Chapter Eleven: Time to Face the Music and Dance

Willow looked out the window as the buses rumbled into Sunnydale, then down at Buffy who was snoring away on her shoulder. She looked to her left to see Cordelia stroking Jennifer's hair while the other girl slept; the head-cheerleader was being awfully nice to the girl, almost as if she was trying to make up for something.

Willow turned her eyes back to Buffy and smiled. 'My Buffy,' she thought and stroked Buffy's blonde hair. Then she looked out the window and saw her mother waiting in the school parking lot with the rest of the proud football and cheerleader parents. She pulled her hand away as if she'd been stung. 'Oh my...Mom...Dad...,' Willow thought in a panic. When she felt Buffy snuggle closer, she went stiff.

The sudden tension in her pillow woke Buffy. "Wills, you okay?" She looked up at her girlfriend with sleepy blue eyes.

"Parental units. Outside. Must stop." Willow choked out in a tense whisper.

Buffy looked out the window and her eyes went wide when she spotted her mother. She jumped away from Willow as if she was radioactive, then gave her a very apologetic look. "We have to tell them," she stated firmly.

Willow gave her best 'deer in the headlights' look and shook her head.

"Hey, you have it easy; your mom is cool with this," Buffy said and motioned between them. "But my mom... Mom..." Buffy sighed and buried her face in her hands. "Okay, here's the deal. We'll tell them when we're both ready, okay?" She took Willow's hand. "Together," she squeezed Willow's hand and gave Willow her bravest smile.

Willow nodded back and gave Buffy's hand a gentle squeeze before they broke apart.

When the bus stopped, the two returned to their families who were blissfully unaware of what had happened during the road trip. None would suspect that a phone call made to ESPN earlier that day would speed up Buffy and Willow's plans for their 'coming-out' party from 'soon' to just this side of 'right now.'

Willow could swear she heard the music of "Tradition" from Fiddler on the Roof.

Buffy's plan almost went off without a hitch; she was able to contain her excitement over the events of the past two days—well, those that didn't concern football—when she hugged her mother and sister. She chatted about the game on the way home and had a nice dinner with her family after a phone call from Giles. The problem began that evening when she was led into the living room of the Summers' home; it was decked out with snacks and there was a fresh video tape in the VCR. Memories of certain compromising footage came flooding back.

"Er...Mom...?" Buffy looked up at her beaming mother.

"An old friend of Ms. Speed tipped her off that a tape from your game yesterday would be on EPSN," Joyce explained. She sat down on the couch and patted the seat next to her. "You're going to be on TV, honey," she said with a beaming smile.

Buffy swallowed a big lump in her throat.

At that same moment, Willow was swallowing a very similar lump in her throat as Sheila called her into the TV-room at the Rosenberg household.

Yes, somebody was throwing a major monkey wrench into Buffy and Willow's carefully laid plans. Everyone else was just looking forward to seeing the hometown girl make it big and, boy, were they in for a shock.

Joyce Summers—proud football mom—had indeed gotten a phone call from Andrea Speed—proud cheerleader mom and coach wife—telling her to tune in to ESPN. Something big was happening concerning the football team and it was going to be on national television. Joyce glanced at her daughter, feeling so proud; although Buffy seemed a bit uncomfortable, but that was probably just all the attention.

"It's starting," Joyce exclaimed. She pressed the record button as the intro for the show ran. Then came the moment that most of the town with good cable was waiting for.

Buffy just wanted to sink into the crack between the cushions of the couch. The familiar footage—to Buffy at least, who was now sporting a very pale complexion—rolled on the screen.

At that moment, through either destiny or karma, both Willow and Buffy wished they were together and away from their parental units.

"This footage was filmed at a Rancho Carne High School football game by the camera man for KGTV, channel 10 in San Diego," Rich Eisen said as the video filled the screen.

"Now watch player number 9 and, no, you're not mistaken, that is a girl. Buffy "Supergirl" Summers, quarterback for the Sunnydale High School's Razorbacks. She completed an amazing 28 out of 30 passes for 250 yards."

"Wow, that girl can throw," Kenny Mayne commented as the screen showed Buffy hurling the pigskin straight into Harry's hands just as time ran out.

"Yes, and not only that, but she also seems to be taking the role of quarterback very seriously in every regard," Eisen chuckled.

Joyce grabbed her mouth when she saw Willow lean in and kiss Buffy on the lips—and she was pretty sure that Buffy was leaning into the kiss too.

"We'll be keeping an eye on this up and coming sensation, that's for sure!" Mayne quipped. The report ended with a shot of Buffy and Willow being carried into the tunnel holding hands. In the immortal words of Yogi Berra, it was déjà vu all over again for the Cheerleader and the Quarterback.

Joyce wordlessly reached out with the remote and turned off the recording. Switching remotes, she then turned off the TV before even looking at Buffy. She slowly turned to her daughter who was looking like a lost little puppy. "Buff...Buffy, is there something...I mean is there..." Joyce stammered. "Honey, is there something you need to tell me?" she finally managed to ask.

Buffy cleared her throat and looked her mom straight in the eye. "Mom, I—" she started.

The phone rang.

Joyce wordlessly reached out and picked it up. "Joyce? Joyce, you there?" her friend Diane practically yelled through the phone.

"Yes I'm here—" Joyce started, not taking her eyes off of Buffy.

"Did your daughter just get kissed on national television by Willow Rosenberg?" Diane pounced without hearing Joyce out.

Joyce fought back the urge to smash the phone into tiny little bits. "She's about to start explaining," she said tersely.

"Well, at least she's not telling you on Thanksgiving," her friend commented.

"I'll have to call you back later on that," Joyce said with a remarkably courteous tone, given the circumstances.

"Oh my god! She's right there, isn't she?" Diane exclaimed. "I'm so—call you back." She hurriedly hung up.

Joyce wordlessly returned the phone to its place. "You were saying?" she asked Buffy.

The Quarterback could hear the sound of tap-dancing in her head. 'So this is what it's like to face the music and dance,' she thought and gulped again. 'God, I hope Willow is having a better time with this than me.' She reached out, took her mother's hand, and opened her mouth to explain.

