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

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 Post subject: Re: feedback
PostPosted: Thu Apr 21, 2005 9:17 pm 
:wave Hey Kris, great to have you back with updatey goodness. Imagine my excitement when I saw your thread at the top of the page last night. Yay! DF is one of two stories on Pens that I need resolved. Anyhoo, I’m glad RL has allowed you time to continue this gem. Muchas Gracias!



Jeepers, you do the spooky suspense thing well. I’m a first class fraidy cat and I freaked when Giles almost got his head lopped off! :smash As happy as I am to see Giles, my heart was wishing Xander miraculously survived somehow. :sob Meanie! :p



Poor Will. She marched over to that house to get her girl without a plan…she is in deep shit! I realize it would be easy and predictable, but I hope Will’s love can bring Tara back to herself. Yeah, I know, that’s crazy talk! You so love torturing us, oh Mistress of Pain! : -->>: Please please continue! :clap

"Those are my principles. If you don't like them I have others." - Groucho Marx



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 Post subject: Re: Darkness Falls, Part Three: Undone(D)
PostPosted: Fri Apr 22, 2005 12:37 am 
Oh wow. Kris, thank you soooo much for updating. It was worth the wait. God, the emotions that Buffy, Dawn, and Anya are dealing with are so painful, but you write them so perfectly. And Willow getting hurt...not fun, but the way she is piecing things together in her cell is great. I can't wait to find out what's going to happen with Willow and Tara next. So many questions that need to be answered...I love how deep this story is, and I can tell it will all come together at the end. Again, thank you for gracing us with an update, and I really hope you're up to giving us more soon...*grin* Wonderfully done.



Aimee

"Pope John Paul today confirmed his opposition to gay marriages, said they're unnatural. Gay marriage is unnatural. Then he put on a pointy hat, his dress, and returned to never having sex at all." -Bill Maher



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 Post subject: Re: Darkness Falls, Part Three: Undone(D)
PostPosted: Fri Apr 22, 2005 2:34 am 
Some responses to some feedback. Thanks to everyone who's still reading this late, late neverending opus. On we go:



Puff, thanks for the welcome back wishes, they are muchly appreciated! I can’t help it, I like Giles. Here’s hopin’ he’s got a little magic in that bag o’ tricks. Willow. . . yes, correct you are, she doesn’t know how much trouble she’s in for. . . mwahahaha. Tara’s difficult to write cause the whole Madrine thing involvement, but whether or not being there with Willow is going to help her remains to be seen. Glad you liked the update and, lol, lots of people remark on the click-click. . . who knew? Thanks so much for hanging in there and reading and leaving feedback!



BV, hey, hey, thanks for popping in here and leaving feedback. LOL, you're very funny, what with the whole rubbing the eyes in disbelief and all! I know I’ve been overly tardy with the whole update-y thing but what can I say? I am your MOP, aren’t I? LOL. Well, I’m not in Mexico, just working on a TV show and, well, working. I will try very hard to not take so long with the next segment, but no promises! Thanks for sticking around! You know I need my TLF and DF Harassers to keep me going!



Hey, Mike, thanks for the feedback. Thanks for the warm welcome back, as well. Well, I have to give myself a break from the ‘angst’ sometimes and this part was kind of a bridge for the next, which has some “stuff” to resolve. I am hoping Giles will help the gang too, and I really wanted him in here cause he is kind of my voice in there, all with the explanations and what-not. As for Willow, yes, she suffers but I am hoping that it will all become clear as to why. And Tara does have ‘doubts’ but what it is that is going on is still to be seen, again, I hope it all becomes clear soon. Thank you for the very nice comments, Mike, I value your criticism and feedback very much.



4WiccanLuv, hi-ho(don’t take that wrong), just saying howdy! Thanks for the welcome back and, lol, SURPRISE! Yes, an actual update. Curious minds are wondering. . . is Neverland the other story you want resolved??? RL has been busy on my bee-hind but(hmm, kind of repetitive there) I did my best. Glad it was spooky enough for you, and who’s to say whether or not Xander’s a goner? Mwahahaha! And Will, always the best of intentions, but sometimes not so smart; we’ll see what happens next. Thank you so much for leaving feedback and being such a loyal follower! NOW BOW! Lol, kidding!



ExtraFlameyWT, hi, Aimee, thank you for your thanks and your feedback, glad you liked the update. I try hard to capture the characters’ personalities and I’m happy that, even though it’s pain-filled, I am successful in that respect in your Kitten opinion. Yeah, poor Willow getting the stuffings beaten out of her every other minute, but now we’ll see what happens between Tara and Willow. Hmm. . . . I’m hoping that it won’t take forever to do the next update, and I hope you’ll stick around for it – especially to see if it all does work out in the end!



Thanks to everyone who's still hanging out and reading my story. And thanks to The Board for letting my story stay here!



Kris

"Frell that!"



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 Post subject: Re: feedback
PostPosted: Fri Apr 22, 2005 10:49 am 
YES Ma'am! *humbly bows before MOP* I love it when you're forceful. :p You're such a tease…tugging at my heartstrings with the Xander thing! *glares*



Give the gal a peso! Yes, absolutely, the other story is Neverland. It's a beautifully crafted piece…makes me feel floaty. EasierSaid brilliantly captures the inner workings of the heart and mind in such an understated way. She's an incredible talent. I need closure, otherwise, I'll be forced to use my imagination and it would go something like this: Willow and Tara kiss and live happily ever after. In your case, this: Willow and Tara kill Madrine, kiss and live happily ever after. See? Not of the good, save me from myself please! :laugh



Seriously Kris, this story continues to engage on all levels. Although it's been awhile since I've read DF, I recall exactly where you left off. You just don't forget a story such as this. It leaves deep lasting impressions. You rock chica! :clap Keep it comin'!



Linda



"Those are my principles. If you don't like them I have others." - Groucho Marx



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 Post subject: Re: Darkness Falls, Part Three: Undone(D)
PostPosted: Fri Apr 22, 2005 11:22 am 
I'm sticking around! Don't worry about that...hehe.



Aimee :dance

"Pope John Paul today confirmed his opposition to gay marriages, said they're unnatural. Gay marriage is unnatural. Then he put on a pointy hat, his dress, and returned to never having sex at all." -Bill Maher



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 Post subject: Re: Darkness Falls, Part Three: Undone(D)
PostPosted: Fri Apr 22, 2005 1:40 pm 
Welcome back, Most Splendiferous MOP! :bow

I'm just here to join in the fawning & worshipping! :thud

Haven't read the update yet, frankly I'm too terrified to :aww , I don't wanna have to :gnome , it's bad for the roots. :shock

So when's the next update? :bounce Can't be a slack when it comes to harassing. :wave

~ - ~ - ~

"Your shirt!!!! Ooops! If my arterial blood flows onto your shirt I'm so sorry, I'll get the dry-cleaning bill for that." - Amber Benson

"So we scarred thousands of little boys--they look up from their hockey practice, and two naked paint-covered girls are streaking through the hall." - Christina Cox



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 Post subject: DF Responses
PostPosted: Fri Apr 22, 2005 10:30 pm 
Some responses. So glad it's Friday!



Linda, LOL, you make me laugh, what with the bowing and all. You know, I said Xander may not be dying, but who’s to say, right? There is some funky, evil mojo going on in ole Sunnydale, so I guess you’ll have to wait and see. I knew it was “Neverland!” That one seems to be very popular – I have yet to read it, but everyone seems to love it. LOL, I love your version of how DF will end – you should write it up! Thank you for the nice compliments, as always, they are nice to get and they certainly stroke the ego, LOL! And I rock?? Aw, shucks!



IsayAmberBensonsgorgeous, Hey there, thanks for stopping in and giving doses of harassment. Muchly needed cause I am very lazy as you know. Go and read the update – it’s not that bad really. As for another update, I gotta finish my current job first, but we’ll try our best to crank it out!



Thanks all for reading and writing in!

Kris

"Frell that!"



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 Post subject: Re: feedback
PostPosted: Sat Apr 23, 2005 10:15 pm 
oh.my.god.



i just read this entire thing today, hoping there would be, oh, i don't know, a CONCLUSION maybe!?!?! oh dear, i am going to be in trouble now, waiting for updates for this fic. it is phenomenal kris. dare i say it is one of the, if not the, best fics i've read on this board. and i'm sure it's not even close to being finished, right? you right the smut, the mush, the action, and the terror so well. i've rarely seen anyone have such a mastery of all those elements. but i've been swoony, turned on, amped up and downright scared during this ride. awesome. just awesome.



and now i must wait. my heart goes out to all of your loyal subjects who have been following this since the beginning. good god, i don't know how i'll take it. i need to know what's going to happen. i need to know what was up with that icky gross demon spit business. i need to know how willow's going to get tara back. hell, i even need to know what happens to silly old xander. tom petty had it right. "the waiting is the hardest part."



brandy

"i'm not like the girls that you've known but i believe i'm worth coming home to." tori amos, sleeps with butterflies



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 Post subject: Darkness Falls, Part Three: Undone(D)
PostPosted: Mon Apr 25, 2005 8:49 pm 
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7. Teeny Tinkerbell Light

Joined: Sun Apr 24, 2005 5:03 pm
Posts: 542
Sorry, for the delay in responding. . .

kisstheviolets, Brandy, lol. I am truly impressed that you read the whole story in one day! Thank you for making the effort and for taking the time to respond -- it is muchly appreciated. You are correct in the assumption that it is not nearly finished yet, several parts remain. I'm all blush-y with the "it is phenomenal kris. dare i say it is one of the, if not the, best fics i've read on this board" comments; that is high praise, as I know there are some very, very talented writers here at the board! LOL, I'm very glad that you have been experiencing a full range of emotions as you read -- I do try! If I pull it off, you will know everything about everything -- the "icky gross demon spit," if "willow's going to get tara back," and "what happens to silly old xander." Unfortunately, it will be in huge clumps over time so I hope you do stick around for the finale when it finally does get here. It should be worth it. . . I hope! Once again, thanks so much for reading and responding!

Kris
"Frell that!"


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 Post subject: Re: New Fic: Darkness Falls
PostPosted: Sat Apr 30, 2005 11:16 pm 
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3. Flaming O

Joined: Mon Apr 25, 2005 10:51 pm
Posts: 101
I just caught up with this fic after a year or so. I'm so glad you're back to updating (periodically :)) I cant wait to see what happens to Willow. I'm also a tad sad to see Xander in a grim condition. Better him than Willow :-D


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 Post subject: Re: New Fic: Darkness Falls
PostPosted: Mon May 02, 2005 11:28 pm 
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3. Flaming O
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Joined: Mon Apr 25, 2005 7:25 am
Posts: 118
these were awesome, just caught up with the whole thing, I'm loving it!
please post more updates..

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when you're with me, baby the skies will be blue, for all my life..


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 Post subject: Re: New Fic: Darkness Falls
PostPosted: Wed May 04, 2005 8:18 am 
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5. Willowhand
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Joined: Tue Apr 26, 2005 10:20 am
Posts: 285
Ugh I just want to curl up in a ball and cry right now. I don't like this whole Willow/Mean Tara but they really know each other or something like that thing. It's all so saaaaad! And Tara's got Willow in a dungeon...and she doesn't really know who Willow is? Or something? I need to go reread it...because I was just too damn depressed last time. I definately found the scene with Giles quite amusing though. That poor poor man probably has like irreversable mental trauma or something. Anyways, keep up the great work!

