The Kitten, the Witches and the Bad Wardrobe - Willow & Tara Forever

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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Fri Jul 09, 2010 8:59 pm 
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6. Sassy Eggs
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I loved this chapter! This new version for Hush is really nice.
Hmmm, yay! :wtkiss
I don't think the kiss happened too early. Life and death situations are kind of apropriate for this to happen.
And I love how confused Willow was. It's adorable.
Waiting for the new chapter...
:peace

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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Sat Jul 10, 2010 8:30 am 
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19. Yummy Face
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Yay for great update-y goodness... I hope Tara ends up snuggling Willow in her sleep... I hope their morning starts with a :wtkiss ....

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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Sat Jul 10, 2010 10:49 am 
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10. Troll Hammer

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I like S-4 stories, either AU or misisng-scen e types. Interesting to see how different writers here viusualize the whole process and the words they use. This is a very good one.

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Snapshots:http://thekittenboard.com/board/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=10210 a Love Story
____________________________________________________________
Kim: (breaks off the kissing) I l... (Sue stops her with a hand)
Sue: We don't talk about things like that right after, you know that, no saying those things in The Moment.
Kim: (moves the hand aside) Screw The Moment. I *love* you.


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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Sun Jul 11, 2010 11:43 am 
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10. Troll Hammer

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Loved the update. I don't think the story is moving too fast; just right. It was going to take some life or death situation for Willow to admit that she likes Tara more than a friend.


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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Mon Jul 12, 2010 4:02 am 
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Ms. Moderator Fantastico
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:) :D :pinky

That's all I have to say lol.

No seriously, I love your Hush and it's not moving too fast, no way. The more smoochies the better!

Love it!

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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Sat Jul 17, 2010 9:02 am 
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7. Teeny Tinkerbell Light
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abarda: I'm glad you liked it and that you didn't think I was rushing it... she's about to get another little life or death push... hope you like it!

Zampsa1975: Yay! I'm so glad you liked it! Thanks so much for reading!

DaddyCatALSO: Aww, yay! I'm glad you like it (Had you not been reading this one already?)

love_2003: Good! I'm so glad it's not going too fast... Willow gets another little life or death push in this chapter, so I hope you like it!

Laragh: Aww, the little elephant is so cute! I'm very glad you liked it! Hope you enjoy the new one :) I'm off to read your Foamy oneshot! I noticed it when I got on to post this one and almost stopped to read it but I wanted to get this up before I got distracted :)

Chapter 6 of 15

It was Saturday morning, so Tara had neglected to set an alarm clock, looking forward to sleeping in some, able to enjoy their weekend now that the latest evil had been defeated. She woke up slowly, slightly disoriented as she realized that she wasn’t alone in her bed.

She let her eyes open, finding the sleeping redhead immediately. She couldn’t keep herself from smiling as she realized that there were softly spoken words coming from Willow, but for all appearances she was still sleeping.

Tara laughed quietly, settling back into her pillow as she watched Willow slowly wake up. The redhead’s lips were still moving slowly, mouthing words that didn’t make it out, and Tara found her eyes locked on them, remembering vividly what it had felt like to have them against her own. Her fingers itched to reach over and trace Willow’s features and she deliberately shifted both hands so that they were pinned under her head, denying her desire. It took several long minutes, but finally, green eyes popped open and met hers.

“What?” Willow asked, her voice thick with sleep. “What’s funny?”

“You talk in your sleep,” Tara said softly.

Willow blushed, covering her face with both hands. “Oh no,” she groaned. “I didn’t say anything embarrassing, did I?” she asked, peeking at Tara from between two fingers.

“No,” Tara told her. “You said something about a panda bear,” she giggled, letting one hand slide free to push Willow’s hair behind her ear with two fingers.

“Okay, well, sorry I woke you up,” Willow apologized sheepishly.

Tara shook her head minutely against the pillow. “No problem. It’s not like we didn’t sleep in.” She laughed quietly, leaning up to read the clock over Willow’s shoulder. “It’s almost ten,” she commented, frowning as the digital numbers flickered, the screen going dark as the building’s power went out.

Suddenly, the room trembled around them, books falling over, the floor shaking and the walls creaking on all sides. They exchanged sudden scared glances, the tremors continuing around them as Tara moved as quickly as she could to Willow’s injured side, pulling the witch’s right arm around her shoulders. Willow got the idea quickly, and helped as much as she could, leaning on Tara as she hopped on one leg into the cover of the doorframe of Tara’s closet.

“Are you okay?” Tara asked, seeing that Willow was breathing hard, cold sweat sliding down her temples.

She nodded wordlessly, bracing herself against the cool wood, feeling lightheaded after standing up so quickly. Tara’s eyes were worried, but she didn’t argue, merely brushed damp hair back from Willow’s face.

After a few minutes the tremors eased, and they relaxed slightly. Willow was leaning heavily against the frame of the door, and Tara quickly retrieved her chair for her, the redhead slumping into it wearily.

“Thanks,” she gasped. “Could I use the phone? Buffy, she doesn’t like earthquakes. I should check in.”

Tara retrieved the phone, holding the receiver out to Willow. She punched in the number rapidly, Willow listening to the ringing impatiently. Finally the Slayer answered, and Tara stepped away, trying to give Willow and her friend some privacy.

After a few minutes Willow was off the phone, handing it back to Tara. The blonde played with it idly in her hands, looking around her room at the mild destruction. The power was out, her books were now littering the floor, the painting over her bed was no longer hanging straight, and a few knick-knacks had crashed to the ground, but that seemed to be the extent of the damage.

“So, Buffy doesn’t like earthquakes?” she wondered out loud, distracted by surveying her room.

“Yeah,” Willow agreed. “She’s got a good reason though,” she said. “Last time Sunnydale had an earthquake, she died.”

“What?!?” Tara blurted, realizing belatedly how sharply she’d spoken.

“She drowned. Xander did CPR and brought her back. She was only gone for a few minutes,” Willow said almost defensively.

“What about….?” Tara started to speak, but thought better of it and closed her mouth.

Willow gave her a confused look. “What?” she asked softly, trying to reassure an obviously freaked out Tara. “You can ask me anything.”

“You-you’ve never d-died, have you?” Tara asked, her eyes lingering on a spot somewhere behind Willow.

Willow shook her head. “No, sweetie, I’ve never died,” she said reassuringly.

“Good,” Tara breathed, her eyes meeting Willow’s. “I don’t like the idea that you might have ever been hurt worse than this.”

Willow shook her head again, smiling softly. “Nope. Buffy takes good care of me. She wouldn’t let anything get me.” She snorted. “She even takes on guilt for things she couldn’t have possibly stopped,” she stated, flicking the rail of her chair so that it made a metallic ringing sound.

Tara smiled sadly as she looked at the chair. “You’ll be out of there soon,” she said, her eyes lingering on Willow’s broken leg.

“Hey.” Willow’s soft voice drew her attention, and she looked up to the redhead’s face. “Come here,” Willow requested, holding one hand out. Tara put the phone down in the cradle on her desk and moved to take Willow’s hand, dropping to her knees in front of the chair so that they were at the same level.

Her free hand found Willow’s knee without conscious thought from her to do so. “Are you feeling okay?” Tara asked tenderly.

“I’m fine, I just wanted you to come closer,” she stated, smiling shyly.

“Willow…” Tara started to speak, but stopped when Willow’s free hand found her cheek.

“Tara, I get it, and I’m going to think about what you said, but it doesn’t change that being around you makes me feel better, makes everything feel better,” Willow said, her eyes focused on her own fingers as they slipped through Tara’s hair.

Tara let her eyes slip closed as Willow’s fingers moved back up to the top of her head, combing through her hair again in one long stroke.

“Buffy mentioned some party at Porter dorm, celebrating surviving the quake,” Willow said quietly.

Tara laughed. “That’s pretty fast party planning.”

“Well, you know how they are with the parties over there,” Willow agreed. “Anyway, Buffy mentioned maybe meeting Riley over there later, and I was wondering if maybe you would want to go, you know, with me…”

Tara’s eyes fluttered open and she blinked in surprise. Willow was already ready to argue with her protests that anything resembling a date wouldn’t be appropriate at the moment, and she could see it in her eyes. “As your friend, I’ll go to the party with you and Buffy,” Tara agreed carefully.

Willow grinned triumphantly. “We are friends, so it’s actually perfect. And I’ll take whatever I can get.”

Tara giggled. “That’s what I was thinking after you kissed me the first time,” she unwittingly confessed. “I’ll take whatever you can give me.”

Willow’s grin became a soft smile. “I’ll have to see what I can do about that,” she teased gently.

Tara smiled crookedly, but leaned up to press a kiss to Willow’s forehead. “So what time is this party?” she asked, sitting back on her heels.

Willow shrugged. “You know how they are over there, any time people show up seems to work for them.” She smiled. “Buffy’s going to check with Giles, make sure we’re not dealing with the end of the world, but she said she’d meet us at the party.”

Tara nodded. “That sounds good. So, we can get you back to your room, check and make sure none of your stuff got broken, and we can grab something to eat,” she suggested.

Willow nodded, smiling. “Sounds like a plan. I’ll just go let you get dressed,” she offered, wheeling her chair toward the door.

“Willow, you don’t have to…” Tara started before seeing the benefit of Willow’s suggestion. “Thanks,” she said. “Don’t go far though, okay?”

Willow smirked, but nodded. “Yes ma’am,” she agreed teasingly as she wheeled herself into the hall.

Tara only took a few minutes to change clothes, pulling her hair back in an untidy bun, and finding a light jacket before she joined Willow in the hall.

“You look great,” Willow said compulsively, grinning cheekily when Tara blushed. “Ready to go?”

Tara nodded, walking beside the chair. They had a slow trip down the stairs, Willow stepping carefully from step to step on one leg while Tara and the wall supported her, the elevator inoperable with the campus’ power down. Buffy was nowhere to be found when they arrived back at Stevenson, but the Slayer had been there, both beds having obviously been sat on.

“I guess Buffy’s still at Giles’ apartment,” Willow said, glancing around her room. There were a few broken knick-knacks, but nothing irreplaceable. “I’ll just change and we can go get something to eat.”

Tara nodded, lingering near the door while Willow wheeled herself into her closet, but she kept her head turned away, examining a framed picture on Buffy’s desk of Willow, Buffy, and Xander. The three looked to be about sixteen, and they looked happy, piled on top of each other and grinning at the camera.

Her eyes lingered on the face of the younger Willow. Her hair was much longer and darker in the photograph, but she had the same smile, the same eyes. Tara jumped when she realized that Willow had returned to her side. “I’ve always loved that picture,” she commented. “We were so happy then.”

“And you’re not now?” Tara asked softly, glancing down at Willow.

The redhead hesitated before she spoke, shaking her head. “No, it’s not that we’re unhappy. We’re just…everything is changing so fast, and we don’t talk like we used to.” She smiled almost bitterly. “Is it horrible to say that I think my accident helped us?”

Tara frowned down at her questioningly. “What do you mean?”

“I don’t know if we could have stayed as close if they weren’t always having to look after me,” Willow answered, staring at the picture.

“I’m not sure that’s true, Willow. Buffy and Xander love you,” Tara told her. “And you love them. I have a feeling it would take a lot to tear you guys apart.”

Willow shrugged, glancing up from the picture. “I guess I’m glad we don’t have to find out. I don’t know what I’d do without them.”

Tara smiled. “I know they feel the same way about you.”

Willow bit her lip, but returned the smile, feeling grateful when her stomach growled audibly. “You ready to eat?” Tara nodded, following the wheelchair out the door.

They spent the afternoon in the park, enjoying relaxing and the fortunately mild weather. Near sundown, they decided to head toward Porter dorm. The campus’ power was still out, and the dorm was lit with candles and neon glow sticks. Someone dropped glowing rings around their necks as soon as they came through the doors, the party in full swing.

A quick look didn’t reveal Buffy, and the witches moved around the room, greeting people they knew. Tara got caught up talking with a girl from her Lit class about the class they’d taken the previous semester, and Willow wheeled herself away to get drinks.

Tara took the cup as Willow pushed herself back to her, smiling down at the redhead. “It’s kind of loud in here,” Tara observed, glancing around at the crowd.

Willow took a sip of her drink. “Want to go find somewhere more quiet?” she offered. Tara nodded, one hand on Willow’s shoulder as the redhead pushed her chair through the crowd. They found a dark dorm room with an open door, but they didn’t go in, only lingered in the doorway.

They were chatting idly, Willow amusing Tara by trying to think of all of the cheesiest riddles she’d ever heard, and some that she’d made up herself but would never admit to. Both were grateful to realize that in spite of their revelations, spending time alone together felt as comfortable and good as it always had. They were still in the doorway when the lights snapped back on, the partygoers letting out a cheer in the sudden brightness.

It had died back down to a dull roar when Willow let out a short yelp. Tara looked down at her hurriedly, instantly worried. She followed Willow’s eyes and gasped herself as she saw what had scared the other girl.

There was a body on the bed, a gruesome carving in his bare chest, his throat slashed. The witches’ eyes met and Willow glanced back at the crowded party, the guests mostly ignoring the scream.

“Call the cops,” she said, one hand touching Tara’s. “I have to check the body.” Tara looked faintly sick, but she nodded without speaking, letting her hand squeeze Willow’s. “And call my room, maybe Buffy hasn’t left yet. If she’s there, tell her to get here.”

“Okay,” Tara agreed softly, moving reluctantly away from Willow.

Willow was feeling sort of queasy herself, but she dutifully copied down the symbol that was in the young man’s chest. Tara was waiting for her at the door, biting at her lower lip nervously.

“That guy is d-dead, Willow,” she said hoarsely, her eyes locked on the body.

Willow glanced over her shoulder, pulling the door closed behind her. “I know, Tara. I’m sorry.” She brushed her fingers lightly over the back of Tara’s hand. “You’ve never seen a dead body before, have you?”

Tara swallowed thickly, still staring at the door. “Y-yes, but not like t-that,” she murmured. After a moment, she seemed to snap out of her trance “The p-police are on their way. Buffy didn’t answer though, and I don’t know Giles’ number…” Her voice was getting higher in pitch with every word, her eyes still not looking at Willow.

The redhead curled her fingers around Tara’s hand, tugging gently to get her attention. “Hey, sweetie, look at me,” she prompted gently. Tara did as she was directed, looking down at Willow. “I’m sorry you saw that. I promise there won’t be any dead bodies on our actual first date.”

Tara laughed despite herself, the teasing having the intended effect. “Willow…” she started, shaking her head with a smile as the redhead winked at her.

“There’s what I wanted to see,” Willow said, squeezing her hand.

They both heard the sirens and moved preemptively away from the door, the police moving in quickly. Tara had given them good directions, and they came straight to the room. They took statements from some of the party guests, and were carrying the body to the ambulance when Buffy appeared, the Slayer shouldering her way through the milling crowds, looking worried by the sight of the ambulance.

She spotted the witches lingering near the stairs, Tara sitting on the bottom step next to Willow’s chair. Buffy put a hand on Willow’s shoulder, crouching down to look into her face. “Are you okay? Both of you?”

Willow nodded, letting out a sigh. “We’re okay. How about you?” she asked, seeing the hidden tension in her friend’s face.

“You got something off the body?” Buffy asked instead of answering the question.

Willow pulled the paper from the pocket of her jacket, handing it over with a look. “We need to get to Giles’ place?” she guessed, sighing again when Buffy nodded. She glanced up at Tara. “We can walk you home first.”

“I could c-come with you,” Tara offered.

Buffy was studying the paper Willow had given her, frowning at the emblem she’d sketched. “If this is something serious, I want you somewhere safe,” Willow said softly.

“I want the same for you too,” Tara agreed, her voice just as soft.

“I’m always safe,” Willow stated. Tara looked like she was going to argue, but Willow shook her head minutely. “Buffy won’t let anything happen to me.” She glared down at her chair. “If there’s a fight, odds are I’ll end up stranded at Giles’ apartment.” She managed a smile for her. “Please, Tara. I just need to know that you’re safe.”

Tara sighed, finally nodding. “Okay. I’ll stay at the dorm, but you have to promise that you’ll call me when you get back, okay? No matter how late it is.”

Willow smiled, pleased at her victory, and she nodded quickly. “Yeah, I will,” she promised softly. “Buffy, we’re ready when you are,” she prompted in a louder voice, drawing the Slayer’s attention. “We need to swing by Fike and drop Tara off though.”

