Title: Illusion
Fandom: BtVS
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Willow, Buffy, Vampires.
Rating: PG
Word Count: 250
Spoilers: Prophecy Girl.
Summary: Willow no longer feels safe.
Written For: Challenge 333: Amnesty, using Challenge 308: Safe.
Disclaimer: I don’t own BtVS, or the characters.



Even after learning that vampires and other demons were real, not just a bunch of myths, legends, and characters from horror movies, Willow had still somehow felt safe. Maybe that was because she was friends with the Slayer.

She’d seen Buffy dust lots of vampires, and even helped out when she could. Being able to battle the monsters herself, even in a small way, had made her feel less helpless, even sort of… powerful. She might not be a Slayer, but she knew how to take care of herself. Mostly. It was still a lot less scary when Buffy was right there with her Slayer speed and strength, but when she wasn’t, Willow still knew what to do. She even carried a stake and a cross in her bookbag, just in case. It was important to always be prepared.

But Willow didn’t feel safe anymore. People she knew, people she’d spent time with practically every school day, were dead. Not through an accident on the street, but deliberately and callously murdered inside the school. Brazen as you please, vampires had walked right into one of Willow’s safe havens and ripped her friends apart. There’d been blood everywhere.

Her world no longer feels like hers, it’s become warped and twisted, a nightmare version of all that was familiar and comforting. How can she ever go inside that room again? It’s haunted by the memories of what she saw.

Safety is an illusion; one she can’t imagine ever being fooled by again.


The End