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Bound

© June 2001

By Lisa Countryman

scifiwriter@quiknet.com

 

CHAPTER ONE

Tara, she filled the room even when she wasn’t there, that was what Willow noticed most. The redhead sat on her bed in her single dorm room and looked around the four walls and all she saw was Tara. Tears welled up in her green eyes and she wondered if all she would have was the memory of Tara, the lingering scent of her incense and the warm tingling of Willow’s skin when she thought of her blonde lover’s touch.

"She has to come back," Willow whispered as she flopped onto the bed on her belly. She heard the rustling of papers and looked over the side of the bed and saw Miss Kitty. Her tears doubled when she saw the kitten she and Tara had picked out together. She scooped up the tiny, furry bundle and put her on the bed next to her. "She has just to, Miss Kitty."

A firm rap on the door startled Willow. She turned toward the sound and sniffled. The door unlocked and Buffy eased into the room.

"Willow? Are you okay? I came as soon as I got your message." Buffy saw her friend’s puffy eyes and rushed to the bed. "What is it?" She dropped to her knees next to the bed and grabbed Willow’s hand. "Willow? I’m getting scared here. Is this a Slayer problem? Should I call the Scoobies? A message from a crying Willow is not a good thing." In fact Buffy had only barely made out Willow’s name from the call. She had played the message and heard sobbing and sniffles, with an occasional whimpered ‘Buffy’ tossed in every few moments.

"No, I am so not okay." Willow shook her head and then buried her face into the bedspread. Miss Kitty mewed and rubbed her cheek on Willow’s shoulder.

"What is it?" Buffy moved to her feet and sat next to her best friend and softly rubbed her back. She had only seen Willow almost this despondent once before, and that had been when Oz had simply left town, and even then Willow hadn’t been this distraught. Then Buffy realized who Willow loved even more than she had loved Oz. "Willow, where’s Tara?"

Willow squirmed onto Buffy’s lap and began sobbing uncontrollably.

Buffy squeezed her eyes shut, trying to keep from shedding tears right along with her friend. She ran her fingers through Willow’s tangled red hair, smoothing it into place as best she could. She waited until the sobs slowed. "Willow, what happened?" She thought the two Wiccans were a perfect match, and she wondered what could have come between them. She also wondered how she was going to fix it, because she was going to fix it.

"S-she… h-her…" Willow seemed to have developed her lover’s stutter. "S-she…went to see her…" A new round of sobs racked her body and she clung to the Slayer.

"Who?" Buffy wanted desperately to understand. She tried to soothe the ache in Willow’s shaking body with a gentle touch, but she knew it was only temporary. Only Tara could ease this pain. "Who did she go see?"

"K-Kelly," Willow said in a tiny voice. She gripped Buffy around the waist and her back shook as she tried to stop the next wave of tears.

"And who is Kelly?" Buffy decided she would kill Kelly, or at least give her the scare of her lifetime.

"Kelly is… " Willow pulled back and locked eyes with Buffy. "Kelly is Tara’s…Oz."

Buffy’s eyes widened and she didn’t know what to say. She had always assumed Willow was Tara’s Oz, her first love. "Tell me everything," Buffy said gently.

"Hours and hours ago…." Willow sat up and wiped her eyes. For the moment the tears were interrupted. "We were in her dorm, and Kelly called." Willow’s lips quivered.

"And?" Buffy prompted.

"And… and Tara left. She just left. She got dressed and went…to her." Willow’s face scrunched up and the torrent of tears threatened to return.

"So, she went back to her?" Buffy was confused. "She broke up with you?"

"No!" Willow yelled. She jumped to her feet and glared at the Slayer. "No, definitely no. She wouldn’t do that." She put her hands on her hips and anger washed over her face replacing the sorrow that had been there moments earlier. "Tara’s not like that. How could you even ask that?"

Buffy stared, and her eyebrows slowly rose high onto her forehead.

"Okay, so the crying looks bad," Willow admitted. "But she went to SEE her!" Willow insisted as if that explained everything.

"Why did she go to see this Kelly person?" Buffy bit the inside of her cheek to keep from screaming. Willow could be extremely frustrating.

"Kelly’s girlfriend broke up with her and she asked Tara to come get her at the bus station," Willow said bitterly. Her expression was crestfallen. "And she…DID!"

"Willow?" Buffy said patiently. "Honey…" She guided her friend back to the bed and helped her sit. "Willow, if Oz called and needed help, what would you do?"

"Well, I’d help him," Willow said defensively. "But he’s Oz, and he and I are over and I don’t want to be with him because I love Tara, and Oz and I have closure… big closure… done… as in nothing going on with us ever again." She quirked her brow and frowned. "Closure."

"Maybe Tara and this Kelly have closure too," Buffy suggested. "What did she say when she left?"

"That she loved me," Willow admitted. "But, Buffy, she hasn’t seen Kelly since she left home… since Kelly broke up with her." She bit her lip to stop it from shaking. "No closure. None, nada…zero closure. If closure were a book, Tara and Kelly would be a pristine unopened notebook…nothing in it. No closure whatsoever."

"So you think Tara’s gonna’ just throw away everything you have for a girl she hasn’t heard from in ages?" Buffy let some of her anger lace through her voice. "Tara deserves more faith from you than that."

"Buffy, I trust her…but what if?" Willow inhaled slowly and covered her face with both hands. When she pulled them away her eyes were full of fear. "After I told Oz I couldn’t be with him… Tara told me about Kelly." She locked eyes with Buffy. "She told me she would have understood if I had chosen him." She grabbed Buffy’s hand and squeezed it desperately. "She said she understood because she still had feelings for her first love."

"Willow, she loves you." Buffy smiled and cupped Willow’s chin in her hand. "Haven’t you ever seen how she looks at you?" Buffy shook her head. "God, Will, her eyes are so full of love there’s just nothing else. You’re all she sees. There IS nothing else for her."

"I love her." Willow smiled shyly. "She is everything to me."

"No, really?" Buffy asked sarcastically.

Willow rolled her eyes.

"Did she say anything else before she left?" Buffy wiped the tears from Willow’s cheeks.

"Just that she had to go." Willow frowned. "Had to…like she couldn’t make any other choice."

"Well, let’s hold off on panicking until we get some actual bad news, okay?" Buffy offered. She smiled and pulled Willow into a hug. "Besides, I’m sure this Kelly chick can’t hold an extra flamey candle to you."

Willow laughed and sniffled as she hugged her friend.

"I think we should go get some ice cream," Buffy decreed. "Double chocolate chunk chip."

"With chocolate syrup?" Willow asked meekly.

"With chocolate syrup," Buffy agreed sagely.

  • *****
    •

    • Tara opened the door and motioned Kelly inside. She followed her ex-girlfriend into the room and was suddenly self-conscious. "Um, you can put your stuff anywhere," Tara said as she hastily grabbed Willow’s bra from the nightstand.

    "Thanks." Kelly tossed her duffel bag near the bed and sat next to the pillows. She took a cigarette case out of her pocket and patted her jeans looking for matches.

    Tara’s eyes widened.

    "Oh. No smoking?" Kelly nodded and slipped the case back into her jacket. "They’re not addictive, you know."

    "I don’t like the smell," Tara said honestly.

    "I like the cloves." Kelly rocked back and forth on the bed. "Plus it helps when I’m nervous."

    Tara bit her lip and looked away.

    "I like the new color." Kelly looked over at Tara and smiled.

    Tara turned, confused, then smiled when Kelly pointed to her hair. "Thanks. Willow colored it for me."

    Kelly nodded. "How long have you been dating?"

    "We’re past dating," Tara clarified. "We’ve been together for a little over a year."