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Heaven's not a place you go when you die. It's that moment in life when you actually feel alive.


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 Post subject: Re: New Fic: Darkness Falls
PostPosted: Wed May 04, 2005 12:44 pm 
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7. Teeny Tinkerbell Light

Joined: Sun Apr 24, 2005 5:03 pm
Posts: 542
Some responses to feedback. Late as usual, I know.

na71648, I’m glad to see that you caught up with Darkness Falls after such a huge delay in postings. It is true that I have been working a lot, so it has been difficult to find the time to write, but I am hoping that I can write everyday on my stories and post more frequently. I hope you continue to stick around and read the remainder of the story. LOL, yes, poor Xander, getting lots of sympathy for his heroic, if fatal(?), act to save that woman; we’ll see what happens to him later. Thanks again!

eirnlove, well, thank you for the “awesome” remark, I’m all blushy. But seriously, thank you. I am happy you are enjoying the story. I am working ever so slowly on an update, so stay tuned. Thanks!

stillrunning, well, I apologize for making you “. . . just want to curl up in a ball and cry right now.” Although angst and tension are my goals at this point, I don’t want to make you go all fetal or anything.

You are actually the first person to really comment on the “Mean Tara” situation; interesting. I know it is not a very likable state of affairs for these two characters, but I should emphasize here that it is important to the story and the character evolution for the situation to be just absolutely horrible at this point. If I do it right, things will be revealed as to why the “darkness” was needed, and why so much of it. Truth be told, I don’t entirely “enjoy” writing a “Mean Tara” but she might not exactly be “Tara” right? Hmm. . . .

Does Tara know who Willow is? Well, clarity to come in the next part, but I tried to show a little indication with the whole vanity & bedroom scene(as brief as it was) that there is a “push & pull” going on inside of Tara; what it is that is warring inside of her, what is battling for possession of her mind, body and soul, is “good vs. evil,” and the next part will be very important in deciding which will win. . . and whether or not Willow can be saved.

The Giles scene. Yes, I had a lot of fun writing that scene, and actually, it was an “added scene.” That scene was not in the script that I wrote; I had something very different and it read all “exposition-ey” so I axed it and wrote that instead. I agree that Giles will definitely have some “post-traumatic stress disorder” to deal with after all of his Hellmouth encounters. . . well, I suppose they all will after this story ends.

Thank you for reading and for responding. I read the “Leaving Feedback” thread, so I hope I answered some of your questions and thoughts? LOL!

Thanks to all who keep reading!
Kris
“Frell that!”


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 Post subject: Re: New Fic: Darkness Falls
PostPosted: Wed Jun 15, 2005 11:37 am 
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8. Vixen
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Joined: Tue May 03, 2005 12:41 pm
Posts: 767
Location: Bottom half of Cali
Oh, you cannot leave us hanging like this!! I'm usually the very patient type. Ok, maybe not extremely patient, but I haven't been known to start shooting at others in an LA traffic jam. Uh, um, in any case, I just wanted to tell you that I am thoroughly enjoying this story.

With all the suspense and danger happening, it's funny how two things stand out in my mind. First, and this is a running theme throughout the story, is how Willow recognizes Tara. Peaches. Lilac. Rain. Our sense of smell plays such a fundamental part in our memories and attachments. It's smelling home made cookies and remembering grandmom, or smelling Jean Nate perfume and remembering my mom. I think it's wonderful how you've weaved this into the story. But now that Willow is in the clutches of Evil Tara, will this sense memory be retained as a good one?

Second is the reuniting scene when Willow is under the bed drilling into the wall and Tara comes to see her. Even though Willow is a mess, Tara effortlessly looks past that and sees Willow's true beauty. She hardly notices the goggles covering Will's eyes. It's truly a lovely moment and just goes to show that when you are so in love with someone, how easy it is to look past the flaws to see just how beautiful that person really is.

You've certainly ran us all through an emotional wringer here and I couldn't be happier about it.

So, thank you, thank you, thank you.

Now, please continue the story of heartache and despair.

Please? Pretty please?? :-D


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 Post subject: Re: New Fic: Darkness Falls
PostPosted: Mon Jun 20, 2005 10:22 pm 
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7. Teeny Tinkerbell Light

Joined: Sun Apr 24, 2005 5:03 pm
Posts: 542
DelWhicker, LOL, pretty funny. Yes, I know, left hanging. . . again. It seems to be my forte in this fic venture. And, hmm, somehow methinks patience isn’t such a virtue for ya? I, myself, am partial to “all good things to those who wait.” And, being from LA myself, I busted out laughing with the traffic rage reference! In any case, I am very glad you are enjoying the story.

It is interesting to me to see the things that you have mentioned as sticking out in your mind. I agree with you totally regarding our sense of smell and how, in some instances, it can be more powerful than any of our other senses in how it affects us. The smell-memory of lilac, peaches and rain were specifically used to remind Willow of Tara, and I had a very specific instance where I wanted to use that sense-memory in this story; it is coming up in the next section of the story. I needed to use that sense-memory rather repetitively for it to work, story-wise, but I also liked the idea of things so detailed about what meant (and means) the most to Willow’s memories. As for the scene in the bedroom, and the dirty, dusty Willow, I wanted to write something that was both romantic and funny. I think that Tara realized that Willow was a “mess” in more ways than one, and her love for Willow allowed her to “see” past the mess and see her beauty, as you pointed out. I am glad that such ‘tiny’ things, such as they are, meant something to you as well; it makes me very happy that things of my design actually work sometimes!

I knew this story would be very dark (cause the scripts were pretty dark) but I tried, in this narrative format, to throw in romance and humor and a whole host of other stuff, so I always appreciate reading comments that it all seems to be working.

I will do my best to get something up soon. This section is a little more difficult, cause the scenes between Tara and Willow. . . well, I won’t go into it, lol. Rest assured, heartache and despair are on their way.

Thanks for reading and thanks for your comments. I hope you stick around for the remainder of the story!

Kris
“Frell that!”


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 Post subject: Re: New Fic: Darkness Falls
PostPosted: Tue Jun 21, 2005 2:12 pm 
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6. Sassy Eggs

Joined: Sun Apr 24, 2005 12:26 pm
Posts: 358
Location: California
*taps Kris on shoulder who turns to look down at short, yet irresistably annoying, Elizabeth*

"I'm willing to pay you in chocolate, champange and women if you update.
Don't ask me how it's possible for me to have, yet not consume these myself.

Just update.

*kris quirks eyebrow at this*

Like....now.

Or now?

Maybe...NOW."

*kris stares confused and worried*

...did munchkin land just let out or...?

*elizabeth gets down on knees begging-like*

"P-p-please?"

*cue puppy-dog eyes*

*kris still stands, worriedly looking down at the even-shorter mess before her*

*elizabeth scrambles up and wiggles fingers while swinging pendalum-like-device (also known as a watch) in front of Kris' eyes*

"You will update, yes, yes, you will....lots and lots of updates...for many chapters....uuuuupdddddaaaattttee......UUUUuuuuuupppppdddddaaaattteee!"

*kris remains imobile and unaffected*

ok....so you are immune to my subtle, subtle tricks...Right. Well...um..

Look, I've tried begging, I've tried bribery, I've tried demanding in a sweet-yet-insistant-voice, I've tried hypnosis, there's only one thing left to do, I guess.

*runs away leaving Kris bemused and...slightly apprehensive of all shorter beings*


-elizabeth[/i]

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 Post subject: Re: New Fic: Darkness Falls
PostPosted: Thu Jul 28, 2005 12:39 pm 
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7. Teeny Tinkerbell Light

Joined: Sun Apr 24, 2005 5:03 pm
Posts: 542
Finally! Getting around to responding! I'm bad, I know. . . . .

thebardgirl, Elizabeth, can you believe I am now just answering you? Pathetic. I mean me, of course. I had no idea you were short. . . . And again with the bribes, lol. You make me laugh with the begging and bribing and even the hypnotizing. Obviously something worked, though, cause, hello? See below! Thanks for hanging in there and reading and responding. It is very much appreciated.

Kris
"Frell that!"


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 Post subject: Darkness Falls: Part Three: Undone(E)
PostPosted: Thu Jul 28, 2005 12:51 pm 
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7. Teeny Tinkerbell Light

Joined: Sun Apr 24, 2005 5:03 pm
Posts: 542
Hello, all. At last, another big update. I apologize ahead of time for the angst. But, what can I say? If you need to catch up on the story?

Pg. 1: Prologue
Pg. 3: Part One: Descent(A)
Pg. 4: Part One: Descent(B)
Pg. 9: Part One: Descent(C)
Pg. 14: Part Two: Maelstrom(A)
Pg. 18: Smutus Interruptus, Part 1
Pg. 20: Smutus Interruptus, Part 2
Pg. 22: Part Two: Maelstrom(1B)
Pg. 23: Part Two: Maelstrom(2B)
Pg. 24: Part Two: Maelstrom(1C)
Pg. 28: 'Preview' Part Two: Maelstrom(2C)
Pg. 32: Part Two: Maelstrom(2C)
Pg. 51: Part Three: Undone(A)
Pg. 53: Part Three: Undone(B)
Pg. 54: ‘Preview’ Part Three: Undone(C)
Pg. 55: Part Three: Undone(C)
Pg. 55: Part Three: Undone(D)

Other than that, you can read the Disclaimer below. Enjoy. Or not. Let me know. And thanks again, for staying with the story!

Title: Darkness Falls
Author: KrisBo5 (Kris, obviously)
Email address: KrisBo5@aol.com
Feedback: Sure, I’d love it.
Distribution: This story is the narrative form of four spec scripts I have written for BVS, each of which is registered with the WGAw, so please don’t publish it or reproduce it in any way, shape, or form. If for some reason you’d like to, just ask first. It’s the polite thing to do.
Spoilers: Season 6, “Entropy” and “Seeing Red” episodes. Everything else? Blame on me.
Rating: The story in its entirety: PG-13 to NC–17. This includes sex, violence, language.
Pairing: Willow and Tara, that goes without saying. However, Buffy and the others are here as well.
Disclaimer: I didn’t create these characters, Joss and crew did. I’m just borrowing them for the story I did write.
Summary: The mythology surrounding the creation of the first Slayer.
Note: I don’t know anything about magic or Wicca. Anything I have written about in here is just my own “make believe” and should not be considered reliable, factual, accurate, or real, as it were. Any mistakes I have made are my own and were used just for effect in the story. No offense is intended to anyone who practices.


Darkness Falls, Part Three: Undone(E)

“Profound joy is remembering; profound grief, the same.” Clive Barker, Weaveworld


Willow squinted in the sudden blackness of the room, popping stars and swirls of red and orange and yellow blowing up before her eyes. She blinked rapidly and shook her head as she tried to disperse the colored spots. Leveling her gaze towards the door once again, Willow stared silently into the dark, towards the figure standing just inside the door. “T-Tara?”

From where she stood, Tara’s form completely blocked out what tiny light had previously shone through the small slot in the door. Despite the absence of any light, Tara found she had no problem seeing the darkened cell in its entirety. And she had no problem seeing Willow. . . at all. All of Tara’s senses were heightened, overly sensitive to every sight and sound and smell around her. Her eyes bored through the blackness as if the afternoon sun lit the cell; her gaze traveled over the floor of the dark, dank room until her eyes settled on the dirty, bruised and bloodied form of the redhead. Still, she remained quiet and unmoving, shrouded by shadows.