Just then, there was a loud squeal from upstairs and a shriek of, "Oh my god, my sister's gay!" was heard.

Buffy just buried her face in her hands. She seemed to be doing that a lot today, she noted to herself.

"Yes, Dawn, we know!" Joyce called back, then grabbed her mouth and blushed.

Buffy started to giggle at the farce her 'coming out' was turning into.

Then the phone rang again.

Mother and Daughter just sat there while the phone rang; both trying and failing to contain their laughter.

Then something in Buffy broke. She felt as if a stone was being lifted from her heart and soul and she threw her hands into the air. "I LOVE WILLOW!" Buffy shouted with a laugh over the ringing of the phone. "There I said it! I love her, she makes me happy, tingly, flighty, and all those nice things and she likes me in spite of everything!" she exclaimed. Then she looked somewhat worriedly at her mother, "Is that so bad?"

Joyce couldn't help but to smile at the sincerity in Buffy's voice. The phone kept ringing as mother and daughter just looked at each other. Then Joyce reached out and answered it, then smiled and handed it to Buffy. "It's for you."

Buffy took the phone with a raised eyebrow.

"It's your girlfriend," she explained and Buffy's face broke into a beaming smile.

"Eww, that's totally gross! But at least it's not a boy 'cause boys are yucky," Dawn chimed in from upstairs.

"Someday you might change your mind," Joyce called out, which was followed by the sound of stomping feet.

Little eleven-year-old Dawn burst into the living room, crossed her arms firmly over her chest and stomped her foot. "But boys are yucky!" she exclaimed loudly.

"You may think so now, but one day you'll wake up and you won't think boys are so yucky anymore," Joyce tried to assure to her youngest daughter.

Dawn just looked a bit green around the gills.

Buffy sighed, put her hand over the phone and piped in, "I never did."

In answer, she received a 'you don't count, missy' glare from her mother.

Buffy rolled her eyes skyward before asking Willow, "How'd it go on your end?"

At last she had come out and stated her sexuality and love for Willow to her family. But the tricky part still remained; telling that fact to the rest of the school, come Monday.

Also, to make things more complex, a pang of guilt was gnawing at her stomach. She'd been able to proclaim her love for Willow so easily just now; but still, whenever she tried to say those three little words in the presence of her favorite redheaded cheerleader, her brain did a spaz-out on her.

'We'll just have to fix that. This brain is now a spaz-free zone,' Buffy thought firmly. Then she took a deep breath before asking Willow something she'd wanted to ask for a long time.

Willow sat and stared at the television, stunned for a moment. Then she looked over at her mother who appeared to be engrossed in what the reporter was saying about the state of the NFL. One might say that Willow was a little confused, though that would have been understating the very obvious. After all, she'd expected something—anything—out of her mother. Mostly, she feared something along the lines off: "You tsatskele! What do you think you're doing with that shiksa!" But instead, her mother was watching the sports ticker and humming to herself as though nothing of importance had happened.

"Mom?" Willow asked her mother, fiddling with the hem of her skirt.

"Yes, dear?" Sheila asked without looking away from the screen.

"Don't you...you know...want to ask me something?" she asked blushing brightly.

"Oh, right," Sheila said, snapping her fingers. "Did you clean your room yet?"

Willow gave her mother a very dirty look. "Not that," she huffed, then she noticed that her mother was smiling at her.

"Willow, does she make you happy?" Sheila asked softly.

Willow gave her mother a stunned looked and then asked the only thing that came to mind. "What about Dad?"

"Oh, your father doesn't care for sports," Sheila explained off-handedly. "Am I 'freaking' you out dear?" she asked patting Willow on the shoulder.

"A bit," Willow squeaked out.

"Why don't you call her?" Sheila asked handing Willow the phone. "I'm sure you two have a lot to talk about," she said.

Willow took the phone, then gave her mother a big hug. "Mame..." she whispered, "a sheynem dank." She hugged her mother tightly before pulling back and giving her a teary eyed smile.

"Filn zikh shtolts." Sheila answered as Willow started dialing.

After several rings, Joyce picked up. Willow stammered into the receiver, "Is...is Buffy there?" After a few, very fast heartbeats, a voice that made her heart skip spoke.

"Hi, Wills," Buffy said through the phone.

Willow giggled, then her brain went into warm-goo mode as her mother watched her with a smile.

"How'd it go on your end?" Buffy asked and Willow could hear Dawn's loud exclamations of the yuckiness of boys and girls and well...the whole boyfriend/girlfriend thing in general in the background.

"Mom... Mom..." Willow stammered into the phone and then looked up at her mother and smiled. "Mom told me 'Filn zikh shtolts.'" she said and felt herself tear up.

"What's 'films ick shots' supposed to mean?" Buffy asked, confusion in her voice. In a horrified whisper, she asked, "She thought we were icky?"

Willow giggled, "No, Buffy. It's Yiddish." She took a deep breath as the tears threatened again. "She told me to be proud of myself."

"Wills, that's..." Buffy stammered on the other end with a sniffle of her own. "Wills, you should be. Everyday you make me so proud and so happy." Buffy, in rare babble-mode, gushed into the phone.

There was silence for a moment, then, after a hearty mutual sniffle, Willow's eyes twinkled a bit. "So...does this mean we can go out on a date-date now?" she asked hopefully and she could hear Buffy take a deep breath.

Then Buffy answered with, "Willow, would you go out with me after the game?"

That was how it came to pass that Buffy and Willow made their relationship known to their families—well, mostly, but Ira doesn't really count—however, the rest of the town remained to be told. Then there were the problems of a few other cheerleaders who had not returned from the road-trip with such a firm grasp of their emotions.

Chapter Eleven and a Half: The Lost Chapter

Buffy could almost feel the heat of the flashbulbs going off in the stands when she was carried from the field. Another victory for the Razorbacks with no end in sight for their winning streak. She felt proud of her team. They'd held up despite all the pressures she'd brought upon them and now their spot in the state finals was almost secure. So she allowed herself to worry about the upcoming date-date with Willow she was going on after the game.

"Guys, put me down," she said with a laugh.

The team promptly lowered her to the ground once they were inside the boys' locker-room.