    "Sounds serious." Kelly stood and walked slowly toward Tara.

    "It’s the most serious thing I’ve ever known," Tara said with a nod.

    "Are you happy?" Kelly asked with a touch of sorrow.

    "I didn’t know I could be this happy." Tara paused, not wanting to hurt Kelly, but she couldn’t deny the truth. "Willow is my… soulmate."

    "You look great." Kelly ran her fingers through Tara’s darkened hair. "I like the new color… and no stutter. Leaving home was good for you."

    "I’m happy," Tara repeated. She backed away from Kelly and crossed both of her arms over her chest. "Are you ready to talk about Claire?"

    "Not much to say." She looked down at the floor, unable to meet Tara’s eyes. "She was embezzling money from me and I caught her and then she…" She shook her head and looked up. A single tear slid down her cheek.

    "Did she hurt you?" Tara’s demeanor shifted when she thought that someone might have injured Kelly. She moved forward and took her ex-girlfriend by the shoulders. "Are you okay?" Concern laced her voice. Despite what Kelly had done in the past, Tara still cared for her.

    "No, my knight in shining armor." Kelly rested her hand over one of Tara’s. "She didn’t touch me." She laughed bitterly. "No, Claire wasn’t about to damage the merchandise."

    "It’s weird," Tara said quietly. "I don’t read many magazines, but sometimes I see you and it’s, well, it’s weird." She backed away, uncomfortable with the closeness.

    "It’s weird for me too," Kelly admitted. "I’m still the same girl who rode horses bareback down to the creek with you. I never thought I’d end up here."

    "In Sunnydale?" Tara asked.

    "In magazines." Kelly rolled her eyes. "In my life, with all the fake friends money can buy."

    "Oh," Tara said with a shrug. "That ‘here.’"

    "Or this ‘here.’" Kelly swept her arm around the room. "With you coming to my rescue after all this time, after everything I’ve done." She moved closer and a gentle smile covered her features as she remembered her time with Tara. "I always said I’d be the one to rescue you, and yet when things go bad, you’re still the one coming to get me."

    "I saved myself." Tara backed away again. "You can do the same."

    "Are you afraid of me?" Kelly raised one eyebrow playfully. "You keep backing away."

    "T-that’s what p-polite people do," Tara stuttered. "I have a girlfriend, a lover."

    "So why are you afraid of me?" Kelly stepped closer. "I’m still the same Kelly. I won’t hurt you, Tara."

    "You already did," Tara said more harshly than she intended. "I have a new life now, a happy life. I’m not gonna’ m-mess it up." She moved away from Kelly and went to the door. "You can sleep here. No one knows you’re here. I’ll be back in the morning."

    "You’re leaving?" Kelly asked incredulously.

    "Well, I’m not saying," Tara said just as shocked. She grabbed a pencil and scribbled onto the pad near the phone. "If you need anything, call me."

    "That’s her number?" Kelly accused. She picked up the scrap of paper and studied it.

    Tara nodded and went to the door.

    "I’ll see you tomorrow?" Kelly asked quietly.

    "Yeah," Tara said as she opened the door. "Goodnight." She ducked out the door.

    "I never stopped loving you," Kelly whispered to the closed door. She turned and walked around the small room and saw the Wiccan supplies. "You kept up with your craft?" She touched a small crystal and smiled. "Is she a witch?" Kelly wondered out loud. "It won’t matter." She sat on Tara’s bed and hugged the pillow to her chest. "We’re meant for each other."

  • *****
    •

    • "Feeling better?" Buffy asked as she sat next to Willow on the bed.

    "Well, I feel fuller." Willow smirked. "And I may have to go the ER for a chocolate overdose, but yeah, I’m feeling better." She sighed and slowly leaned back onto the bed. "You poisoned me, Buffy." She rolled toward her best friend. "Thanks," she added with a huge, silly grin.

    "That’s in my job description." Buffy crawled onto the bed on her belly and rested her face on her hands.

    "Slayers can prescribe chocolate?"

    "No, best friends handle all chocolate. Slayers just get to enjoy it as a side deal." Buffy groaned. "If it’s any consolation, I think I’ll be going to the ER with you."

    "Buffy, do you think I’m pretty?" Willow asked, suddenly serious.

    "Well, yeah." Buffy furrowed her brow.

    "Beautiful?" Willow probed.

    "Yes." Buffy sighed. "Willow, Tara loves you. Quit worrying."

    "Her ex-girlfriend is beautiful, Buffy. Gorgeous, more than gorgeous." Willow frowned.

    "It’s not about looks," Buffy said reassuringly. "Besides, it’s not like she’s a movie star."

    "She’s Kelly Larson," Willow said glumly. She pressed her forehead onto the bed.

    "Well, she might be pretty but I’m sure she’s no Kelly Larson." Buffy laughed. "Come on, that woman’s incredible. That black hair, those blue eyes, and that body? She’s unreal. Heck, when I look at her, I kinda’ understand the whole you and Tara thing." She blushed. "Oh, that came out wrong… I just mean that Kelly Larson is hot. I mean pretty, in a platonic, just noticing hypothetically how she might look to someone who was looking…which I was SO not."

    "You’re not helping." Willow slowly lifted her head. "Tara’s ex-girlfriend is Kelly Larson, the model."

    "The Kelly Larson?" Buffy sat up. "You knew this, and you didn’t tell me?"

    "It’s not something I like to think about," Willow whispered.

    "Your girlfriend dated a genuine supermodel and you didn’t tell me?" Buffy stared at Willow in shock.

    "Yes," Willow said. "And she’s not a supermodel. She’s just a regular model, okay, maybe a spokesmodel. I mean, yeah, she does Maybeline, but she’s not a supermodel." Willow jumped from the bed and glared at her friend. "And quit acting like this is a good thing."

    "Okay, I can see where this would be a bad thing," Buffy admitted. "Not that Tara would be into that sort of looks, I was just interested in a ‘she’s a famous person’ kind of way."

    "A famous, rich, beautiful person who is Tara’s first love," Willow whined plaintively. "And now she’s back and Tara just went running off to be with her."

    "That doesn’t matter," Buffy said certainly. "Tara loves you."

    "She loved Kelly too," Willow pointed out. She sat and rested her face in both hands and felt tears threatening to start again. "God, if this is what I put Tara through when Oz came back…" Willow squeezed her eyes shut. "How did she get through it?"

    "She trusted you." Buffy sat next to Willow and draped her arm over the redhead’s shoulder. "Besides, she knew you’d pick her."

    "No, she didn’t," Willow admitted. She looked into Buffy’s eyes. "She told me that she understood that I had to be with the one I loved. She thought I’d already picked Oz." She shook her head. "She’s so noble, Buffy. She didn’t pressure me; all she did was let me decide. It was breaking her heart but she was gonna’ let me go because she thought it would make me happy."

    "She’s special," Buffy agreed.

    "I don’t know if I can be that strong," Willow whispered. "I just wanna’ run and grab her and tell her how much I love her and beg her to stay with me." She rested her cheek on Buffy’s shoulder. "It’s taking all my energy to stop from wandering the streets to look for her."

    "She’ll be back," Buffy promised.

    "How can you know that?"

    "Remember? I’ve seen the way she looks at you." Buffy squeezed Willow’s side. "You big dummy. Don’t you ever look at her eyes?"

    "Well, yeah." Willow blushed. "I know she’s crazy about me, she loves me, but this is her first love."

    "Why didn’t you pick Oz?" Buffy challenged.

    "There wasn’t any question," Willow said with a wistful sigh. "She’s Tara. I’ve never felt anything like I do for her." She smiled at Buffy. "It’s magic."