“Yeah, okay,” Buffy agreed distractedly, moving toward the door without looking to see if the witches were following her.

The power was still out in Tara’s dorm, forcing Willow to wait in the lobby armed with Buffy’s stake while the Slayer escorted Tara upstairs to her room. The Scoobies were already assembled at the apartment, and they gave the Watcher their new clue.

He immediately declared that it was the end of the world.

He laid out the demons’ plan to open the Hellmouth using the sacrifices and the medallion they’d stolen from him, and they started trying to figure out how they could possibly stop it.

They were gearing up to move out and Buffy paused in the doorway, looking hesitantly back at Willow in her chair. “I know,” Willow said before Buffy could speak. “I’m staying here.”

“We wouldn’t have even known about this if it wasn’t for you,” Buffy said. “I can’t let you get hurt again though.” She frowned at the chair. “I can’t lose you, Willow. It would kill me if I couldn’t protect you, if I let you get hurt.”

Willow nodded. “I know, Buffy. It’s okay. I’ll see what I can do from here.”

The Slayer nodded. “Thanks, Will.”

“Be careful, Buffy.”

“I’ll be here to walk home with you soon,” Buffy promised, smiling with a confidence she didn’t feel.

Willow watched the door close behind her friends before she wheeled herself to Giles’ desk, looking for any spells that could help them. She cast the best general protection spell she could muster alone, and went back to looking for anything that would hurt the demons, or keep the Hellmouth from opening. She found a few things, but nothing strong enough to prevent the end of the world.

She pushed the thought that she should have let Tara come with them out of her head. She would have been able to cast better with the blonde helping her, but the apartment had been breached that day, and Tara’s safety was more important. She’d been casting protection spells for the Scoobies by herself since junior year and they’d always managed to make it work.

It was almost midnight when the Scoobies stumbled in, bruised and beaten. However, Buffy wasn’t with them and Willow’s blood ran cold. “Oh God, where’s Buffy?” she asked, blanching suddenly.

“She’s alive. She’s okay,” Giles assured her hurriedly. “She just had some things to take care of.”

“Riley’s one of those commandos,” Xander chimed in cheerfully as he wiped blood from the blade of his axe.

“But no more end of the world, right?” Willow checked, frowning at him.

“Nope, we took care of that,” Xander said with a flippant tone. “With a little help from Riley,” he acceded when Giles sent him a chiding look.

“Okay, good,” Willow sighed. “And Buffy’s okay?”

“She’s perfectly fine, Willow,” Giles assured her softly. “She just needed to talk to that Riley fellow.”

The redhead nodded. “Well, she was going to walk me home, so could I stay here tonight, Giles?”

The Watcher nodded, grimacing as blood rolled into his eye. “Of course, Willow. You’re always welcome here.”

“Thanks,” she said, smiling up at him. “I need to make a phone call since the world isn’t ending,” she requested, picking up the handset and wheeling herself down the hall.

She dialed the phone once she got to the spare room, listening to two short rings before Tara picked up.

“Willow?”

The redhead smiled, holding the phone against her ear. “It’s me,” she confirmed. “You’ll be pleased to know that the world isn’t ending tonight.”

“You’re okay?”

Willow laughed. “I was at Giles’ apartment the whole time. Not a scratch on me. At least, no new ones.”

“And Buffy? Xander? Mr. Giles?”

“Everyone is fine, Tara. It’s all fine,” Willow assured her gently.

Tara let out a deep breath, feeling tension drain out of her slowly. “You handle the end of the world much better than I do,” she told Willow.

“I’ve had a lot of practice,” Willow said easily. “It made it easier that I knew you were safe.”

“It made it harder that I knew you weren’t,” Tara responded.

“I’m fine, Tara. I promise,” Willow said softly. She heard Tara yawn uncontrollably, able to relax now that she’d heard from Willow. “You should get some sleep. I’m staying at Giles’ tonight, but I’ll call you tomorrow, okay?”

“Okay,” Tara agreed, yawning. “Goodnight, Willow,” she said as she hung up.

Willow clicked the phone off, dropping it into her lap. She could feel the same sudden weariness that Tara had been hit with, the draining tension leaving only deep tiredness behind. She only let herself think about the end now that it was over.

They’d come close to losing everything before, and she felt this one as sharply as she’d felt any of the other apocalypses they had faced. They always made her think, she suspected that they did the same thing to the others, and she wondered if it was easier for the people who walked around clueless, having no idea how close they came to losing it all, and how often in a place like Sunnydale.

Tonight she found herself thinking about Tara, about all the things she’d said to her, the kisses they’d shared, and her confused thoughts and feelings. She tried to sort them out slowly, sitting in her chair in the dark. She could hear Xander leave, the construction worker calling a loud good night to her. She returned it distractedly before going back to her thoughts. Giles went to bed after checking that she was situated safely, leaving her alone with her confusion.

She knew that she liked Tara, would miss her if she wasn’t around, cared about her deeply, and loved kissing her, but what did all of that add up to if she still loved Oz? She knew she still loved the werewolf, missed him, thought about him, and wanted him to find a cure. She just wasn’t sure anymore if it was for her benefit, or for his own. He was still gone, and she doubted a little more each day that he was ever coming back.

How she felt about Tara didn’t have anything to do with Oz, though. He was gone, and even if he came back, Tara was still going to be there, and she couldn’t see her feelings for the other woman going away. She sighed heavily, dropping her head into her hand.

She finally decided that what mattered tonight was that the world had been about to end, and she’d spent her night worried about Tara. That was the last thought in her head as she finally succumbed uneasily to sleep.

Buffy was there when she woke up, the Slayer sleeping restlessly beside her and lifting her head blearily as Willow moved. “Will, you okay?” she asked, rubbing at her eyes. Willow nodded without speaking, frowning as she pulled herself up to lean against the headboard. “Really?” Buffy questioned doubtfully, sitting up beside her friend.

“I think we should talk,” Willow said. “I mean, I need to talk to you…I don’t know what to do, and you’re my best friend, and I know that you just saved the world again last night and you’re probably tired, but I could really use your advice…”

Buffy stopped the ramble with a gentle hand over her friend’s mouth. “Shh, Will, it’s okay. Whatever is going on, we’ll be together, okay?”

“Is Xander working today?” Willow asked from behind Buffy’s hand.

The Slayer shook her head, smiling tiredly as she took her hand down. “I’ll call him. Should I tell him to meet us here, or what?”

“Um, could we go out?” Willow requested, glancing around the room.

“Okay,” Buffy said simply, sliding out of the bed and getting ready to go while Willow shifted herself into her chair. The witch handed over the phone, letting Buffy dial. The conversation was brief, the Slayer giving Willow a reassuring smile as she hung up. “He’s going to meet us at the Espresso Pump.”

“Thanks, Buffy,” Willow sighed.

The Slayer nodded, leaning over to press a kiss to the top of her friend’s head. “Sure, Willow. Anything,” she stated.

They had ordered their drinks when Xander arrived, the friends sitting at a booth in the corner, Willow’s chair parked at the end of the table while Buffy and Xander sat on either side. They sat in silence for a moment as the waitress brought their coffees, Willow’s eyes locked on her own cup.

“So, what’s up?” Xander asked, sucking whipped cream off the top of his drink.

Buffy shrugged, her eyes lingering on Willow. The redhead sighed, lifting her eyes. “I think I have feelings for Tara,” she blurted, heart pounding in her chest.

Xander snorted his drink, choking. Willow reached forward and swatted against his back. His throat cleared, his eyes finding her, wide and wild. “What?!” he demanded loudly.

“Shh, Xander,” Willow hissed at him, glancing around the almost empty coffee shop.

“Let’s listen to what she has to say,” Buffy said reasonably, mustering a supportive smile. “Go on, Will.”

Willow smiled, swallowing thickly. “Okay, well, when I said that I think that I have feelings for Tara, that’s not strictly true. I know that I do. She’s smart, and funny, and sweet, and pretty, and an amazing kisser…”

Xander choked again, Buffy frowning at him as she wiped flecks of his sprayed coffee from her face. “You have got to stop doing that,” she chided.

“Willow just said she kissed a girl, okay? That’s how I react!” Xander objected.

Willow sighed heavily, turning her cup in her hands without drinking. “I…we don’t have to talk about this,” she said, her eyes falling to the table. She looked up again as one of each Xander and Buffy’s hands landed on her shoulders.

“Willow, we’re here for you,” Xander said supportively. “Talk to us. I promise I’ll do better,” he stated. Buffy just nodded, smiling more naturally.

“Thank you,” Willow breathed quietly. “I know it seems like this is coming out of nowhere, and I know that you guys are surprised, but it’s not just a fluke, or anything,” she stated, smiling sideways at Xander. Her grin returned as their eyes met, and he shoved gently at her shoulder, making everything feel normal again with that simple action.

“So, you’ve got a thing for Tara?” Xander asked. He grinned at her. “She’s cute,” he teased. Willow pushed him this time, shaking her head. “No, seriously, she seems like a great girl Will, but so is Buffy, and you don’t have a thing for her, do you?”

Willow shook her head with a laugh as Buffy rolled her eyes at them both. “No, sorry Buffy,” Willow said. The Slayer shrugged with a grin, shaking her head back at the redhead. “It’s Tara. There’s just something about her. I care about her a lot.”

“What about Oz?” Buffy asked softly.

Willow’s face went slack and she sighed heavily. “Of course I still love him, but he’s gone and I don’t know if he’s ever coming back. And even if he did, I don’t know if we could have worked it out. What I do know is that Tara makes me happy, and it’s been so long since I’ve felt happy like that. She’s nice, and sweet, and I really do care for her. And it’s not a missing-Oz thing, or a loneliness thing, it’s her.”

“She likes you too?” Buffy stated more than asked, little things she’d noticed suddenly making sense.

Willow nodded, frowning. “Yeah, but…”

“But she thinks you’re just reacting to your grief,” Buffy said.

Willow smiled unwillingly. “Someone’s been paying attention in Psych,” she commented.

Buffy grinned at her friend proudly. “Well, we do have that class tomorrow.”

Willow groaned, taking a sip of her coffee. “I’m not going through enough?” she asked. “You had to remind me?”

The Slayer laughed. “Sorry, Will,” she apologized. “So, what did Tara say?”

“She says she’ll always be my friend,” Willow sighed.

“You want more?” Buffy asked.

Willow nodded slowly. “I just want to know more about her, want to know her better. I want a chance.”

“Tara won’t give you a chance?” Xander asked incredulously. “You’re a catch, Willow. Tara’s not as smart as she seems if she doesn’t realize that.”

Willow snorted, shooting a look over the table at him. “Look who’s talking,” she said as Buffy laughed.

“Yeah, well I’ve gotten much smarter since eleventh grade,” Xander defended himself. “And I stick with what I said, it’s Tara’s loss if she can’t see how great Will is!”

The redhead smiled at him, one of his hands landing over hers. “Thanks, Xander, but she’s not stupid. She likes me too, she just thinks that I am having a crisis or something.”

“But it’s real?” Buffy asked, the straw slurping in her cup as she got to the bottom of her drink.

Willow met her eyes seriously. “Yeah, it really is. It’s new, and it’s different from how it felt with Oz, but it’s there, and it’s strong.”

“Well, then I’m happy for you,” Buffy stated with an assuredness they could all tell she was at least partially forcing, leaning back in the booth bench.

Willow leaned forward in her chair, pulling Buffy into a hug. “Thank you,” she breathed into her friend’s shoulder, grateful for the support but not surprised that her best friend was freaked. She was more than a little freaked herself.

Both girls turned as Xander cleared his throat. “I’m with you too. You know I always will be,” he said. “What can we do to help you get your girl?” he asked.

Willow hugged him gratefully before sitting back in her chair. “You guys really are taking this better than I expected,” she observed. “I’ve been freaking out of my mind over this, but other than the coffee spitting, you guys are acting like I told you I decided to get a haircut.”

“But your hair looks great,” Buffy objected teasingly. She sobered at Willow’s look. “Look Will, I can’t say I’m not a little freaked, but I’m glad you told us. And we want you to be happy,” she said, confirming what Willow suspected, but continuing to muster support in spite of any of her own personal misgivings.

Xander nodded seriously. “She’s right. No matter who you love, you’re still Willow, and we’re still your best friends, no matter what.” He glanced guiltily at the table, watching his fingers play with his coffee cup. “It just might take a little bit for us to get used to it, that’s all.”

Willow smiled gratefully, suddenly fighting tears. “Thank you, both of you,” she said, voice thick with emotion as she reached over to cover his hand with her own, meeting his eyes as he turned his hand over to hold hers.

“I could talk to Tara, if you want,” Buffy offered, trying to be supportive.

Willow shook her head, smiling tightly. “I don’t even know what I’m going to say to her,” she said. “Thanks though.”

“Sure thing, Will.”

“So, Riley’s a commando?” Willow asked, changing the subject suddenly as it occurred to her that the Slayer had her own relationship drama going on.

“Yeah,” Buffy agreed, sighing heavily. “So that’s over.”

Willow frowned at her. “Why?” she asked. Buffy looked surprised by the question, and Willow continued. “He was hiding it from you, sure, but you were hiding the Slayer thing too, but now it’s all out in the open, right? So why’s it over?”

“I just…after Angel…Riley was supposed to be the normal one, you know?” Buffy said.

“So what if he isn’t?” Xander asked. “He still cares about you, and he seems like a nice guy. Is it too much to just give him a chance?” He gave her a look over the table. “Not everything in your life has to be gloom and doom, Buff.”

She blinked at him, letting her eyes slide closed after a moment. “I guess I don’t think it could ever be that simple,” she said, not opening her eyes.

“Sometimes it is though,” Willow said, smiling at Buffy as the Slayer looked at her. “You just can’t be too scared to go for it.”

“You and me both, right?” Buffy asked, returning her best friend’s smile.

“Right,” Willow said, nodding her head.

Xander glanced between them both. “Sounds like you guys are ready,” he said, mustering confidence for them. “Tara and Riley won’t know what hit them.”

Willow and Buffy exchanged grins, each blushing. Xander laughed, standing up and rounding Willow’s chair to offer his arm to Buffy. She stood up with a smile and took it. They waited while Willow turned her chair around so she was going in the same direction they were and Xander put a hand on her shoulder, escorting them both out onto the sidewalk.

They turned toward the campus, walking in silence, each wrapped up in their own thoughts. Lowell House was just off campus, and Buffy split off from her friends, giving them each a smile. Xander stayed with Willow, walking her toward Fike.

He followed her into the lobby, pushing the button for the elevator, and taking a step back. “Good luck, Will,” he said quietly. “No matter what she says, you know we love you.” He knelt down beside her chair, looking her in the eye. “Want me to wait down here?”

She bit her lip, thinking it about it seriously. “Thank you Xander, but it’s okay. I appreciate it.”

The elevator doors dinged and opened in front of them, and Xander pressed a kiss to her temple as he stood up. “Okay, but call me if you need anything. I mean it. Anything you need, you call me.”

She nodded her agreement, wheeling herself into the elevator car. She took a deep breath as she reached the second floor, hesitating in front of Tara’s door. It was still before lunch, so she had hopes that Tara was in, but if she wasn’t Willow resolved to sit outside the door until she returned.

She knocked before she could lose her nerve, brushing her hands over her thighs anxiously. The door opened after a moment, and Willow could see Tara’s surprise in her face.

“Willow, I thought you’d be with Buffy today,” the blonde greeted her, holding onto the doorknob.

“We had coffee this morning,” Willow answered quickly. “We talked, and she’s going to see Riley, and I needed to come here, talk to you. We were each supposed to talk…” She could feel a babble coming on, and choked it down with an effort. “Can I talk to you?”

Tara nodded, stepping out of the door. “Come in,” she murmured, following Willow with her eyes and shutting the door behind them. Willow parked her chair near the bed, still anxiously brushing her hands over the tops of her legs, fingers playing with the bulge of her sweatpants where they were lumping up over the edge of her cast.

Tara could feel the tension radiating from the redhead, and she sat slowly on the edge of the bed close to Willow’s chair. “Sweetheart, what is it?” Tara asked softly.