"Good game, guys," she said and then looked them over and noticed a nasty cut above Larry's left eye. "Larry, have that looked at," she said.

The linebacker gave a reluctant affirmative grunt in reply.

"Wild Bill," she said and flipped the game ball to the running back.

"Cap', I can't. This is..." Will Bill said and looked down at the game ball.

"You need it more than me," Buffy said with a wink and the running back actually blushed.

"Cap', you not coming to the Bronze to celebrate?" Harry asked.

The Twins nodded in agreement; it wasn't a party without Buffy.

"I'm kind of..." Buffy started and then the cheerleaders glided past and she caught sight of Willow and her mouth went numb. "Busy," she finished with a slight slur to her voice.

"Ah, girlfriend duties. I can get into that," Wild Bill said sheepishly when Litni walked past and was rewarded with a smack to the back of the head by Buffy. "What?" he asked.

"Girlfriend duties?" Buffy asked with a raised eyebrow. "Never say it like it's a chore," she mock scolded the running back.

He gave laugh. "No, it's fun. Just unnerving and stressful sometimes," he explained.

"Well, boys," Buffy said and looked around the locker room. "I'd love to stay," she said.

A playful chorus of, "Please do!" filled the room.

"But I've got a date to get ready for, so wish me luck," she said.

Just when she was about to leave the locker room she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around to come face to face with Larry who was looking a bit bewildered with a Band-Aid above his left eye.

"Cap'—" he started and then looked down at petite quarterback with a wistful smile. "Have fun okay," he said with a hint of sadness in his voice, turned and headed for his locker.

Litni Speed sat and waited at the Espresso Pump. She wore a pink flower in her blonde hair and was busily chewing her lower lip wondering about what the hell she was doing here.

'You're going on a date, silly,' her mind reminded her.

"Litni," somebody called out.

Litni looked up to see Buffy and Willow entering the Espresso Pump, waving to her. The couple was out on their first Date-Date as it had come to be known among those in the know. "Hi, guys," she said as the couple walked over to table she was sitting at.

"Waiting for WB?" Buffy asked the young cheerleader and Litni felt herself blush.

Willow gently smiled at her and Litni could see why Buffy so adored this girl. Just one look from the glowing redhead was enough to lift your spirits sometimes.

"Yeah, he's running late," Litni said and fiddled with her cup of cocoa.

"He's just as nervous as you are," Buffy assured the girl. "Trust me on that one. He put his shirt on backwards after the game," she added with a smirk. "Harry told me!" she then exclaimed when she was met by questioning looks about just how she'd gained that information.

"Speaking of shirts, I think our victim—I mean, running back—just walked through the door," Willow said and tugged at Buffy's sweater in a very strong in hint that they should vanish.

"Good luck, Litni," Buffy said and patted the girl on the back.

"Ignore everything the squad told you to do," Willow added and with that the happy couple vanished.

Litni nodded to Willow and then her attention shifted to Wild Bill, who was looking very good in a plain white shirt and black pants. 'Just Bill now I guess,' she thought to herself. 'OH, my god! He brought the game ball,' she thought and then looked up. "Hi," she said with a beaming smile. She had never seen it do that to anybody before, because she was sure she'd just fried Wild Bill's brain with it.

"Errr...hi," the usually smooth operator stammered and fiddled with the game ball. "Was...was that Cap'—I mean Buffy and Willow?" Wild Bill asked.

"Yeah. They were giving me one last chance to change sides. Even offered me a toaster-oven," Litni answered dead-pan and held a straight face just long enough to catch Wild Bill's confusion.

He broke into a big grin. "Why Miss Speed, I do believe you are toying with me," he said. Some of his mental reflexes returning after having been faced with the stunning beauty of Litni all dolled up.

"Maybe a little, but that look was priceless," Litni said and giggled. "Did Buffy give you that?" she asked pointing at the ball.

"Yeah, she said something about me needing it more than she did. Here," he said and handed her the ball. "You can have it," he offered and Litni's eyes grew as large as saucers.

"Really?" she said and took the ball with shaking hands. "This is the ball that got us into the state finals," she said with awe.

"Yeah, I know. Got some bruises from it myself," Bill said with that roguish grin. "You really want to play more than you want to cheer, don't you?" he asked with honest eyes and Litni blushed a bit.

"I want to, but I'm not dumb. I don't have Buffy's 'mystical' arm or her 'sixth-sense' for incoming line backers," Litni explained trying to hide her blush.

"Hey, it's nothing to be ashamed of. I wanted to cheer before I got pulled into running," Bill said.

Litni gave him a 'yeah-right' look.

"No, seriously! Thought it was a good way to get in with the girls," he answered honestly.

"And now?" Litni asked, absent mindedly twirling the game ball in her hands.

"Now I just want to run. Girls are no longer such a big distraction," Bill explained and Litni felt a bit gooey.

"Oh?" she asked.

"Let's just call it a narrow field," Wild Bill said and leaned over the table and then was rudely interrupted by the waitress just when Litni was leaning in towards him with a very satisfied smirk on her lips.

"You love-birds ready to order yet?" the waitress asked.

The two broke apart flushing.

Their drifting walk through Sunnydale brought the loving couple through some interesting sights. They made a short stop in the cemetery for Buffy's Slayer-y duties which Willow cheered on with great enthusiasm.

"That was almost as fun as watching you play!" Willow exclaimed breathlessly while hugging Buffy, who was a bit dusty in the aftermath of much senseless violence: her preferred solution to these pesky late night interruptions.

"The back-flip was bit too much though," Buffy answered with a grin. Just when she was leaning in to kiss Willow her ears perked up.

Willow felt herself being dragged behind a headstone. "Buffy!" she exclaimed and giggled before Buffy covered her mouth.

"Somebody's coming," she said, still in full Slayer-mode and very protective of her Willow.

Willow let out a sigh and pried the hand from her mouth. "It's probably just somebody taking a short-cut through the cemetery to the Bronze, although that's a bit odd, you know, the Bronze being so close the cemetery, almost like a bad plot device in a—" Willow's babble stream was cut off by a kiss.

Buffy kept on eye out until she was sure all danger was past, then got to work on taking care of some after Slayer-y urges.

