry I’m late, got kind of... held up.” Buffy took her hand.

“No problem. I figured you just got stuck in traffic or something. I’ve got all day.” She turned her attention to Cody, who was now fully awake. “And you must be Cody. Aren’t you just the cutest little boy I’ve ever seen.” Cody hid his face in Buffy’s shoulder.

“Sorry. He’s a little shy around new people. And he just woke up, too. Looong car ride.” Willow smiled.

“No problem. Let’s get going, OK? I bet you just wanna get this over with and get settled in.” Buffy gave Willow a relieved smile.

“Yeah, sounds good.”

“We’ll just take a quick walk around the campus and then we’ll take your car – you do have a car?” Buffy nodded. “Good – to your house.”

“Sounds good to me.” Buffy followed the other girl out through the door and down the steps.

“So, this is the administration building, this is where the registrations will be on Monday. That’s the cafeteria over there, and behind that is my dorm, Stevenson. I’m in room 214, if you need anything.” Willow gestured to a building that Buffy could see behind the cafeteria.

“The other dorms are Kresge Hall, Lowell Hall and Fisher Hall, they’re all in the same area, less than five minutes from your place.” Willow kept walking in a comfortable speed, Buffy behind her. “This is the main building. This is where most of the classes are, the PE classes are held in the gym, over there.” Willow gestured to a two storey building to the right of the main building. “The library’s on the top floor of the main building. It’s amazing. The chem and bio classes are held in the labs, in the science building, but you’re not taking any of those, right?” Buffy shook her head. “Great. I won’t show you them, then. Unless you want to?”

“I think I’ll find it eventually.” Buffy lifted Cody, who had fallen asleep again, higher on her hip.

“And that brings us back to the parking lot.” Willow gestured in front of her. Buffy looked confused.

“How did we get back here?” Willow laughed.

“The campus isn’t that big, but it can be a little confusing at first. You’ll get a map and stuff at registration on Monday, and there are maps placed around campus. I’ll give you my cell phone number, just in case, so you can call me in case you get lost. I had to do that a couple of times last year.” Willow followed Buffy to her car.

“So, you’re a sophomore?” Buffy asked while she put Cody back in his car seat.

“Yep.” Willow got in the passenger seat and waited for Buffy to get in too. “You’re supposed to be too, right?” Buffy nodded and started the car.

“I took a year off back in high school when Cody was born, so I’m a year behind.” She turned in her seat and backed out of the parking space.

“How come you decided on UCS?” Willow asked. “I don’t mean to be nosy, but they gave me your record, and you got scholarships to like every college on the planet.”

“And two on Mars.” Buffy joked. “No, seriously. I took the best offer. Here I get a full scholarship, free daycare and a fully furnished house with all expenses covered. Except phone and food.”

“You gonna get a job to pay for that? Turn right here.” Willow directed Buffy to her new home.

“No, I get $250 a week in child support, plus $200 from my ever absent father. It should cover it.” Buffy turned into the driveway Willow indicated and stopped in front of the garage door. “It seems nice.”

They got out of the car and Buffy took Cody out of his car seat while Willow unlocked the front door.

“It used to be reserved for faculty, but I guess they made an exception.” Willow lead the way into the hall and through a door on the left. “Here’s the kitchen, you’ve got the regular stuff, fridge, stove, microwave, dishwasher and there’s some basic things in the fridge, milk and stuff.” She opened the cabinet above the sink to reveal plates, glasses and cups. “Knifes, forks and those things are in the drawer to the right here.” She indicated the eating area of the room, which had a table and six chairs. “There’s no dining room, but it’s pretty spacious in here.”

They went back into the hall and through twin glass doors opposite the kitchen to the living room, which had a fire place and comfortable furniture as well as an entertainment set. “Living room. Basically says itself. There’s fire wood in the shed in the garden.”

A vaulted opening led them into another hallway, which connected with the other hall a few feet to their right. Two doors opened into bedrooms, and Willow went into the first one.