    "Yes, it is." Buffy nodded. "And that magic goes both ways." She cleared her throat. "Okay, I am gonna’ run down and grab a quick shower. You gonna’ be okay?"

    "Yeah," Willow said with a smile. "I’m just being a big dummy worrying about things I shouldn’t."

    "Glad we got that cleared up." Buffy smiled and went to Willow’s closet and grabbed the overnight bag she kept there. "No panicking while I’m gone," she warned as she left.

    "Promise." Willow watched Buffy leave and then went over to her dresser and looked at a picture of Tara. "It’d be nice if you hurried up," she told her lover’s photo.

    The door opened and Tara walked into the room.

    "Wow," Willow said under her breath. "It’d be nice if you had a million dollars in your hand too."

    "Hi," Tara said with an exhausted sigh. She held out her hands and went to Willow. "I missed you," she added as she fell into the redhead’s arms.

    "Missed you too," Willow said in a husky whisper. ‘Thank you, goddess,’ she thought as she felt the comforting warmth of Tara’s arms. "I wasn’t sure you were coming back," Willow whispered. She clung to Tara, unable, unwilling to let go.

    "Not coming back?" Tara sighed and squeezed Willow closer. "I’ll always come back, my Willow."

    "I should know that." Willow eased back. "I do know that. It’s just so hard to wait."

    "I know," Tara said with a patient smile. "Now, I don’t have an extra-flamey candle for you to blow out, but I will make it up to you."

    "Um…" She started to point out that Buffy would be back any minute, but her protest was silenced when Tara leaned in and took possession of Willow’s mouth.

    Tara cradled Willow to her, luxuriating in the perfect fit of their bodies. This was her home, this woman, this soul. She moaned and gently guided her lover toward the bed, her hands busily sneaking under Willow’s blouse to feel her flawless skin.

    In the back of Willow’s mind she knew that she should mention that the Slayer was going to show up, but it didn’t seem to matter when Tara’s hands covered the redheaded Wiccan’s breasts.

    "Where did we leave off?" Tara giggled as she tossed Willow onto the bed and then straddled her in one quick motion. She didn’t wait for an answer, just ducked her head down to kiss Willow deeply. Her hands continued the rhythmic caresses as her lips detoured along Willow’s cheek to her jaw and then down to nip her throat.

    "Buffy…" Willow whimpered as she tried to take her lover’s eager hands in her own.

    "What did you call me?" Tara sat up abruptly, her passion smothering as the word hit her ears like a truckload of sand poured over a campfire

    "Buffy’s here," Willow clarified as she fought to control her breathing. She looked up into Tara’s eyes and saw pain and betrayal brimming and ready to fall with the tears quickly forming. "Tara?" She squirmed and managed to sit up by moving her lover to one side. "Oh, god, no." Willow yanked Tara into her arms and ran her hand down the blonde’s back. "Honey, I was trying to say ‘Buffy is here.’ I was not calling out Buffy’s name."

    Tara relaxed into the embrace and took a cleansing breath. Seeing Kelly had opened old wounds and the deepest was the ache left behind when Kelly had slept with someone else. Kelly had called out that other woman’s name in a similar moment. Tara shivered and clung to Willow.

    "Tara?" Willow eased back and cupped her beloved’s chin in her hand. "You know what I meant, right?"

    Tara nodded mutely.

    "Seeing her upset you, didn’t it?" Willow remembered Tara’s tears when she had explained Kelly’s betrayal.

    "J-just brought up some stuff." Tara held Willow’s hand in place on her chin and smiled. "I wanted to come back here and finish what we started earlier." Her eyes shifted and she glanced down. "I’m sorry I let her interfere tonight."

    "Hey." Willow gently lifted Tara’s chin so they could make eye contact. "I understand. You care about people; that’s why I love you so much." She smirked, half her lip curling into a crooked smile that always made Tara feel better. "I feel awful that I invited Buffy to stay." She moved her hand to the back of Tara’s neck and pulled her lips closer. "I’d much rather be alone with you."

    "Me too," Tara admitted as her eyes slid shut and her lips met Willow’s. It started as a tender, reassuring kiss, but as usually happened with them, it quickly ignited deeper passions.

    They rolled back onto the bed in a tangle of limbs and lost all thought of the world as tongues met with loving intent and lips pressed together as if hungry, starving for the contact. When they had first stared dating, Tara hadn’t been comfortable just diving into the bone melting kisses. She preferred a slow progression from gentle, almost timid kisses that slowly developed into more inflamed explorations. Now, after months together, the passion could spark in an instant, their love like dry tender waiting for one spark. One kiss was spark enough for the two to lose themselves in each other, passion consuming them instantly. Hands moved slowly over skin with knowing intent and clothing barriers seemed to add to the excitement. They struggled to push aside garments, quickly replacing them with kisses and touches.

    "Whoa!" Buffy spun around as soon as she came in the room. She studied the poster tacked to the door. "Hello? Slayer in the building?"

    "Buffy." Tara’s eyes shot open and she struggled to pull her blouse back into place.

    "Oh, uh…Tara’s back." Willow blushed bright red and tried to help her lover. Tara’s blouse was tangled with her bra with both garments hiked up almost to her throat. "I didn’t expect your shower to be over quite so quick," Willow added as she stared at the bra like it was some satin and lace puzzle.

    "I figured that out." Buffy started to turn but she saw a flash of skin and spun back to the poster. "Nice poster," she commented with a smirk. She pretended to study the framed artwork on the wall next to her.

    "Definitely didn’t expect you so soon," Willow repeated as she furrowed her brow. The bra was practically braided with the fabric of the shirt. She met Tara’s eyes and they both shrugged, neither knowing quite how it had gotten so tangled.

    "Try unhooking the bra in back," Buffy suggested without turning.

    Tara’s eyes bulged, but she reached back and unhooked the twisted garment. As soon as she did, the front untangled and Willow tugged it back into place.

    "T-thanks," Tara said shyly. She rubbed her forehead wondering if blushing could actually cause her temperature to rise. She smiled wickedly as she realized that Willow was probably responsible for any overheating.

    Buffy turned, quickly making sure both her friends were dressed, and then went to the bed and flopped onto it. "Okay…spill." She pinned Tara in her gaze. "You dated a famous model and I am just now hearing about it…why?"

    Tara groaned and flopped back onto the bed. She pulled a pillow over her head and wondered how long she could hide under the fluffy shield before the curious Slayer crawled in after her. Buffy was a notorious celebrity gossip hound and she would not let Tara off the hook without a serious fight.

    Willow glared at the Slayer. The redheaded witch did not want to sit around discussing Tara’s beautiful first love.

    Buffy shrugged when she saw Willow’s expression. Her excitement sometimes got the best of her.

    "What do you want to know?" Tara asked in a muffled whisper from under the pillow.

    Buffy looked over at Willow. When the redhead rolled her eyes and nodded Buffy wiggled excitedly. "How did you meet her?"

    "We grew up together," Tara said as she crawled out from under the pillow and settled it under her chin. "She was my neighbor, and we dated in high school."

    "Was she popular?" Buffy asked delicately. She didn’t want to make Willow uncomfortable, but she was dying to know the details.

    "No." Tara giggled. "She was gangly, and shy and wore tons of Gothic makeup." She sat up and faced the Slayer. "And she was an outcast, like me. Her mother was a witch too." Her eyes filled with sorrow.

    Willow squirmed as she listened to her lover but Buffy was too intrigued to notice.

    "She was your first… umm, girlfriend?" Buffy asked delicately.

    Tara nodded and blushed.

    "Wow." Buffy’s eyes were wide like a startled cat. "When did she turn into Kelly Larson?" Buffy rolled her eyes when she realized how silly her question was. "When did she become a model?"