“Okay, here it is,” Willow blurted. “Last night the world almost ended, and I just wanted to see you. That says something for me, you know? I feel something for you Tara, and it’s not just because I’m lonely, or depressed, it’s because you’re sweet, and smart, and you make me laugh, and you make me happy. I know you think I’m going to have regrets if we try this and it doesn’t work, but the only thing I’m going to regret is if we let this go without fighting for it.” She sucked in a deep breath. “Tara, there’s something here, and it’s real, and I want to see where it leads us. Give me a chance, Tara. Give us a chance…”

“Willow,” Tara said softly, sighing. “It’s not that simple.”

“That’s what Buffy said about Riley!” Willow interjected. “But why can’t it be that simple? I like you, Tara. It wasn’t anything I was looking for, but I’m still falling for you. If you feel the same way then why can’t we give it a try?” she demanded, swallowing hard as she finished speaking, her eyes finding something to look at on the other side of the room.

Tara wanted to argue, wanted to insist that Willow take more time to think, but the redhead seemed pretty confident, and it was what she wanted herself, so she found her protests stuck in her throat. If Willow wanted to try being together, Tara knew she would give in eventually, unable to resist if she was who Willow wanted.

Willow was surprised when Tara’s hands landed on her knee, the blonde slipping off her bed to her knees in front of Willow’s legs. “Okay,” Tara said softly, a slow smile coming to her lips.

“What?” Willow asked dumbly, sure she couldn’t have heard correctly.

“Okay, we can give it a try,” Tara answered, biting her lip. “Going out. Together.”

Willow blinked, a slow smile of her own coming to her lips. “Okay?” she repeated. “Really?”

Tara nodded, leaning up. “Unless you changed your mind in the last thirty seconds.”

“Oh, no way!” Willow yelped, shaking her head rapidly. “You’re stuck with me, baby,” she said.

Tara arched an eyebrow at her, leaning in slowly. “Baby?” she asked softly, privately liking the idea of being Willow’s baby.

“Um, I mean, I don’t have to, I didn’t mean to…” Willow scrambled to apologize, blushing brightly.

“I like it,” Tara said, moving closer. Willow only recognized the blonde’s proximity as Tara’s stomach pressed against her knee. Her mouth opened to speak, but she decided against it, just moving to meet Tara’s lips.

The kiss was brief and they didn’t pull back very far, just enough for their eyes to lock. “Okay?” Tara asked, her voice low.

“Oh yes,” Willow agreed. “And also, wow,” she breathed, smiling. “This is real, right? Not just some dream?”

“If it is, I’m here too,” Tara told her.

“Good,” Willow said as she kissed her again. They kept the kiss slow, hands curling into hair while lips met and tasted gently. They separated gradually, Tara leaning back on her heels to smile. “So, what now?” Willow asked hesitantly, still caught up in the mind-altering kiss she’d just been given.

Tara smiled, shrugging her shoulders. “I don’t know,” she admitted, giggling giddily. “You mentioned a date with no dead bodies,” Tara reminded her.

Willow nodded eagerly. “I can do that,” she said immediately. “One perfect date coming up.”

Tara laughed, one hand tracing over Willow’s cheek. “It’s okay, Willow. We’re not in a hurry.” She tilted her head, her fingers still moving lightly over freckled skin. “And don’t you have a doctor’s appointment this week? We can wait to go out. It’s not like we don’t see each other every day.”

Willow felt her eyelids flutter, and she leaned into Tara’s touch. “Oh, yeah, I’ve got a check up to see when I can get my cast off.” She sighed, glancing down at her wheelchair. “You sure you want me? Even with this stupid chair, and my stupid leg…”

Tara cut her off with a kiss, a new method of interrupting the babble, and one that she would be sure to use as often as she could. Willow blinked blearily as Tara pulled away after several long moments. “There’s nothing stupid about you, Willow,” Tara stated sternly. “I don’t want to hear stuff like that about my girl.”

Willow smiled brilliantly after a second as the words sunk in. “Your girl?”

“For as long as you want to be,” Tara agreed, sitting back on her heels.

Willow noticed her shift her weight, and the redhead frowned. “Your knees are hurting,” she guessed. “Come on, get up and sit on the bed.”

Tara smiled softly. “Sitting here has advantages though,” she objected.

Willow giggled, but slipped her hands under Tara’s elbows and tugged her up gently. “It’s not worth your knees being sore,” she prompted and Tara moved obligingly onto her previous seat on the mattress.

“That’s arguable, but thank you, Willow,” Tara said. She knocked her knuckles against the cast lightly. “It’s going to be funny to be able to see both of your legs.” She let her fingers trail over Willow’s toes and they squirmed away from her touch, the redhead giggling. “So you’re ticklish,” Tara observed. “Good to know.” Her finger dragged a slow line between Willow’s toes and the beginning of her cast, Willow laughing helplessly.

Willow shot her a look. “Witch,” she chided lightly. “When I get my cast off in like a month, and learn to walk again in the four to six months after that, after all of that, I’m so going to get you,” she promised, smirking.

“Well, I hope I can get myself out of trouble by helping you with all of those things,” Tara offered kindly, sliding her palm slowly over the cotton pants covering the cast.

“Really?” Willow asked. “You’d go to the doctor with me and stuff?”

Tara nodded, looking surprised. “Of course. I mean, if you want me there…”

“Yeah, I do. I know you don’t believe me yet, and I’m grateful you’re giving me a chance to prove it, but you make me happy, just by being around me,” Willow said, ducking her head with a blush. “Um, that was stupid to say, sorry.”

“It was sweet,” Tara said. “So, when is your appointment?” She changed the subject, seeing that Willow was feeling embarrassed.

“Um, Tuesday afternoon,” Willow answered, smiling sheepishly. Now that Tara had agreed to exploring how they felt about each other, she was scared that she would come on too strong and frighten the blonde away. Not that coming on strong had ever been one of her problems when it came to relationships. How long had she and Oz bounced around each other before they’d actually managed to find each other?

Tara was watching Willow’s ever busy brain work, smiling affectionately. Willow caught the look and returned the smile. “Okay,” Tara agreed. “I guess Buffy’s taking you to the doctor, right?”

“And Xander,” Willow added, grinning. “They do their best to make up for my parents not really showing much interest in my recovery.”

“Your parents care, Willow,” Tara protested, despite having never seen or heard much about Willow’s parents in the months since they’d met.

The redhead nodded, smile locked in place. “I think they read the reports the doctors send them,” she agreed.

“Oh,” Tara said softly. “I’m sorry, Willow.”

Willow blinked, shaking her head. “Oh, Tara, no. It’s not your fault. That’s how it’s always been, and I’m totally used to it.”

Tara sighed, biting her lip. It wasn’t as if her family was the picture of normalcy, with the women becoming demons. The sudden reminder sent a sharp stab of guilt through her. Willow deserved someone who wasn’t going to become a nasty demon. Though the need to hide what she was had been so deeply ingrained that she wasn’t even sure she could say the words until her life depended on it.

Of all the reasons she’d presented to Willow to keep them apart, her demon had been the biggest, but the only one she hadn’t used. She felt the need to share rising up her spine, but a glance at Willow stilled her tongue. That the redhead liked her at all felt like a miracle, and she only had less than a year left of humanity, why shouldn’t she take her chance to be happy? It was what Willow wanted, and she wanted it too.

“Willow…” she spoke without thinking, only realizing that she had said her name when Willow’s eyes focused on her, her smile becoming more natural.

“Yeah?” Willow prompted when Tara didn’t say anything else.

“Oh, um, well I have class until two on Tuesday, but I could leave early, or skip it if…”

“No, there’s no need for that,” Willow objected. “I don’t have to be there until three. Xander is working until two-thirty and Buffy has to run home and pick up her mom’s Jeep.” She grinned excitedly.

Tara smiled. “Eager?” she guessed.

Willow nodded. “Yeah. Even though they probably won’t let me out of the cast for good this time, I’ll be out of it for a little while.” She scratched at the edge of the cast. “You would not believe how much it itches in there.”

Tara laughed. “Well, I’m excited for you.”

“And I’m glad you’ll be there,” Willow said. “And I’m glad you’re here, and I’m glad you let me in, and I’m glad you talked to me, and I’m glad you said yes…”

The blonde giggled, leaning forward to interrupt the rambling with a kiss. Willow was quick to adjust, her hands curling around Tara’s neck to pull her in. Tara’s hands found the armrests of Willow’s chair, pulling it closer to the bed, breaking out of the kiss to laugh as the chair didn’t move, held away from the bed by Willow’s leg cast.

“And I’m definitely glad you figured out this great new way to shut me up,” Willow breathed, smiling happily. “Feel free to use it any time.”

Tara smiled crookedly, ducking her head so her hair slid across her face. Willow pushed it back with one hand, sliding the hair between her fingers. “Is your leg okay?” Tara checked.

“Oh, yeah, it’s fine. Didn’t feel a thing,” Willow said, waving her concern away easily. “So, do you want to do something, maybe? It’s still early, and Buffy’s over at Riley’s house, hopefully their conversation will go as good as ours did, but she’s probably not going to be around today.”

Tara arched an eyebrow at her, smiling. “Buffy’s talking to Riley? Is this what you guys talked about this morning?”

Willow bit her lip, nodding shyly. “I hope you don’t mind. Buffy and Xander are my best friends, and I spent all of my winter holiday confused and thinking about this, and I needed to talk to them. I didn’t say anything private, of course, but I needed to tell them. I did say that you were an amazing kisser, and Xander spit his coffee in Buffy’s face,” she said, laughing.

Tara blushed, laughing herself. “You said I’m an amazing kisser?” she asked, surprised.

“Definitely,” Willow agreed, grinning. “Because it’s true.” She leaned forward for another kiss, falling quickly deeper as Tara kissed her back.

“You’re quite good yourself,” Tara said when she could speak again, panting for breath. “We could get something to eat,” she suggested after a moment. “It might not be a great idea to stay here and keep…doing that,” she said, smiling shyly.

Willow grinned cheerfully, but nodded. “Yeah, you’re right. We need to do this right, take things as they come,” she said, pushing her chair back so Tara could stand up. “I’m not going to mess this up,” Willow declared, smiling as Tara joined her.

*****
Next Time: It’s Buffy’s birthday…and the girls go on a date!

(And before anyone says I made a mistake - phones back in 'the day' could run off of landlines and didn't need power from a house to work - so they could still use the phone even if the dorm's power was out...)

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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Sat Jul 17, 2010 9:19 am 
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What a fantastic update! I loved the scene at the coffee shop so much, it was very sweet. The dialogue between W/B/X and W/T is so relaxed, so natural--you've captured the characterizations perfectly. It breaks my heart a little bit each time Tara thinks of herself as a demon--I hope that is something you get a chance to resolve. Love all the kissing, and can't wait to see that first date. :wtkiss


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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Sat Jul 17, 2010 9:20 am 
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Oh, and dibs! Hooray!!


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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Sat Jul 17, 2010 9:31 am 
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*heart melting*

Adorable! I like your version of how things are playing out much better than the show lol.

Looking forward to the date!

Oh and I know it's probably a while, if ever, off but if you do your version of NMR I'm really hoping Tara doesn't have to go through the emotional turmoil she went through on the show. That always breaks my heart.

And I agree with LonelyTara, I would love to see the demon stuff resolved.

Anyway. Great update :) :)

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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Sat Jul 17, 2010 11:02 am 
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Yay for excellent update-y goodness... Big yay for Tara agreeing to start dating Willow... I really liked the Willow/Buffy/Xander talk... I truly hope that your Tara has more courage than the original and tells Willow about her future "demonhood" so that they can work out that Tara is 100% human...

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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Sat Jul 17, 2010 1:38 pm 
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seriously...this keeps getting better and better!! I'm really enjoying reading this. Update soon!!!

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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Sat Jul 17, 2010 7:09 pm 
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This chapter was good. I think it's nice that Willow has told Xander about Tara. I always wondered why she didn't tell Xander, instead of only telling Buffy...
The story keeps getting better, and I hope their first date will be really cute!
:peace

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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Sun Jul 18, 2010 12:54 am 
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Yay, update!

I love that you explained about old landline phones, maybe you should explain rotary to the young 'uns too, lol. It actually makes sense that dorm rooms wouldn't be equipped with the latest and greatest - more function less pizazz.

It's interesting you decided to out Willow to both Xander and Buffy at the same time choosing not to follow the show. It actually makes more sense than hiding it from Xander while involving Tara more and more with the Scoobies.

Yay for first dates!

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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Mon Jul 19, 2010 6:58 am 
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Great update. Glad that Xander and Buffy were so supportive when Willow finally told them about Tara. Looking forward to Buffy's birthday and the girls date.


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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Mon Jul 19, 2010 9:31 am 
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I love how you handled this had Willow go to her friends for suport instead of hiding it. True friends will stand tall beside her. I understand why Tara is worried a out Willows feelings but it's good that she agreed to see where it goes from here. Perfect update :pinky

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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Mon Jul 19, 2010 8:55 pm 
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This is amazing so far! more more more...

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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Tue Jul 20, 2010 7:43 am 
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LonelyTara: I'm so glad you liked it! I'm glad to hear you say that the characters are good - that's one of the biggest things that I work on :) We will get to the demon stuff (and sooner than on the show even) so I hope how you like how I have it all go down... Hope you enjoy the date and thanks so much for all the encouragement and support! (Yay for someone dibs-ing my story!)

Laragh: Aren't you glad I begged you not to wait until it was over? Because I'm so glad you didn't! Hope you like the date! We will get to NMR soon enough :) It doesn't go quite the same way it did on the show, but you'll just have to wait and see how it goes (and the demon stuff is actually involved, so your wish is my command)

Zampsa1975: Sweet! I got an 'excellent'! I'm glad you liked the talk - I thought it was important that she share something so big with her best friends! The demon stuff comes up much sooner than it does on the show, so I hope you like what I do with it! Thanks so much for reading!

Hidden In You1023: Aww, well thank you! Thanks so much for reading! Hope you enjoy the update (and that it's soon enough for you!)

abarda: I'm glad you liked it! That's always bothered me too! I know stuff was rough between them in season 4, but he's her best friend! He should have known! Hope you enjoy the date! Thanks so much for reading and sticking with me!

vampyregurl73: :) I'm not sure if that's sarcasm, but I'm going to assume you're being legit :P I figured the dorms would be a bit behind the times - and it just made that whole sequence easier if the phones still worked... I always thought it wasn't super cool how Xander found out on the show, and in my version, they're spending more time together than in the canon season so it made sense for Willow to out herself to both of them, rather than just tell Buffy after she got stuck, and since Tara's around more than on the show, it would have been pretty obvious pretty quick that something was going on with them... Hope you enjoy the date!

love_2003: I'm glad you're liking it! Thanks so much for sticking with me! Hope you like the new one!

Willowtree252: I'm glad you liked it! I thought it was important that she talk to them since they're talking more in this version than they did on the show. :) "Perfect update" is a big complement... no pressure now :P hope you like the new one!

leftindust: Aww, well thank you! Hope you like the rest!

Okay, so I hope no one minds an extra update this week...I've got some more free time this week than I have in the last month, so extra update for y'all (and LonelyTara messaged me and asked for it, so here you are!) I'm going out of town this next weekend, so I'll post the next one on Friday morning before I leave.

I'll have to check and make sure, but my schedule should be slacking off soon, so I can probably start posting twice a week - would Wednesday and Saturday/Sunday work for everyone?

Chapter 7 of 15

Willow brushed invisible lint off her dress shirt fastidiously, frowning down at her outfit, a knee-length skirt and a button-down blouse. “Are you sure I don’t look stupid?” she asked, the third time she’d asked the same question in as many minutes.

Buffy laughed from where she was standing in Willow’s closet, having been helping the redhead choose an outfit for the last hour. “You look great, Willow. Tara’s not going to know what hit her.” She leaned against the doorframe, watching Willow carefully as the redhead balanced on her crutches. “Are you sure you’re going to be alright tonight?”

Willow nodded. “Yeah. The crutches are bad enough, I definitely don’t want to take Tara out in the stupid chair.”

“Okay, but I don’t want you to outdo yourself. You’ll call me if you need the wheelchair, right? Because I’ll bring it to you if you need it, you just have to call me,” Buffy told her, watching critically for any sign that Willow was in pain.

The redhead laughed, meeting her friend’s eyes. “I will Buffy, I promise. You won’t even notice I’m gone once Riley gets here. And Tara wouldn’t let me hurt myself.”