“I guess this would be Cody’s room.” The walls were painted in blue and there were three windows. Half of the room was obviously the playing area, and it had a couple of toy boxes and a low table with two small chairs. In the other half of the room was a low bed, a dresser and a rocking chair in the corner. There was also an adjoining bathroom with a tub. Buffy was pleasantly surprised.

“It’s amazing. Did the people who lived here have children?”

Willow shook her head.

“No, it was old Professor Johnson. He retired last year. I was in here a couple of times before he left, and this used to be his study.” She looked around the room. “It’s really different.”

“I like it.” Buffy went over to the bed and put Cody down. He moved in his sleep but didn’t wake up. Willow left the room and Buffy followed. They got to the last room, and Buffy entered.

It was painted white, with a king size bed in the middle of the room. Against one wall there was a dresser and a desk, and against the wall at the foot of the bed was a low bench with a TV-DVD combination on it, as well as a stereo. Three speakers were situated around the room. There was also a walk-in closet and a bathroom attached to the room.

“Wow!” Buffy walked around the room, looking in drawers and exploring the closet and the bathroom. “This is so much more than I expected.”

“Only the best for the best.” Willow smiled at her new friend. They left the room and went back into the living room. Willow showed Buffy the guest bathroom on the way. The two girls sat down on the couch.

“So, you wanna order pizza or something?” Buffy asked, realizing that she hadn’t eaten since breakfast when her stomach growled.

“Sure. There’s a great place about five minutes away that deliver. I have the phone number in my cell.” She started rummaging through her purse, until she found the cell pone. “Here it is.” She took a pen and paper from the small table next to the couch. “I’ll give you the number to the pizza place, and the daycare center, and my cell...” She cut herself off. “Shoot! I was supposed to show you the daycare center! I completely forgot! You wanna go now?”

Buffy shook her head, smiling at Willow’s upset look.

“No, that’s fine. I’m pretty beat from the drive and the tour. I got directions from the school board when they sent some papers, it’s only a couple of minutes from here, right?” Willow nodded. “I’m sure I’ll find it on my own. Why don’t we just order pizza and get to know each other?”

“OK. What do you want on the pizza?” Willow pressed the call button on her cell phone.

“Just plain is fine.” Buffy went into the kitchen and took two glasses from the cabinet, and found a bottle of water in the fridge. She went back into the living room and placed the things on the table. Willow was finishing up the phone call.

“Thanks, Fred.” She hung up the phone. “The pizza’ll be here in about twenty minutes.”

“Great.” Buffy sat back down on the couch. “So, tell me about Sunnydale. What do you do for fun around here?”

“Well, there’s the Bronze, which is basically the only club in town. It lets anyone in, but it’s usually cool, there’s dancing and live bands every Saturday. There’s a bar on the ‘bad’ side of town, but I wouldn’t recommend going there. Then there’s The Espresso Pump, a coffee place, and The Grotto, which is on campus. They’re a coffee place at day, and a bar at night. A lot of the students hang out there. The pizza place is a pretty big hangout, too. Fred, a friend of mine and her husband, Wesley, own and run it.” Her face lit up as she remembered something. “We’re going to the Bronze tonight, actually, you wanna come?”

“I’d love to, but I don’t have a babysitter yet.” Buffy smiled apologetically.

“Sorry, I forgot. Maybe some other time? We go there almost ever weekend.”

“Sure. My Mom’s coming down next weekend, she’s bound to run me out of the house anyway. You’ll be going then?” Buffy asked.

“Yep. Next Friday will be our big ‘start-of-the-year’ night, everyone’ll be back by then.” Willow looked up as the doorbell rang. Buffy stood up.

“I’ll get it.” She went to the front door and opened it for the delivery boy. She paid for the pizza and gave him a generous tip.

“So, who’s everyone?” She asked as she came back into the living room and put the pizza on the table.

“Well, there’s me, of course.” Willow poured water in their glasses while Buffy opened the pizza box. “And my girlfriend, Tara. She’s from Denver.” She gave Buffy a cautious look. “You OK with that?”