"We'll be late for your speech at the Bronze," Willow said when they broke apart and Buffy gave a wolfish grin.

While the two snuggle-bunnies did whatever snuggle-bunnies do behind tombstones in dark cemeteries on Sunday nights, a group of celebrating students—a mix of cheerleaders, football players, friends, and classmates...oh, and one mascot—took a shortcut through the cemetery to get to the Bronze.

Trailing behind the group was a very dour Larry, the undisputed co-leader of the team and a guy that when in a good mood—meaning not being around a certain quarterback—could be an okay guy.

"I'll catch up, guys," Xander excused himself from the main group while looking back at the sulking linebacker. Knowing well the dangers of Sunnydale he didn't want to leave anyone, even Larry, alone in the dark.

"Hey, Larry! What's the matter, big guy?" Xander said and gave Larry a firm pat on the shoulder. Then Xander realized his mistake and slowly withdrew his hand.

The line backer looked up at the mascot and instead of a murderous rage filled face Xander saw a face of a very confused young man.

"Xander, have you ever—" Larry started and then stopped "Never mind, lets get going," he said. "Don't want to disappoint the ladies," he commented with a wink.

Xander wanted to shake his head and sigh, but through superhuman effort and conditioning from being best friend to two girls he held back. "Larry, there is something bothering you and it's my duty as Team Mascot to ensure that you get it off your chest," Xander said with his friendliest smile.

"That's not in the book," Larry stated but gave a laugh.

"Well, it's not in the book that the quarterback should be a girl. It's not in the book that she should be dating a cheerleader who's also a girl. It's not in the book that the mascot should be having a secret thing with the head cheerleader that everybody knows about. And it's not the book that—" Xander counted off on his finger.

"Wait. You're dating Cordelia?" Larry asked in an honestly surprised voice.

Xander resisted the very strong urge to beat his head against the giggling tombstone. 'Wait. Giggling tombstone?' Xander thought, then shook his head and took Larry firmly by the shoulders. "What I'm trying to say, Larry, is that it's okay to be different here. This is Sunnydale! I mean, after all that's gone on since we started school, how bad can your secret be?" he asked and gave a very good imitation of Willow's Resolve Face(tm)—he was probably bordering on copyright infringement. There was a dramatic pause and the world held its breath—well, the two snuggle-bunnies behind the tombstone did at least.

Larry seemed to be weighing the options in his mind while Xander tried to block out the odd giggling tombstone. He decided it was probably just his mind playing tricks on him again—like it always did when he saw the school mascot outfit and felt the distinct taste of ham in his mouth; a very raw tasting ham that would haunt him to the end of his days.

"Xander, is that tombstone giggling?" Larry asked finally with a grin.

Now Xander gave an almighty sigh of the long suffering whipping boy to all and put a friendly arm around Larry's shoulder. "Larry," he said and started steering the linebacker towards the Bronze. "I believe it was. Now about this 'problem' of yours, how about we go and talk it over along with some drinks and the company of lovely women," Xander said, then he looked back at the giggling tombstone.

"Or men," Larry added with a slow wink and Xander gave him a smile.

"That's the spirit. If all the cheerleaders are going Sapphic, why shouldn't the footballers fight back in some sort of way," he said with a laugh, then took one glance back and saw a redhead and a blonde pop back down behind the tombstone.

Buffy was watching Willow from her seat on the windowsill. The night had gone better than she'd hoped for—well, aside from the confusion over Larry and the sound of Xander screaming his lungs out.

"Willow," Buffy said while watching Willow go about getting ready for bed.

"Yes," Willow said dreamily while she was combing out her long red hair.

Buffy bit her lip, she was going to tell Willow tonight, but something deep inside her kept her from saying it. "Want me to stay?" she asked and wanted to slap herself for being such a coward. 'Not that sleeping with Willow is bad,' she thought to herself with a smile.

"On the first date?" Willow asked playfully and Buffy giggled.

"Am I being a 'shiksa'?" she asked and looked out at the moon over head.

"You've been studying?" Willow asked and moved toward the window with a brush in her hand.

"Maybe a little," Buffy said innocently and then felt the touch of the brush on her hair.

"Your hair is all boyish," Willow commented while running the brush through Buffy's blonde locks. "Think you got it sun bleached," she commented.

"When did you get all girly on me, Wills?" Buffy asked with a laugh but then gave a content sigh while her girlfriend combed out her hair.

"Well one of us has to be a bit girly," Willow said absentmindedly and stole a kiss on Buffy's cheek. "And yes you can stay the night," Willow whispered into Buffy's ear. "Just..."

"Leave through the window," Buffy finished with a giggle. "Your mom is the coolest sometimes," she said and then winced when Willow's brush caught a tangle in her hair.

"Sorry," Willow said. "But you get serious helmet hair sometimes," she said and worked the brush through Buffy's blonde locks and then ran her fingers through it.

"Purr," Buffy said with a grin.

With a smile, Willow put down the brush turned her girlfriend around and gave her a big kiss on the lips while holding onto her face. "You're my quarterback," Willow said when she pulled away from the closed eyed and grinning slayer.

"And you're my cheerleader," Buffy said and opened her eyes and kissed Willow again.

'I'll tell her tomorrow,' Buffy thought when Willow wrapped her arms around her. 'Yep, tomorrow...' her mind trailed off.

Later, when the pair lay in Willow's bed—get your mind out of the gutter—both in their bed clothes, Buffy looking a bit baggy in Willow's larger pajamas, Buffy again whispered to Willow as she slept. "I like..." she paused and looked at Willow's sleeping face before trying again "I love you, Wills, and I swear that I'll tell you when you can hear me before the season's over," she whispered and then snuggled closer to her girlfriend.

Next up are the state championship games, so a long road lay before the cheerleader and the quarterback yet.

Chapter Twelve: Aftermaths and Flashbacks

The trophy gleamed in the light of the Bronze and the rain kept battering the roof of the club. Beyond the trophy, the hazy outlines of the storyteller, the editor, and the proof-girl (ala Star Wars: Return Of The Jedi) could be seen—or maybe that's just the beer talking in some drunken senior's brain. Hey! You didn't think we were going to miss the end celebrations, did you?