Buffy sighed, nodding with a smile. “I know she wouldn’t, but I know you wouldn’t tell her if your arms started hurting.”

“I’ll be alright, Buffy. You need to take a night off. You’re hanging out with Riley tonight, there’s no reason to be worried about me,” Willow said. Buffy already had her mouth open to protest, but the witch moved across the room on her crutches, resting one hand on the Slayer’s shoulder. “You’ve been taking care of me nonstop for the last two months, you need to take one night off and not worry about me, okay?”

Buffy nodded, smiling. “Thanks, Will,” she said, reaching up to fix one of Willow’s curls. “You look great. Tara’s a lucky girl.”

Willow blushed, biting her lip. “Thanks, Buffy.”

The Slayer knelt down to slide Willow’s shoe on, winking as she stood up. “Go get her,” Buffy said, smiling as she opened the door for Willow and saw Riley, his arm lifted to knock. “Hey,” she greeted him, smiling happily.

“I’m going,” Willow said cheerfully. “You guys have fun.” She swung herself down the hall, giving them a smile over her shoulder. She heard Buffy call a goodbye a few seconds before she could hear the door close and she went outside, surprised and pleased by how easily her arms were handling the strain as she waited patiently on the elevator when she got to Tara’s building.

Tara answered the door only a few seconds after Willow’s knock, smiling sheepishly. “Hey,” she greeted her softly. “You’re here,” she said happily.

“I wouldn’t have missed this,” Willow said, smiling. “Are you ready to go, because you look ready, I mean you look amazing, and you’re gorgeous…” Her eyes trailed slowly down Tara’s body and she took a shaky breath. “Really gorgeous,” she said softly.

“You-you do too,” Tara said moving forward a few steps to get closer to Willow. “Your arms are feeling okay, right? We can stay here…”

Willow sighed, shaking her head with a smile. “Just like I told Buffy, my arms are fine, and I feel fine, and I’m taking you out.”

Tara pressed a kiss to her cheek. “Let’s go then, sweetie.” Willow grinned triumphantly, turning her head slightly to catch a kiss. The kiss was slow, gradually becoming a repeating meeting of their lips. “Or we could stay here,” Tara breathed, her eyes closed as they slipped apart after several long minutes.

Willow laughed, pressing a kiss to her temple. “I could be alright with that,” she agreed.

Tara ran her eyes up and down Willow’s form from head to toe. “I think we should go out. You look too good to just stay in tonight.”

“Speak for yourself,” Willow said, dragging her eyes over Tara’s dress again. “You look great, not that you don’t all the time, because, hello, you’re a gorgeous woman, but tonight you just look wow, and I need to stop talking before I make a jerk out of myself, and Riley’s over hanging out with Buffy so it’s not like I can just retreat back to my room if…”

She was cut off by Tara’s lips, the blonde’s arms curling around her waist and Willow lost one of her crutches as she slid her arm behind Tara’s neck, the support falling away unnoticed. Willow’s curled fingers in her hair kept Tara from pulling back to check on her. Willow balanced herself on her good leg without thinking about it, too wrapped up in kissing Tara to worry about a lost crutch.

Tara let herself relax after a moment, feeling that Willow was steady on her leg and one remaining support. Willow’s fingers were moving through her hair and it was infinitely distracting. Tara couldn’t stop herself from moaning into Willow’s mouth, and feeling Willow’s laugh. “We need to go,” she reminded them both before diving back in for another kiss.

“We’ve got some time,” Willow objected, shaking her head minutely against Tara’s lips before she sucked her bottom lip in. Tara pressed herself closer to Willow, moving them toward the opposite wall and causing Willow’s remaining crutch to fall away as they pressed against the wall.

The muffled sound of it hitting the carpet managed to reach Tara’s ears, and she pulled back in a rush. “Oh, Willow, I’m sorry. Are you okay?” she asked worriedly. Willow was breathing heavily, but smiling, leaning against the wall, and she nodded, holding herself up with a hand on Tara’s shoulder.

“It didn’t hurt me, Tara. I’m fine,” Willow breathed, laughing. “Feel free to do that whenever you feel like it, okay?”

Tara breathed deeply in relief, smiling. Her hands were on Willow’s hips and she held the redhead steady. “I’ll get your crutches. Can you stay up? Lean on me if you need to, okay?”

Willow nodded, feeling stable, but finding Tara’s protectiveness adorable. The blonde retrieved the crutches quickly, only gone for a second, but she still brushed curls from Willow’s face, checking anxiously to make sure she was okay.

“I’m fine, Tara,” Willow said, smiling reassuringly as she tucked her crutches back under her arms and moving away from the wall. “And I can’t believe I’m saying this, but we should probably go. Any more kissing like that and I don’t know what I’ll do,” she said, winking.

Tara blushed but nodded, crossing back to her door and closing it. “You’re right,” she agreed with a shy smile over her shoulder. “I really like kissing you.”

“Same here, cutie,” Willow confessed with a grin. “You ready to go?” she asked.

Tara nodded, locking her room and turning back to Willow. They went toward the elevator out of habit, riding down in silence, shy glances passing back and forth between them. Willow led the way once they reached the outside, the sun setting behind the scholastic buildings.

“So where are we going?” Tara asked. “I’m surprised Buffy let you go out alone so close to dark.”

“I’m not alone,” Willow replied. “I’m with you,” she said softly.

“I like the sound of that.”

Willow grinned. “Me too.” Their eyes met and Willow wished there was a way she could hold Tara’s hand, the simple action prevented by her having to grip the crutches. “I thought we could eat downtown at that Italian place, and then, if you’re not too bored, we could watch a movie at the theater, or take a walk, or whatever you want…” She stopped herself with a sheepish grin. “I know dinner and a movie is completely clichéd for a first date, but I’m kind of limited on my mobility or I would take you to the Bronze, go dancing, but I can’t really do that right now, and I look enough like a spaz trying to dance when both of my legs work, I don’t think anyone wants to see me try like this, but we could still go there if you want, just to listen to the bands, they get some good ones in there, and you could dance, by yourself, or with someone else if you wanted…”

Tara giggled and Willow paused, blushing as Tara pressed a kiss to her cheek. “Dinner and a movie is perfect, Willow. And I’d love to go to the Bronze with you some time, but I don’t want to dance with anyone but you.” She moved her second kiss to the redhead’s temple.

Willow grinned, pleased. They started walking again, the pace quicker as the sun fell all the way below the horizon, the ever-present threat of vampires, as well as the dropping January temperature encouraging them to move quicker.

Willow needed a moment to catch her breath as they reached the restaurant, but Tara didn’t say anything, merely handed over her own glass of water as Willow finished off the first glass. “I’m okay,” Willow said, rubbing at one shoulder absently.

“Do you need…” Tara started to ask, holding one hand across the table.

Willow took the offered hand, lifting it to press a kiss to the back, smiling against the smooth skin under her lips. “I’m okay,” she repeated softly. “Promise.”

Tara smiled sheepishly. “You know I just want you to be okay.”

Willow nodded, squeezing Tara’s fingers gently. “I know, and I appreciate that you care, but I promise I’ll tell you if I need a rest, or if anything hurts.”

“I know, sorry,” Tara said. “I trust you.”

Willow grinned, nudging a menu across the table to the blonde. They let each others hands go slowly, smiling shyly. They ordered and Willow gave Tara her water back as her own glass was refilled. They chatted while they ate, talking about their classes and Willow’s recovery. She’d found out from the doctor that she had a month left in the cast before she could start physical therapy to learn how to walk again. She was amusing Tara with planning everything she wanted to do once she regained full mobility.

They’d eaten dinner alone together before, frequently even, but this night was different and they could both feel it. They were acknowledging their feelings for each other, and Tara’s hopes were no longer idle, but eager and so, so fragile. She’d meant what she’d told Willow though, that if this wasn’t what the redhead wanted they would still be friends, and she was determined that that would be true. No matter how much it would hurt to remember that for a brief moment, it had been so different and so good.

Tara put a hand on the back of Willow’s arm as they walked out of the restaurant, their breath fogging in the night air. “So, where do you want to go now?” Willow asked softly. She shivered as Tara’s fingers slid down to her wrist.

“We can go back to the dorm if you’re cold,” Tara offered, seeing her tremble.

Willow shook her head, biting her lip. “I’m not,” she breathed softly.

Realization crossed Tara’s face and she let her hand linger on Willow’s arm. “Oh. So, do you want to go to the movies?” she asked hesitantly.

Willow nodded, smiling. “If it’s not too much of a horrible dating cliché for you,” she answered. Tara shook her head without speaking, leaning in for a slow, lingering kiss.

The redhead could feel her knee weaken, and Tara’s arm caught her quickly. “Are you okay?” Tara asked worriedly.

Willow smiled, nodding. “Oh, yeah,” she agreed breathily. “I’m good.” She took Tara’s free hand and guided it to her chest, letting the blonde feel her heart pounding. “And you…you’re very good,” she commented as she took a deep breath.

Tara blushed brightly, her mouth moving without speaking as she tried to think of anything to say. “Willow…”

The redhead let her hand go slowly, shaking her head to cut her off. “That was too far. I’m sorry, Tara. I didn’t mean…”

She was cut off as Tara kissed her again, the kiss short but deep. “It was…nice,” Tara decided. “Very nice.” She hesitated only for a second before she put her hand back over Willow’s still pounding heart. Willow looked down at the hand on her chest and her knee trembled again and she slumped into the support of her crutches. “Willow! Okay, we’re going home,” Tara stated. “I don’t want you to fall.”

Willow quickly endeavored to push herself back up straight, but Tara wasn’t buying it. “I’m fine. I can go sit in a movie theater.”

Tara frowned, brushing one hand through Willow’s curls. “Really? You’d tell me if you needed to go back, right?”

Willow nodded immediately, smiling. “Yeah. Promise. I don’t want to wuss out in the middle of our date.”

Tara sighed, pinning her with a look. “You’re not pushing yourself because you think I’ll be disappointed if we have to go back, are you?”

Willow shook her head. “No. I’m going to be disappointed if I can’t do this.”

Tara let out a deep breath, meeting Willow’s eyes. “Sweetheart, you’re doing well. You don’t have to prove anything to anyone. If you need to go back and rest, it’s not a big deal. We can go to the movies another time.”

Willow didn’t speak, trying to take honest stock of her condition. The restaurant had had wooden booths, and sitting still for so long had made her hip feel sore and achy. Her shoulders were throbbing as they were standing there, and she realized that her fingers were trembling around the grips of her crutches, and she groaned in frustration. “Tara, I think I need to go back, if that’s okay with you. I’m a little tired,” she conceded finally, dropping her head forward to stare at the ground as she fought back tears of exasperation.

Tara pushed her head up gently, smiling sadly at the obvious annoyance on Willow’s face. “It’s okay,” she breathed, stepping closer to hug her gently. “Do you know how proud I am of you? How proud everyone is? Buffy, and Xander, and Mr. Giles?” she asked softly. “You’re so strong Willow, but it’s not bad to admit that you need help.”

“That’s not what I do,” Willow whispered. “I figure out how to make it work, how to get stuff done.”

Tara nodded, her hand sliding into Willow’s hair, gently guiding the redhead to her shoulder. “But now I’m here, and you don’t have to be that person with me, okay? Anything you can’t do is fine with me.”

Willow let her crutches fall as she wrapped her arms around Tara, holding onto her. For once the blonde didn’t panic when Willow lost her supports, just let the redhead lean against her. After a while, Willow lifted her head, smiling weakly. “Thank you,” she said softly. “I don’t know…I don’t normally…thanks,” she finished.

Tara smiled, nodding. “Of course,” she breathed. She hooked one of Willow’s crutches with a foot, catching it with a playful grin. Willow laughed as she took it, using it to snag the other one herself. It took her a second to get settled and she grimaced at the pressure under her arms, gritting her teeth. They started walking back toward the campus, Willow keeping a cautious eye out for vampires, while Tara kept an eye on Willow.

They slowed unconsciously as they reached Stevenson, both reluctant to end their night. “I’ll walk you in,” Tara said, surprised when Willow shook her head.

“Buffy…Riley’s still there,” Willow said, pointing out a window, a tall shadow visible through the shades.

Tara nodded. “We could go back to my room. I’m sure Buffy will call to check on you. She could walk you back later,” she suggested. Willow nodded quickly, smiling easily and they started walking again, passing by Stevenson.

There were no messages on Tara’s answering machine, and the blonde helped Willow off her crutches and onto the corner of the bed before she plugged in the fairy lights that ran around the ceiling. The light stayed dim, and Willow smiled around the room, feeling as comfortable in Tara’s room as she did in her own.

“So, how did I do? I know wimping out in the middle doesn’t win me any points, but what can I do better next time?” Willow asked. “I mean, if you want there to be a next time…”

Tara gave her a confused smile over her shoulder. “What?” she laughed. She turned to face her, hesitating before she took a seat next to Willow and gave her a smile. “You don’t have to ‘win points’ from me. I had a wonderful time with you Willow, and I absolutely want to go out again.” Her look turned serious. “And I don’t want to push my luck here, but are you sure…”

She was cut off by Willow’s kiss, the redhead’s hands sliding through her hair and holding her face close. Tara gave up her anxious curiosity as she kissed her back. If Willow had doubts or wasn’t sure about this, about them, she was hiding it well. And Tara knew that she herself didn’t want Willow to think too hard about it if it would mean the end of this.

They separated gradually, stealing small kisses each time they moved to pull back. Finally they were still, their foreheads leaning together.

“Tara, I meant what I said…if you have any doubts, if you’re not sure about me, about us, I’ll never say a word about it again…” Willow started softly, her voice barely audible. “But baby, I have to say, I’m falling for you, hard and fast, and I think I have been for a while now and I only just realized it because I’m a dummy, and I know that might not be what you want to hear, but it’s how I feel, and…”

Tara nodded against Willow’s head, stopping her words. “I get it, sweetie. I don’t…I just don’t want you to regret…being with me.” She took another soft kiss before moving back enough to see Willow’s smile. “But I feel it too…”

Willow’s smile grew. “Really?” she asked softly, her heart beating faster as Tara nodded.

Her mouth was open to say more, but Tara’s phone chose that moment to ring, and Tara pressed a kiss to Willow’s forehead as she stood up to answer it. Willow kept her eyes on her, tracing the blonde’s form and smiling as Tara’s greeting confirmed that Buffy was on the other end.

“Yeah, she’s right here,” Tara said into the phone, holding the handset out to Willow. Willow took the phone and Tara took her seat back on the bed, her hand finding its way to Willow’s good knee, stroking lightly over freckled skin.

“Hey Buffy, how was your date?” Willow asked, smiling sideways at Tara.

“Great. Riley just left. How about you? Did you and Tara have fun?”

“So far, so good,” she answered, winking at Tara. The blonde blushed, pressing a kiss to her cheek while her hand moved over Willow’s knee.

“I can give you guys some time if you want,” Buffy offered.

Willow hesitated before she answered, biting her lip. “Thanks Buff, but it’s okay,” she decided. “You could walk slow though,” she suggested after a pause, smirking at Tara teasingly.

“Will do,” Buffy answered with a laugh. “I’ll see you in a little while,” she said as she hung up.

Tara arched an eyebrow at the redhead who was now striving unsuccessfully to look innocent. “Buffy’s on her way?” she prompted. Willow nodded, trying in vain to wipe the smirk from her face. “But not for a few minutes?” she asked curiously.

“Who knows? She might even just decide to take a patrol and pick me up on the way back to Stevenson,” Willow said, already leaning in for a kiss.

Tara met her with a smile, and they kissed softly. It escalated slowly, Willow moving closer unconsciously. Tara helped her along and let Willow in to explore her mouth, Willow’s fingers moving through her hair encouragingly.

It felt like only a few seconds, but had likely been the slow extra minutes that Buffy had promised them, and the sudden knock on the door sent their collective balance out the window, Tara falling back on her bed with Willow on her chest. They stared at each other for a few surprised seconds before Willow giggled and rolled herself off of the blonde.

“Sorry about that,” she laughed, pushing herself up on suddenly shaky arms. All of the exertions of the evening hadn’t done as much to make her feel weak than two seconds on top of Tara. “I didn’t crush you, did I?”