The hush between them became intolerable for Willow; the desire to know, with absolute certainty, if the figure across the cell from her was truly Tara, was too much to keep her quiet any longer. “Tara?” she asked once more, the sound thunderous in the tombed quiet. She swallowed the dry lump from her throat and shifted against the wall, pushing until she sat somewhat upright. “Is that—”

A half-smile crossed Tara’s lips, and she lifted her chin as she considered what her next move, what her next words, should be. So, . . . the witch. . . the. . . . “Willow,” Tara said, her voice ringing hollow and flat.

At the sound of Tara’s voice, Willow’s breath burst from her lungs and her body began to tremble. Tears filled her eyes and blurred her vision until Tara shimmered before her in glassy, watery waves. “Oh, God,” she said, leveraging her legs beneath her as she used her hands to push herself to her knees. “Tara, . . . Baby, . . . .” Pain fell over Willow as she tried to stand, and she reached out to the wall behind her to catch her balance; the cling-cling-cling-cling-clang of the chain rang loudly as it dragged over the stone floor. Willow halted any further attempts to stand, thinking it best— for the time-being at least— that she remain as close to the ground as possible. Willow rubbed her hand across her closed eyes, trying to disperse the shooting stars that dashed and fluttered before them. Taking a breath, she opened her eyes wide, blinking several times before she fixed her gaze on Tara. Why is she . . . . Willow’s heart pounded furiously in her chest, a sudden fear and trepidation rising within her as Tara remained silent and distant, hidden in shadow. What’s. . . . Willow swallowed hard. One thought— that one thought— she had both feared and denied for so long, slowly began creeping its way into her mind. . . . wrong. . . . Willow kept perfectly still. “Tara,” she said, her voice a whisper. “Are you al—” Willow’s question froze on her lips as Tara stepped further into the cell.

Tara tilted her head as she watched Willow try— but ultimately fail— to get to her feet. The half-smile she wore bloomed fully for one brief moment, but she caught herself before the burgeoning laughter within her could erupt. She licked her lips and swallowed, keeping in shadows as she reigned in her emotions. And, then, as she watched Willow struggle to stand, a momentary frown stitched Tara’s brow and she shifted uncomfortably.

“Your eyes. . . ” Willow said, her voice barely audible, “ . . . are sky-blue.”

The fleeting image skipped across Tara’s mind, dancing just beyond her grasp, but the feelings it produced seemed so close and so familiar, that she gave a long pause. She shifted again and tried to recall the image in greater detail.

Before Tara could do this however, the cling-cling-cling-cling-clang of chain-metal broke through her contemplative state and she blinked several times as the confusing, elusive image was completely chased from her mind. And then, all that remained, were a miasma of warm, calming sensations, sensations so very similar to the ones she had experienced earlier in the bedroom; the feelings washed over her in a soothing wave and her struggle to decipher the image seemed unimportant, and they vanished beneath that wave, buried, hidden, gone. Willow’s voice dispelled all lingering thoughts, all except those which had brought Tara to the cell in the first place.

“Tara,” she said, her voice hardly a whisper. “Are you al—”

Tara moved further into the cell, keeping herself to the shadows as she approached the shackled, redheaded witch. She kept her eyes fixed on Willow’s frozen posture as she took those first steps deeper into the darkness.

Willow flexed her fingers against the cold, wet stone wall as Tara walked into the cell. Closer Tara came, and yet she stayed inside shadow and darkness.

Tara was there.

Tara was alive.

Standing before her.

But Willow didn’t understand why Tara wasn’t speaking to her, why she was just standing there, so far away. So far away. What Willow had to know, what she needed to know, was all but impossible in the dark and at this distance. What Willow feared most— that something horrible had happened to Tara— she now had to know. . . .

She had to know.

Willow swallowed hard, trying to get her heartbeat under control before she spoke again. Oh, God, please, please. . . . Taking in a deep breath, Willow pushed against the wall as hard as she could and forced her tired legs beneath her; her body shook with her effort, but she struggled to her feet and leaned heavily against the wall. Whitish-yellow dots danced before her as she focused her eyes into the darkness. Tara stood only five feet away from her, but for Willow, her lover may as well have been a million miles away, the distance seemed that great. Please, please, please. . . .

Tara stopped walking as Willow stood up. As she waited for the redhead to regain her balance, she glanced towards the small window to her right, then slowly around herself at the sparse, medieval surroundings. Everything in the cell was wet and cold and dirty, and there was a unwavering odor of something rotten and fetid permeating the stagnant air. Tara knew, instinctively, that she needn’t look any further into the shadows to discover what— or who— was the owner of that distinct, and very and unique, smell; whoever, or whatever, it was, undoubtedly deserved each and every pain that had been inflicted, as well as the inevitable, agonizing death which followed. Wonderful. Her mouth turned up in a cruel, half-smirk, and a soft derisive laugh escaped her lips.

The abrasive sound brought Willow to a swift halt. That was not Tara. Tara didn’t sound like that. Not ever. She took a deep breath before she spoke. “Tara,” she said, a soft timbre of fear filling her voice.

Tara tilted her head at the noticeable change in Willow’s voice. Let us begin. . . . “Willow,” she answered, her voice low and gentle. She made a small ‘tsk’-ing sound. “What have you done to yourself?” she continued, a soft quaver making its way into the question.

. . . what? Willow’s brow furrowed at the tone of Tara’s voice. It was so soft and so gentle and so. . . scared? . . . Tara? “I. . . .” she began, as she touched the fingers of her free hand against the bloodied gash on the side of her head. In that instant before answering, she decided to forego the simplistic ‘I got the holy-Hell beat outta me’ and went for the most important answer. Oh, God, I found you. . . . “I came to— I-I found you,” she finished.

“Why?”

Willow dropped her hand from her head. What? “Wh-what?” she croaked out, a broken whisper. She pushed herself up straight, away from the wall, until she stood as erect as her body would allow. She faced the figure in the shadows directly. “Tara, . . . what?”

“Why?” Tara repeated in the same voice. “Why did you come for me?”

Willow shook her head softly, still completely dumbfounded by the question. “Tara, . . . .” Willow lifted her hands from her sides. Tears filled her eyes, blurring her vision as she answered. “I love you,” Willow said at last, letting her hands fall back to her sides. A tear escaped and slid down a dirty, bloody cheek. Where else would I go?

“I. . . .” End one of two. Tara smiled in the darkness. “. . . love you too, Willow.”

A sob escaped from Willow as Tara’s words reached her. Her knees felt weak and threatened to buckle beneath the weight of those five words, and Willow let all of her tears fall unabated. All of the pain, all of the injuries, all of the loss— just all of it— faded away with those five simple words. She sniffed back her tears and looked at Tara with new hope.

***

Buffy and Dawn stared at Giles. All three sat, unmoving, at the dining room table, the only sound in the room coming from the clock on the mantlepiece. Dawn scratched her eyebrow absently. Buffy tilted her head as she contemplated what they had just been told.

Beneath the sisters’ heavy, silent gazes, Giles shifted somewhat nervously. He cleared his throat and straightened the papers and books laid out before him on the table. “Um,” he started, removing his glasses and wiping them with his handkerchief. “I know this is a tremendous amount of information to absorb in such a short time, but I believe the research is quite accurate and it’s for the be—”

Buffy raised a hand to stop him. “Don’t,” she said, “just. . . don’t.” He tilted his head and raised an eyebrow at her, then slid his glasses back on. “Don’t say ‘it’s for the best,’ okay?” She felt Dawn’s eyes move to her, and she sighed. “I mean, come on, Giles. That’s the best you could come up with?” She grabbed the sword beside her and pushed her chair back so she could stand. That’s your idea of ‘it might not be too late’?” Buffy moved away from the table in a graceful, if frustrated motion, and walked to the window behind her. She glanced out into the dark night. “We’re not in enough shit?” she whispered to herself, and rubbed her fingers over her tired eyes.

Dawn got up from her chair as well and, grabbing hold of her crossbow, she followed Buffy over to the window. She turned and leaned back against the wall, facing her sister. After a further moment of silence, she suggested, “You probably shouldn’t stand there.” Buffy turned her eyes to her sister. “In front of the window.”

Buffy watched as one of the teen’s eyebrows lifted and she actually smirked at her. The Slayer shook her head softly and laughed, then took a step to her left so she was not in front of the window any longer. Buffy leaned a shoulder against the wall and faced Dawn completely. “And how’d you get so strategic?”

Dawn shrugged. “Battleship?”

Giles cleared his throat again, drawing the sisters’ attention. “Buffy, I know how you must feel about this, but I still believe it’s the best course.”

Buffy shook her head as Giles spoke. “No. No, you don’t know how I feel about this, Giles.” She pushed away from the wall and walked over to stand beside her former Watcher. “How could you possibly know? You haven’t been here. You haven’t seen.”

Giles tipped his head in a silent acknowledgement to her aassessment. “I do know how you feel about he—”

“I’m not talking about that,” Buffy interrupted. “I can deal with that if I have to. That— at the very least— is something I understand.” She paused momentarily. “Though as far as plans go? It’s fucked up.” Buffy pointed to the piles of books and miscellany on the table; she reached down and lifted a book, tipping her head at the open page, “I’m talking about that.” She pushed the book out to Giles; he took the book from her in an almost reverent manner. “That’s not proof. That’s not— it doesn’t say anything for sure. It doesn’t even mention her by name, Giles.”

“It’s what we have.”

“That ain’t much.”

“Agreed.”

“And if we’re wrong? Then what, Giles? We’ll all be chasing deadends, and. . . .” She glanced quickly towards the stairs. “And somebody gets killed.”

Giles carefully set the book back down on the table. He took a deep breath and pushed his hands into his pants pockets. He nodded slowly. “Yes.” Buffy’s breath left her in a disgusted sigh and she shook her head softly; her shoulders sagged visibly. Giles waited patiently for her to speak, but when she didn’t, he continued. “Glory was never mentioned by name, if you recall,” he said. “‘She who will not be named,’” he went on, catching Buffy’s eyes with his own.

Dawn moved away from the window, walking back to stand beside Buffy’s vacated chair; she stood, quiet, beside Buffy as The Slayer and Giles continued. As they talked, Dawn looked down at the books and other miscellaneous paraphernalia spread out on the table, her eyes finding a small crystal-looking amulet strung on a worn piece of leather string. She reached out and picked up the smooth, crystal, letting the cool glass rest in her open palm.

Buffy raised an eyebrow. “Yeah, and look how well that whole thing turned out.”

Giles smiled. “Yes, indeed.”

Buffy lowered her eyes to the books on the table. Their entire conversation raced through her mind: the guessing, the surmising, the supposition, the implication. There was nothing concrete for her to hold onto, nothing solid for her to send her rage and hurt against. She flexed her grip on the hilt of the sword, taking comfort in the unyielding metal beneath her fingers. “She’s just a vampire,” Buffy said at last and looked at Giles.

Giles tipped his head, considering. “I have no doubts in your ability as a slayer, Buffy.”

“But.”

“But,” Giles continued, “you, yourself, admitted that when you fought her in that alley, you felt something— something unlike anything else you had ever experienced before. It wasn’t exactly the ‘thrall’ you encountered with Dracula, but nonetheless it was something that made you. . . hesitate. Something that made you feel— well, for lack of a better word— weak.”

Buffy stiffened visibly, offended by her former Watcher’s summation of her initial battle with Madrine. “I know what she’s capable of now.”