    "Senior year," Tara whispered. "Her senior year. I was a junior." Tara stood and walked over to the dresser and fidgeted with Willow’s hairbrush. She cleared her throat. "She had her Goth makeup off one afternoon, and a woman passing through town noticed her," Tara said bitterly. The memory still stung. "She offered to be Kelly’s agent." She didn’t add that the older woman also became Kelly’s lover.

    "Just like the movies," Buffy noted.

    Tara nodded and pushed the hairbrush away. She closed her eyes and remembered the pain of that time so long ago. She swallowed hard and pushed down the feeling of betrayal. "Anyway, she started taking trips to LA for photo shoots." Tara’s voice became hollow and she turned and looked at Buffy with a forced smile. "It ended. No biggie."

    Willow stood and went to her lover. She knew better. "Hey, you okay?"

    Tara nodded and gave her lover a half grin. Willow pulled her into a hug and the redhead looked over Tara’s shoulder at Buffy.

    "Oh, geeze," Buffy said as she stood. "I can’t believe I’m being so dense. You don’t have to talk about this." She winced as she locked eyes with Willow. "I’m sorry."

    "Don’t be." Tara pulled out of Willow’s embrace and faced Buffy. "It’s in the past and I got the best part of the deal." She picked up Willow’s hand and kissed her lover’s delicate fingers. "I found my Willow."

    "Yeah, you did," Buffy agreed.

    "You sure did," Willow chimed in. "And you’re stuck with me."

    "Good," Tara said happily. She pulled Willow to her and gave her lithe lover a tender kiss.

    "Ahem." Buffy cleared her throat. "Isn’t this where I came in? No witchy kisses in front of the Slayer."

    Willow ignored her friend’s protest and deepened the kiss. After fully enjoying the sensation of Tara’s lips, she eased back. She kept her hands draped over Tara’s shoulders because both women were slightly lightheaded.

    Buffy smiled and went over to the bed and tickled Miss Kitty’s chin. ‘Willow, you have nothing to worry about,’ the Slayer thought. ‘Tara’s nuts about you.’

    "I won’t ever hurt you like that," Willow whispered. Her lips were pressed against Tara’s ear, her hot breath tickling even as the words soothed.

    Tara squeezed Willow and nodded. She knew it was true.

    "So, do I need to get outa’ here?" Buffy asked. She looked around the room, wondering where the big supermodel…make that model… was. "Are you gonna’ have company?"

    "No." Willow rolled her eyes and looked over at Buffy. "She’s not coming here." Willow released a tiny sound that Tara called the ‘Willow-snort.’ It meant the young witch found the comment completely ridiculous.

    Tara stiffened in her lover’s arms.

    "She’s not coming here is she?" Willow asked as she stepped back.

    "Darling, I would never bring her here…" Tara’s furrowed her brow. "But she didn’t have anywhere to go, so I kinda’ let her stay in my dorm…honey." The blonde gave Willow a pleading look. "Please don’t be angry. She had nowhere to go and Claire is looking for her by now and…and… well, she didn’t have anywhere to go and if it was Oz I’d want you to let him stay in your room…Without you of course… and you could stay with—"

    "Tara." Willow put her finger over the blonde witch’s lips to silence her. "It’s okay." She smiled at her babbling lover.

    Tara’s eyes were wide like a lost child’s.

    "Really," Willow assured her.

    "My god Willow, babbling is contagious." Buffy snickered as she sat on the redhead’s chair near the desk. "Must be from… more intimate contact since I never caught it."

    "And you never will," Willow said with a leer. She looked back into Tara’s eyes. "So, is she okay?" She leaned over and kissed Tara’s nose.

    "She’s gonna’ be." Tara nodded. She tilted her head to one side and her eyes shined with tears. "I love you. You’re so wonderful."

    "I am rather spectacular, aren’t I?" Willow straightened her back and smirked.

    "Oh geeze, that’s worse than the smoochies." Buffy rolled her eyes.

    Tara and Willow locked eyes, eyes that sparkled with mischief. They glanced over at the a Slayer and then leaned into each other for a deep, tongue wrestling, passionate kiss, complete with enthusiastic sounds effects.

    "Oh, knock it off!" Buffy sprinted for the bed and grabbed some pillow weapons and began smacking her frisky Wiccan friends.

    "It was your idea," Tara pointed out as she dodged a pillow.

    "Yeah, like I said you two should play tonsil hockey, right!" Buffy swatted Tara on the behind.

    Tara squealed and dove behind Willow for rescue. "It was all Willow," Tara volunteered.

    "Was not," Willow insisted as she deflected a pillow. "Besides, that was not tonsil hockey. I hate hockey. It was more like Greco Roman tongue wrestling." She giggled as she dodged Buffy’s assault. "It’s practically an Olympic sport."

    Tara grabbed a pillow and bravely launched an attack against the Slayer. She was promptly chased back to the bed. Willow pounced on Buffy and the three fell into a heap on the bed.

    "Love ya’ both, but this ain’t happening." Buffy flipped Willow and pinned her to the bed with one leg and then dragged Tara over next to the redhead and pinned her with the other. "Slayer, remember?" She looked down, not even breaking a sweat.

    Tara and Willow were both breathing heavily from the exertion and squirming to get loose.

    "No fair, you big Slayer meanie," Willow whined.

    Tara took Willow’s hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. The redhead turned and locked eyes with her lover. The two witches smiled and Buffy lifted into the air.

    "Hey! No fair, you big witch meanies!" Buffy hovered in the air, giving both of her friends an indignant glare.

    Tara smirked as she pulled Willow up beside her and the two began smacking Buffy with pillows.

    "You are both so dead when I get down from here!" Buffy covered her face as the twin Wiccan assault became a frenzy of pillow smacks.

    "Give up?" Willow asked as she swatted Buffy’s behind.

    "Okay, I surrender!" The Slayer’s hair was jutting out in every direction. "Stupid witches," she muttered as they lowered her to the ground.

    "Magic, remember?" Willow said with a cheeky grin.

    Tara nodded as she stepped behind Willow and peeked over the redhead’s shoulder. "You use Slayer skills, we get to use magic."

    "I still think the lifting of the Slayer is just wrong. I am not a Macy’s parade balloon." Buffy crossed her arms over her chest and sulked. "So, I suppose I have to sleep on the floor like Dawn always does?" Buffy looked over at the wall where a sleeping bag rested. She let her eyes slowly move back to the large, comfortable sleigh bed Willow and Tara shared.

    Willow turned and looked into Tara’s eyes with a pleading pout.

    "Okay, fine, but I get the middle." Tara looked over at Buffy. "Last time Willow was in the middle you used your Slayer strength and stole all the blankets and my bu— my back got cold."

    "Got it," Buffy said with a smile. "No cold Tara back." She leaped onto the bed and bounced. "I need a cushy bed like this," she added in a whine.

    "Your back got cold?" Willow spun Tara in her arms and spooned the taller blonde from behind. "I woulda’ warmed you up," she whispered in her lover’s ear. "My poor baby." She wrapped one arm around Tara’s belly and used the other to rub her lover’s back. She edged her hand lower and squeezed Tara’s behind. "And your cold little butt," she added with a giggle.

    Tara let out a satisfied purr.

    "Hello? Slayer? Still in the room." Buffy cleared her throat. "No witchy lovin’ with me in the room."

    "Buffy?" Willow asked with a devious smirk.

    The Slayer looked over at Willow and raised one eyebrow.

    "Get… over…it." Willow squeezed Tara and left a playful kiss on her lover’s neck.

