"Are you sure this was the place?"
Willow turned and glared at Spike, saying, "Yes,
I'm sure."
"There's nothing there," Buffy said, looking around.
"Could it have been farther down?"
"It was 34th and Vine, just like that silly song,"
Willow said, looking from her lover to her best friend. "You don't believe
me."
"Willow, honey, we want to believe you," Buffy
said, then she made a gesture, "but there's nothing here."
"The whole place couldn't have up and vanished,
pet," Spike said, "you'd walked for a while that night. Maybe it was a
different street."
"It was here!" she said, groaning. "I know it
was here."
"You know, this could just be the Hellmouth playing
another one of its stupid games," Buffy suggested.
Willow looked at the vacant lot where, not a week
before, a house had stood that she had been inside, having tea. There was
no signs of Madame Ruth's or the house now. In fact, the area looked as
if it had been empty for some time. "You could be right. Stranger things
have happened here."
"Doesn't matter anyway, does it?" Spike asked,
pulling her against him as he brushed his lips across her cheek.
"You're right," she smiled at him, realizing how
silly it would have been to go tell Madame Ruth that she knew the potion
was fake but that, in a strange way, it had worked anyway. "Let's get out
of here."
"Why don't we stop at that boutique we passed,"
Spike suggested, giving her a playful leer, "we can do some shopping."
"Spike!" she laughed, her face flushing as she
rolled her eyes. "I'm not going into an adult toy store."
"Come on, Will. It might be fun," Buffy said,
laughing as they neared the gaudy store. "We can buy something for Anya's
birthday. A gag gift."
"Anya wouldn't consider it a gag," Willow said,
making a face as all three shuddered. Finally, with a smile, she said,
"Fine. I'm only doing this because I love you and because I know you won't
shut up if we don't. I'll go to the naughty store."
"You say it like it's a bad thing," Spike said,
moving close to her ear, "maybe we can buy the slayer an electronic friend,
give her a hobby."
"Spike," Willow laughed as they entered the store,
deciding not to dwell on what had happened to Madame Ruth and her shop.
It didn't really matter and was probably, as Buffy had suggested, just
another example of the Hellmouth at work. Either way, potion or water,
she had found her true love. That was all that mattered.
*************THE END************