Giles nodded and pursed his lips as if he were considering the statement. “Maybe.” He reached down and touched the page of the open book with his index finger. He began to read out loud.

***


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 Post subject: Darkness Falls: Part Three: Undone(E)
PostPosted: Thu Jul 28, 2005 12:56 pm 
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7. Teeny Tinkerbell Light

Joined: Sun Apr 24, 2005 5:03 pm
Posts: 542
“I. . . love you too, Willow.” Tara’s words were a salve to all of Willow’s injuries, the physical, the mental, the emotional. They soothed and loved away all of the pains she had thus endured, and her soul rejoiced in the knowledge that she had made it.

That she had made it. . . to Tara.

Willow’s entire body seemed to decompress beneath the weight of Tara’s words. She felt herself sag, her knees suddenly buckling, and she grabbed onto the wall to stop her fall once again. Cling-cling-cling-cling-clang. Her eyes shifted to the metal imprisoning her wrist; she took a step back towards the wall, getting her feet more securely beneath her, then dropped her hand from the wall. Cling-cling-cling-cling-clang. With her free hand, Willow grasped onto the locked, metal shackle and looked at Tara. “Tara,” she said, her voice filled with a quiet urgency. She raised the manacled wrist in front of her and gestured in Tara’s direction. “I. . . I can’t get this.”

Tara’s eyes moved to the device and she smiled softly. “I don’t have the key,” she answered matter-of-factly.

Willow shifted her feet and glanced towards the cell door. “Can you—”

“They don’t have the key.”

Willow looked at Tara again and waited. When Tara remained silent, Willow went on. “Just. . . .” she started, holding her wrist out to Tara again.

End one of two. Tara took a step towards Willow, knowing that the upper half of her body was still hidden in darkness. “You,” she said. “You do it.”

Willow froze, hands outstretched before her. What? She frowned. What is she. . . . Willow shook her head softly. “I. . . I can’t.” Tara took another step towards Willow. “You want me. . . no, I ca— I, I mean I could,. . . I can, but. . . Tara, I can’t. I can’t. You know I can’t. . . that’s— it’s magic.”

The sound of fear in Willow’s voice was a heady elixir to Tara’s ears. So simple. . . . And suddenly, unexpectedly, images popped into Tara’s mind: a dozen rapid fire images of she and Willow together. Of magic. Of love. Of fighting. Of loss. Of betrayal. Of leaving. Of promises. Of rejoining. So easy. . . . Swirling and incomplete, the images nonetheless painted enough of a canvas of the truth of Willow’s story— of their story— that Tara understood. So, so easy. . . . “You. . . can’t?” she asked, a quiet disbelieving quality in her tone.

. . . no. . . I. . . . Willow’s confusion and hurt grew with each second; her heartbeat pounded furiously in her chest and her blood coursed through her veins with renewed energy. “I. . . .” she began.

“Won’t,” Tara supplied for her. Willow’s mouth closed. “You won’t. That’s what you really mean to say.”

Willow swallowed, and her hands dropped loosely to her sides. . . . I. . . .

“Not even to help me?”

Willow closed her eyes against the words. . . . Tara. . . no. . . Her body trembled. Oh, God, please no. . . .

Too easy. . . .

A sudden wave of memories flooded Willow’s mind, crashing over her in a deluge of pictures and sounds and emotions: memory after memory after memory of her own failures.

Of her failing Tara.

Glory brain-sucking Tara. Tara telling her she knew she altered her memories. Tara discovering she altered all of their memories. Tara moving out. Tara seeing her and Amy together. Tara’s disappointment with her hidden magicks stash. Telling Buffy she wouldn’t use magic to find Tara.

It was an endless barrage of pain, and Willow knew she had caused all of it. That it was all her fault. She had had no choice but to accept the guilt and remorse of all of her actions, all of those hurtful, painful actions, and she had worked so hard to get well and atone for them. But to now hear this from Tara— how she had hurt her? Again? How she had failed her. Again. Willow felt the bile of shame rise up within her, making her want to crumple to the ground and vomit it all up. Willow reached her chained hand to the wall behind her to stop herself from doing just that.

Tara softly shook her head as she continued. “Do you have any idea what happened to me, Willow?” She paused for the briefest second. “What they did to me?”

Willow’s right hand moved to cover her heart as Tara spoke. She closed her eyes against the hurt crushing down on her, against images she feared and did not want to give life to. . . . no. . . .

Tara smiled as she watched Willow’s reaction to her words. “Where were you, Willow?” She took another small step towards Willow. “Where were you?”

Willow turned her face away from Tara, and as the blonde moved towards her, Willow took a step back towards the wall. Oh, Goddess. . . please, no. . . . Tears spilled from her eyes, and an aching sob began to make its way to her throat. Willow felt herself listing sideways, to her left, and her left elbow buckled in; she fell hard against the wall, and as her knees gave way, Willow slid down the wall and landed hard on the ground.

Tara’s smile broke wide open as Willow collapsed in a crying, bloodied heap. “You could have found me, Willow. You could have, so easily.” Tara moved in closer, her whole body illuminated by the small fragment of light. “But you wouldn’t.”

The mushrooming sob at last escaped, and Willow’s head fell forward in shame and pain as her cries were finally released. . . . no. . . Tara. . . please. . . no. . . .

“I believed in you, Willow. I believed in you.” Tara took the last step and squatted down in front of Willow, the movement sending a flutter of air over Willow.

Peaches. Lilac. Rain.

“I waited for you to come, Willow. I waited for you to find me. Where were you, Willow?

Oh, God. . . . “. . . stop,” Willow said, her voice a broken whisper. “Please. . . stop.”

Tara leaned forward, close enough for Willow to really see her if the redhead would only lift her eyes. “You said you loved me, Willow.” Tara tilted her head the slightest bit, trying to catch a small glimpse of Willow’s face. “But you don’t love me, Willow.” Tara took a breath. “I don’t think you ever loved me.”

Willow shook her head softly. No. . . no. . . . “That’s. . . not true. . . Tara, th-that’s. . . not. . . true. . . .” The words were so soft, she wasn’t sure if Tara could even hear them. For Willow, though, right at that moment, it didn’t matter if Tara could hear them; Willow needed to say them, needed to hear them, as much for her benefit as for Tara’s. Blindly, Willow reached out with her right hand, a raised gesture for Tara’s help. . . for Tara to stop.

“How could you say that, Willow? How could you say you love me?”

Tara’s question seemed to take all of the oxygen from the cell, and Willow felt her chest caving in. Her breath became labored by her tears. . . by her guilt. . . by her shame. I did. . . love. . . you. . . I do. . . love you. . . . I tried. . . I tried. . . so hard. . . .

“You wouldn’t even try to help me.”

Willow’s hand fell lifelessly to her lap as Tara kept on. . . . no. . . no. . . stop. . . please, Tara, no. . . . Her tears began again, and Willow could do no more than drop her head lower to her chest and let them fall.

Once again, Tara leaned forward, trying to see Willow’s expression. She inhaled deeply, practically smelling the fear and guilt and shame in the air; her smile was predatory as she spoke. “What was it that I ever saw in you?”

Willow’s breath caught. “What was it that I ever saw in you?” Her silent cries lodged in her throat. Her body shook uncontrollably as Tara’s words echoed in her head. “What was it that I ever saw in you?”

Tara shook her head softly. “I mean. . . look at you.” Disappointment filled her voice. “Weak. Afraid. Broken.” She paused momentarily. “Nothing.” Tara made another ‘tsk’-ing sound, then pushed herself to her feet and looked down at Willow. She tilted her head to the side as she considered her next words. “Everything about you— your whole life— is just. . . nothing.” She took a step towards the adjacent wall, moving in front of Willow. “It’s sad.” She leaned her right shoulder against the wall. “You’re sad.” Seeing no movement from Willow, she stooped over the redhead. “Pathetic, really.”

Willow squeezed her eyes more tightly shut and pressed her forehead against the roughened stone wall. . . . Tara. . . .

Tara bent lower, ever closer, trying not to laugh outright at Willow’s reactions. “Pathetic,” she whispered. “You worked and worked and worked, so hard to be the best at everything. And still, when everything was all added up? All you were— all you’ll ever be— was just this ‘girl’ who helped The Slayer. . . sometimes.” She let out a disgusted sound and straightened up. “This is it, isn’t it? This is what you never wanted me to see. Isn’t it? Isn’t it, Willow? This part of you— the truth. You did everything in your power to hide it from me, didn’t you? School. Computers. Scoobies.” She paused, and leaned back against the wall once more. “Magic.”

“All of it, just all the magic and power you could ever want— that you could ever need— was right there for you. You had it. . . .” Tara sighed. “And what happened?” She stopped and waited for an answer. When none came, she cupped a hand behind her ear. “What happened?” She dropped her hand and crossed her arms over her chest. “I’ll tell you what happened, Willow. You just couldn’t handle it.” Tara suddenly laughed, an unexpected burst that boomed around the small, dank room.

Willow opened her eyes, blurry and burning as they were, but could not raise them to the woman who stood before her. Her gaze fell upon her shackled wrist and remained there, unfocused and distant. . . . I. . . .

“That’s the story of your life, isn’t it, Willow?” Tara reigned in her laughter as she clicked off her argument. “School? Xander? Oz? The Scoobies?” Tara folded her fingers into a fist and recrossed her arms over her chest. “Your motto should be, ‘always the sidekick, never the star.’” Tara laughed again, humored by her own joke. “‘Too little, too late’ in everything, aren’t you?” Tara turned and walked deeper into the shadows of the room. “You were nothing before the magicks, Willow. Nothing. And even then? When you did have it, when you had all of that magic? You— you needed me. My knowledge. My power. My magic.” She threw her arms up in the air in an annoyed gesture, then turned to face Willow.

Willow put her right hand over the metal shackle and grasped the cold, hard steel with shaking fingers. She pulled against the device, focusing her energy and might upon it. She felt nothing, save for the aching throb of her muscles. I. . . I. . . can’t. Willow released the shackle, letting her hand fall the few inches to rest on the cold, wet stone floor.

Tara watched Willow’s movements, her eyes narrowing. When the redhead released the shackle, a half-smile made its way to Tara’s lips. She lifted a hand and waved at an invisible banner before her. “Ladies and Gentlemen, live and in person: The Amazing Magical Sidekick, Willow Rosenberg.” She dropped her hand against her side. “What did you expect to do when you found me, Willow?” Tara walked over to Willow once more. “Save me?” Tara paused as she considered. “And how exactly were you going to do that, Willow? With harsh language?” Tara laughed again, and then clapped for emphasis. “Now that’s funny.”

Willow could do nothing, could say nothing. Everything Tara was saying to her was true.

Every. Bit. Was. True.

She had thought those same things— all of those same things— about herself. All of those things she hated about herself. She had run from them, she had hidden from them, she had used magic against them. And, in the end, they had still found her. Tara stood before her now, presenting them to her. They were Willow’s truths and she owned them.

She had failed.

She had failed everything and everyone.

Again.

Buffy. Dawn. Xander. Anya. Tara.

Most of all, Tara.

Tara looked down at Willow. “I was always so unsure of myself. I believed I was useless and stupid and unworthy and. . . undeserving.” She took a breath. “Of everything. Of friends. Of happiness. Of you.” Tara straightened her back. “Most of all, you.” Tara sighed. “But I wasn’t any of those things, Willow. And I never was.” She bit at her lower lip and shook her head, her eyes never leaving Willow. “You were, Willow.”