    Tara leaned back into Willow. The blonde Wiccan had a look of decadent enjoyment filling her lidded eyes.

    "Okay," Buffy said grumpily. "But she doesn’t have to look like…like… that." She pointed at Tara’s expression of near climactic bliss.

    "Yes… I… do," Tara said with a sensual moan.

    "Hey!" Buffy closed her eyes and covered both ears.

    "Okay, let’s give her a break," Willow said with a giggle. She backed away from Tara and nodded toward the bed. "Come on." She tugged Tara with her to the dresser. "Buffy, you need some jammies?"

    "I have some still here, I think." Buffy bounded over to the closet and pulled out her overnight bag. "Tada!" She held up a pair of maroon pajamas.

    "Cool," Willow said with a smirk. She tossed back the blankets and readied the bed for her two favorite women. They settled in for the night and after a few minutes of talk they each drifted off to sleep. Buffy was the last one awake. She wasn’t used to sharing a bed with others since Riley had left, and Willow had apparently become a noisy sleeper. The redhead sprawled over Tara as if the blonde was her personal teddy bear-body pillow and Willow kept making little contented murmurs as she ran her hand over her lover’s belly.

    Tara rolled her head to the side and whimpered. She was dreaming but it was not a pleasant image. She furrowed her brow as the random thoughts ran through her mind.

    She was running through a large field of fresh green grass. It was the color of Willow’s eyes, and that brought a smile to Tara’s lips in the dream and on her sleeping form. She stopped in the middle of the field and looked for her lover but couldn’t see her. Tara began to run, but the field continued on for miles.

    "Tara?"

    The blonde witch turned and saw Kelly walking toward her with her arms held out. Tara shook her head, knowing something was horribly wrong.

    "Where’s Willow?" Tara demanded.

    "Who?" Kelly walked over to Tara and took her hand. "It’s just me, Tari." She smiled and tried to pull Tara into her arms.

    "No!" Tara backed up, but the grass grew over her feet pinning her in place. "Willow?" She spun her head but the grass was growing higher. "Willow!"

    "Tari, we belong together," Kelly said as she wrapped her hands behind Tara’s neck.

    "No!" Tara screamed in the dream.

    "No!" Tara sat up in the bed and took in a breath of air. It was dark, and she reached out one hand to feel Willow’s warm skin. The contact instantly soothed Tara’s soul but she was still shaken. She tried to slow her breathing and realized that she was sweating. She kissed Willow’s cheek and then climbed over the redhead and got out of the bed and went to the closet to get the Wiccan supplies she and Willow kept there.

    Buffy opened her eyes when she heard Tara cry out. It hadn’t been more than a whisper, but it was enough to wake the Slayer. She was concerned, Tara sounded upset and Buffy could hear the blonde witch’s ragged breathing as she moved across the room. Buffy sat up and studied Tara as she collected the items from the closet. Salt, a white candle, and a crystal, items Buffy recognized as the essential elements for a protection spell or a simple warding spell.

    Tara poured the salt on the floor in front of the door and the window and then lit the candle and put it on top of a small round mirror on the dresser. She put the crystal in the glow from the flame and then whispered a few words. As she was climbing back into the bed she noticed that Buffy was sitting up.

    "I’m sorry, did I wake you?" Tara asked. She squeezed back into the bed between Buffy and Willow, smiling when Willow let out a frustrated grumble and then pulled Tara into a strong hold.

    "Slayer hearing," Buffy whispered. "You okay?" She nodded toward the white candle flickering on the dresser. "Protection spell? Or warding off bad dreams?"

    Tara’s eyes widened in the near darkness, but Buffy’ had acute night vision so she easily made out the blonde witch’s startled expression.

    "Hey, I know stuff," Buffy whispered, clearly offended. "I don’t always let Giles know that I know it, but I know."

    Tara smiled and shook her head. "It’s a dream ward," Tara said as she snuggled into Willow.

    "Everything okay?" Buffy reached over in the dim light and pushed a strand of hair out of Tara’s eyes and settled into the bed.

    Tara closed her eyes and sighed. She swallowed hard, and her body stiffened.

    Even in sleep Willow could feel her lover’s turmoil. The redhead scooted closer and she draped her body around Tara like a protective shield. "Love you," Willow mumbled.

    Tara closed her eyes and inhaled deeply and absorbed the love from her soulmate. She opened her eyes and looked over at Buffy. "I’m fine now," she whispered.

    "Bad dreams?" Buffy prodded.

    "Kelly," Tara whispered.

    Buffy sat up and stared down at Tara. The hairs on the back of the Slayer’s neck stood on end. "Is she doing something to you?" The anger and protective threat in her voice was unmistakable.

    "Not intentionally," Tara said quickly. She sighed and ran her hand through Willow’s hair. Her lover could sleep through practically anything.

    Buffy shifted her weight and studied Tara. She could tell the blonde witch wasn’t entirely comfortable talking about her exgirlfriend.

    "We grew up together," Tara whispered. She didn’t want to wake Willow. She wanted Willow to rest, and she had already told her lover everything she was telling Buffy. "Our mothers were both solitary witches, but sometimes they’d cast together, and sometimes, Kelly and I would cast with them, as far back as I can remember." She sighed. "Doing magic creates bonds," Tara explained.

    "I’ve noticed," Buffy said with a smirk. She nodded toward Willow. The sleeping witch was running her hands over Tara, unconsciously exploring areas she obviously knew well.

    Tara blushed.

    "Oh, god." Buffy’s eyes widened when she realized that Tara had probably cast spells with Kelly when they dated. She locked eyes with Tara.

    "Yes," Tara acknowledged. "Kelly and I did lots of spells when we were… a… couple."

    "So these dreams?" Buffy asked.

    "I thought the bond was broken." Tara let out a frustrated sigh and kissed Willow’s temple. "But she was in my dream."

    "Hence the warding spell?" Buffy asked.

    Tara nodded and then swallowed.

    "Maybe you need to do a binding spell," Buffy suggested.

    "You have been studying." Tara allowed a tiny smile.

    "Just don’t tell Giles." The Slayer looked over at the white candle and then back to Tara. "I’m sure Willow would help you with a binding spell, to break the connection."

    Tara nodded. She didn’t like the idea of doing a binding spell on someone she used to love, someone she still cared for. The binding spell would break all magical connections, and that usually meant all other contact ended as well. It was a drastic step, but Tara didn’t feel right having her exlover invade her dreams.

    "Do you think she did it on purpose?" Buffy asked with a yawn.

    "Oh, goddess, no," Tara said quickly. "I’ll ask her to do a severing spell before I worry about a binding. It’s probably just because we grew up casting together and now Kelly’s upset and we were bound to have some bleedover." Tara kissed Willow’s cheek. "I should have thought about that before I went to bed. Kelly and I can probably just do a simple spell to break the connection."

    "Well, as long as it’s not some witchy badness I need to get all Slayerish about." Buffy yawned and fluffed her pillow.

    "Kelly would never do anything like that," Tara assured the Slayer. She closed her eyes and snuggled into Willow’s embrace. She drifted off to sleep, and dreamt only of Willow, as it should be.

  • *****
    •

    • Kelly sat cross-legged in the middle of Tara’s dorm room. She had a circle of herbs around her and four candles burning, one at each cardinal compass point. The black haired witch opened her eyes and frowned. Her connection with Tara had been severed, and more than that, she had been blocked. She stood and stepped out of the circle and walked over to the dresser and flipped on the light. She saw a picture of Tara with a slender, pretty redhead. Obviously this was Willow. Kelly traced the photo and then looked back at the circle on the floor.