Buffy sat with Her Willow™ on her lap and sipped at her warm chocolate enjoying an extremely high level of warm fuzzies. 'Aww, warm goodness in two forms,' she thought and glanced at her girlfriend. On the table in front of her rested the game ball and a pair of very muddy gloves. 'Still, that mud isn't coming out of my uniform anytime soon—wait! Warm Willow goodness and I'm thinking about laundry?' she thought in a panic. She snuggled up to her girlfriend and gave her a hug to calm herself.

"Man, that was wet and uncomfortable..." one of the cheerleaders started to say.

Buffy didn't hear the rest since her mind had already drifted back to the mud covered gridiron. The memory of being slammed hard into said mud brought back the feeling of her hands sinking into the cold mud. The chill returned to her fingers until Willow chased it away.

Willow took Buffy's hands into her own and smiled at her girlfriend—or Slayer-Sized, Permanent Snuggle-Bunny. 'Hey, it beats shiksa,' Willow thought and interlaced her fingers between Buffy's. 'Plus, she's all mine now,' she thought while her inner Daffy Duck jumped around inside her brain, 'Mine-mine-mine.'

After all, we all have our own inner Daffy Duck. Perhaps it has something to do with our id or maybe it depends on how many Warner Brothers cartoons we watched while growing up. It leads us all to— The storyteller is promptly hushed by the editor and the proof-girl who've been waiting for this ending for far too long.

"You were far away for a moment there, sweetie," Willow said.

Buffy looked up at her girlfriend. "Flashback in the brain," she explained and kissed the cheerleader. "Love you," she stated happily with a smile.

"Love you too," Willow answered and kissed her quarterback back. 'Mine-mine-mine,' Willow's inner Daffy Duck repeated.

"Stop it, you two!" Wild Bill exclaimed. The girls turned to look at the running back as the twins wheeled him and Litni over to the table. The cast on his leg was now richly decorated—although several phone numbers had been crossed over and replaced with the words, "Hands off," in a suspiciously Litni-like handwriting.

The twins each had a silly grin on his face and a cheerleader on his arm. Although we're sure they'd rather be cow-tipping right now, it was raining and the girls weren't that bad anyway. Maybe later they'd take them for a roll in the hay, after milking the cows and feeding the pigs, of course.

"I was so worried when they tackled you," Litni said, then kissed Wild Bill on the cheek and blushed. Yes, she's a bashful little thing, isn't she? But then again, what's the happy ending without the cute girl blushing.

"Yeah, they got me good. But these guys got 'em back for me, didn't you boys," he said and slapped the twins on their shoulders.

"Yes, it was quite a blow you took there, William," Jon said in low rumbling voice that had a distinct Country Western accent to it. It was an accent that would be put a country star to shame; inhumanly western even. An accent that would make a grown man cry. So thick that it could be used to plug leaks in the Hoover Dam. Well, you get the idea.

"But don't worry. You'll heal up nicely," Tuck said in an equally rumbling voice, this one though totally different, go figure. Apparently Jon had been raised on the farm and Tuck had been raised in the heart of Brooklyn. Although his wording was eloquent, his accent was just this side of horrendous.

The twins then looked around the Bronze where everybody was staring at them in awe and stunned silence.

"What? Just because we don't—" Jon started.

"Doesn't mean we're incapable of doing so," Tuck finished.

Both gave their trademark little smiles, then each boy blushed when the cheerleader on his arm gave him a kiss on the cheek.

In the case of the twins blushing, it was perhaps for the best since it kept blood from flowing to naughtier places. Besides, who doesn't love seeing grown men blush? Those cheerleaders had just saved some cows from horrible fates.

"Still, that was some hit you took, buddy," Harry said when he arrived with the drinks, with a little help from Annika and Larry.

Larry was still sporting a nasty Slayer-hand-shaped bruise on his cheek, a result of Buffy convincing him to stop being 'too gay to function' and to get out there and play. Thoughts drifted back to earlier in the day.

The cheerleaders had gone quiet and so had the crowd. Willow and Cordelia were holding Litni back from running onto the field and Buffy was kneeling over her running back.

"WB, talk to me," Buffy said. She propped up Wild Bill's head as the rest of the team rushed in around her.

"Leg hurts like nine levels of hell, Cap'," Wild Bill said through gritted teeth.

Buffy pulled his helmet off. "You did good, WB," she said and smoothed down his wet hair. "Plus, Hell doesn't technically have nine levels; it's more like a deep pit that..." she trailed off and scratched the back of her helmet with a blush. "Can you stand, big boy?" she asked.

"Don't get all maternal on me, Cap'. Just help me up," Wild Bill said, then looked over to Litni and blew her a kiss.

"Harry, help me," Buffy said, remembering to cover for her slayer strength. The two helped Wild Bill up and carried him over to the medics. Once the running back was safely off the field, Buffy turned to Coach Landis for orders.

"We're short a running back," Coach Landis said. She looked around the wet field and the rain soaked teams. "This is your call, Buffy. Who do you trust to run the ball?"

"Wait, shouldn't you two..." Buffy said, looking between Coach Landis and the umbrella holding Coach Jameson.

"No, this is your call, Summers," Coach Jameson said. He put a hand on her shoulder. "This is your team and you must lead them," he said in that calm voice.

Buffy was sure she could see a halo above his head and hear a choir of angels in the background.

"Did a bell just ring?" Coach Landis asked with a grin. She slapped Buffy on the back. "Who do you want?" she asked.

"Give me Larry," Buffy said without missing a beat.

"Larry? But he's still..." Coach Landis trailed off and looked over to the defensive end sitting almost dazed on the bench. "Well, he's still not fully ready to clash with other men right now," she said bluntly. "He took the taunting kind of hard and the crowd didn't help," she explained.

"I'll talk to him," Buffy said with a firmly set face, then stalked over to Larry.

Standing in front of him with her hands on her hips, Buffy looked down at the moping defensive end. "Larry, we need you. So put that helmet on and get out there," she said and hiked her thumb over her shoulder.

Larry barely looked up.

With everything else that was going on, his lack of reaction made her blood boil. "Larry, stop this bullshit!" Buffy exclaimed and shook his shoulder while the rain poured down on them. "I'm wet, muddy and I just lost my best runner. I need somebody to take the ball and plow through the defense, but no, he's moping because he just found out that he likes the boys," she ranted and glared down at the sulking defensive end.