Tara shook her head, frowning at her in disbelief. “No,” she said, rolling her eyes. “Are you okay? Your leg…?”

Willow pressed one hand unconsciously over the top of her injured leg, but shook her head. “No, I’m fine, sweetheart.”

Tara sighed in relief, leaning over to press a kiss to her cheek. “Good.” She glanced at the door with a crooked smile. “I should probably answer that.”

Willow nodded, snagging Tara’s wrist before the blonde made it a step. “Hey, it’s Buffy’s birthday in two weeks and we’re having a surprise party for her that Friday. Do you want to go with me? As a date? And maybe we could do something every other day between now and then too?” Willow asked in a hushed whisper, grinning excitedly as Tara nodded.

“Of course, Willow,” Tara agreed, not resisting Willow’s pull and landing across the redhead’s lap, their mouths meeting in a frenzied kiss. There was another knock on the door, followed by Buffy’s laughter audible through the door.

“Come on, Will! I walked as slow as I could!” Buffy called.

Willow reluctantly let Tara stand up, seeing the bright blush on the blonde’s face. “Coming,” she called, glancing around for her crutches. Tara opened the door, just twisting the knob before she turned back to hand the crutches to Willow.

Buffy pushed the door open with Willow’s wheelchair and the redhead grinned. “Your chariot, my lady,” she said cheerfully. “Or her lady, rather,” she amended, gesturing to Tara with a grin.

The blonde blushed, turning the crutches in her hands while Willow pulled herself into the chair. Buffy took the crutches as Tara handed them over.

“I had a great night, Willow,” Tara said quietly, crouching next to the chair.

Willow nodded, smiling. “Me too. Will I see you tomorrow?” Tara nodded, leaning up to kiss her briefly, glancing up at Buffy shyly. “Good,” Willow agreed.

Buffy was politely averting her eyes, looking around Tara’s room curiously.

“Good night, Willow,” Tara said, pressing another kiss to her forehead as she stood up.

“Sleep well, Tara,” Willow said, tilting her head back to look at Buffy upside down. “Ready to go, Buff?”

Buffy nodded, shrugging. “Sure, no hurry. Though if you guys are going to keep kissing, I can go back into the hall,” she teased.

“Just one more,” Willow announced, giving Tara a quick kiss, entwining their fingers briefly. “Okay, we can go now.”

Buffy nodded, saluting playfully and holding both crutches in one hand while Willow guided her chair out the door. Tara shut it behind them gently, exchanging smiles with Willow as it closed.

Buffy managed to maintain her silence until they reached the sidewalks. “So, you and Tara seem pretty comfy with the smooching,” she teased.

Willow blushed, seeing her breath fog the air as she let out a sigh. “Buffy,” she said chidingly.

“Hey, I’m just trying to look out for you. You’re my best friend Will, and you’re going through something big here. I just want to help,” Buffy said. “You know you can talk to me, about anything.”

Willow nodded, smiling gratefully up at her friend. “Thanks, Buffy. It’s…tonight was great. She’s sweet, and funny, cute, smart, adorable, and I think I could fall in love with her. I mean, of course I’m not there yet, but I can see it happening…easily.”

Buffy nodded, trying to think before she spoke and said something foolish, still not entirely used to the idea that Willow was starting a relationship with a woman. “Wow,” she breathed. “That’s big, Will.” She grinned sideways at her friend. “That must have been some date.”

“It was, and I know it’s a big deal,” Willow agreed softly as Buffy pulled the door open to the lounge of Stevenson, holding it open while Willow wheeled her chair in. “But it’s real. She’s amazing. I can’t imagine who I would be if I didn’t know her.”

Buffy let them into their room, shutting the door behind Willow’s chair. The roommates moved quietly around the room, doing their nightly routines without speaking. It was only when they were each in their beds, the room dark around them, that Buffy spoke again. “I’m glad for you, Will. And I’m glad you told me about…you know, how you felt about Tara.”

“I couldn’t imagine who I would be without you either, Buffy,” Willow said, turning her head to meet her friend’s eyes in the dark.

“I know, Willow. Me too,” the Slayer agreed. “I’m glad you’re happy.”

Willow smiled. “I am.” She hesitated, biting her lip. “What about you and Riley?”

“I’m happy too,” Buffy said, her happiness clear in her voice. “I’m glad we took a chance, Will.”

“Me too,” Willow agreed, smiling at the ceiling. “Me too.”

*****

Tara and Willow spent every moment they could together, in the mornings before class, between and after classes, and at night. The blonde helped Willow get everything organized for Buffy’s birthday, keeping the redhead from pushing herself too hard. Despite Tara’s best efforts though, there were several nights where the redhead was too wiped out to make it home and had ended up crashing in Tara’s bed.

The two weeks passed quickly, but they had managed to keep the surprise party a secret from Buffy, Riley helping them get the Slayer to the party on time. They were all still hiding in the dorm’s rec-room at the time Riley had arranged to bring Buffy in from patrol, but it appeared the Slayer and her boyfriend were running late.

Willow poked her head out from behind the curtain she was concealed behind, huffing in frustration at the still-absent Slayer. She barely had time to whip herself back out of sight when the door opened.

Riley was first through the door, gesturing uselessly for the others to remain silent. The party guests jumped out of their spots, or in Willow’s case, yanked the curtains out from in front of herself.

“Surprise!” they all shouted to Riley, who grinned sheepishly and scratched at the back of his head.

Buffy poked her head into the room for a second, grinning in surprise at the others. “You guys…for me? This is too much…” she said, obviously pleased. She disappeared from the doorway after a second and Riley’s head turned to follow her into the hall.

“Um, Giles, we’ve got a party crasher out here,” Buffy called. “Everybody, start the party. I’ll be there in a second.”

Giles exchanged surprised looks with Xander and Willow, the three moving automatically toward the door together. Giles pulled up in surprise as he saw Buffy restraining Ethan Rayne against the wall, standing still in the doorway until Willow hit him lightly across his calf with her crutch and he moved with a jump to let her and Xander into the hall.

“We caught him coming out of one of the bars over on the other side of town when we were patrolling,” Buffy said.

“And certainly he’s not in town for any good reason,” Giles said, nodding to his Slayer.

“Want me to beat him up?” Buffy offered with a grin. “It could be like a gift.”

“Hey! It’s not Ripper’s birthday!” Ethan protested, choking when Buffy pressed her forearm more firmly against his throat.

Giles exchanged smiles with Buffy, but waved her back and she relaxed some of the tension on her captive’s neck, giving him enough room to breathe, but not enough to escape.

“So, what should we do with him?” Buffy asked. “Because if there’s a birthday party in there with my name on it, I don’t want to stand out here all night.”

“I could take him into government custody if he’s as bad as you’ve said,” Riley suggested, his arms crossed over his chest. “He could enjoy some nice rehabilitation in the Nevada desert at an Initiative complex.”

Buffy raised a questioning eyebrow at her Watcher, shrugging. “Sounds good to me,” she agreed. “Giles?”

Ethan was glaring at all of them and Buffy pressed her arm slightly as he opened his mouth to speak. “I think that sounds like a wise plan,” Giles agreed. “Who knows what he’d do if left to his own devices.”

“Hey! It’s not like I came to town to turn you into a demon or something!” Ethan protested, only to be ignored by everyone.

Riley nodded, moving to clip handcuffs around Ethan’s wrists. He read him his rights and started to escort him out, sending Buffy an apologetic smile over his shoulder.

Giles craned his neck to watch Riley shove Ethan as the older man did his best to escape from the tall Marine, the Watcher grinning.

“Well, shoot, there goes my…I was going to introduce him to you tonight, Giles,” Buffy said as they turned to head back into the party. “We were going to stop by your apartment because I didn’t know about this nifty party,” she said happily, nudging him with an elbow.

“I’ve met Riley,” Giles reminded her with a confused look as they were all bombarded with drinks pushed into their hands by the eagerly partaking party guests.

“Yeah, but not since he started making out with Buffy,” Xander explained succinctly with a grin, taking a long sip from his plastic cup.

Buffy shot him a look, slapping his arm. “Xander!” she chided him.

“Ow!” he cried at the same time, flinching away from her. “That hurt!”

Giles was eyeing them both with a raised eyebrow. “You’re dating Riley?”

Buffy nodded. “Yeah, and I wanted to tell you, because he’s a great guy and he’s important to me, and of course, you are too, so I wanted you two to meet again.” She shot another look at Xander and he moved cautiously behind Willow, confident the Slayer wouldn’t try and hit him again if he was hiding behind Willow on her crutches. “I just wanted him to be here too,” she said pointedly, still glaring at Xander.

“Well,” Giles started, smiling at his charge. “Riley seems like a very nice young man.” He gave her a more serious look. “Just be careful. He’s affiliated with those commandos, and we’re still not certain what their mission is.”

“I’ll be careful,” she promised him.

Giles smiled, nodding. “Now, go enjoy your party, and we can talk about work later.”

Buffy grinned, nodding. “I’ll bring Riley over once he gets back,” she said, waving to the Scoobies as she moved into the crowd.

There was a moment of silence before Anya appeared from the crowd, dragging Xander away to dance without a word. Willow spotted Tara through the masses of people, the blonde talking with someone from one of her classes.

The redhead eased herself into a chair against the wall, standing her crutches up beside her chair within reach. She’d been on her feet all afternoon trying to get everything finished for the party and, if she was being honest, she was sore. Giles took the seat beside her, taking a sip of his drink.

“You did a wonderful job on this party, Willow. Buffy seems to be having a good birthday for once,” he commented.

The redhead grinned, watching Buffy pull Riley onto the makeshift dance floor. Her eyes found Tara again and she took a sip of her drink. “Thanks, Giles. Um, could I talk to you?” she asked. “I know Buffy already did her talk tonight, you know, told you about Riley, and I want to do the same thing.”

Giles turned on his seat to see her face better, able to see immediately how nervous the redhead was. “Of course, Willow. You’re dating someone new?”

“Yeah, I am,” Willow said, swallowing before throwing back the rest of her drink and putting the cup down beside her chair. “I don’t need to drink anymore of those,” she said absently, glancing at Tara across the room again before she turned to face Giles. “I’m dating Tara,” she blurted.

He choked on his drink, hitting himself on the chest with one fist as Willow patted him helpfully on the back. “That was about Xander’s reaction,” she told him. “Except he was drinking coffee and he spit it into Buffy’s face.”

Giles quickly regained control of himself, smiling tentatively. “I’m sorry, Willow. I didn’t mean…”

“It’s okay, Giles. I don’t expect you to be okay with it right away,” Willow told him reasonably. “I just wanted you to know.”

The Watcher nodded, one hand coming up to rest on Willow’s closer shoulder. “How long has this been going on?” he asked.

She shrugged, nervously meeting his eyes. She calmed down gradually as he gave her a reassuring smile. “Technically, just a few weeks, but we’ve both had feelings for each other for longer than that,” she said. “Giles, I don’t want to freak you out with this, I just wanted to tell you.”

The older man nodded again, taking a deep breath. “Thank you for telling me, Willow,” he told her honestly. “If you’re happy, I have no problem with it whatsoever.”

“Thanks,” Willow said, smiling. “I am happy.” She saw Buffy and Riley coming and she leaned over to press a kiss to the surprised older man’s cheek. “I’ll see you later, Giles,” she said, finding her crutches and pushing herself to her feet. She winced as the crutches dug in under her arms, but she swung herself quickly across the room to where Tara was. She stayed quiet, not wanting to interrupt the blonde’s conversation, but Tara spotted her immediately and excused herself.

“You need to sit back down,” Tara stated right away, guiding Willow gently into a chair and pushing hair back from her face. “I’ll get you some water,” she said before Willow could ask, moving easily through the crowd and returning a minute later with a cup of ice water.

“Thank you,” Willow said, taking a long sip. Tara nodded, smiling now that Willow was relaxing. She glanced down as Willow’s free hand took hers, their joined hands resting on Tara’s leg. “Okay?” Willow checked softly.

“Okay,” Tara agreed with a smile, leaning over to press a kiss to her cheek.

They mingled as Willow started feeling better, watched as Buffy opened her presents, and finally said goodnight to the others and went out into the night.

“Are you tired?” Tara asked tenderly.

Willow shrugged, her fingers trembling around the grips of her crutches. “Yeah, but my wheelchair is at your room, so I can cruise for the rest of the night,” she said, grinning sideways at Tara.

“You should probably just go to bed, and not do much cruising,” Tara advised her, laughing at the goofy grin Willow gave her in response.

They reached Tara’s dorm and Willow let herself flop onto the bed rather than bother with finding her wheelchair.

Tara laughed softly as Willow made herself comfortable. “So, now you’re staying?” she asked as she moved around the room, letting her hair down and brushing it out. “Again?”

“Would you mind?” Willow asked, surprised. “I mean, I know I don’t normally ask, more like just collapse and don’t wake up for seven hours, and if you want I can go home, but I figure I’ll be there alone with the way Buffy and Riley were being all snuggly at the party. If you don’t want me to stay though, I’ll go,” she said, already starting to push herself up. “No problem.”

Tara stopped her with a gentle hand on her chest. “Lay down, you goof. You know you can stay here anytime you want to. Just give me a second and I’ll get you a shirt to wear,” she said, kissing Willow on the forehead as she stood up. “And then maybe we can get all snuggly,” she commented flirtatiously as she moved out of Willow’s reach, dodging the redhead’s hands as Willow instantly moved to touch her.

“Vixen,” Willow chided, pouting.

“I’ll be right back,” Tara promised, tossing a t-shirt across the room to the redhead. Willow changed while her back was turned, and when Tara turned to face her, her girlfriend’s arms were open wide.

“I was promised snuggles,” she reminded her cheerfully, squirming down so she was on her back, arms still extended to either side.

Tara laughed, walking back to her bed and sliding under the covers with Willow. “You’re a goof,” she commented fondly.

Willow shrugged as she curled her arms around Tara. “Hey, I get to fall asleep with you, so I don’t think I could be doing any better.”

“A sweet goof,” Tara corrected herself. Her head found its already familiar place on Willow’s shoulder, her arm curling across the redhead’s middle.

Willow yawned uncontrollably, turning her head to rest against Tara’s. “Thanks for letting me stay,” she mumbled, already racing toward sleep.

“Of course,” Tara whispered back. “You’ve had a long day. Go to sleep.”

Willow nodded, her eyes dragged closed. “Sleep good with you,” she breathed.

Tara felt her heart start beating faster, and one of Willow’s hands slid over her collarbone and she wondered if the redhead could feel it through her chest. She swallowed thickly, closing her eyes and tilting her head up to press a kiss to Willow’s neck.

The redhead shifted closer, letting out a deep breath. “Thought you were sleepy,” she said slowly.

Tara smiled, her lips still against Willow’s skin. “Shh,” she breathed. “Sleep.”

“Kisses,” Willow protested tiredly. “You kissed me.”

Tara nudged her nose against Willow’s neck, kissing her again. “And I’ll kiss you again in the morning. Go to bed, sleepy girl.”

“M’kay,” Willow agreed, breathing deeply as she pressed a kiss to Tara’s hair. “Night, Tara.”

“Goodnight, Willow,” Tara whispered to her, curling closer.

*****

Willow was surprised to realize she couldn’t move her arm when she woke up, but was undeniably pleased to look down and discover Tara’s arms tight around her. A shiver ran down her spine as she felt Tara’s lips on the back of her neck.

“Good morning,” Tara said softly, shivering herself as Willow’s hand trailed down her arm. The redhead turned slowly in her arms to face her, smiling sleepily. “I love waking up with you,” she confessed softly, blushing as soon as the words left her lips.

Willow blinked in surprise, mouth dropping open as she sucked in a breath. “Me too,” she agreed. “Could I kiss you?”

Tara laughed, already leaning in. “You don’t have to ask,” she reminded her as she kissed her softly. Willow nodded, pressing closer as they kissed slowly for several long minutes.

They were both out of breath as they separated and Willow squeezed her eyes closed. “Maybe we shouldn’t do too much more of that in bed,” she commented breathily. Her eyes blinked open as she felt Tara nod against her. “You’re too good at making my brain turn off.”

Tara smiled, pleased by the confession. “You too,” she agreed. “But you’re right. We should probably get up.”