    ‘I need a stronger spell,’ Kelly thought as she went over and blew out the candles. ‘This Willow has a stronger bond with Tara than I thought.’ She went to her duffel bag and took out an athame. She looked at the worn handle on the sacred dagger made from one of the most powerful stones in Wicca, jet. The jet athame had belonged to Kelly’s great-grandmother and it had a silver lotus on each side of the handle. She paused as she flipped through her book of Shadows, which had also belonged to her great-grandmother. She knew the spell she needed, and she hesitated. It was the one spell her mother had argued with Tara’s mother about. It was the spell that ended their friendship. Dark magic was something Kelly had always avoided, yet had always been drawn to, but now she had no choice. She had allowed Tara to walk away and she had to set things right. She would get Tara back. She opened the book of shadows to the page marked, ‘unleashing the darkness,’ and began reading.

  • *****
    •

    • CHAPTER TWO

    Buffy woke up when the sun peeked through the window and hit her in the face. She rolled over and decided that she was glad she had been awakened at such an ungodly hour. She looked over and saw Tara and smiled. She was cradling Willow in her arms with her fingers splayed over the redhead’s shoulders. She gently stroked Willow even while asleep. Willow had never seemed happier. The bookish Wiccan had her face nestled under Tara’s chin and her hand was griping Tara’s flannel pajama top as if she never wanted to let go. Buffy couldn’t blame her; if the Slayer had found somewhere that wonderful, she wouldn’t want to leave either.

    Tara’s brow furrowed and she inhaled deeply. The blonde frowned and rolled away from Willow and groaned in her sleep. Willow responded instantly, rolling after her lover and wrapping her arm over Tara’s waist. Unfortunately, when Willow touched Tara’s waist, the blonde witch flinched and groaned in protest.

    "Tara?" Willow’s eyes opened and she sat up. She reached down and felt her lover’s forehead, and concern wrinkled the redheaded witch’s brow.

    "Will?" Buffy edged closer.

    "She’s feverish," Willow whispered as she scooted up so she could pull Tara’s face into her lap. "Baby? Are you okay?" She ran her fingers over Tara’s temples.

    Tara settled onto her back with her head resting in Willow’s lap but the blonde was not comfortable. Her eyes fluttered open and she looked up at Willow and then rolled as she tried to sit up.

    "Easy," Willow said as she helped Tara regain her balance.

    "Move," Tara said harshly. She stumbled off of the bed and then out the door of the room. The shy Wiccan didn’t even stop to put a robe on over her flannel shorts.

    "Oh, boy." Willow grabbed two robes and hurried after her lover.

    "And I guess I’ll wait here," Buffy said to the empty room.

    Tara sprinted to the closest bathroom and barely made it to an empty stall before she was sick. Willow came into the bathroom and saw the startled looks of several of the other dorm residents. The toilet flushed.

    "Someone partied too much last night," one of the freshman said with a snort. "Try some aspirin and orange juice." She giggled and left the bathroom.

    Willow pushed open Tara’s stall and squeezed in behind her lover. Tara had her hands on the toilet seat, and her face was resting on her hands. She was breathing heavily and let out a whimper when Willow touched her back.

    "You okay?" Willow asked gently.

    Tara shook her head without lifting it from her hands. She groaned as another round of sickness washed over her. Willow reacted quickly. She reached down and lifted Tara’s hair out of her face with one hand and rested the other palm on Tara’s lower back. The two robes were hanging over one arm. When Tara stopped heaving the redhead draped both robes over Tara when she started shivering.

    "You don’t have to stay," Tara whispered. She felt lightheaded, but she was also a little self-conscious about Willow seeing her ill.

    "I love you." Willow kissed the back of Tara’s head. "And I’m a little concerned. You just got all sick and I don’t like my honey being sick." She ran her hand down her lover’s back in small circles. "Why are you sick?"

    Tara laughed even as her head throbbed.

    "Oh, of course you don’t know why you’re sick. I mean, you’re not a doctor, so how would you know?" Willow frowned. "We need a doctor. Right now. We should go to the hospital."

    "I’m fine," Tara insisted. "Go back to the room."

    "You ready?" Willow gave her lover’s arm a gentle squeeze.

    "No," Tara said quickly. "I’ll just stay here a while." She wasn’t about to move. Even though she wasn’t actually throwing up at the moment, she had been heaving, with her stomach trying to toss its contents. She wasn’t about to leave until she was certain.

    "Then we’ll hang out." Willow leaned against the inside of the stall. Her hand still held Tara’s hair.

    "I’m not getting rid of you?" Tara looked up at her lover. The blonde’s eyes were red and swollen and tearing up.

    Willow pursed her lips and shook her head.

    Tara tried to stand, not wanting to keep her lover in the stall for half the morning. Her legs buckled and she slid back to the floor.

    "Hey!" Willow fell to her knees and grabbed Tara. "This is not normal. You need a doctor. Now."

    "Just a little weak," Tara insisted. She shivered. "And cold."

    Willow frowned and bit her lip. She was not happy with the situation. She looked over her shoulder at the stall door and cleared her throat.

    "Buffy!" Willow called out. She waited a moment, knowing her best friend’s Slayer hearing was better than most dogs. "Buffy?" she asked when she heard the outer door open.

    "Willow, you guys okay?" Buffy asked from the hall.

    "Could you help me get Tara back to the room?" Willow asked. She saw Tara about to protest and shook her head. She opened the door and helped Tara stand.

    "What’s up?" Buffy asked. She cringed. "And I do not mean that literally."

    "Tara’s not feeling well." Willow wrapped one arm around Tara while Buffy went to the opposite side and guided the weakened blonde witch toward the hall.

    "Willow?" Tara’s voice was strained. She looked around the empty hall.

    "Oh, boy," Willow said as she settled Tara into Buffy’s arms and ran back to the restroom. She came back with an empty wastebasket and carried it alongside her lover. "Just in case," she told Buffy when the Slayer’s eyes widened.

    They made it back to the room without incident and Willow made sure Tara was snuggled safely in bed with the wastebasket nearby.

    "Willow, what’s wrong?" Buffy asked as soon as the redhead moved away from the bed.

    "Could be anything." Willow looked at her best friend and went into full babble mode. "I mean, she’s got a headache and fever and she’s feeling sick so it could be flu or a cold…" Her eyes widened further. "Headache? Buffy, it could be meningitis! Or rabies!" She spun and looked at Tara. "Or malaria, or…or cholera! Or bubonic plague!" Willow’s eyes widened. "I didn’t check under her arms for black nodules. It could be bubonic plague!"

    "Willow, I don’t think it’s malaria or cholera or bubonic plague." Buffy rolled her eyes. "What have we told you about watching the Discovery channel?"

    Willow sighed and bit her lip. "That diseases from the 1800s do not infect modern college students." She looked into Buffy’s eyes. "But some people died from meningitis this year in northern California."

    "Could this be… magical?" Buffy asked slowly.

    "Why would you ask that?" Willow’s eyes narrowed and she looked over at Tara. She noticed the candle on the dresser and then she looked over at the salt on the floor. She had simply run out the door past it earlier, barely registering its presence. "Why did Tara do a protection spell last night?" Willow’s voice was low and dangerous.

    "It’s a dream ward," Buffy explained. "Kelly was bleeding into Tara’s dreams."

    Willow frowned and her eyes narrowed.

    "Could she have done something to Tara?" Buffy asked.

    "I don’t know," Willow said. She looked over at Tara. The blonde had drifted off to sleep. "But I’m gonna’ find out."

  • *****
    •

    • Willow jogged up the stairs to Tara’s dorm room. She had not imagined meeting Tara’s ex this way, but if Tara was in danger, Kelly Larson was about to meet witchy-pissed-off-Willow Rosenberg.