"It doesn't matter anymore; it's just football," he said in a defeated tone.

At that, Buffy's blood boiled over and the slap could be heard across the field. Then she turned and started stalking toward the opposition. She was going to get some payback for what the opposing guard had said; nobody taunted and hurt her teammates, not even Larry.

"Buffy, Cap', stop!" Larry shouted. He bolted over to her and grabbed her shoulder.

"If you're not going out there and defend yourself, then I am," Buffy said. 'Perhaps physiology—or is that psychology? Whichever it is, maybe it isn't such a silly subject after all.'

"Okay, I'll play. Just don't get thrown out over me," Larry said sheepishly and rubbed his reddening cheek.

"Partners?" Buffy asked stuck out her hand.

"Partners," Larry nodded and shook the petite hand of the quarterback. "Now let's go kick some 'phobic butt," he added with a grin and cracked his knuckles.

Xander tossed the head of the mascot costume into the air and caught it as the crowd laughed at Larry's silly grin.

Back at the Bronze the teams thoughts turned back to the present.

"I was more worried when Buffy slapped Larry here," Xander said. "Thought we might have to drag her off him," he chuckled and ruffled Buffy's hair.

"Thanks, X-man," Larry said. He gave Xander a kiss on the cheek from which the mascot instantly recoiled.

"Look, we talked about this after the game!" he exclaimed pointing, then looked down his finger at the Cheshire-cat grinning defensive end. "You—You—" Xander growled.

"Easy, tiger. We all did strange stuff today," Cordelia giggled into Xander's ear and kissed the other cheek. "Also you're drawing lots of attention, so I just take it as confirmation of your hotness," she said and winked at Larry. "But hands off!" she ordered everybody around the table; boys, girls, and authors alike. Larry saluted her with a beer-mug.

"Yes ma'am," the rather crowded gathering said in unison. "We shall keep our hands off Xander's butt since it is your property!" they then chorused.

"Amen!" Buffy said and raised her cup of hot chocolate.

"But man, that was a sweet move, Cap'," Harry said and sipped his drink. "I didn't know a ball could be thrown like that or that a defensive end could run like that!"

"Well, when Willow says run," Buffy said with a grin.

"You run," Larry, Harry and Wild Bill said as one.

"Okay, this 'let's all say the same thing at the same time' thing is getting creepy, guys," Cordelia interjected.

"Sorry," the guys said together and Cordelia turned her eyes skywards.

"Still, Willow, that was a great speech," Litni commented.

Willow turned to the younger cheerleader and unleashed her new found super-facial ability, the 'devastating, aww thank you, cutesy-pie smile,' and ruffled the blonde girl's hair eliciting a blush. "Well, you helped too, Litni," Willow said and the girl turned into a tomato.

Yes, we are going to have another flashback now. Didn't you read the chapter's name?

There was a palpable gloom that hung over the locker-room. Larry was nursing his bruise with an ice-pack, Buffy was pretending to be nursing a sore hand from bruising Larry, and Harry was trying to keep the twins from going to the other team's locker-room to exact vengeance for Wild Bill.

"So nobody wants to say anything?" Coach Landis said and looked around the locker-room.

"We're getting hammered out there," Larry stated and wiggled his jaw.

"Those guys are inhuman," Buffy stated. 'And I know inhuman,' she added in her mind.

Coach Jameson stood in the doorway, mainly to block the way out in case the team got flighty. Also, because he liked standing in doorways, it was a thing of his. "I've been thinking that maybe—" he started and the team looked up, but then there was a knock at the door. "Who on Earth could that be?" Coach Jameson asked himself and turned around and opened the door.

"Hi!" Three girls;—Willow, Cordelia, and Litni—greeted him in unison and waved.

We should note at this point in time that they were all very wet from their cheering and that behind them the entire squad also waved, also equally wet. Yet Coach Jameson being the saint that he was and an angel in training—hey, it's a good conspiracy theory—didn't register the fact. All he did was silently hand Willow a dry fluffy towel without even looking below her neckline, where everybody else's eyes—including Coach Landis's, albeit discretely—were resting.

"Yes? Can I help you ladies?" Coach Jameson asked in his calm, collected voice. Again, half the people in the room could almost swear they heard the sound of an angels' chorus around the man.

"I was wondering if I could maybe talk to the team?" Willow asked and found herself batting her eyelashes.

Coach Jameson paused to think, then looked back at his rather demoralized team and shrugged his shoulders. After all if the presence of fellow schoolmates wouldn't spur them on, then nothing would. A very wet mascot joined the gathered wet cheerleaders huddling outside the team's locker-room. The wetness didn't even enter into Coach Jameson's mind and somewhere Santa put him in the Good-column for another year.

"Come on in," he said and opened the door wide.

"Thanks, Coach Jameson," Willow said and gave him a beaming smile, which would later become known as the 'devastating, aww thank you, cutesy-pie smile,' and Coach Jameson actually blushed.

There was a collective sound of jaw dropping when the wet cheerleaders—which make for very nice visual images—marched into the locker-room lead by Willow and Cordelia.

"Boys, stop gaping. And, Larry, stop ogling my boyfriend," Cordelia said.

There was a sound of several jaws dropping followed by a collective outburst of, "Who me?" Over the din, Larry apologized, "Sorry!" while Buffy started to say, "Willow, what are you—"

"Willow has something to say to you all," Litni said. Sheepishly, she waved at her mom. "Sorry, Mom."

Coach Landis sighed and shook her head, just knowing that Litni got this side of her personality from Andrea.

Willow tossed her wet red hair over her shoulder and adjusted her skirt. This caused another round of collective jaw dropping followed by the sound of a growling quarterback and a sighing defensive end turned running back.

"Now first of all—" Willow paused for a dramatic look around the room. "You're all a bunch of sissies!" she exclaimed. "And I know a bunch of sissies when I see them. I was in 6th grade gym and we had some sissies," Willow said and looked at Xander when he raised his hand guiltily.

"Yeah! Buffy, you're not focused. Larry, you're...confused—" Litni piped in and then looked at Willow to help her out.

