Best Actress based on the Buffy Universe - NON-SHIP
Below are samples of writing from each of the nominees.
Please read the sample, then cast your vote in the poll at the_josscars
Best Actress based on the Buffy Universe - NON-SHIP
-- Actresses based on or from the Buffy Universe that is in a Non-Ship pairing. --
01.
I grinned. "See, that's another t-thing we do. I've done it many times. I think I once found ummm twelve errors in his book It." Ok Tara, enough with the dorkyness. The two of you are gonna OD on it and that wouldn't be a good thing you know.
"Well, there's a bright side." I gave him a look. "It only took us two days to figure out how to work with a five-year-old." That sounded funnier in my head... Then again most does.
Nodding in full agreement I sighed. "Yes, it's an obsession...it's gotten very, very bad...I tried to help her but I can't bend and expect her to change. T-that's why I left. It was for the best, maybe selfishly my own."
I tucked my hair behind my ear and looked at him. "Willow and I...it was always about the magick. W-we met at a Wicca group. We did a spell together before we even spoke or she knew my name. It just s-stayed like that. I-I mean I know she loved me but I think she truely loved my magick more." I thought that a lot actually.
"Yes, I agree." I grinned at him. "There's a lot more then a britannica on legs. Least I see it..." I coughed and turned back to my most interesting feet...
I laughed lightly at his tea comment. "Oh yes, I'll be the first American English tea expert." I laughed and rested my forehead against my knees. "You know, when I said to Mr. Giles that I wanted to get away for a while, from Sunnydale? I didn't mean this far." I said light heartedly, shaking my head.
02.
It was stupid. Xander was getting all bent out of shape over something that I clearly had no control over, and yet I was still apologizing to him. Why was I apologizing to him anyway? He left me. Me! I was the one in the Wedding Dress, all happy to marry him. He was the one with the doubts and the fear, and the- oh yeah! The walking out on me! Why should I be the one apologizing?! That's right! I shouldn't be the one apologizing! I should be the one moving on. Moving onwards and even upwards if I so chose to!
Big deal, I had slept with Spike. We had a lot in common. Besides the whole used to be evil, and well I suppose I was currently evil, and Soul or not, he could be if he wanted to anyway! So.. wait.. where was I? Oh yeah. The sex. We had a lot in common, and he said nice things about me. Plus all that alcohol hadn't helped matters at all. I had done it. I had done Spike, and now what? I was expected to go all crying back to Xander feeling guilt and remorse?
He said that Spike was dead, and well... I was like two thousand!! HA! How you like that Xander Harris! You were going to marry someone even older than Spike! So nyah on your big plan.
I slid off the top of the counter and wandered back to the fridge hoping to get the last of that bottle of wine that his Uncle Rory had given us for our Wedding, but instead found it was empty already.
"When did I do that?"
Fine I figured, if there was no alcohol left in the house? I was going out.
"Yeah! I am going out!"
I left the apartment, which Xander had opted to stay away from since the non-wedding and wobbled toward the local tavern. Pushing the door open a wave of smoke hit me. It wasn't very pleasant at all. However I wasn't there for the ambience. I was there for the booze. Lots of it. I pulled up a stool and ordered a drink. When the bartender came by I instructed them to just leave the bottle. I was getting comfy.
03.
I was trying to get everything in focus, but I think the lack of sleep not so with the helping me there. Finally I could see straight and found myself looking into the bluest eyes I had seen in a while. I was a bit stunned, more so by him, than the actual bumping into each other part.
Suddenly I wasn't late for class girl, I was not able to speak girl. I was pretty sure if I opened my mouth this inaudible squeak would come out and that would be the end of it. I opted for the tight lipped nod of agreement, and managed to mumble a M-Hmm. I tucked my hair behind my ear and wasn't sure if this conversation.. or lack there of was over or not.
"So... still running late."
I had actually managed to get a few words out, and they weren't all high pitched nor accompanied by squeaks or a series of 'uh's' which was something at least.
The final bell rang and it was official. I was tardy. I had never been tardy. Well that one time when the bus splashed water on my sundress in the third grade, but that was only because I had to sit in the nurses office until my mom brought me something dry, so that time I had a pass. This time? Pass-less.
"And... late for Physics. I guess you are late now too for wherever you were headed to. I am sorry about all of this. I mean I don't go all willy nilly 'round corners careening into people all the time."
I was pretty amazed, there was something about him.. I felt calmer. Less Willow-like. Less spaz, more relaxed. I guess I could be a little late to class, just this once.
04.
We did it. I mean we always do it, and you know just in the nick of time most times, but this time was one of the closest. There was a death factor this time. The Hellmouth was all open and big nasties just coming out of it? Giles making with the big Latin, and me with the teeny Latin. Buffy and Faith all the dual Slayer action, thankfully Xander was far far away from here. After what happened the other night, it was just safer I think. I don't mean I think... I knew. I knew he was safer. Although very much now with the guilt that he wasn't part of this. I mean we saved the town. Pretty much from big ol' chaos.