Willow swallowed dryly. She could do nothing more than stare vacantly at the ground, waiting. . . . yes. . . .

“You are. . . .” She paused. “You— you— never deserved me, Willow. Never.”

Willow’s breath left her in a quiet rush, and although she wanted to cry out, she found she could not. . . . I-I’m. . . .

With a disgusted huff, Tara pushed off the wall and moved away from Willow. “My God, what was I thinking? Why was I with you?” She walked towards the cell window and looked out through the rusted steel bars and up into the blackened sky. “Why did I ever come back?”

Willow couldn’t hold herself up any longer under the weight of Tara’s words. They were like weapons, tiny, unrelenting daggers stabbing into her heart, silently bleeding her to death with their precision. She slumped forward onto her shackled arm, onto the cold, wet floor; she pulled her legs closer and tucked them to her body until she was almost in a fetal position. . . . sorry. . . .

“You are such a disappointment, Willow,” Tara said, her voice dripping with venom. She returned to Willow’s side and squatted down, close to her downturned face. “You. Disgust. Me.”

Willow felt like she had been hit by tons. Unheard tears fell from her eyes as Tara’s words echoed and hammered inside her head, beating down on her, pulverizing her. “You. Disgust. Me.” Willow swallowed hard, and took a deep, unsteady breath as she tried to quell her tears. “You. Disgust. Me.” Willow raised her eyes to Tara’s, knowing she needed to look into them and acknowledge the truth. As her eyes found Tara’s, it seemed to Willow like the whole world simply rushed away, leaving nothing but the cell around them. Instead of the bright, deep blue color Willow knew so well by heart, she found herself staring into two of the blackest pools she had ever seen. Moments ticked by, and as she stared into those eyes— Tara’s eyes— Willow began to feel the absolute soullesness within them, began to feel the empty pull of oblivion they offered.

They were not Tara’s eyes.

There was nothing left of the woman she loved inside them.

Tara was gone.

. . . Tara. . . .

Seeing the horrified, knowing expression flush across Willow’s features, Tara laughed in her face. Seeing Willow blanch and shrink away from her, Tara laughed again. She stood up and stepped backwards, quickly spinning in a circle as she laughed.

. . . my Tara. . . . From where she lay, Willow watched in horrified silence while Tara danced in the cell. The pain in her heart was quickly overwhelming her, and Willow pressed her right hand to her chest, as if she could stop the pain and ache growing there. As she did, she felt something beneath her shirt, hard against her palm. Her breath stilled in her lungs as she flexed her hand over her heart. Her eyes remained glued on Tara’s spinning, shadowy figure as she dipped her fingers inside the neck of her shirt, grasped the object in her hand, and pulled it out. She closed her eyes against the sight in front of her and held tightly to the object in her hand.

Tara was gone. . . .

That knowledge was almost too much to bear. She was too little, too late. . . again.

Tara. Was. Gone.

But there was one last thing Willow could do.

One. Last. Thing.

For herself. For the others. For Tara.

Most of all, for Tara.

She could try. I do love you, Tara. Her hand tightened even more, and she slowly opened her eyes. She pushed herself up until she was sitting in a half-slump against the wall. Always and forever. “Always and forever,” she whispered.

Tara slowed her spinning and tried to catch her breath. “What?” she asked, and finally came to a complete stop.

“Always and forever,” Willow repeated, her voice the same, low whisper.

“What?” Tara asked again, walking over to Willow. “What did you say?”

“Always and forever.”

Tara frowned and squatted down before Willow, leaning close. “What?”

“Always and forever,” Willow said, this time loud enough for Tara to hear. Willow raised her eyes to Tara’s. Tara tilted her head slightly. At Tara’s hesitation, Willow struck. As fast as she could, Willow grabbed the amulet around Tara’s throat with her shackled hand and closed it inside her palm.

***


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 Post subject: Darkness Falls: Part Three: UNdone(E)
PostPosted: Thu Jul 28, 2005 1:06 pm 
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7. Teeny Tinkerbell Light

Joined: Sun Apr 24, 2005 5:03 pm
Posts: 542
Giles finished reading the passage for the umpteenth time and set the book down on the table. He looked at Buffy and waited. “Buffy?”

Buffy stood with her back against the doorframe of the kitchen, her arms crossed over her chest. She pulled her focus and attention back to her former Watcher. She shook her head softly. “It can’t be right, Giles,” she said. She pushed up from the wall. “It can’t all be right.”

Giles removed his glasses and rubbed his eyes wearily. As he moved to return his glasses to their rightful place, he glimpsed Dawn and the amulet she was casually rolling back and forth between her fingers. He replaced his glasses, then reached out and put his hand over the teen’s, covering the amulet as it rested in the her palm.

Suddenly, a blast of golden-white light, as bright and powerful as the sun, exploded from Giles’ and Dawn’s touching hands. Buffy found herself thrown across the small room by the explosion, smashing into the dish cabinet before falling to the floor. Shaking away her disorientation, Buffy raised a hand to block her eyes from the painfully bright light. There before her, Giles and Dawn stood, hands touching, heads thrown back. The light came from their joined hands, shooting outwards and into their bodies where their hearts lay in their chests; the light then appeared to exit from that same point and meet in the space between them before it rose up through the ceiling.

***

Willow took a deep breath and lifted the receiver. Please, Giles, please, please. . .help me. “Giles?” she said, her voice craacking as tears again filled her eyes.

“Yes, Willow. Are you all right?”

Willow shook her head. “No. . . no. . . . Tara’s gone, Giles, she’s gone.”

“Willow, Willow, listen to me. You must listen to me. I need you to tell me about the spell.”

Willow sniffled loudly and tried to focus on what Giles was asking. “Spell?”

“Yes, the spell Tara used— the spell from the street. Buffy said that Tara used a spell and made you ‘see’ what she was able to see. Is that correct?”

In a distant voice she answered, “Yes.”

When no other information was forthcoming, Giles pressed on. “The spell, Willow. What was it?”

“I. . . don’t know.” Willow wiped her eyes then sniffled again. “I-I. . . she. . . she held my hand. . . and touched my face. . . .”

“Yes?” Sounds of scribbling could be heard on the other side of the phone. “Yes, I’ve got it. What else?”

“She. . . touched me and said, ‘see the truth with my eyes.’” Willow took a deep breath before continuing. “Veda la verita miei occhi,” she finished, her breath catching when the last word was spoken.

“Yes?” Giles asked. “Is that all? Is that everything?”

Willow closed her eyes briefly. “Yes.”

“And then you saw the demons?”

“Yes.”

More scribbling could be heard. “When Tara finished the spell, Willow, what happened?”

“I-I saw the demons.”

“No, I mean, yes, of course, but what happened after Tara completed the spell? What happened to you? What did you feel? Did you experience anything in particular?”

Willow’s brow furrowed. “I felt. . . .”

“Yes? You felt— felt what?”

Willow shook her head softly. “I felt. . . it was like— I don’t know how to explain it.”

“Try, Willow. It’s very important.”

Willow nodded absently. “It was like. . . lightning. Like a bolt of electricity went through me, like it went through my whole body.” Willow pressed her fingertips to her forehead as she tried to recall everything as clearly as she could. As much as she hurt, as much as she wanted to cry and fall apart and scream out her despair, something deep down inside that analytical part of Willow realized that why Giles was asking her about Tara’s spell— about what it was and what it did specifically— was for a reason. As he said, a very important reason. Something inside of her knew that it was important for her— and for Tara— to remember everything. “There was. . . it was a burst of light— a big flash. It was bluish-green light, and it just. . . it just exploded— right in my eyes.”

The scratching sound on the other end of the line was fast and furious. “Yes? Is that it?”

“I. . . .”

Giles prompted her. “There was light, an explosion of light. Then what? What happened? What did you feel? What did you see?”

In Willow’s mind’s eye, she was suddenly back on the street corner, the power surging through her, the light blinding her, Tara holding her close and whispering to her, ‘Do you see, Willow?’ “Then it was gone. That feeling and the light. And then I felt really sick, like I was going to throw up.”

“You felt ill? You experienced—”

“No.” Willow shook her head and dropped her hand to her side as she interrupted. “No, it wasn’t like that— like before, like stopping. It was like, I don’t know, like I was on a roller coaster and my stomach loop-de-looped.” She took a breath, then said firmly, “Tara wouldn’t do that to me, Giles.”

Giles spoke softly, “Yes, I know.”

“She would never do that.”

Giles cleared his throat. “Then what happened? After the nausea?”

“I could see them.”

“The demons?”

“Yes.”

“No one else could see them?”

Willow searched her mental memory files again, replaying the images once more. “No. No, I don’t think— just Tara and me.”

“All right,” Giles said. “And afterwards?”

“We ran,” Willow stated, as if that were more than an obvious answer to a more than obvious question.

Giles graced her response with a small chuckle. “Yes, of course. But, I mean, afterwards, did you feel anything? As a result of the spell Tara performed?”

“No,” she replied, “no, I felt fine.”

“Have you experienced that. . . ‘sight’ again?”

Willow shook her head. “No.” Willow waited several seconds, listening to the sounds on the other end of the phone. “Giles?”

“Yes, Willow?”

Willow opened her mouth to speak, but suddenly she was unsure what it was she wanted to ask. She closed her mouth and swallowed hard as she leaned a shoulder against the wall. Tears threatened to fall once more.

“Willow,” Giles said gently, “I want you to listen to me, very carefully.”

Willow nodded and sniffled. “Okay.”

“This spell that Tara performed, it was very advanced. Much more advanced than I ever thought her capable of.” There was the sound of shuffling paper. “The control— and power— necessary to perform such a spell. . . .” Again, shuffling sounds. “I have to verify this, Willow, but I believe the spell Tara performed was a— well, for lack of a better name— channeling-decloaking spell.”

Willow frowned as she listened. She had never heard of, nor read of, anything like what Giles was talking about. Yes, she had heard of channeling; she and Tara both had studied it, had even tried it a time or two. And yes, she had heard of decloaking— although that term was used more frequently in the ‘Star Trek Romulan spaceship’ sort of way. She knew of specific spells, like the ‘Tirere la Couture’ spell which would ‘pull the curtain back’ and reveal a cast spell. She had given that spell to Buffy once, to ‘see’ what was ‘wrong’ with Dawn. But that spell required so much meditation and concentration and time. The spell Tara performed was instantaneous. It was effortless. “A what?”

Giles cleared his throat. “Yes,” he started, “I know that sounds rather, um, well, implausible, and rather fantastical, but I believe it is an accurate description.” He took a breath. “Essentially, I believe Tara channeled magic from herself, into you, and back into herself.”

Willow listened, and nodded. “Yeah, I got that much— when it happened.”

“No, I don’t think you did.”

“What do you mean?”

Giles cleared his throat yet again. “Normally, with magic, as you know, a spell is self-contained and usually single-focused. Spells are specific, they are designed for one purpose, and for one effect.”

“Yes.” Willow shifted her feet as she listened.

“This spell that Tara used? She both decloaked the magickal energies of the demons and then channeled her ‘vision’ to you.”

“I was there, Giles, I know this.”

“No, Willow. I mean, yes, of course, you experienced the sensations and the ability to ‘see’ what she wanted you to, but you misunderstand what it is I’m telling you.”

“Then what, Giles?”