"You two—" Willow said sternly and walked up to the twins. "Stop beating yourself up for not stopping them from getting to Wild Bill. Instead, get out there and get some revenge!" She softened her expression and touched them gently on the shoulder. "Just imagine them as cows that need tipping: big, napping cows," she said with a grin and a gleam in her eyes.

The twins nodded their heads and smiled at the cute red head that was making them feel fuzzy.

"Harry, stop worrying about Wild Bill, he'll be fine. Instead, go out there and run for the both of you." Willow then ruffled his hair. "Annika is watching you after all," she added and Harry's chest puffed out.

"Larry, I know that you're going through a lot of stuff," Willow sat down next to the moping defensive end. "Believe me, I know," she said with great empathy while she patted his shoulder. "It's not easy, but the team needs you and they don't care if you're gay or straight." She looked around the locker-room with a firm look in her eyes. "Do you?" she asked firmly.

"Rainbow flags all around," Buffy called out.

"Larry still scares me, but that's nothing new; always been scared of him," Xander quipped in.

"One less guy as competition!" Harry shouted.

The twins just shrugged and gave him a thumbs up. After all, they had Uncle Bob in San Francisco. He was cool and could tip a mean cow if the mood took him, no matter if he was fabulously dressed while doing so.

"You see, Larry, they don't mind. So go out there and run for Wild Bill and smack down some jerks," Willow said and gave him a hug.

"I don't think that's proper," Coach Jameson whispered to Coach Landis.

"Well then, you'll hate what's coming next," Coach Landis whispered back with a sly little smile.

"Buffy," Willow said and stood in front of the quarterback. "My Buffy." She pulled the quarterback to her feet. "You're forgetting that this is just a game. You went into this to be normal and to have fun, but right now you're trying to rescue everybody...as usual." She lifted Buffy's face so that their eyes met. "You don't have to rescue everybody all the time; you just have to be Buffy." She paused and stroked away the dirt from Buffy's cheek. "My Buffy." She smiled and started to lean in. "The Buffy that loves her Willow," she finished and gave Buffy a tender kiss on the lips.

"I love you, Willow," she whispered. Perhaps it wasn't the screaming from the rooftops she'd envisioned when she'd dreamed about telling Willow, but it did the job.

"I know," Willow answered. "You never had to tell me." She beamed with a loving smile. "But it's nice to hear it," she added with an impish grin and kissed Buffy again.

They were interrupted by a loud, "Ahem!" from Coach Jameson.

"Feel better now?" Willow asked when she pulled away.

"Much," Buffy said with a big smile. She jumped up on to the bench she'd been moping on. "What are we?" she shouted at the gathered team and cheerleaders.

"War Pigs!" the group roared back.

"What are we going to do?" Buffy shouted.

"Dominate!" the group shouted back.

Buffy looked down and watched Willow pick up her helmet, then the redheaded cheerleader kissed it, leaving a lipstick mark on it right above the face opening. She handed it to Buffy with a wink.

Taking the helmet, Buffy jammed it onto her head and raised her gloved fist into the air. "For Wild Bill!" she called out.

The team followed suit before roaring out the tunnel along with the screaming cheerleaders.

In the Bronze the rain still beat down on the roof. The hot chocolate flowed freely along with much back slapping, hugging, and kissing.

"Larry, stop that," Xander exclaimed and covered his face.

"Oh, come on. He's just letting out some long suppressed stuff," Cordelia said and swatted Xander with the glove from the mascot outfit.

"Still, there are laws against doing that, aren't there?" Buffy asked and got swatted with a pom-pom by Willow.

"It's sweet," Willow said. She looked at Larry who was now dancing on the bar and singing along with YMCA—the dancing was good, but the singing left much to be desired. In all honesty, Larry was missing every single note and even inventing some new ones in the process.

"Great, here come the twins. They'll stop..." Xander trailed off when the twins joined the defensive end on the bar belting out the song in their heavily accented voices and joining Larry in the dance moves.

"There, there, sweetie," Cordelia said and patted Xander on the back. "It's must be hard being so straight," she joked.

Xander's head snapped up. "Damn straight, I'm straight!" Xander exclaimed, his chest puffing.

"Come on, Xander, let's show them," Harry said with a laugh. He motioned for Xander to follow while Annika giggled next to him.

"I—I—" Xander stammered.

"Oh, come on. Show us that you can dance just as good as the defensive line," Harry said and urged Xander to follow again.

"Yes, Alexander, show us what a mascot can really do," Annika added with a small smile.

"Oh, come on, you big baby," Willow said and flung a pom-pom at him. "I've seen you dance in the bathroom."

All the eyes at the table locked on her.

Willow blushed, her eyes wide. "When we were little," she explained.

After much taunting and threats of pain, Xander along with Harry were up on the bar dancing along to In the Navy.

"Whoever brought that Best of The Village People CD should be congratulated...and then shot," Buffy muttered. "They're evil and I know evil. Still, it's kind of funny seeing the boys trying to prove their straightness by dancing to disco." Then she blew a wolf-whistle.

"You'd go up there, right?" Litni asked Wild Bill with a grin

The wheelchair-bound running back grinned back. "If you asked nicely," he replied and stole a kiss.

"What about you, Annika? You've been quiet. No moment from the game that sticks with you?" Wild Bill asked Harry's girlfriend.

"Just the celebration afterwards, when the sun came out," Annika said with her little smile. "And all the kissing," she added with a sly smile clearly reliving the days events in her mind.

The team was down to the wire and they knew it. This was it, their last Hail Mary. They'd come to within a hairsbreadth of stealing victory and now all they needed was one more touchdown. And above all else, they needed to obey the Willow. Beyond that, they were going to make it as fun as possible.

The crowd was getting louder. The rain had stopped for the moment and the cheerleaders had quickly dried off during half-time, thanks to the towels dutifully passed out by the very happy towel boy at Coach Jameson's request. The cheerleaders had also managed to get the worst, a very objective worst, of the moisture from their uniforms. That left a group of wet football players ready to slug it out one last time.