I was beaming. I wished Oz could have seen me all in Wicca-Girl action. The wolfy night though had to of course be all part of the Hellmouth opening ritual, so he too was safe from any of the big bad voo-doo that I did so well. Okay so maybe not with the Big Bad.. maybe with the Little Bad? Either way I had helped, and I was pretty happy to be part of the group again.
I mean I knew Buffy meant well... I just felt sort of on the outside a lot. Buffy and Faith were the Slayers. They had that connection thing. I was just Willow, girl with stinky magic... although completely on the up and up of trying to fix that. I was lost in thought as I glanced around the library. It was pretty much a mess. I started to walk around picking up the scattered pieces of furniture, and a few crystals that we had laid out for part of the spell.
I don't know if it was the Magicks or what but I was really hyper. Giddy Hyper not Sugar Hyper. It was sort of tingly. I glanced to Buffy, she was checking out a gash on her shoulder. Yep. Big gash. I wondered if this was that Slayer buzz-ey feeling that she got sometimes. All your adreniline all raging through you. Making you feel like you could do anything. I tucked my hair behind my ear and continued with my clean up of the library.
Giles was moving all the tables back trying to make it semi-presentable in case someone actually needed something from the library the next morning. Which I doubted. It was odd how lacking the library was with actual school stuff. Although from the testing scores I have seen? Not surprised by that fact. I mean most of them didn't even go to their classes. Like Faith.
I looked at her. Sitting atop one of the bookcases, feet swinging all willy-nilly near Gile's ancient texts. Her boots no doubt no the cleanest things. I bet you anything there was some serious demon ick on the bottoms, and who knows what could be falling onto his book bindings. I wanted to go over there and smack her feet telling her to stop it. Faith was just being Faith though. With the no classes worth attending and the care free attitude.. and the... well the whole being of Faith thing.
Sure she was a Slayer and by definition fell into our little gang of Scoobies, but was she really a Scoobie? Did she even want to be one? I tried to sort it out in my head. You know with the rational thought...Faith being all studious and helping with the research. I shook my head. Not likely.
I placed the last crystal in the box and folded the loose flaps over themselves. The library was shaping up, and I was sure that no one would even really care what it looked like anyway. Mysterious things happened too often for people to even take a second glace most times. I brushed my hands on the fronts of my copper colored cordoroy's and smiled.
"So... we are all done with the cleaning.. who's up for some Scrabble!!"
05.
At some point everything inside me went numb and I couldn't feel any more. I stopped crying and I knew my heart stopped pounding in my chest because I could hear with a bit more clarity.
I pull my knees to my chest and bury my head down, trying to shield myself and find a place to hide inside myself. I jump when I hear the door slam, sighing just slightly that he was gone.
Everything was quiet, too quiet, and that unnerved me and made me scared again, very scared. I bit my lip in confusion and looked around, trying to find a way out of the manicals and out of this prison.
There was a pounding into the wall before he thundered back into the room, the door slamming so hard I thought it was going to unhindge, stalking straight towards me. Making me curl up more into myself.
I cried out and gripped onto his wrist when he grabed my face, holding my chin in his hands tightly. I avert my eyes and try to look at something, anything, but his eyes looking at me. Another cry escapes my lips when he shakes my head roughly, forcing me to look at him.
I cried out softly when my head hit the wall and I reached back to check for blood, thankfully there wasn't any. I looked up at him, unable to believe what he said, the look on is face and in his eyes told me otherwise. He was serious and determined.
Swallowing hard I curled up further in the corner, shaking my head and refusing, knowing that I was going to be in major trouble for that. I couldn't help it, I had to at least try to protect myself.
With speed only a vampire would have he gripped me by the hair and lifted me to my feet, fisting my hair and making me look at him. I swallowed hard and waited for his next move, I knew I wasn't going to come out of it unscathed.
06.
I rolled my eyes, curlin' my lip up in disgust. We just closed the fuckin' Hellmouth, did battle with one seriously evil nasty and she wants to play Scrabble? Damn. What a fuckin' loser.
I watched them all blow her off. For schoolwork. Now that reached whole new levels of lame.
I ain't hangin' around this fuckin' geekfest no more. I got things I need to do. Things people like me dig doin'. Like not playin' Scrabble. Plus, I wasn't really tryin' to run into Xander right now. Had my feel of him earlier.
In more ways than one. Definitely not lookin' for a repeat performance.
I hopped down off the bookcase and dusted my pants off. B and G-man bailed, so I'm gonna take my cue and bail too.
I looked at Red, raisin' my eyebrow. Who's she kiddin' here? Was kind of amusing though.
"Hey, whatever you say Red. Whatever you say."
I shook my head and slid my jacket on. I could feel her eyes still on me. Like she was tryin' to feel me out. Like she had somethin' to say to me.
"Somethin' on your mind Red? Or you just like starin' at me?"