    The redhead went directly to her lover’s door and almost walked in without knocking. She had her own key and she was so at home in Tara’s room that knocking felt foreign. ‘Okay, be polite,’ Willow thought. ‘Buffy said be polite until you find something out.’ She rapped on the door. ‘Then I’ll get witchy on her scrawny Maybeline not a super model ass.’

    She heard movement inside the room and then the door handle rattled.

    "Tara?" Kelly asked as she pulled the door back. Her eyes opened wide. "Oh." She backed up. "I, I’m sorry, Tara isn’t here. Can I take a message?"

    "I know where Tara is," Willow said as politely as she could. She walked into the room past the startled young model.

    "Um, I’m Kelly." The jet haired woman stared at Willow as the redhead paced the small dorm. "Oh!" she said as she moved over to the bed and gathered her things. "You must be Willow."

    "Yes, I am." Willow spun and studied Kelly.

    "Um, well, where’s Tara?" Kelly looked as uncomfortable as Willow felt.

    "Have you been doing any spells?" Willow demanded.

    "What?" Kelly stood and glared at Willow. "Oh, you’re… you’re a witch too?"

    Willow nodded. She crossed her arms over her chest and waited for an answer.

    "Why do you think I’d do a spell?" Kelly asked.

    "Oh, I don’t know," Willow said angrily. "Maybe because you were in Tara’s dreams?"

    Kelly closed her eyes and sighed. "I was afraid of that." She opened her ice blue eyes and looked at Willow. "I dreamt of her too. It’s because we haven’t been so close together in such a long time." She moved next to Willow. "I am so sorry. I thought it wore off. My dreams stopped after a few hours."

    "Tara did a ward." Willow eyed the young woman. She wasn’t sure she trusted her

    "A ward. I should have thought of that," Kelly whispered. "I’m sorry if this is upsetting you." She leaned down to look into Willow’s eyes. "Is that why Tara sent you?"

    "Tara’s sick," Willow accused.

    "What?" Kelly’s eyes shot opened wide. She paced the room and rushed to her duffel bag. "What happened?" She dug through her things and pulled out a small leather bound notebook. "What’s wrong with her? Has this happened before?" She spun and faced Willow.

    "Well, no…" Willow was taken off guard by Kelly’s reaction. "Why? Do you know what it is?"

    "I’m sorry," Kelly said sincerely. "I can’t talk to you about it." She looked toward the door. "I really need to see Tara, now."

    "No, you really need to tell me what the hell is going on," Willow corrected. She stepped into front of Kelly and glared at her.

    "Look, I know you’re worried, but I don’t know what all Tara’s told you," Kelly said delicately. "I am not going to break her confidence." She waved her notebook at Willow and then nodded at the door. "Let’s go see her and if she says I can tell you, I will."

    "Tara and I don’t have secrets," Willow said angrily. She stepped out of Kelly’s way and let her go into the hallway. "And I don’t like you giving me orders, but I want to get back to Tara."

    "Right now all that matters is Tara," Kelly said bitterly.

    "Well, at least we agree on something," Willow said under her breath. She followed the dark-haired witch into the hall.

    "Right here," Willow said as she opened the door to her dorm. She pulled it open and hurried inside. "Tara?" she asked when she saw Buffy sitting beside the blonde with Giles pacing nearby. "Giles? What is Giles doing here?" She rushed over to the bed.

    "She’s still sick," Buffy explained. "I asked Giles to come over with his books."

    "I can’t find any sign of a cause," Giles said instead of offering a greeting. "It might just be a bug."

    "Bug?" Tara tried to sick up.

    "An illness," Giles corrected with a tolerant smirk.

    "Oh." Tara leaned back into the pillows. "Hey," she said as she smiled up at Willow.

    "Hey, yourself." Willow leaned down and kissed Tara’s forehead, letting he lips linger to test her lover’s temperature. "I love you," she whispered before she pulled back.

    "Love you." Tara smiled and squeezed Willow’s hand.

    Kelly cleared her throat from the doorway.

    "Kelly…" Tara stared at her ex and then looked over at Willow.

    "Come in," Willow said reluctantly. She didn’t like Kelly, and the model gave Willow a major case of the hebbie jebbies.

    "Hi." Kelly walked into the room and went toward Tara. She paused a few feet from the bed and picked at her leather bound notebook. "Are you okay?"

    Tara nodded. Her eyes locked on the notebook and she felt her pulse pound.

    "That’s Giles and I’m Buffy." The Slayer stepped forward and extended her hand.

    "Kelly, Kelly Larson." The model shook Buffy’s hand.

    "Yeah, I kinda’ figured that part out what with your famous face and all." Buffy released the model’s hand and looked over at Tara. "You sure you won’t go to the hospital? Willow seems to think you have meningitis… or rabies."

    Tara rolled her eyes. "Honey, no more Discovery channel for you." She smirked despite her throbbing temples.

    "Tara, how long have you been feeling this way?" Kelly moved closer. Her eyes were concerned, almost frightened.

    "Since last night," Tara answered. "Why?"

    "Well, um…" Kelly looked at the others in the room and then raised both eyebrows. "Can we talk privately?"

    "Willow and I don’t have secrets." Tara took her lover’s hand and pulled Willow onto the bed next to her.

    Willow nodded and smiled smugly.

    "And I trust Giles and Buffy," Tara added.

    Kelly narrowed her eyes and looked at the notebook in her hands.

    "It’s okay," Tara assured her former lover.

    "They know?" Kelly’s eyes widened. "About the… you know?"

    "We know that Tara is a witch," Giles said with a sigh. "Now if you know why she’s ill, please tell us."

    Kelly gave Tara one last chance to change her mind, then cleared her throat. "I think your demon side is asserting itself," Kelly said gravely. "I know you thought you could keep in down, but you did turn twenty a few months ago."

    "Doubtful," Giles said quietly.

    Buffy snorted.

    Tara squirmed as she wondered how to explain that her own family had lied to her about being a demon just to control her.

    "Demons are real," Kelly said angrily. "You people have no idea how to help Tara. I do."

    "Oh, we know demons are real," Willow said. She smirked at the jet haired model. "It’s just that your information is way out of date."

    "Kelly, I’m not a demon," Tara said. She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply as a wave of nausea hit. She swallowed hard to keep the bile down and then looked over at her exlover.

    "You’re controlling it?" Kelly rushed forward, ignoring the angry look from Willow. She grabbed Tara’s free hand and knelt next to her. "How? That’s great. Which spell?"

    "No spell," Tara said. She eased her hand free and looked up at Willow and smiled warmly. "I’m not a demon. I never was."

    "But…" Kelly’s eyes showed her confusion.

    "Her family lied," Giles said. "There is nothing demonic in Tara."

    "And you’re all… you’re just fine with witches and demons and stuff?" Kelly was shocked. She had expected the others to recoil when they found out about Tara’s demon side, and now she found out that Tara had no demon side. She frowned and looked around the room.

    "Tara’s our family," Buffy said as she smiled over at Willow.

    "I need use the rest room, can you show me where it is?" Kelly asked.

    "It’s just down the hall," Tara said. She leaned into Willow and closed her eyes.

    "I’ll be right back." Kelly bolted from the room.

    "Well, that was just… odd," Willow said. "Suspicious even," she added with a frown. "I think she’s up to something."

    "Honey, I’ve known her since I was born," Tara whispered. "She’d never do anything suspicious or odd."

    Buffy looked up at Giles and raised an eyebrow. She looked at the door, wondering if she should follow Kelly, but the Watcher shook his head.

    Tara started to comment but then doubled over in the bed as a sharp pain drove into her belly. She whimpered as she squeezed Willow’s hand.