Willow let out a breath of relief that Tara wasn’t annoyed, her fingers sliding through Tara’s hair. “Can I take you to breakfast?” she asked. “I mean, I need to go home and get a shower, but I’ll be quick and then we could get some food and go study, or something…”

Tara smiled fondly, interrupting her with another slow kiss. “Sounds perfect to me,” she breathed against Willow’s lips.

Both beds were still neatly made when they arrived at Stevenson, and Tara took a seat on the foot of Willow’s bed to wait as the redhead made her way to the bathroom. Willow had just returned to the room, freshly washed and in clean clothes, when Buffy came in, the Slayer pulling up in surprise as she noticed the blonde witch sitting on the bed.

“Tara, oh, sorry. I didn’t know you were over here last night…” Buffy said, stumbling over her words with a glance between the witches.

Willow hastily wheeled herself out of her closet as she heard her friend’s voice, a jacket across her lap. Tara got to her feet immediately, brushing her hands over the fabric of her skirt. “Oh, no, I wasn’t, I didn’t….we…”

“We are going out for breakfast,” Willow interjected smoothly. “She’s just waiting on me to get my wheels in gear,” she said, smiling at them both.

Buffy blushed as if she didn’t quite believe their ruse, but appeared grateful that they were attempting one. “Oh, cool, well you guys have a good morning, and I’ll just see you later.”

Willow nodded, grinning cheerfully. “Hanging out with Riley today?” she asked.

Buffy nodded, smiling unconsciously. “Yeah, Professor Walsh wanted to run me through some tests tonight with the Initiative team, so Riley was going to help me ‘practice’ this afternoon,” she said, and all three of them laughed. Buffy shrugged. “I can humor him, and it’ll be a nice workout,” she said, wiggling her eyebrows playfully.

“I could stand not hearing anymore about that,” Willow said, shaking her head at her friend. “So when will I see you again? Are you coming back here tonight?”

Buffy shrugged again, looking embarrassed. “Actually, I’ll probably stay over at Lowell House tonight. I mean, if you’ll be okay here by yourself? I could come back.”

“No, it’s fine. I can take care of myself,” Willow said, laughing as the blondes exchanged doubtful looks. “I can!” she insisted.

“I’ll keep the walkie-talkie on,” Buffy stated firmly.

“Thanks Buffy,” Willow answered, knowing that there was no arguing with the stubborn Slayer.

“Hey, how about we do a big Bronze night soon?” Buffy suggested. “We could get Xander and Anya to come. And I feel like I haven’t see either of you in a while.”

The girls exchanged glances and smiles, and Willow nodded. “That would be great,” she agreed. “What night will you not be working for the Initiative?” she teased.

Buffy rolled her eyes. “I’ll check with Riley and see what night he’s not working for them, since I don’t work for them. I think he said next weekend should be free, or maybe Monday.”

“Okay,” Willow said, smirking at her friend. Her stomach growled and Buffy waved.

“I’ll see you guys later,” Buffy said as they left.

The witches picked up bagel sandwiches from a deli, carrying their meal back to Tara’s room. They made a diligent attempt at studying while they ate, even sitting on opposite sides of the room from each other. Willow had taken a seat on Tara’s bed, leaning against the headboard infinitely more comfortable than sitting in her wheelchair. Tara was at her desk, finding the seat’s placement convenient as she was able to turn the chair in such a way that she could sneak glances at Willow without being obvious.

The first time they caught each other looking it was broken up by giggles and shy smiles before they each went back to their studying. Willow finished with her school work and tossed her notebook into the seat of her wheelchair. She pulled out one of Tara’s spell books and started reading quietly, catching Tara’s eyes over the book, smiling softly before going back to her reading.

The majority of their weekend was spent in Tara’s room, only leaving to eat or make use of the bathroom. They managed to get the remainder of their homework done on Sunday but didn’t bother putting the space between them that they had the day before, both stretched out on top of the bed as they worked.

The next week passed in much the same way, the girls spending as much time as they could with each other, though not managing to catch Buffy or Xander, making their Scooby evening a necessity.

They were studying when Tara’s phone rang and the blonde witch stood up to answer it, sitting back on the edge of the bed. Willow leaned over from where she was sitting and curled herself behind Tara on her side, pressing kisses against the patch of skin above the collar of Tara’s t-shirt.

Willow heard Tara greet Buffy over the phone, heard her girlfriend’s laugh as her fingers dragged the edge of the shirt down slowly, giving herself access to more skin.

“Yeah, she’s right here,” Tara said, pushing playfully at Willow’s head and ignoring the redhead’s whimper of protest as she was swatted away from the skin she’d been kissing.

Willow took the phone, pouting petulantly and sticking her tongue out at Tara before greeting her best friend. “Hey Buffy, sorry I wasn’t at home, me and Tara are studying.”

“Oh, yeah, well I didn’t actually call the room,” Buffy said, and Willow could hear her friend’s grin through the phone line. “I just assumed you’d be with Tara.”

“Um…well…” Willow stammered. Buffy laughed into the phone and Willow could hear Riley’s voice in the background. “I wasn’t the only one not home last night,” she returned.

“So, are you two up for Bronzing it tonight?” Buffy asked, changing the subject quickly now that she wasn’t the only one set to tease the other.

“Tonight?” Willow asked Tara. “You okay with that, baby?” Tara nodded, smiling and trying to cover her sudden nervousness. It would be the first time she’d been with Willow and her friends in a couple situation where they hadn’t been surrounded by dozens of other people they knew as a distraction.

“We’re in,” Willow answered Buffy, frowning slightly as she caught the change in Tara’s expression. “Seven? Okay,” she responded distractedly. “See you later, Buff.” She hung up the phone, letting it drop off the edge of the bed. “Tara,” she said, drawing her girlfriend’s eyes. “What’s wrong?” she asked, voice soft and concerned.

The blonde shook her head, biting one lip. “It’s stupid,” she said.

“Tell me,” Willow insisted gently.

“I’ve never been out with you and your friends as your g-girlfriend,” Tara said, sighing as she stuttered. “At Buffy’s birthday party there were a bunch of other people there, and tonight it’ll just be us and them…”

Willow surprised her by smiling, the redhead leaning up on her elbow to press a kiss to Tara’s shoulder. “They already like you, Tara. And they know about us, and they’re happy for us. There’s nothing for you to be worried about, baby.” She trailed her fingers over the back of Tara’s hand, curling their hands together.

Tara felt herself relax at the touch, smiling sheepishly. “You’re right,” she agreed. “I just don’t want them not to like me. They’re important to you.”

“They are,” Willow confirmed. “But Tara, so are you. And they know how happy you make me, so they like you for that. The fact that you’re pretty much perfect just makes it easier.”

Tara snorted at the exaggerated praise, rolling her eyes and pushing at Willow’s head again, sending the witch sprawling back in the bed. “Goof,” Tara said fondly as Willow curled her arms behind her head.

“Your goof,” Willow reminded her.

Tara nodded, smiling softly down at her. “My goof,” she repeated.

*****
Next time: Scooby triple date!

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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Tue Jul 20, 2010 8:34 am 
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Yay for great update-y goodness... Can't wait for the Scooby triple-date... Good that Giles now also knows that Willow & Tara are dating... I kinda hope that Scoobies solve Tara's non-demonhood before she and Willow graduate to naked snuggles...

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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Tue Jul 20, 2010 8:47 am 
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awww. their first date was adorable. I can't wait to read more. Seriously. Awesome fic. :-D

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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Tue Jul 20, 2010 9:03 am 
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Hooray for early updates! Twice a week?! Yes please. This was a great continuation of the joy that is the W/T relationship. I can't wait to see how things go on the triple date--I'm looking forward to getting more of Anya in the mix. I'm kind of dreading the NMR stuff, I have to admit, in fact, my tummy's all grumbly thinking about it. I hate how badly they both hurt in that episode, especially Tara. :(

Great writing, can't wait for Friday! :wtkiss :blush


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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Tue Jul 20, 2010 9:03 am 
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Mind an extra update? Oh the jokes you make :p

And yes, I'm very happy you made me read early!

Great update.

The date was adorable. I love how much they love kissing each other :)

Oh and now I'm worried about NMR. I'm gonna cry if it's super angsty :( Lol, I'm sure how ever you do it it will be wonderful...but as little angst as possible, yea? :wink

And yay for twice-weekly updates!

:peace

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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Tue Jul 20, 2010 10:51 am 
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I love it! they're so cute haha

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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Wed Jul 21, 2010 8:06 am 
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Great long update. Looking forward to being able to read two updates a week. Was happy to see that Willow finally told Giles about her and Tara and that he reacted well to the news. Tara has nothing to be worried about going out with the other scoobies.


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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Thu Jul 22, 2010 12:46 pm 
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Maybe I expected too much of the on-screen Scoobs (given my veyr different background) but their canonical reactiosn enver completley seemed right to me. (altho I assume that as background in my own fics) Their reactions in this story seem more believeable somehow. (And I've been following this story since the beginning, and enjoying every paragraph, just didn't want to leave feedback until I ahd soemthing specific to say *grin.)
Too bad Ethan didn't get chance to spill what he knew about Maggie's secret room.

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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Thu Jul 22, 2010 10:34 pm 
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Zampsa1975: hope you enjoy the date (and the whole bunch of other stuff that apparently happens in this chapter that I completely blanked on when I was adding those upcoming summaries... :P The demon stuff comes up in this one a little - it gets solved sooner or later, don't worry...

Hidden In You1023: Glad you liked their date! Hope you like the new one! Aww, well thanks so much! I'm glad you're enjoying it!

LonelyTara: haha, well you can thank my job slacking off for the more frequent updates :) I'm glad you're enjoying it! Aww, well I hope I can do the NMR stuff in a way that doesn't stress everyone out... (I personally like it, but that's just me :P) Thanks so much for the support! Hope you enjoy the new chapter!

Laragh: Glad you won't mind :P I was worried! Yay! I'm glad you're happy about it! Who doesn't love kissing? Don't be worried about NMR - we're not there yet, and while I can't promise no angst at all, but I do promise that it doesn't get dragged out...no long, extending tension - and lots of stuff gets resolved in that chapter, so I think it's a good one! Next update will be Wednesday!

leftindust: They are cute! Their adorable cuteness on the show was what made me fall in love with them in the first place! Glad you liking it! Thanks so much for reading!

love_2003: Was that one long? (The Hush one has been the longest so far at over 10,000 words, so I haven't been noticing how long the rest of them are) I'm looking forward to having the time to post twice a week :) Being stuck on once a week sucks! Of course Tara will be fine with the Scoobies, but it sure is nerve wracking meeting friends, especially a group that tight...

DaddyCatALSO: Yeah, I always kind of thought it might have been the situation adding stress, but aside from their initial reactions, we never see either Buffy or Xander dealing with Willow's major life change, which I think sucks! Glad my way was at least more believable... (Thank you! I thought you were, but I wasn't sure. - and I've said this before, but I majorly appreciate your detailed feedback!)
Yeah, but I'm sure they'll manage :P

Okay, here's the weekend update - I'm going out of town tomorrow for five days and haven't packed yet, but I'm up late, so I wanted to go ahead and get this posted - next one (one of my personal favorite chapters) will be up on Wednesday when I get back... I'm curious what everyone will think of this one :) Let me know!

Chapter 8 of 15

The Bronze wasn’t too crowded when they arrived, Sunday night not a huge draw for the masses. Xander and Anya were already there, the couple playing pool, and Xander waved them over as he spotted Willow’s hair in the dim club.

“Hey guys,” he greeted them, hugging them both. “Any sign of Buffy?” he checked.

Willow shook her head. “Nope. She called earlier but I haven’t seen her tonight.”

The young man shrugged, grinning. “Well, we just finished this game, so we can rack them up if you two want to play,” he suggested. “Our drinks are over there,” he said, pointing at a nearby table.

Tara laughed as Willow took their jackets, one threaded through each crutch, over to the table. “You want something to drink?” Willow called over.

Tara shrugged. “I’ll just drink out of yours,” she said. Willow shot her a grin and a thumbs-up and swung herself toward the bar.

“Tara, you want to break?” Xander offered, handing her a pool cue.

She smiled shyly, leaning over to line up her shot. The clacking of the balls was muted by the thumping music around them, and she smiled as a striped ball fell into a corner pocket. She found another shot and circled the table to set it up.

“You guys are stripes,” Xander told Willow as the redhead returned from the bar, the lip of the plastic cup held between her teeth. Xander took it from her with a laugh, putting it on the table for her.

“Alright!” Willow cheered. “My girlfriend’s a pool shark!”

Tara made her second shot and Anya scowled, eyeing the pool table with renewed determination. Tara’s third shot missed and the ex-demon stepped up to take the first shot for her team. She got two balls into pockets before she missed and she grinned triumphantly around the table at the others, her competitive streak obviously in full swing.

Willow went next, trading her crutches for the pool stick and balancing carefully on her good leg while she leaned over to take her shot. She got her ball in, but the white ball also rolled into a pocket and Anya cheered as she snatched the cue ball from the pocket and handed it to Xander.

He rolled his eyes obligingly at his girlfriend as he put the ball on the table, giving Willow an apologetic smile as the witch shot the vengeance demon a glare over the table. Tara slipped her hand into Willow’s and the redhead’s scowl vanished, replaced by a shy smile as she glanced sideways at her girlfriend.

They were still playing when Buffy and Riley appeared, trailed by what appeared to be the rest of Riley’s squad of Initiative soldiers.

“They invited themselves to come along,” Buffy muttered as she leaned over to hug Willow. “I didn’t…”

Willow shrugged. “No big. I’m sure their boss will call with some kind of emergency soon.” She winked at her friend, taking a sip of her drink.

The troopers took another pool table, starting their own game, and Buffy and Riley took Xander and Anya’s place at the Scooby table as Anya suddenly gave up her competition at the pool table in favor of dancing farther away from the potentially non-ex-demon friendly troops.

They finished their game, lingering around their table in conversation while Riley’s soldier guys were still playing their own game of pool. The sudden chiming of fifteen pagers was conspicuous enough to draw some glances and Buffy laughed, covering her mirth with a sip from her cup.

“We’ve got to go,” Riley said regretfully.

“Okay,” Buffy said, giving him a kiss. “Be careful.”

He blinked in surprise, looking down at her. “You’re not coming?”

The Slayer shook her head, taking a longer sip from her drink. “No,” she said simply. “I’m hanging out with my friends.” She gestured around the table. “I’ll see you tomorrow,” she prompted. “You can call me when you get done,” she offered. Riley looked confused and Buffy smiled at him encouragingly. “You’ve got your squad to back you up, and I don’t work for the Initiative,” she reminded him.

He still had traces of a frown on his face, but he nodded. “You’re right,” he agreed. “I’ll call you later?”

“Sounds good,” she said, leaning up for another, longer kiss. Buffy watched them go, smiling at her friends. “Sorry about the soldiers crashing the night,” she apologized.

“They’re gone now,” Xander said, shrugging. “Their mommy cracks the whip and they come-a-running,” he joked, the others laughing. “So, how’d it go over there yesterday?” he asked, stealing a sip of Anya’s drink.

Buffy shrugged. “The tests and stuff were no problem because it wasn’t written,” she said, grinning at Willow, the Slayer’s study habits, or lack thereof, a source of never-ending frustration for the redhead. “They offered me clearance and stuff, but I didn’t say yes yet. I don’t know about signing up with something like that. For now at least, I want to stay freelance. Riley knows I’ll help him if he needs it, but I’d rather not make any decisions without talking to Giles.”

“That’s smart,” Xander agreed.

They talked at the table, Xander and Anya occasionally getting up to dance whenever a song that Anya liked came on. It was after midnight and almost closing time when they decided to go, Xander and Anya heading back toward Xander’s house while the girls started off toward the campus. They headed to Fike without speaking, riding upstairs in the elevator. Tara opened the door, not sure where Willow was planning on spending the night.

“Do you want to come in?” Tara offered.

Buffy shook her head, covering a yawn with one hand. “Thanks Tara, but I’m beat. I’m heading to bed,” she said, grinning. “Willow, you need me to walk you back?”

Willow hesitated, looking carefully into Tara’s face, searching for any hint that the blonde would be disappointed if she didn’t stay. Tara just smiled, nodding her head toward Buffy subtly. “Yeah Buff, that would be great,” she agreed. “Just let me get my chair.”

Tara moved out of the doorway to let Willow come in, the redhead dropping herself slowly into the seat of the chair, grinning as she moved a discarded notebook from out of her way.

