Disclaimer: No, I don't own them but I bet you wish I did.

Shadows and Moonlight

For Tabitha and her long day. Sorry it's not quite as fluffy as you probably want.

I've come to accept that I am part of the night. Not the way that Buffy is part of the night or Spike or the other half of Sunnydale's . . .most frightening. I belong to the night. The moon is my mistress.

But she is my goddess.

I did not want to give myself over to the night anymore than I already had. The undead don't have a monopoly on vampire hours. Musicians and backup dead-thing hunters are right there with them, sharing the blue-black sky. The spinning stars. But then I became a thing ruled by the moon, who steals her light from the sun and calls to something inside me . . .

I think I understand Angel's agony, looking down at my goddess covered in shadows and moonlight. There've been others in this bed and one day I'm going to have to tell her about them. Right now I can put her off, misdirect her with my mysterious ways but they aren't mysterious, not really. Just an inability to hurt her. One day I'm going to have to tell her and it will hurt but it will be all right. Not because love conquers all. It doesn't. Not alone. It will be all right because she's the only girl I've ever loved because everything before doesn't exist and the faces don't have names and the names don't have faces because . . .because . . .

She's my goddess.

And moonlight and shadows become her.

End