“Tara’s spell was not singular.”

Willow listened quietly for endless seconds, her heart pounding in her ears. “I’m still here.”

Giles continued. “Tara’s spell of decloaking— well, I know several spells for demasking glimmers and such. You do as well. That type of spell, in and of itself, is not all that complex. Magic-wise, that is. But, simultaneously used with the adjunct spell. . . .”

“The channeling spell.”

“Yes,” he answered. “Tara decloaked the demons for you by, quite literally, ‘pushing’ her own magickal energies out of herself, through you and then back into herself again.” Before Willow could comment, Giles went on. “She took two separate and typically individual incantations and combined them into one single unique spell.” Giles took a breath. “A spell, I might add, that I have never heard of before.” He rushed on. “In addition to which— and this is the part that is most fascinating and relevant, Willow— she did all of this to you, and yet, you were not harmed at all.” He took another quick breath. “You weren’t hurt. You didn’t experience any desire or urge to use the magicks. Not then, and not after.”

Willow let Giles’ words wash over her, let them filter and weave their way through the transom of her mind until. . . .

“It’s quite remarkable.” Giles seemed to fall into Watcher-mode as he spoke. “All magic has consequences, Willow, all magic. It leaves a trace, a signature of some sort. It ‘taints.’ But what Tara was able to do. . . .” His voice faded, and then he cleared his throat. “The control she has, Willow, the power and ability. . . . Absolutely remarkable.”

. . . the tumblers of understanding fell like dominos and clicked into place. Tara. . . .

“This is difficult to explain, and I’m not quite sure I’m doing a proper job of it. I’m just going on what I know—”

“How did she do it?”

“Well. . . well, I’m not certain. The spell-words, they’re not complex, or ancient. They’re rather simple in build.”

“Then how?”

“Aside from her own, obvious talent?”

“Yes.”

“If I had to hazzard a guess. . . .”

“Yes.”

“I believe she used the combined spell to craft you as some sort of human conduit.”

Tara. . . . Willow’s brow creased. “How?”

“I’m not entirely sure. I’ve never come across anything quite like this before. At least not in any of the texts I’ve read. Of course, there are numerous entries to be found of witches and sorcerers misusing magic, of melding spells or altering them to some extent. But those instances have always resulted in destructive, often injurious outcomes. Sometimes, even fatal outcomes. For the spellcaster, as well as the recipient.” Giles cleared his throat and when he continued, his tone was one of awe and uncertainty. “Tara insulated your mind and body from the effects of the magic while simultaneously allowing your mind and body to use it.” He paused briefly. “I don’t understand it all, Willow. Not yet at least.”

“A full circuit.”

“Yes.”

Willow’s voice was distant, contemplative. “Hollowed out and shielded, but still receptive.”

“Um, somewhat, yes.”

“But some magic seeped into me.”

“An obviously harmless amount, yes. The trace I mentioned, the signature. A magical residue, if you will.” He paused. “It’s how you were able to ‘see.’ For that limited amount of time. And, then, the residue dissipated.”

Willow’s mind was racing, clicking over various tracks of information and images with unstoppable speed. Then, “Could you do that spell, Giles?”

Giles was silent for a moment on the other end of the line. “Well, I never thought about it before.”

“Well, do you think you could?”

“With adequate time to prepare, and the proper catalysts? Yes. Yes, I believe I could.”

“But Tara— she didn’t use anything when she. . . .”

The scribbling sound returned. “No, no she didn’t. This is what I’m saying, Willow. She is much, much more powerful than I ever suspected. And that power— and the ability to use it— was apparently inside of her, this whole time. Whether she knew it or not.” He took a quick breath. “She didn’t need time to prepare or meditate, she didn’t need charms or herbs or amulets for focusing. She needed nothing.” He paused. “Remarkable.”

Willow’s thoughts suddenly converged, racing on one single track towards one single destination. “Are you coming?”

Giles cleared his throat. “Yes. I’ll be there, just as fast as I can.” He paused. “The Council is gathering information. I’ll bring that. In light of what we have been discussing, I believe I will also be in need of some of the rarer magical texts.”

Willow raised her eyes. “Good.”

“Willow,” Giles said, his tone now soft and full of concern. “We’ll do everything we can.”

“I know,” she said, trying to keep the tears from her voice.

“You have to believe that Tara is still— that we’ll do everything we can for her.”

“I know.”

“You have to be strong now, Willow. Be strong. . . for Tara.”

Willow nodded. “I will.”

“And I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

“Okay.”

Willow hung up the phone without saying goodbye; there had been enough of them already, and she would say no more. There was no more time for goodbye. And there was no more time for tears.

She would be strong now.

Strong for Tara.

Always and forever.


A blast of radiant, golden-white light exploded from both of Willow’s hands. Tara grabbed onto Willow’s hand at her throat but the intensity of the light, and the power it created, stopped her from doing anything else. Willow stared into Tara’s black eyes as her whole body shook. She squeezed her hands more tightly closed as she felt the fleeting, tingling beginnings of an unfamiliar sting rising up inside her.

***


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 Post subject: Darkness Falls: Part Three:Undone(E)
PostPosted: Thu Jul 28, 2005 1:10 pm 
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7. Teeny Tinkerbell Light

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The invisible force the light had created in the small dining room seemed to finally draw in and collapse upon itself before suddenly expanding outwards. The light exploded in a brilliant array of golden white and red and green light, and Giles and Dawn both flew back from one another, each crashing into a wall and falling to the floor in a raggedy heap. And then, just as quickly as it had appeared, the light spun tightly in on itself and vanished into the crystal laying on the table.

Anya raced into the dining room, out of breath and eyes darting all around. She saw Buffy, Dawn, and Giles sprawled on the floor in various states of unconsciousness. She pointed a finger in the air above the table. “What the Hell was that?”

Buffy dropped her hand from her eyes and found Anya staring at her with a mixture of fear and concern.

Anya’s eyes were drawn to the now-glowing crystal necklace on the dining room table. She lowered her hand and pointed her finger at it. “What the Hell is that?”

***

Within the cell, a gloriously golden white light surrounded Willow and Tara, swirling around them like a tornado before rising between them with an ever-increasing, burning intensity.

Willow’s hands began to shake furiously as she held onto the objects for dear life. It felt as if she were holding hot coals inside each hand, and every second she held on was burning that much more of her flesh away. She squeezed tighter and tried not to scream out in pain.

Tara could feel the heat seeping from Willow’s hand into her own, scorching her own skin, but she was held fast by some invisible force and could not let go.

The light began to swell, growing in radiance and strength. Its power pushed at them both, seeking and probing each woman for some type of entrance, for some type of weakness.

The unfamiliar sting inside Willow was now a burning, tearing spear of fire. It was excrutiating. It felt as if she was being torn apart from the inside out. Willow knew then that she was losing her battle, that this pain was much more than she ever imagined it would be, that she was going to have to let go. It was too much for her. She was too weak. From her injuries. From her sorrow. She was just too weak. Period. Tara was right. Willow grimaced against the pain, her mouth opening in a silent scream as she desperately held on for one more second. . . . just. . . one. . . more. . . .

As Willow felt the very last of her strength wane, the light, and the power it produced, unexpectantly collapsed upon itself. And just as unexpectantly, it expanded, bursting in colors of golden white and red and green.

The magnitude of the explosion blasted the two women apart from one another. Tara was thrown clear across the cell, where she landed on the ground hard and rolled the last few feet until she hit the far wall. Willow, unfortunately, absorbed most of the impact of the explosion with her body, as she sat only inches from the wall behind her. The air rushed from her lungs as her back smashed against the hard stones, and when the back of her head struck home, stars as bright as the light that had just exploded, sparkled before her eyes. Darkness caved in on her and she fell over to the ground, unconscious.

The light coalesced where the two lovers had been and then disappeared through the stone ceiling.

***

Buffy struggled to get her feet under her. She got as far as her knees before dizziness assailed her and she had to grab onto what was left of the cabinet to push herself the rest of the way up. Once on her feet, she felt the world tilt and she pressed a hand to her forehead. “Shit. . . .”

Anya watched Buffy rise then moved over to Dawn’s prone form. She squatted down beside the teen and pressed her fingers against the side of her throat. Almost too cheerily, she announced, “Not dead.”

Buffy swiveled her gaze at Anya and mentally scolded herself for moving just a little too fast, just a little too soon. “Dawn?”

Anya stood up and started around the table towards Giles. “Breathing,” she replied to Buffy’s query. The Vengeance Demon repeated the same examination on Giles. “Not dead.”

Giles coughed. “Yes. . . thank you. . . Anya.”

Anya smiled and patted him on the arm. “You’re quite welcome.”

Giles lifted his arm towards Anya, an action which the Vengeance Demon questioned silently by simply staring at the offered arm. “Please. . . help me up, Anya.”

“Oh,” she said, grabbing hold with both hands. “Sure thing.”

Buffy half-stumbled over to Dawn, casting a sideways glance to Giles as Anya helped him stand. Buffy knelt beside her sister and touched her face. “Dawn?” When the teen didn’t respond, Buffy found herself checking for a pulse. She closed her eyes briefly when she felt the steady beat beneath her fingers. “Dawn!” she said, a little more forcefully.

Dawn’s eyes fluttered then opened, her gaze unfocused. “Don’t. . . yell.”

Buffy’s whole body sighed with relief and a smile spread across her lips. “Then answer me next time.”

Dawn rolled her eyes and sighed, then pushed herself up against the wall. “Nag, nag, nag.”

Buffy pressed her palm to Dawn’s cheek. “You’re okay?”

“Yeah,” Dawn nodded and then closed her eyes. “But, um, I’m just gonna sit here. . . for a sec.”

Buffy nodded then stood up and faced the others across the table. “Giles?”

Giles adjusted his glasses and cleared his throat. “Yes, yes, I’m all right.”

“What happened?” The Slayer asked.

Anya moved to the dining room table and again pointed at the glowing necklace. “It was that— that Lite Brite.”

Buffy and Giles walked towards the table and looked down at the crystal. They exchanged glances with Anya, then each other, then to the crystal once more. “What is it?” Buffy asked.

Giles leaned forward and reached for the object in question. “It’s—”

Dawn appeared beside Buffy and rested her hands against the back of the chair. “Don’t touch it.”

Giles’ hand froze just inches from the necklace. He looked at Dawn for a brief second and then rubbed his fingers together. After careful consideration, he pulled his hand back. “Yes, well. . . .”

Buffy looked at Giles. “What is it?” Giles shuffled his feet but remained quiet. Buffy felt her stomach tighten as the silence stretched out between them. She straightened up and squared her shoulders. “What?”

Giles swallowed and cleared his throat. When he met Buffy’s eyes, it was with a steady, yet apprehensive gaze. “It’s. . . it’s Willow.”

***

Willow felt like she was falling. She was free-falling, but it was all in slow motion. She tumbled head over feet over head; down, down, down, through Alice’s mystical rabbit hole she tumbled, her destination rapidly seeming less Wonderland, more Hellmouth with each passing moment. As the beginnings of consciousness slowly returned, she became hyper aware— excrutiatingly, painfully hyper aware— of the back of her head; specifically, how it ached and throbbed and, quite possibly bled, from where it had struck the stone wall. Moments passed in inert silence as her senses came back more and more. As they returned fully, her body grew incredibly heavy, weighted down as much by the magic that had coursed through her, as by the ever-increasing sum of injuries she continued to tally.