"Okay guys, this is it: last play of the last game," Buffy said in the huddle. "I'm going to drag them out; make them come after me and open up holes in their line," she explained. She turned her blue eyes to the twins. "Twins, keep me safe. I can only dodge so many."

The twins nodded solemnly in reply then glanced over at the cute red-headed who talked like their mother.

"Harry, we want them to think you're the bait, so make like you're going for it," she told the running back.

"Larry, you wait for my signal I'll run to you," she explained to the recently drafted running back. "Then I'll fake giving you the ball and then you run for the end-zone," she laid out the final bit of her plan. "Sorry, but the ball really is going to Harry on this one and you'll take a few hits," she added.

"It's okay, let them try," Larry said and cracked his knuckles.

"Harry, you feeling lucky?" Buffy asked.

"Just call me Wild Harry," Harry said with a chuckle.

"Give me your hands," Buffy said and thrust her hand into the huddle. "What are we?" she asked for the last time that season.

"War Pigs!" the team shouted.

"What are we going to do?" she asked with a wink.

"Dominate!" the team shouted.

"Rainbow flags all around!" Buffy shouted.

The team followed her in a chant of, "Rainbow! Rainbow! Rainbow!" as the huddle broke up with laughter in the air.

The laugh unnerved the other team, because it hinted that their opponents either knew the play or they had just plain lost it.

"One last time! Hut, hut!" Buffy called the play and the offense exploded into action. Buffy ran backwards and, as planned, dragged much of the defensive line with her. The twins crashed into it and made like their opponents were napping cows.

"The Girl of Steel makes for the hills—but what is this? Here comes Blaisdell and he's taking the ball and off he goes," the announcer shouted over the speakers.

"Gotcha," Buffy muttered to herself. She dodged an incoming defender before reaching back her arm and letting the pigskin fly with all her strength at Harry.

"A trick-play! The 'Backs have totally outwitted their opponents," the announcer exclaimed after Larry got slammed into the ground and held up his empty hands.

"There is Kim at the twenty, the ten—" the announcer exclaimed while Harry ran for dear life. The closest defensive back was inches away from grabbing Harry when he was slammed from behind. Amazingly, it was by the fleet-footed Larry who had somehow managed to get up again.

"Touch down 'Backs! The 'Backs win, 'Backs win!" the announcer shouted.

Buffy felt herself fall to her knees on the gridiron. Pulling off her helmet, she tossed it into the air and gave an exalted shout. "Willow! I love you!" She raised her arms towards the air. "I'm in love with Willow Rosenberg!" she called out. Although this was common knowledge by now, she felt that shouting her love for Willow beat thanking Jesus—both Jewish in either case.

There was a sound of feet hitting wet grass as the team and the cheerleaders rushed towards the end-zone to celebrate. Except for one pair of feet which made their way to the center of the field where Buffy was still on her knees.

"Wow!" Willow said and offered Buffy her hand. "Shouting it from the rooftops? Metaphorically, that is?" she asked with a raised eyebrow. Then Willow felt herself being gathered up in a big hug and an even bigger kiss as the sun broke through briefly to shine on the Cheerleader and the Quarterback.

"Ladies and gentlemen, let's hear it for the new State-champions: The Sunnydale High Razorbacks!" the announcer shouted over the speakers.

"I love you so much," Buffy said once she gave Willow the opportunity to breathe.

"And I lo—" Willow's declaration of love was interrupted by the startled shriek of a headless Xander—mascot headless, that is—who came running up and hid behind them.

"Save me! Larry just kissed me," Xander said in a panicky voice.

"Tongue?" Buffy asked dead-pan.

Xander nodded his head, then went stiff when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Xander, you're my boyfriend now," Cordelia said in a quite matter of fact tone and then kissed him full on the lips.

"I am?" Xander asked in a confused voice. Then he exclaimed with a goofy grin, "I am!"

Cordelia nodded her head with a smile.

"What about Jennifer and not dating a loser?" he asked.

"Xander Harris, you're not a loser. And besides, Jennifer never really was an option," Cordelia stated and kissed him again. "So what do you say?" If you looked really close, in the background you could see Jennifer sneaking off with the girl in the band that bore a striking resemblance to Willow. Then you'd see her being tackled to the ground by three ghostly shapes who wanted the doppelganger for themselves. The bloody melee continued to rage off-screen, but we need to get back to the story.

"Cordelia Chase is my girlfriend!" Xander shouted, picked her up from the ground and carried her around the field in his arms.

"That went a little too easily," Willow commented, still in Buffy's arms.

"Yeah, he should have given her major pain for doing what she did with Jennifer," Buffy nodded.

Then the swarm of players, cheerleaders, fans, and even the school band mobbed them. And all thoughts of unresolved plot threads were left behind on the wet green field.

Back at the Bronze, Buffy looked around at the party that was slowly dying down. Larry was getting chummy with the bartender who had great fashion sense. Wild Bill was holding a sleeping Litni in his lap. Cordelia had dragged Xander off earlier promising him a tour of her bedroom. And the twins were trying to explain the finer points of cow-tipping to Annika and Harry who, bless their hearts, didn't laugh. In her arms, Willow was content and happy.

"Hey, it's stopped raining," Buffy said and then looked at her watch. "Wanna go patrol with me?" she asked.

"I'd go anywhere with you," Willow answered. The romance was broken by a very unladylike yawn from the cheerleader. "Sorry, a bit sleepy," Willow apologized.

"Come on. I've got a place I've always wanted to take you to," Buffy said with a smile.

So, as the sun rose over the happy football town of Sunnydale, Buffy hugged her Willow and enjoyed the feeling of being close to the cheerleader. When Willow looked up at her with those oh-so loving eyes, Buffy decided to try out something she'd looked up just for this occasion. "Ich hob dich," Buffy said gently, almost stumbling over the words.

Willow's face lit up with a smile and Buffy found herself promptly grabbed and kissed. "Ich hob dir lib," Willow answered and kissed her again.

Buffy looked at Willow with a raised eyebrow and a mischievous smile. "Wills, I've been thinking..." she trailed off.

This is a good a place to end it as any, isn't it? They won. Buffy loves Willow and Willow loves Buffy. Breaking the fourth wall, I'd like to thank you reading this enjoyable little piece of fluff.

-The End-