“You’re not upset, right?” she checked, whispering.

Tara smiled, shaking her head. “No, sweetie. I’ll see you tomorrow for lunch, okay?”

Willow nodded, winking. “Don’t sleep too good without me,” she teased.

Tara narrowed her eyes at her girlfriend, laughing. “Vixen,” she murmured, kissing Willow softly.

*****

The Initiative kept Riley hopping for the next few days, busy with strange tasks for Professor Walsh, and it took a week before Buffy managed to track down her boyfriend. They had all had a long day of classes, but Buffy decided to go see Riley after their classes, feeling bad for ditching him that night at the Bronze, and sorry about the stress he was feeling, torn between his job and his relationship.

The Slayer had only been gone a few minutes from the dorm when the phone rang and Willow answered it to find Giles on the other end. “Buffy just left,” Willow told him.

“Actually, I need your help, if you’re available,” he told her.

“Sure, what’s up?” she asked. He explained as briefly as he could that something had happened to Spike and she hung up, assuring him that she was on her way.

She got the ionization spell done, and they got the tracker out of Spike’s shoulder, the vampire explaining that he’d been the reason the troopers were all summoned away from the Bronze and that he had been on the run since then, keeping the Initiative troopers chasing him all over town. Giles agreed to let the neutered vampire hide out at his apartment, and Willow got ready to leave, wanting to get back to her room before dark. She was pushing at her hair in frustration, as it was still standing on end from her spell, when Buffy walked in.

“I thought you’d be out with Riley tonight,” Willow blurted in surprise as she saw her roommate.

Buffy laughed, looking around the room at each of her friends’ hair, but sobered quickly. “Walsh tried to have me killed,” she announced. Her friends all froze, looking at her in shock. “She called Riley down while I was over there this afternoon. He asked me to come along, so I went down there and Walsh sent him out and asked me to help her out with some demons in the sewers. It seemed easy enough so I said I’d help, but the sewers had gates that closed behind me and the electric gun that she gave me to use didn’t work.”

“Could it have simply been a mistake?” Giles asked, frowning.

“No, this place doesn’t make mistakes like that. She wanted me gone,” Buffy said firmly.

“Riley wasn’t…?” Xander started to ask.

Buffy shook her head, cutting him off. “No, he wasn’t around. She wanted him out of the way while she was dealing with me.”

“Are you sure?” Giles asked.

“He’s not involved,” Buffy stated. “And if it turns out that he is, I’ll deal with him.”

“So, what should we do?” Giles asked.

“I think everyone should stay here, actually,” Buffy said. “Xand, they know how close we are and they’ve seen you on campus a lot with me and Will, but they haven’t seen Giles around much. We should be safe here. Xander and Anya can stay in the spare room, I can bunk here on the couch.”

“What about me?” Willow and Spike chimed in simultaneously.

Buffy grinned, pointing at Spike. “You can do whatever you want as far as I’m concerned,” she answered. “The bathtub is open,” she offered. She grinned at Willow next. “I figured Tara wouldn’t mind sheltering you for a few days. I’ll walk you over there.”

Willow nodded, blushing under her friends’ eyes. “Thanks, Buffy. You guys will keep me in the loop, right?”

“Yeah,” the Slayer answered. “I’m going out to find Riley after I get you squared away Will, and then I’ll be back here for the night. Does everyone understand the plan?”

“Everyone is staying here, in my apartment?” Giles asked reluctantly, sighing when Buffy shot him a look. “Fine. I think we’re clear,” he agreed.

Buffy nodded, following Willow into Giles’ patio, walking slowly with Willow as the redhead hopped her way up the stairs. The Slayer took over driving the chair once they were back on sidewalk, walking them faster than Willow could have driven herself. They swung by Stevenson to pick up some clothes for themselves before they went to Tara’s dorm.

The blonde witch looked surprised to see the pair at her door, but she let them in without question at the serious look on both faces. “What’s going on?” she asked.

“Willow needs to hide here for a few days. Everyone else is staying at Giles’ apartment,” Buffy explained cryptically.

“Hide?” Tara asked.

“The soldiers are after Buffy,” Willow answered. “Can I stay?”

Tara nodded, frowning. “Of course,” she answered immediately. “Buffy?”

“You’ll both be safe. They don’t know you,” the Slayer answered. “Just stay here tonight and I’ll call you in the morning, okay?”

Willow nodded. “Be careful, Buffy.”

The Slayer nodded back seriously, taking a deep breath before she walked out the door, leaving the witches alone.

“You’re okay?” Tara checked anxiously.

Willow smiled. “I am, promise.”

“Good, but what’s up with your hair?” Tara asked, smiling suddenly as she circled around behind Willow’s chair.

Willow poked at her still weightless hair, laughing. “Oh, I did a spell to ionize the air at Giles’ house. It made everyone’s hair stick straight up in the air. It’s actually come down a lot,” she said, attempting to push it down. “It was up to here,” she said, holding her hand up over her head.

Tara laughed, hugging Willow around her shoulders. “You’re adorable,” she said. “Sleepy, baby?”

Willow shook her head, leaning back to smile up at Tara. “Not really. Are you?” she asked hopefully.

“Not really,” Tara agreed.

“Well I hope I didn’t interrupt anything you had planned tonight,” Willow said, her fingers finding Tara’s hand on her shoulder, and her eyes dropped closed as Tara’s hand pressed at her muscles, gently moving in circles.

Tara leaned over as she shook her head, pressing kisses to the opposite side of Willow’s neck while her hand kept working at soothing Willow’s tense muscles. “Nothing that can’t wait,” she said quietly, smiling as Willow’s head rocked forward on her neck, a groan of satisfaction tearing from her throat.

“That feels good,” Willow moaned.

Tara’s other hand moved to Willow’s other shoulder, her thumbs digging carefully into Willow’s tension. “You should lay down,” Tara prompted. “You’re really tense.”

Willow nodded but shrugged her shoulders. “I can handle it.”

Tara laughed quietly, smiling fondly as she leaned her head over again to press a kiss to Willow’s cheek. “I’m sure you can, but the point is that you don’t have to,” Tara said. “I can go back to my homework if you don’t want me to,” she teased, pressing a kiss to the back of her neck.

“Please don’t,” Willow requested groggily, her head still bobbing against her chest.

“Go lay down,” Tara said, guiding Willow’s chair beside the bed and helping her girlfriend from the chair to the surface of the covers. She moved the chair out of the way and sat down beside Willow, rubbing gently at the witch’s back. “Don’t fight falling asleep,” she directed softly. “If you get sleepy, just go.”

“Okay,” Willow agreed, already sounding more relaxed.

Tara smiled to herself, feeling Willow’s body relax under her hands, but Willow was still awake when she finished. “You were supposed to fall asleep,” she reminded her as Willow turned onto her side.

Willow shrugged. “I’m not sleepy yet.” She deliberately slid both hands behind her back. “I have something for you.”

Tara arched an eyebrow at her, but took a seat in front of Willow on the bed. Willow kept her hand hidden for a few more teasing seconds before bringing it forward and revealing a red rose.

Tara blinked in surprise, taking the flower carefully. “Where did this come from?”

“It’s for you,” Willow said, smiling.

The blonde blushed, touching the petals softly. “It’s beautiful, and you’re sweet, baby. You didn’t have to do that.”

Willow shrugged. “I wanted to.” She pulled a white one from behind her back with a sheepish grin. “And this one is for a spell I wanted to try.”

Tara smiled, amused by the redhead’s antics. “I should have known,” she laughed, leaning in to kiss Willow softly.

“Hey, I got yours first! The spell was just an afterthought!” Willow protested against her lips, nipping teasingly at Tara’s bottom lip. “It should be very pretty,” she coaxed.

“What do we have to do?” Tara asked, kissing Willow again softly.

“Well, we’d float the rose,” Willow said, the words scattered between kisses. “Use the magic to pluck off the petals.” Tara nodded, not moving far enough to stop their kissing. “It’s a test of synchronicity…”

Tara pulled on Willow’s bottom lip with her teeth, letting it go with a pop. “Okay, let’s do it,” she said, hopping up from her seat and laughing at the shocked look on Willow’s face. She held one hand out to Willow, grinning as the redhead took it.

Tara guided Willow down to the floor, helping her sit down carefully with the base of the bed behind her. She pushed back the corner of the rug and drew out the symbol Willow showed her in chalk on the bare patch of floor. She put the rose in the middle of the circle and sat down in front of Willow, joining their hands. They were sitting close, Tara’s legs folded in front of her, her knees touching Willow’s bent knee while Willow’s frozen right leg was lying close beside her left hip.

They each stretched out slowly with their power, their fingers curling around each other’s wrists. They didn’t have any trouble falling into sync with each other, their hearts beating simultaneously, the inhales and exhales of their breaths in perfect time. They’d practiced spells before, but they’d been keeping it simple, careful about every step they made toward expanding both their power when working together, as well as the growth of their individual abilities. They’d discovered early on that they were extraordinarily attuned for two people that weren’t related, and it was the work of a second to funnel that synchronicity into the spell.

Tara opened her eyes without realizing that she’d closed them to find Willow smiling softly at her. “We did it,” Willow said quietly, looking beside them to where the rose was hovering a foot from the ground. “Now for the tricky part, the petals.”

Tara let her fingers slip gently over the pulse she could feel beating in Willow’s wrist, pulsing at the same speed as her own. Their power, combined in perfect unity, reached out and touched the rose, the texture of the petals tangible in their minds, their touch sending specific petals spiraling slowly to the floor.

The rose was softly glowing and the petals kept their soft light as they fell. “Beautiful,” Willow breathed, but when Tara looked at her the redhead wasn’t watching the results of their spell.

Neither could have said who moved first, but their mouths met in the middle and Tara ended up on her knees between Willow’s legs, kissing each other deeply, slow and soft but quickly growing more passionate. Willow moaned into Tara’s mouth, her hands finding Tara’s hips, her nails dragging gently over the soft skin between her shirt and pants.

“Are we doing what I think we’re doing?” Willow asked breathily as Tara’s roaming hands broke through the fog of feeling that was clouding her mind.

“God, I hope so,” Tara groaned, her kisses moving to Willow’s neck. “Do you want to stop…” she started to speak, pulling her head back from Willow’s skin reluctantly, but needing to know that she wasn’t pushing Willow into anything she didn’t want.

Willow shook her head, pulling Tara back to her before the words were out of her mouth. “Don’t stop,” Willow pleaded, her hands finding a grip around Tara’s waist as the blonde’s hands slipped under Willow’s butt, lifting her just enough to clear the mattress.

Their kissing resumed before they were horizontal, falling back with a laugh, and Willow pulled herself backwards as quickly as she could while Tara followed her. They’d been kissing since before they were even dating, and since then things had been progressing quickly. Tara had been more than a little surprised by how easily Willow seemed to be adjusting to the physical side of dating another woman, but she couldn’t say she wasn’t happy about it.

“You feel so good,” Willow moaned, one hand in Tara’s hair while the other was dragging over her back. Tara was kissing at Willow’s neck, feeling the rapid pulse beating under her lips, and she dimly wondered if hers was still beating in time with Willow’s, sure that it was, but knowing that it was through no result of the spell.

She giggled against Willow’s pale, freckled skin, feeling the redhead’s tickling fingers under her shirt. She let herself reciprocate, trailing her nails gently over Willow’s stomach. Willow squirmed under her, hips rolling as much as they could, and her eyes snapped closed, a deep groan tearing from her throat.

“Tara,” she groaned her name and the blonde breathed soothingly against her neck.

“It’s okay, Willow. I’m right here,” Tara whispered to her. “Just be slow.” She pressed a kiss to her neck. “We’ll take it slow, together,” Tara encouraged her, her palm flat on Willow’s rapidly rising and falling stomach as the redhead struggled to catch her breath. Tara lifted her head to look down into her eyes. “You’re okay, right? With this?”

“God, yes,” Willow gasped, lifting her head up to kiss Tara again.

“This isn’t just the spell, is it? You want this, don’t you?” she asked, gasping as Willow nipped her ear.

Willow didn’t let her earlobe go, just shook her head minutely. “No, it’s not magic, or at least, it’s not that kind of magic. It’s you. I want you.” She let Tara’s ear slide from between her teeth as she dropped back onto the bed so she could meet Tara’s eyes. “You…I mean, you do want…”

“I want you, Willow,” Tara interrupted her before she could finish, kissing her before another word could pass either of their lips. Willow groaned in frustration as Tara pulled away from her after only a few seconds. “Is this too fast? Are we going too fast?” she questioned even as Willow leaned up on her elbows, scattering sucking kisses across her neck. “We’ve only been dating a few weeks.”

“I’ve wanted you for longer than that,” Willow objected into her skin. “I just didn’t admit it.” She whimpered sharply as Tara’s hands squeezed her hips. “Please, Tara,” she pleaded, her eyes finding Tara’s above her. The blonde could see the truth in her eyes and she nodded, kissing her in a rush.

Tara let Willow set the pace, not wanting to do anything to scare the redhead or push her farther than she was willing to go. That Willow didn’t want to stop presented no problem for her.

*****

Willow woke up slowly, feeling trailing fingers dragging over her arm. Tara was pressing slow kisses to her shoulder and she turned her head to meet blue eyes. “Good morning,” she breathed, smiling sleepily.

“Good morning,” Tara whispered back, her lips still against Willow’s skin. “Did you sleep alright?” Willow nodded with the same sleepy smile on her face. “Do you…are you…?” Her voice trailed off, not sure if she could actually speak the question she knew she needed to ask.

Willow seemed to recognize what was coming and she shook her head preemptively. “Tara, no. Absolutely no to that question. I do not regret anything that happened last night.” She leaned over to kiss the blonde’s forehead. “Last night was the best night of my life.”

Tara knew she should feel guilty for letting Willow get so involved unknowingly with a demon, but she couldn’t bring herself to fight the immediate joy that shot through her at the words. “Mine too,” she agreed softly.

“I swear that wasn’t part of any plans I had when I asked to stay over last night, Tara. I’m not sorry that it happened, I’m actually really glad that it happened, but I need you to know that when I asked to sleep over, all I meant to do was sleep,” Willow offered emphatically. “I mean, we’ve technically really only been dating for a few weeks, but the feelings are older than that, older than I probably realize even, and I didn’t, I would never have tried to…” she blushed brightly before she even said the next word, “seduce you, of course, you know that…”

“I know that,” Tara agreed. “You don’t owe me anything, Willow.”

Willow pushed herself up onto her elbows immediately, holding the sheet to her chest with one hand. “Tara, don’t…” She gave the blonde a firm look. “You’re my girl, aren’t you?” she asked, her tone softening with a tinge of doubt. “Because I’m yours, and I wouldn’t have done anything last night if you didn’t mean anything to me. Tara…”

“Willow, no…I didn’t mean…” Tara said, squeezing her eyes shut. “God, this isn’t coming out right at all,” she groaned, opening her eyes. “I wouldn’t, if you…Willow, you mean a lot to me, I c-care about you,” she said, sighing as her stutter resurfaced suddenly. “I just don’t…nothing would have happened if I didn’t…” She squeezed her eyes closed again, turning slightly to look at Willow as the redhead pressed a kiss to her forehead before moving her lips to both cheeks. “I am, you know…”

“What?” Willow asked softly.

“Yours,” Tara breathed.

Willow nodded against her neck. “And that means that I owe you everything,” she whispered. “So, no more saying that I don’t, okay?”

“Willow,” Tara said softly, relenting with a nod. “Thank you.”

“Nothing to thank me for,” Willow responded immediately. She smiled teasingly, trying to break their suddenly serious tone. “After last night, I’m thinking I should be the one thanking you,” she said with a wink.

Tara blushed and Willow grinned, ducking her head against Tara’s neck to scatter soft kisses across her skin. Tara curled an arm around Willow’s back, pulling her against her side with a quiet laugh.

“There it is,” Willow murmured, pleased. “That’s what I wanted to hear.” She pressed another kiss to Tara’s collarbone. “So, what do you want to do today?” she asked, tilting her head up to see Tara’s face.

“Shouldn’t you go home at some point?” Tara asked innocently.

Willow blinked, swallowing thickly. “If you want me to go, you just have to say so,” she said, not entirely concealed hurt in her voice as she started to roll away.

