The Male Slayer - A Buffy The Vampire Slayer Fanfiction

II. Things Have Changed (Chapter 4)

James opened his eyes slightly, the sound of voices bringing him back to his senses. He reached into his back pocket, feeling for his knife. He made both of the figures out and immediately relaxed, "Well, well, well." 

"James, right? Nice to see you again." Riley said, moving towards him from where he was standing talking to Buffy.

"Hello Riley." James responded, smiling lazily, still half asleep, "Nice pants." Buffy smirked slightly looking at Riley's ridiculous pants. 

"Yeah, well it's a long story." Riley responded, his hands on his hips.

"Xander took your clothes to clean them and left you those." James said, looking up at him, "I'm a light sleeper. Morning Buffy." 

"Afternoon actually." Buffy corrected. James noted that she seemed down.

"Everything alright?" James asked, grabbing his shoes and putting them on. Riley turned to look at Buffy.

"Yeah...it's just," she turns to Riley, "Is it okay for you to be here?" 

"You tell me." Riley responded. 

"I just meant with the government branch hunting you down and all." Buffy reminded him. 

James perked up, "What?" 

"That one is a long story. Things have changed since you've been gone, slayer." Riley replied to James. He then turned back to Buffy, "I'm good." 

James figured that Buffy had told Riley about him while he was gone, shrugging his shoulders. "Buffy, you don't happen to know where I could find Willow, do you?" James asked, standing up and stretching. 

"Um yeah, she's at Tara's." Buffy said, seeming like she wasn't really herself. 

"And Tara would be the new friend." James concluded, walking to the door. "Directions?" 

Riley looked around himself and then pointed in a random direction of the room, "Well, I think that's North." 

James burst into laughter, patting Riley on the back, "I need to remember that one." 

Buffy barely smiled at the two's interaction, "She's in the hall opposite ours." 

James looked at her and then at Riley, "And I'll just knock on every door until I find her?" 

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James walked down the hallway, looking at the door numbers, searching for the one that he had managed to get out of Buffy. Finding the correct one, he knocked on the door, waiting patiently, looking left and right.

The door in front of him opened and stood there was, "Tara?" 

"Yes, that's me." Tara responded, trying, and failing, to place James. 

"James, I know Willow, is she around?" James asked, leaning against the door frame.

"Oh, yeah she's at the bathroom, you can come in and wait." she offered, "If you want..." 

James thought she seemed kind of awkward, like she wasn't sure how to speak to someone like him, "Okay, thanks." 

Tara opened the door and he walked in. Tara sat down on her bed, picking up a cat that was walking around.

"Look at you, you get a dorm room all to yourself." James said, looking around the room. 

"I was just lucky really." Tara responded, looking briefly at James and then back down at the cat. 

"Nice pussy." James said, absentmindedly.

Tara looked up shocked, "W-w-w-what?" she stuttered out, blushing bright red.