"So Faith... any plans?"
Hold up. Was she seriously tryin' to hang with me? Now this is new. Can't help bein' suspicious though. Not like any of the super friends are ever tryin' to hang or nothin'.
"Never woulda took you to be the ditchin' your studyin' type. Guess I was wrong."
Crossin' my arms over my chest, I tilted my head and looked at her with a smirk.
"So, you wanna hang with me tonight. That what you're sayin'? You sure B's gonna go for that? Might be a bad influence on you and all."
07.
"Already?" I leaned forward as my voiced teased before dipping even lower. "That is the kind of talk that gets us into trouble with the people listening outside the door." My head nodded in said door's direction, as if that would help make my point. "Like I said before. You should know better."
But all said with a smile. A conspiring grin even?
Sitting back again I couldn't fight the accepting shug. "Oh well, they all think I am off already anyway. I don't exactly -- fit here."
Oh, the books were wonderful. The resources that made Giles' 'protected' collection in the back office of the library and the upper bays of the Magic Box seem like first grade primers. And hey, when you are actually reading them, and not sucking the text dry? They actually have a lot to offer.
It was the people part that didn't work so well.
"Not that I mind," I added honestly, making sure that point came across. And not really sure why that seemed important. "The not fitting part."
That was the truth.
Fitting in was a concern I had let go of long ago, in high school. Maybe even before. But any early lack of caring had been cemented by my friendship with Buffy and the education that only a Hellmouth can give. There were just bigger things to worry about. Big, evil spewing things that seemed determined to kill my friends.
Only now that concern had been replaced with another, and ironically it was a little bit about fitting in as well. About girls whose world was no longer their own, because of what we had decided. What I had done. They should be allowed to fit -- if they wanted to. It wasn't my call or place to say.
But I had.
"My new marching orders. I was given this office number as the one that would be shared by myself and my new partner in-- how did they put it? 'The discovery, recruitment and transport of new Slayers'. I guess that would be you and me, then."
"Ohh," I laughed. "The notice that I would be getting a partner was just as wordy. Except for one actually -- word. 'Wesley'. I wonder why they didn't tell me it was going to be you. The Council knows that we know each other. They know who my third grade teacher was so...it just seems strange. Maybe they don't like to share with the non-fitters."
I shook my head slightly and decided to move on.
"I just got my marching orders as well," I nodded at the file that sat opposite Wesley's on the desk. "I have sort of been avoidy girl all day. But to celebrate you arrival I say we jump right on in."
I stood and went to grab my own folder of Council-collected information.
"I have already seen Cleveland, South America and even spent a little time in the Himalayas. Ready to see what's next?"
Some of the excitment was back again.
08.
"You know me. Safe as a kitten." With that I was out the door and back in the brisk night air.
It was only a short walk from Wesley's apartment back to Boston University. Just hoped Ru wasn't in, but since it was Friday night I was bettin' she was out gettin' her freak on with the local frat boys or whatever it was she did. She was the best roomie I coulda asked for. She was hardly ever home and when she was she never asked questions. I'd come home after some late night slayage beat to hell and she'd hardly bat an eye. But to be fair there were some nights I was home and she'd come crawling in dirty with scratches marring her skin. Thought about askin' her what she'd been up to. Then I decided that I probably didn't wanna know.
It was my first semester at BU and I gotta say. Goin' to college ain't easy especially when you got the slay gig on top of it. Honestly I wasn't even sure how I'd made it through high school. Tried to drop out like a million times but Wes never let me. Mom never gave a shit when I lived with her, but I'd left my house in Southie when I was fifteen. When I was sixteen I woke up one mornin' with superpowers and Wesley was knockin' at the door of my cheapass motel room tellin' me all about this sacred birthright I had. I dig it, ya know. Bein' a slayer was cool. Following Wesley's rules was harder, but after awhile we sorta had a routine down. The annoying part of the routine was that he made me go back to school. I'd never tell him, but I was kinda glad he did.
Wasn't gonna bother goin' to college afterwards. I was a D student at best and school never carried much weight with me when I was fightin' off apocalypses left and right all night long. Got bigger things to worry about, ya know? But the choices were pretty clear. Go to school and move into the dorms or stay and live with Wes. Pretty easy choice. Not that Wes wasn't cool and he was kinda like a fucked up dad to me at this point, but I couldn't live with an uptight Brit anymore. Just the way it was. We got along way better now that I'd moved into the dorms.
It was all about choices, and I'd never had alot of 'em. Still I managed to pull it together, and the outcome wasn't so bad. Sure, there were bumps in the road. Big massive make me wanna cut my heart out of my fucking chest bumps, but I got through 'em. Always pulled through. Takes a lickin' and keeps on tickin'. Kinda my motto.
When I got home I was relieved to see Veruca had left and probably wasn't gonna be home for the rest of the night. Taking the crumpled piece of paper with Tara's dorm number on it I threw it on the bed before headin' to the showers.