Tara realized her mistake before the redhead could move and she pulled her girlfriend back to her. “Willow, no, that’s so not what I meant. I just meant we should swing by your room sometime today, check in with Buffy.” She smiled tentatively. “It wouldn’t be good to have a worried Slayer coming over here, interrupting whatever we happen to be doing,” she reminded Willow, breathing the words into her ear and pressing a kiss behind her ear as one arm curled snugly around her waist.

Willow smiled sheepishly. “Sorry,” she murmured. “I guess I’m a little bit jumpy this morning. I’ve never…last night was perfect and I guess I’m just waiting for the inevitable hammer to fall,” she confessed.

Tara met her eyes solidly, shaking her head minutely. “It’s not going to come from me,” she promised softly. “I don’t want you to go, I want to keep going out with you, and anytime you want to repeat any part of last night, I’m there,” she said, trying to cover all of Willow’s potential worries at one time, blushing even as she smiled.

Willow grinned. “You certainly will be,” she agreed, leaning up to suck Tara’s earlobe between her teeth.

“How about we get some breakfast before this gets more involved,” Tara suggested on a gasp. “And check in with Buffy so there won’t be any of those interruptions,” she prompted.

Willow’s agreement was signaled as her stomach growled audibly and Tara dragged her fingers slowly over the redhead’s belly as she giggled. “Okay,” Willow said, giggling and squirming away from the tickling fingers.

Tara watched Willow lean over the edge of the bed, the sheet sliding dangerously low and Tara averted her eyes quickly, turning to face the other side of the bed. She found her robe hanging over the back of a chair and slipped into it quickly. When she turned back to face Willow the redhead had pulled one of their discarded shirts from the night before over her head and was looking around for her pants.

Tara found them on her side of the room and handed them over quickly. “Can you, do you need any help?” she asked, feeling shy and awkward suddenly.

Willow could feel her discomfort and took her hand soothingly. “I can get it sweetie, thanks,” she assured her. “If you could find my chair or my crutches?”

“Oh, yeah, of course, sorry Willow,” Tara said, looking around in a panic, pausing when Willow pulled on her hand, pressing a kiss to the back of it.

“Tara, are you freaked?” Willow asked. “Because I promise you that I won’t be in this stupid cast for much longer, and I’ll be back on my feet as fast as I can.”

Tara nodded slowly. “I know that,” she said.

“So, what’s wrong?” Willow asked softly.

The blonde shook her head hesitantly. “I just feel shy for some reason,” she confessed.

“Oh,” Willow said, blushing. “And having a girlfriend that can’t put her own pants on doesn’t help with that.”

“Willow,” Tara started, pausing when Willow shook her head with a smile.

“Tara, it’s fine. I’ll be fine. How about you go brush your teeth, or take a shower, or whatever you need to do, and I’ll handle this,” Willow suggested, smiling as she gestured to her lap and her leg.

Tara sighed, but smiled gratefully. “If you’re sure,” she prompted, nodding when Willow did. “Okay, but I’ll hurry.”

She gathered her shower things as quickly as she could, giving Willow a smile over her shoulder as she went out the door. Willow was dressed in her sweats and a t-shirt and was seated safely in her chair when she returned and Tara gave her girlfriend a chiding look as she remembered that she had neglected to move the chair into Willow’s reach from the bed before she left.

“You didn’t…” she started, crossing her arms over her chest.

Willow shook her head, lifting both hands with a grin. “As much as I like the emphasis this stance puts on your chest, I used my good leg to pull the chair to me. I was in no danger of falling and splitting open my hard head,” she said, laughing as Tara blushed.

“You’re a vixen, Willow Rosenberg,” Tara chided her, a crooked half-smile on her face.

Willow winked cheekily at her. “Ready to go?” she checked, wheeling herself toward the door at Tara’s nod. They both stopped as Tara’s phone rang, exchanging glances.

Tara picked it up, holding it between her chin and shoulder. “Hello?”

“Don’t go out,” Buffy ordered sternly. “There’s a big demon running around town skewering people. I’m going hunting.”

“Are you okay?” she asked the Slayer.

“Yeah, I haven’t seen it yet, but from what they showed on the news, it looks like one of the demons the Initiative had supposedly reprogrammed, but I won’t know until I get there and check it out,” Buffy said. “You two just stay inside, don’t let anybody in.” She hesitated. “Is Willow awake?”

“Yeah, she’s right here,” Tara said. “Baby, Buffy needs to talk to you,” she said, covering the speaker of the phone.

Willow reached for the phone, her expression growing serious. “Buffy, you okay?”

“Yeah Will, I’m fine.”

“How’d it go with Riley?”

“He didn’t know about what Walsh had planned. He’s not sure what to think though. He’s confused and scared,” Buffy sighed. “I don’t have time to worry about that now though. I think one of the Initiative’s pet Polgara demons is loose and killing people. It got a little boy this morning.”

“Polgara, okay,” Willow said. “We’ll get to work finding a weakness.”

“Thanks, Will. I’ll have my walkie-talkie on,” Buffy told her.

“Good luck, be careful,” Willow said as she hung up. “So much for breakfast,” she commented ruefully, smiling at Tara.

The blonde returned the smile, finding a pack of pop-tarts as a substitute. “Can I make it up to you?” she asked as she handed it over. “Dinner? As soon as we’re not under house arrest?” she suggested.

“Sounds perfect,” Willow agreed, smiling up from her chair and leaning up to kiss her. “And thanks for breakfast,” she added with a wink.

They spent hours searching, collaborating over the phone with the others at Giles’ apartment. The witches were on speaker phone when Buffy and Riley came in on the other end of the phone. “Walsh is dead, he’s sick, we’ve got to figure something out now,” Buffy said. She guided her boyfriend onto the couch, coaxing him to relax. He was compulsively scratching a patch on his hand and she pulled his hand away, hushing him gently.

It took her a few minutes to get him settled, the Marine sleeping uneasily on the couch with Buffy’s scarf tied over the sore on his hand.

“You guys, we have to do something. He’s cracking up,” Buffy said worriedly, crossing her arms over her chest. “Any ideas?”

“The Initiative probably knows how to fix him, right?” Xander suggested. “We could break in, try and find some notes, or a cure, or something.”

Buffy nodded brusquely. “Good,” she said. “Anything else? I need to find the Polgara. Anything you can do, Will?”

“We could try a demon locator spell,” Willow suggested.

“Do it. Xander, you’re with me. Will, call me when the spell is done,” she ordered.

Willow heard the phone click as Buffy ended the call and she shared a look across the room with Tara. There was anxiety in Tara’s face, her expression guarded.

“D-demon locator?” she asked softly, and Willow frowned as she heard the tremor in her lover’s voice.

Willow stood up shakily without her crutches, taking one short step before Tara was there, sliding an arm around her waist. “Tara, what’s wrong?” she asked.

“Willow, you have to sit back down. You can’t walk without your crutches,” Tara chided her gently, helping her girlfriend into a chair instead of answering.

“Why are you shaky-girl?” Willow asked again, brushing hair back from her face gently. “Talk to me.”

“Willow,” she said softly, trying to muster the strength to tell Willow the truth. “I-I c-can’t…”

Willow shook her head minutely. “What? Baby, what is it?”

“I c-can’t do t-that spell,” Tara whispered, choking on the words.

Willow pressed a kiss to her forehead, one hand brushing over her girlfriend’s cheek. “It’s okay. I’ll do it. You don’t have to…”

“Willow…no, I, you’ll find…” Tara breathed, sitting shakily on the corner of her bed. She curled in on herself slowly, breathing hard.

Willow was staring at her, frowning in concern and she leaned forward, putting one hand on Tara’s arm. “Fine baby, I won’t do the spell, but I have to do something to find the demon,” she said. “I guess I could roll around town in the chair and hope it finds me,” she suggested, corner of her mouth lifting as Tara’s head came up, the blonde glaring at her.

“Not funny,” Tara said sternly.

“Have you got another idea?” Willow asked. “Buffy needs us to find this thing before it kills again.”

Tara sighed heavily, her head dropping. “Do the spell,” she said, feeling resignation. She wouldn’t let her demon cost anyone else their lives because she was trying to hide.

“Tara, are you sure?” Willow asked, voice soft with concern and confusion, not sure why Tara was hesitant to do the spell, but not wanting to do anything that had Tara scared.

“Do it,” she said again. Willow’s mouth opened to question her again, but Tara shook her head. “Do it!” she said sharply, covering her face with her hands as Willow blinked in surprise at Tara’s harsh tone. “Willow…I’m s-sorry, please, I d-didn’t…”

“Shh,” Willow hushed her gently. “Whatever it is, I promise it’ll be okay,” she said seriously. “I just need to do this spell and tell Buffy where to go, and we’ll figure out whatever’s wrong, okay?”

Tara sighed in resignation, nodding as she stood up to help Willow out of her chair and sat down on the floor with her. “What do we need to do?” she asked, tone all business.

Willow eyed her carefully, still concerned, and she reached over slowly, plucking a vial of powder out of a bag of things she’d brought from her room. She explained the spell, laying out the perimeter of the map with stones. Tara held one hand out for the powder, pretending that she didn’t notice Willow’s worried look directed at her.

“Ready?” Willow asked softly, getting only a nod from Tara in response. They blew the powder out simultaneously, colored mist floating over the square of the rug they’d set aside for the spell. Willow frowned between the map of Sunnydale, the square of color on the floor, and the page of her notebook where she’d written out the color system for identifying the demons.

She glanced from the map to Tara, frowning in confusion. “W-what is it?” Tara asked hesitantly, her hands trembling. She blinked and tears slid down her cheeks.

“There are no Polgara demons on the map. Whatever killed those people wasn’t a Polgara, or else it’s already dead,” Willow said, looking busily between the spell and the map.

Tara sat forward, turning the map toward herself quickly, ignoring Willow’s surprised glance. The redhead noticed her tears, reaching forward to touch her face gently. “There’s nothing here,” Tara said, shocked as she stared at the empty spot where her demon light should have been glowing on the campus portion of the map.

“Hey, you’re crying! Baby, what’s wrong?” Willow demanded firmly, not willing to be put off anymore. “Tell me,” she said.

Tara shook her head, panting for breath with her heart pounding, and she wondering if she was going to faint. She was a demon. She’d known it all her life. It had been engrained in her since she was a child. It couldn’t have all been a lie. The only reason she could think of that she hadn’t shown up on the spell was because she hadn’t manifested the demon yet. She was still safe, could still hide, she didn’t have to lose Willow yet.

“Tara!”

Her name, spoken in near panic by Willow, brought her back to the present. “Willow, I’m s-sorry. I don’t know w-what…I don’t know w-what came over me. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t scare me like that,” Willow groaned, wiping the tears from Tara’s cheeks. “I need to call Buffy. Will you be alright? I’ll only be a minute.”

Tara nodded, smiling in almost manic relief. “I’m fine. Nothing’s wrong n-now.”

Willow still looked confused, but pulled herself up to sit on the bed, finding her walkie-talkie and relaying her lack of success with the spell to her friend. Buffy whispered a response, the signal crackling since she was already sneaking through the underground Initiative complex with Xander.

Willow put the communicator to the side, her eyes settling on Tara. “What happened, Tara?” she asked seriously.

“I just, I got s-scared,” Tara offered the explanation weakly, not expecting Willow to believe her.

Willow’s expression softened and she held a hand out to her, smiling encouragingly. “It’s all okay Tara, I swear.”

Tara nodded in silence, smiling almost sadly. “Thank you, Willow.” She swallowed down her fear, forcing her heart to slow down. Her eyes squeezed closed, final tears slipping out of the corner of her eyes.

Willow was watching her, still anxious. The last thing she expected Tara to do was dive at her suddenly, tackling her backward into the bed. “Honey, what is going on?” she asked, looking down at where Tara had her head buried in her chest. She was surprised to see that Tara was smiling when she lifted her head.

“I’m just happy,” she said, leaning up to kiss Willow before the redhead could speak. They broke away from each other when Tara’s phone rang again. Tara slid up to grab the phone, leaving Willow flat on her back and confused.

Tara was on the phone for a few minutes, giving a signal of acknowledgement. “Okay, we will. Good night,” she said, hanging up the phone.

“Who was it?” Willow asked, moving slowly to sit up.

“Giles. Buffy called. Riley ran off after her and Xander and he got hurt by the same thing that killed that boy and Professor Walsh. The Initiative is keeping him to patch him up. Buffy said that the thing is some kind of medically created mutant demon. We’re still in hiding mode,” Tara said, turning her head to look at Willow. “Will, I’m sorry I lost it like that…I didn’t mean to scare you.”

Willow could see her girlfriend’s sincerity in her face, and she relaxed slowly, nodding. “You’re okay, right?”

“I’m okay,” Tara responded. “I promise. I’m just sorry I worried you.”

Willow leaned over to press a kiss to the blonde’s temple. “Don’t do it again, okay?”

Tara smiled as naturally as she could. “I’ll do my best.” She knew it was a promise she couldn’t keep, but Willow wouldn’t drop the issue without some assurance. “Sorry,” she apologized again.

Willow opened her arms, gratified when Tara moved into her arms immediately. Tara pressed a kiss to her neck, one hand tracing her cheek, sliding into Willow’s red hair. “Are we okay?” Willow asked gently.

“I’m not sure. Are we?” Tara asked the question back to her.

“I want us to be,” Willow said honestly. I’m only okay if you are though, Tara.”

Tara nodded, leaning against Willow’s shoulder. “Then we’re okay,” she agreed.

Willow let out a deep breath, curling her arms tighter around Tara. “Good,” she said softly. She pressed a kiss to Tara’s hair. “I know that wasn’t strictly a fight, but whatever it is, I don’t like doing it with you,” she admitted.

“Me neither, sweetie,” Tara agreed. “What can I do to make it better?”

Willow shook her head. “Just stay where you are,” she requested.

“I can do that,” Tara said.

They rested together, letting their tension drain away slowly, Tara struggling to grasp her second chance, her demon still concealed from Willow, the woman she was rapidly falling in love with, the person she would lose when the demon took her. She didn’t know if it was better or worse that she had someone in her life now when she’d been so alone for all of it up until now. Before Willow, there would have been no one to miss her once she turned, now though, she knew Willow would cry for her, would feel her loss.

Tara knew she should speak up, tell Willow the truth, but hiding the demon had been taught to her almost before she had known her own name. Instead, she let Willow guide them down, the redhead pulling her into the comforting circle of her arms and Tara let her secret stay buried as they slipped into sleep.

*****
Next Time: Willow walks!

(It's late, and I'm tired, so there might be (more) spelling errors that I missed, but point them out and I'll fix them!)

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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Thu Jul 22, 2010 11:28 pm 
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7. Teeny Tinkerbell Light
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Maybe dibs? I don't know, let's see if anyone saw this quicker than me!

Holy crow L! This was a great update, I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. I have to say, I was kind of sad when you switched scenes for Willow and Tara's first time...I'm gonna challenge you to go back and write that scene someday, I bet it would be very tender, very beautiful.

I can't wait to see what happens next in this story. But, I work tomorrow and it's almost 2:30 in the morning, so I better hit the hay! Don't work too hard (unless it's on this fic LOL)

LonelyTara (9kodama)

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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Thu Jul 22, 2010 11:29 pm 
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7. Teeny Tinkerbell Light
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Official dibs! Great work, and by the way I love the changes in Buffy's behavior with the initiative and toward Giles and her friends. It is a HUGE improvement over her Riley-obsessed behavior on the show. I do wish Tara had realized she wasn't a demon, though!

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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Fri Jul 23, 2010 4:16 am 
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Ms. Moderator Fantastico
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:( Tara.

You're not a demon!!!!!

Liked the scooby interaction and how both girls felt so good about their first time.

Looking forward to more!!

:peace

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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Fri Jul 23, 2010 5:20 am 
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19. Yummy Face
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Yay for excellent update-y goodness... I really like how your Buffy interacts with Giles & the Scoobies. Big improvement on the original... I would have liked to read more about Willow & Tara's first time... I truly hope that Tara very very soon tells Willow about her "demonhood"... Can't wait for the fully mobile Willow....

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 Post subject: Re: Road to Recovery - Updates every Sunday
PostPosted: Fri Jul 23, 2010 7:30 am 
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5. Willowhand
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I'm quite gutted you left out their first time, but still, a grand update anyway.

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