Willow swallowed and tasted the bitter, metallic iron of her own blood, concluding that she must have bitten her tongue before she lost consciousness. She licked at her dry lips and then took a deep breath before finally finding the strength to open her eyes. When she did, she found herself on her side, on the ground, staring into the darkness of the cell once again, exactly as she had been the first time she had awoken there. She grimaced as she tried to lift her head from the stone floor, and moaned as a sharp pain stabbed through the back of her head. Ow. . . . She forced her left arm beneath her body and pushed herself onto her elbow. Her head felt like a balloon, if her head were a fifty-pound led balloon full of pointy knives; the weight forced her to close her eyes and rest her forehead against her shackled wrist. Willow’s world titled and spun around her, swirling off its axis into space, as quasars and super novas exploded behind her closed eyes. The nausea reeled once more and she swallowed repeatedly as she tried to prevent herself from throwing up. She took air into her lungs in giant gulps. If she vomited now, Willow was quite certain that her head would blow up. . . . God.

Across the cell, Tara slowly opened her eyes, blinking several times in the darkness. What. . . . She felt cold, damp stones against her legs and back and realized, even in the blackness surrounding her, that she was laying on the ground. . . . the. She lifted somewhat shaky fingers to her head and rubbed them over a goose egg that was beginning to rise near her right temple. The simple action of raising her arm sapped all of her strength, and her hand fell to her side with a wet thwap-ing noise.

“T-Tara. . . .”

The voice sounded so cracked, and so far away, Tara wasn’t even sure she had heard anything at all. . . . Hell. Tara’s body felt weighted and heavy, but at the same time crackling with energy, and her thoughts, all muddled and jumbled and confused, tornadoed through her mind in nameless, disorganized images.

“Tara?”

What? Tara knew her name. She knew the sound of her name as it was called out to her again.

As Willow’s blood rushed like tidalwaves in her ears, she was still aware that Tara was moving. And then, Willow remembered everything.

Tara. Black eyes. Pain. Shame. Failure. Guilt. Tears. Pain. Magic.

. . . magic. . . . With effort, Willow managed to lift her head again, and turned to look across the dark cell to where she knew Tara must be. “T-Tara. . . .” She had called out to her lover, but her voice was so dry and whispered, she didn’t think Tara could hear her. She swallowed and tried again. “Tara?” There was no answer, and Willow tried to think of what to do next. She was so tired, and she hurt so much, she wasn’t sure there was anything she could do. She coughed and pushed against the floor with both hands until she was sitting with her back against the wall and her legs bent beneath her. Stars and dot-lights teased her vision continually and waves of nausea returned, but Willow took deep breaths to try to stem the queasiness. “Tara,” she said once more.

Tara turned her head towards the voice and could just barely make out a shape huddled on the floor. Gingerly, she rolled to her right and got her hands beneath her, just enough to push herself up into a semi-sitting posture. . . . I. . . .

“Tara,” Willow called out again.

. . . Willow. . . ?

Willow squinted into the darkness. “Tara.”

“Willow. . . .”

Willow was unable to stop herself from smiling.

Tara was talking.

Tara was alive.

Tara. Was. Alive.

. . . thank you. . . . Willow shifted her body, trying to see further into the darkness, trying to see Tara.

As Tara gathered her strength, she suddenly remembered. She remembered everything.

Willow. Pain. Shame. Failure. Guilt. Tears. Pain. Magic.

. . . magic. . . . She pressed an errant strand of hair behind her ear and sat up straight. “That. . .” She squared her shoulders. “. . . was good.”

Willow froze.

Tara got her legs under her and pushed to her knees. She smiled softly and shook her head. “Really. . . .”

Willow’s smile faded.

Tara used the wall to get herself the rest of the way up on her feet. “. . . good.”

Willow held her breath.

“Just. . . .” Tara brushed off her shirt and glanced a hand over the necklace around her throat. “. . . not good enough.”

Willow closed her eyes as her breath slipped from her. . . . no. . . .

End one of two. “Again,” Tara finished, and laughed to herself. “Like always,” she offered offhandedly.

Willow slumped against the wall, resigned.

There was nothing else.

She had nothing else.

She had failed.

Again.

. . . Tara. . . . “I-I’m. . . sorry,” was all Willow could say, her voice barely above a crying whisper.

“Yes.” Tara walked over to Willow and stopped a few feet away. “Yes, you are sorry.” Tara leaned over as she spoke. “You are very sorry.” With that, Tara straightened up, turned away from Willow and walked towards the cell door. She paused momentarily, then opened the door as she cast one final glance over her shoulder towards Willow..

Light flooded the cell once again, and Willow turned her eyes away from the glare. . . . Tara. . . .

“And I am so done with you.”

Willow forced herself to look at Tara’s retreating form, to look at what she had caused, and at what she had lost. . . . Tara. . . .

Tara stepped out of the cell and rounded the open door, finding herself face-to-face with four handsomely-dressed men. They stared at her, silent and attentive. Tara’s eyes darted to the cell briefly before she faced them again. “Don’t kill her.”

All four men’s faces swiftly morphed into pale, weathered, Nosferatu-skulled vampire faces, their eyes glowing yellow in the torch-lit hall. They all tipped their heads at Tara and then smiled.

Tara took a step away from the door and watched as they moved around her and rushed into the cell in a flash of unearthly speed. She waited, head cocked as she listened.

Willow screamed.

Tara smiled.

Willow screamed again.

Tara laughed.

Willow screamed again.

Tara walked away from the cell, a smile covering her face and laughter bubbling up inside. End one of two.

Willow screamed again.

Over and over and over again Willow screamed.

And then she stopped.

Kris
"Frell that!"


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 Post subject: Re: New Fic: Darkness Falls
PostPosted: Thu Jul 28, 2005 8:36 pm 
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6. Sassy Eggs
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can I just say OH MY GOD!!!!! I so did not see that comming! :sob Poor Willow. Why did Tara have to leave her like that!? i need to know what happens!!!! I so so so beg you for an update and soon!!!! Pretty please :-D
PLease with sugar on top. Cuz that was just so awesome yet sad! so please continue!!! :bounce :bounce :bounce :bounce :bounce :bounce

ERIN

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 Post subject: Re: New Fic: Darkness Falls
PostPosted: Fri Jul 29, 2005 4:00 am 
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11. Fish in the Bowl
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:thud Oh......MY......GOD..... :thud :thud :thud

First I was happy, Willow might have a chance to redeem herself with Tara. :applause

Then I was afraid...Tara was just so cold, not that Willow didn't deserve it in some way, but I just couldn't believe it. :wtf

Then the hope that Willow would finally do something to help Tara, not. :ashamed

And the end!! Oh MOP, again you have lived up to your name. Such pain and anguish! :cry Again we bow to the power of your words. :bow :bow

Please :pray don't make us wait too long to see what's happenning with Willow??

BV
ps...Can't believe I beat my girl and C in here! :party

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 Post subject: Re: New Fic: Darkness Falls
PostPosted: Fri Jul 29, 2005 6:34 am 
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15. Apple Sauce & Tuna
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Ok someone needs to slap some sense into Tara. Volunteers? Anyone? *Sigh* Poor Willow, so much pain and suffering. I can't wait to get to the happy ending. Not sure how that is going to happen, but breaking the necklace would be a good start.

I loved the Dawn and Buffy interaction and the Battleship line was the one smile I had in the whole update. Reading the rest was like a rollercoaster that is climbing and then descending with a BIG drop...riveting but kind of scary.

Thanks for the update Kris. You really weren't kidding about the angst. As always I look forward to more.

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 Post subject: Re: New Fic: Darkness Falls
PostPosted: Fri Jul 29, 2005 1:29 pm 
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1. Blessed Wannabe

Joined: Fri Jul 29, 2005 1:08 pm
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Location: Los Angeles
:glasses Hey MOPpy, nice to see you here again with a nice juicy update for your loyal followers. Check out my board name!

On to the update….

Ya know, Willow carrying around that damned guilt around her neck is like a fricken’ albatross and pisses me the f**k off. :smash She’s more than redeemed herself plenty and I’m tired of everyone using her past misdeeds against her. I hope she forgives herself someday soon, otherwise, it *will* always be there to bring her down.

I am so ready for Will fight fire with fire. If magic Willow, aka, Black Magic Willow is what this is gonna take, then so be it…I say start flailing those fuckers…extra crispy, please! Besides, there’s nothing left of *her* Tara…and that couldn’t have made more plain than by that fact that she left her to those ghouls…I don’t even want to imagine what they did my poor beautiful heroic Willow. Grrr! :devil

BTW, I was very happy there was no Madrine in this update…I don’t think I would’ve been able to stomach both she and evil Tara tag teaming Will. One evil skank at a time, please. Yes, yes, poor Tara and all that jazz….but after reading this update, I’m having trouble feeling any sympathy for her!

I must say though, you did manage to leave me with a small teeny tiny minuscule glimmer of hope when Tara commanded her ghouls *NOT* to kill Willow. For now, that’s gonna have to be enough, coz honestly, the way this has gone down, I can’t imagine Will and Tara surviving in once piece, much less, together.

See what ya did MOP? You left me in an angry violent tizzy! I demand payback…NOW!! Niiiceeeee job! As usual, I love the angst, the darkness, the occasional humor thrown in…just…all of it! Oh, and I immensely enjoy they way the character’s speech sometimes echo their thoughts…you do that so very well, it’s great insight….speaking of ‘INSIGHT’???? Nope, this is me….not harassing……ever....again.... :laugh

As usual…you kick ass MOP! Take care and don’t make us minions wait too long! ;)

Linda

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 Post subject: Re: New Fic: Darkness Falls
PostPosted: Sat Jul 30, 2005 12:11 am 
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4. Extra Flamey
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Whoa, dude. I just started/finished reading your posts/updates of this story. This is the angst-iest piece of writing since like, The Wasteland. Jesus Freaking Christ woman. God, it's so sad. Willow, dear poor Willow. And how non-Tara Tara can be so utterly heartless and cruel, to Willow! It all just makes me want to cry. So much. And the whole apocalyptic scene was so gruesomely vivid. Honestly. Gross.

But very cool nonetheless.

ARGH!! But the way evil non-Tara Tara is just exploiting Willow's weak point. I guess that's what all "good" bad guys do, but this is just too much. Willow, poor Willow is DYING. Literally at the end of the last update. FYI, un-cool, cliffhanger-y. I mean, Willow is repenting here and there. In the beginning, in the end. When trying to save her relationship with Tara, then trying to save Tara herself. Shall not the redhead receive a break. A respite. Some relief! And then siccing (sp?) the vamps on her. God-awful!

Anyway, enough of what I despise. More of what is so damn awesome about this story. Relationships. Comradery. Sisterhood aka Dawn and Buffy. So endearing to see that rapport being built between the two sisters. The trust and Buffy's slow yet steady open-ness to allow Dawn more involvement in the whole death destruction-ness. And then there's Anya. As in most stories involving the character, Anya brings humor to a story with her frankness. Although this story barely has any humor at all now (not because you're not funny, I'm sure you're a hoot -- funny haha hoot not like owl hoot -- just this story is very as you said angst-ridden), Anya sheds light on this otherwise dark gloomy tale of death and death and death. Her love for the other Scoobs is wonderfully displayed in both her scant remarks throughout the scenes and her simple actions. For example going back to the chapter on Main Street, how she like hurdled toward Dawn. Spending all her time with Xander. Just the little things you bring out so well that unfolds more about each character.