“That she’s from Denver? Might take a little getting used to.” Buffy joked, taking a bite of the pizza. “No, seriously, it’s not a problem. I had a couple of gay friends in LA, no big.”

Willow smiled.

“Great. I hate it when people get all weird even if they say they’re fine with it. Anyway, back to the introductions. There’s Xander, he’s my best friend. He grew up here too, and we’ve known each other since kindergarten. His girlfriend Anya, who’s from New York, don’t freak if she starts asking you about your sex life, she’s a little... open, is one way of putting it, insane is another. Then there’s Cordy, Xander’s ex, and Oz, my ex, they’re Sunnydale originals too. Faith, who’s from Chicago, and Spike, he’s from England. His Dad’s head of the English department, you’ll probably have a few classes with him.” Willow dug into the pizza.

“OK. That’s a lot of names, a lot of... well, kinda weird names, to be honest.”

Willow laughed.

“Really, Buffy?” Buffy laughed too.

“I know. It’s a nick name, my real name’s Elizabeth. My parents called me Bethy when I was little, but my little sister Dawn couldn’t pronounce it, so she said Buffy. I guess it stuck.”

“OK, I’ll buy that.” Willow drank some water.

“So...” Buffy took another piece of her pizza. “Willow?”

“Oh, my Mom was a hippie. Still, a decade later, when I was born. Also, I think she might still have been high on whatever they gave her during the labor.” Willow smiled.

“OK. I like it, it’s... different.” Buffy poured herself some more water. “And Xander?”

“Short for Alexander, that’s his real name.” Willow finished off her last piece of pizza. “ I don’t know how he got it, though.”

“OK. Anya.” Buffy turned to Willow on the couch as she took her last bite of the food.

“Swedish Mom. It’s apparently a common name over there.”

“OK... what were the rest?” Buffy couldn’t remember all of the names.

“Cordy, Oz, Faith, Spike. Oz’s name’s Daniel Osbourne, Spike’s really William. Don’t ask me how he got the nick name, I’ve never dared ask.” She laughed and Buffy joined in.

“I know what you mean. They’re all sophomores too?” Buffy asked.

“No, Tara and Spike are juniors. Oz would be too, but he had to repeat his senior year in high school, because he didn’t do the SAT’s. He’s really smart, though.” Buffy could tell that Willow really cared about all of her friends.

“So, what’s your major? Or haven’t you chosen one yet?” Buffy leaned back on the couch.

“Bio/Chem. I’ve always been fascinated by the way the world works, you now, processes and that stuff. How about you?”

“English. I want to be a writer or a journalist. I read Pride and Prejudice when I was eleven, and I was caught.” She thought she heard a noise. “Hang on a minute.” She left the room and went into Cody’s room, but he was still asleep.

“Then you’ll have a lot of classes with Spike and Giles, that’s his Dad.” Willow said as Buffy re-entered the living room. “Spike majors in English too, and he TA’s some classes...” She was cut off by her cell phone ringing. “Hello? Hi sweetie... but we weren’t supposed to meet until six... it is?” Willow looked at her watch, and Buffy followed her motion. It was already six fifteen. “We must have lost track of time, sorry... yeah, I’m at Buffy’s... right... we ordered pizza and talked some... OK, I’ll meet you in ten... bye, love you.” She hung up and turned to Buffy.

“Sorry, I gotta go, that was Tara, we were supposed to meet fifteen minutes ago. I guess we lost track of time?” She smiled apologetically.

“It’s fine. I wanna get some things unpacked anyway, and relax a little.” Buffy walked Willow to the door.

“You’ve got my number, and come over whenever you want if you need anything, OK? And if I don’t see you before, I’ll see you on Monday at registration.” She waved as she backed down the driveway, and Buffy waved back.

Maybe moving wouldn’t be so hard after all?


AN: Anya actually is a Swedish name, only spelled Anja instead of with a y.





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