Whoa, that was entirely too verbose. Well to sum up: You rock, this story rocks. New chapter soon... PLEEEAASE :-D

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sheep go to heaven. goats go to hell


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 Post subject: Darkness Falls: Part Three: Undone(E) Responses
PostPosted: Sat Jul 30, 2005 6:08 pm 
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7. Teeny Tinkerbell Light

Joined: Sun Apr 24, 2005 5:03 pm
Posts: 542
Hey all, thanks for leaving feedback. . . and for still reading. That's great to see. Well, let's get down to business, shall we?

Alyson Goddess, hey, Erin, lol, thanks for taking the time to read my story and responding. I’m glad you didn’t ‘see it coming.’ Makes me feel like I’ve done something right. Why did Tara leave poor Willow like that, huh? Well, we have to wonder if it really is Tara. . . . next update is actually in progress, though I am trying to get my other story update posted too. I’ll do my best to get DF up, though, you have my word. Thanks, again, for being part of my opus of angst!

BV, well, here you are, cool. LOL, “Oh......MY......GOD.....” LOL. Funny. . . and you know I love those fainty emoticons! I don't know how to do the emoticon, but I love getting them! I have to say that I am pleased with the range of emotions I am getting from you all. . . happy and then sad, hopeful and then not so hopeful, pain and then anger. It seems a great mix of reactions – to how Tara is treating Willow, how Willow feels about herself, etc. Nice to see that readers are getting different things from it. I’m hoping that I can finish the next update much more quickly than I have been, but who knows? I’ll do my best for you, as I will all my loyal subjects! Thanks for hanging in there all this time!

Puff, hey there, how’s life treating you? Glad to see you are still with me on this little adventure! LOL, I take it by your response you’re not pleased with Tara? Hmm, I seem to be getting a lot of that, actually. I wonder why? You know, truthfully, I don’t particularly like writing this ‘Tara,’ but I can take comfort in the fact that she is ‘not who she is.’ If that makes sense. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I like writing villains— obviously— but there are some that are easier and funner to write than others. Get me?

Poor Willow. Werd! That girl has been through the wringer! True, she had to suffer a bit, in order to make amends, but yipes! Did Tara have to make it so painfully clear to her how she was a disappointment? Hmm, there may be something to all that. A happy ending. . . ? I don’t think I got that memo, but yes, that necklace has been more trouble than it’s worth.

The Dawn and Buffy relationship continues to be a relationship that I enjoy writing very much. I had tried to build a sub-story in here about Dawn, but it proved to be too much, so I decided I would build the Summers sisters’ relationship, have it grown and mature a bit. I’m glad it is coming across. As for the ‘Battleship’ line, I was going to use ‘Risk,’ but when I read it, I thought people would think ‘taking a risk’ rather than the board game. So, ‘Battleship’ by default. Still worked for me, though. I’m glad it gave you one smile.

You’re welcome for the update, and ask anyone, I don’t joke about the angst. Thanks for reading and leaving feedback. It is always great to get!

MOP’s Minion, hey, Linda! I love the name! I saw it and started laughing out loud. My cat just gave me the strangest look. What an honor, really!

Willow + guilt. Okay. Let’s address it. I agree. She’s redeemed herself. She’s recovered. She’s better. BUT. . . to me, in my experience, it’s so much easier to believe bad things about yourself, you know? I believe, also, that a person who has an ‘addiction’ or really low self-esteem(or, like Willow, both) there will always be the demons nipping at your heels, like old friends, always telling you how bad you are, how worthless. Willow may be redeemed and ‘well,’ and she may be those things to all those people around her, but for me, Willow always carries that guilt and shame. Always. For the purposes in this story and the advancement of plot, Tara had to play upon that. Because if anyone— anyone— would know what fears are buried deep down inside Willow? It would be Tara. And, as for bringing Willow down, it seems to have that effect in this scene. . . except. . . Willow did try magic, didn’t she?

Willow + Black Magic Willow. Okay. Let’s address it. I can’t see it happening, all the flaying and extra crispiness. I know so many people want it, but, well, I don’t think so. It would be very easy— and, okay, I admit it, gratifying— if Willow just flipped out and got with the dark mojo, but to what end? Willow would be lost. Or, maybe worse. . . corrupted and ‘turned’ by Madrine, who seems to have a lot of dark mojo herself. But Willow DID do something magical, didn’t she? She tried to do something to Tara? For Tara? What, exactly, remains to be seen. Willow’s goal was always singular: save Tara. And she tried.

Absence of Madrine. Okay. Let’s discuss it. Are you absolutely, positively certain Madrine wasn’t in this update? And . . . are you sure, absolutely sure, Tara was?

A glimmer of hope. Okay. Let’s discuss it. “Don’t kill her.” Why would Tara say this, especially if she was done with Willow. “End one of two” was Tara’s mantra during this update, so why not kill Willow and be done with it. Simple really. Evil. I mean, it’s too easy to just kill someone. BAM! They’re dead. But, how much more fun is it to first torture and degrade and ruin a person. . . then kill them? That’s evil. That’s Madrine. . . and Tara, apparently. I don’t think either of them is really quite ‘done’ with Willow, do you?

Tara and Willow in one piece? And Together? Okay. Let’s discuss it. I’m not entirely sure if I could ever ‘get over’ the person I love telling me how awful and worthless I am, or letting monsters have at me just for fun. I’m not sure that Willow and Tara will be together . That’s up to them. But it certainly won’t be a pat ending. How could it be?

I apologize for leaving you in an angry, violent tizzy, but wow, look at the awesome feedback you left. LOL. Thanks for that BTW. As for ‘Insight,’ keep them peepers peeled, I’m a workin’ on it. Hard today though, as I have no A/C and it is hotter than Hades in my house! Thanks for hanging in there, as a loyal minion and devoted member of the TLF. LOL.

beanie, whoa, dude. Thanks so much for the great feedback. And, whoa, dude. You read the whole thing? In a day? I am entirely impressed! You know, I have never heard of ‘The Wasteland,’ what is that? It sounds like it is right up my alley. Poor Willow, I know. And non-Tara Tara(nice name there, btw) being so evil and cruel. I know. I am evil. Sorry, can’t be helped.

Non-Tara Tara. See above, not the easiest thing to write. She is a ‘good bad guy’ in the traditional sense though. What I do like is that Non-Tara Tara has Real-Tara Tara’s memories and CAN exploit Willow’s weaknesses and fears. Why? Cause it is easy for someone to simply torture someone and beat them, but to not lift a finger and do it all with words and still have the same effect? Now that’s evil. And then, to throw gas on the fire, and let the real monsters get Willow, on top of all that. Super evil.

To cliffhang or not to cliffhang, that is the question. I know so uncool. But it really works for good effect. With Willow being ‘vamped’ and all. And what with the magic and the crystals and everything. I mean, what is going on? It’a all going to HELL!

On to what you like. See above. Relationships. I am loving writing the Dawn and Buffy characters in this story. I had more planned for Dawn, but too much else is happening, so I just kept to the exploration of the Scoobies relationships and character developments. These were areas that I felt the TV show betrayed in the last two seasons and I am slowly building characters that I wish they had been. Anya is a ‘hoot’ to write. I loved that character in her first 1-2 seasons on the show. So pointed and truthful, but in a clueless, non maliscious way. She kind of reminded me of Cordelia, except Cordelia was viscious a lot of the time. Anya is like a child, and therefore ‘things’ just fly out of her mouth. But, as you say, I think her actions prove what kind of a ‘person’ she is, and that she cares very deeply for all of the Scoobies.

Thank you also, for ‘. . . the whole apocalyptic scene was so gruesomely vivid. Honestly. Gross.’ comment about Main Street, BTW. That means a lot. I don’t think I have ever been all that talented of a writer of action sequences and I spent a lot of time organizing that sequence and then writing it. Since this story came from 4 scripts, I didn’t have to really worry about how things ‘looked,’ per se. I just had to basically CUT TO: Buffy or CLOSE UP: Willow and barely describe anything. But in narrative, I had to describe everything. So, I’m glad it was well-received and that it got to you on such a level.

To sum up. Thank you! Not too verbose, ever. I love getting feedback and reading what people think. So thank you! I hope you keep up with the story!

Thanks, everyone, for reading and responding! I appreciate it muchly!

Kris
“Frell that!”


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 Post subject: Darkness Falls
PostPosted: Sat Jul 30, 2005 8:38 pm 
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1. Blessed Wannabe
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Joined: Thu May 05, 2005 5:35 pm
Posts: 17
Location: California
Bloody fucking hell....How much have I waited for this...goddess knows...But I am thankful to watever muse choose to inspire you. And the story!!! I just...I read it so slowly to savor it all. You write so wonderful...it takes me to the world you are writing...even if I don't like where the story is going...My breath caught when the flashing of the lights happen, I was waiting to read something like this "And Willow once again saw those beutiful sky-blue eyes, her breath caught, as her heart flutter rapidly..." But nooooo! Once again she laughs at willow's pain...but, I'm a big girl now...I can handle it....mostly because in the back of my head I know that at the end they will be together....right...right!!! Okay, gatta go...have some partying to do...Keep writing kiddo.
Oh yeah (bows) thank you for that wonderful update. :-D

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With sin on my lips...


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 Post subject: Re: New Fic: Darkness Falls
PostPosted: Wed Aug 03, 2005 6:45 pm 
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4. Extra Flamey

Joined: Sun Apr 24, 2005 12:21 pm
Posts: 164
Location: Ontario, Canada
HOLY. F**KING. COW.

that was... that was...incredible. NO! That was... I have no words for it. Brillant can't even come close to what you are. You are a god of fanfic.
I :bow to you

Please... update... soon. I can only hold my breathe for so long.

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VmpIrslAr

"She's my everything"
"When I think of [Willow and Tara] doing a spell, I sort of do a spell by myself." - Xander in Restless


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 Post subject: Re: New Fic: Darkness Falls
PostPosted: Thu Aug 04, 2005 7:55 am 
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2. Floating Rose
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Joined: Sun Apr 24, 2005 12:15 pm
Posts: 29
Location: Oz
:thud :thud :thud
Quote:
Willow screamed.

Tara smiled.

Willow screamed again.

Tara laughed.

Willow screamed again.

Tara walked away from the cell, a smile covering her face and laughter bubbling up inside. End one of two.

Willow screamed again.

Over and over and over again Willow screamed.

And then she stopped.
I have no words *shakes head*

KRIS!!!!! how could you!?!!!! :fit2 that was just a horrible place to stop!!!!


Ok wow seriously through out that whole update my heart just felt so heavy...Im still in awe of your writing talent ..the description you put in is just mind blowing... all the emotions you conjure with in your readers!!! just amazing!

Im still not quite sure about the necklace and blinding painful light im a little confused as to how it was seen at the Summers house while it was going on in the cell I mean I know there was a necklace at the summers house but im not sure how that ties into any of it (not sure if that made any sense) I think I may head back a couple of chapters and read it all over again including this chapter maybe that will clear up my confusion about the necklace

there was so much more I had to say but my minds gone a little blank after reading such an incredible update

:bow :bow :bow :bow :bow :bow as always it was an amazing read and I cant wait to see what you have install for us next :bounce

this week I shall buy a cushion and dedicate 5 minutes a day :pray to the universe that life is good to you so an update comes forth some time very very soon :-D

Your Humble Reader
Anna


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