    "Baby?" Willow nearly panicked. She didn’t know if she should stand or remain seated with her lover. "Giles?" She looked from Giles to Buffy hoping one of them would know what to do.

    "Tara, can you sit up?" Giles asked as he rested his hand on her shoulder.

    Tara nodded and straightened up. She frowned, surprised that the pain was gone. "I…I think I’m better." She smiled. "Musta’ been a twenty-four hour rabies." She smiled and bit her lip.

    "No rabies!" Willow stood and glared at her lover. "Rabies is not a joke. It’s very serious."

    Tara smirked at her lover.

    "Okay, so I may have been overreacting," Willow admitted. "About the rabies, not the sickness."

    "It is odd," Giles agreed.

    "Easy," Buffy said as she watched Tara sitting up. "Okay, so you are recuperating like a Slayer here."

    "I feel fine," Tara insisted.

    The door opened and Kelly leaned into the room. "Hi. Hey, you’re feeling better?" She came into the room and rushed toward Tara. "Wow."

    "All better," Tara said. "See?" She held out her arms.

    Willow stepped between Tara and Kelly and glared at the model. "Why did Tara get better as soon as you left the room?" the redhead challenged.

    "What?" Kelly backed away.

    "Willow, Kelly wasn’t even here when I got sick," Tara pointed out.

    "Yeah, but you didn’t get sick until she came to town," Buffy chimed in.

    "I don’t know why you all suspect me," Kelly said quietly. "I would never hurt Tara." She glared at Willow. "She and I have been bound since birth. If I hurt her, I hurt myself."

    "Guess that didn’t apply to cheating on her and breaking her heart, now did it," Willow said bitterly.

    "Stop acting like I’m not even in the room." Tara crawled out of the bed and went to Willow’s side. "I don’t like seeing you fighting."

    "I’m worried," Willow admitted.

    "I’m not a threat to Tara or you two," Kelly said with a smile. She looked into Willow’s eyes. "I want Tara to be happy, and she is very happy with you."

    Willow opened her mouth to comment, but then paused. She hadn’t expected Kelly to be so supportive.

    "See?" Tara tugged Willow closer. "No matter what happened between us, she wants me to be happy, love. That means with you."

    "Well…" Willow studied the dark haired model.

    "Maybe I should just go to a hotel," Kelly said. "I’m sure Claire won’t find me."

    "No!" Tara let go of Willow’s hand and rushed forward. "You can stay in my dorm."

    "No, Tari." Kelly shook her head and backed away. "I didn’t want to cause problems for you. I shouldn’t have called. I’m sorry, Willow." She turned and headed for the door. "I’m sure Claire isn’t mad anymore."

    "You can’t just go back to her." Tara rested her hand on Kelly’s shoulder. "She stole from you. She hurt you."

    "She never left a mark on me," Kelly said as she spun and faced her former lover. The model looked scared, like a mouse caught between a cat and a wolf. "Tara, you can’t go around saying that." She grabbed Tara’s hand and pleaded with her eyes.

    Willow’s stomach dropped. She had seen the same look of terror in Tara’s eyes when she talked about her brother. Suddenly Willow wasn’t so sure having Kelly leave was the best thing.

    "You said she never touched you," Tara said in a harsh whisper. She pulled Kelly away from the others and ran her hands over her face, carefully searching her exlover’s hairline for any sign of an injury. Lifted Kelly’s arm and pushed up her shirtsleeves and found a yellowing bruise around her wrist. "What’s this?" Tara accused.

    Buffy’s back stiffened. She didn’t like anyone being hurt.

    "Tari, please." Kelly yanked her arm away and looked at the floor. Her full lips trembled. "If the press were to find out…" Her voice trailed off.

    "So there is something to find out?" Tara leaned down and locked eyes with her childhood friend. "You think I’d just leave you with someone like that?" She pointed at Kelly’s wrist.

    "I left you," Kelly whispered.

    Willow flinched and took a step back. She wrapped her arms over her chest and didn’t know what to do. She wanted to go to Tara, but the moment was so private she felt like an intruder.

    "Perhaps I should be going," Giles said. He also felt out of place, and since Tara wasn’t ill any longer, he wanted away from the tense situation.

    Tara looked up at the Watcher and smiled. "Thank you, Mister Giles, for checking on me."

    "Well, of course," he said as he cleared his throat. "You’re very important to all of us." His cheeks tinted pink as he blushed. "Especially Willow."

    Willow nodded and moved closer to her lover.

    Tara gave Willow a half grin and held out her hand. The redhead let out a sigh of relief and hurried to her beautiful blonde lover’s side. "I’m glad you’re here," Tara whispered as she kissed Willow’s cheek.

    Buffy shuffled her feet and started heading for the door. She wanted to escape with Giles. The conversation was extremely private and she felt like she shouldn’t be in the same building, let alone the same room.

    "Buffy, wait." Tara pinned the Slayer in her gaze. "Could you stay?"

    "O…. kay…" Buffy furrowed her brow and wondered why she was needed in the room. She waved to Giles as he opened the door, wishing she could leave with him.

    "Thanks Giles," Willow said. She was holding one of Tara’s hands and was running the fingers of her free hand over her blonde lover’s arm.

    "Any time," Giles said with a kind smile. "Although, I would prefer that none of you take ill." He nodded toward Buffy. "I’ll see you for your workout later, yes?"

    "Absolutely," Buffy assured him.

    The door closed and Kelly looked around the room not making eye contact. After a moment Tara broke the silence.

    "Kelly, these are my friends, and they help people. We help people," Tara explained. "If Claire is hurting you, you have to let us help."

    "It’s nothing," Kelly insisted.

    "Well, that bruisey wrist doesn’t look like nothing." Willow nodded toward the injured limb.

    "We’re kinda’ bruise experts," Buffy added. "And that one looks like fingerprints around your wrist."

    "Why should you help me?" Kelly asked all of them the question, but her eyes locked on Willow’s.

    "Because, it’s what we do." Willow smiled and looked over at Tara. "And because you and Tara are friends."

    "Wow." Kelly smiled at Willow. "You really are something special."

    "Yes, she is." Tara smiled broadly and nodded enthusiastically.

    "There’s not much to tell," Kelly admitted. "Claire was embezzling from my petty cash fund and I caught her. When I confronted her and threatened to call the police, she panicked."

    "Police? Well, how much money are we talking about?" Willow asked.

    "Two point four million dollars are missing," Kelly said casually.

    "Million!" Tara said as her eyes almost bulged out of her head. "From petty cash?"

    "Well, yeah." Kelly shrugged. "All the big money is handled by an accounting firm."

    "Oh, the big money," Buffy said as she leaned against the wall. "Of course."

    "Two point four million?" Willow was in shock. "I can’t even imagine having the point four million in petty cash, let alone the two to go in front of the point four."

    "The money doesn’t matter," Tara said as she crossed her arms over her chest. "When did she hurt you?" Tara’s slate blue eyes bored into Kelly’s soul, willing her lifelong friend not to make light of the abuse.

    "A few times," Kelly admitted. "But she hasn’t done it in ages." She saw Tara shift her gaze to the recent injury and sighed. "Except for that."

    "Are you going to leave her?" Tara asked.

    "She’s my agent, Tari." Kelly glared at the blonde Wiccan.

    "Well, you can’t just stay with someone who hurt you," Willow insisted. She looked over at her best friend. "Buffy, you can go… talk to this Claire and let her know that hitting is not an option…not unless she wants you to do some hitting too."

    "Willow, Buffy is not our private enforcer," Tara said with a sad smile.

    "No offense, but she’d be more likely to model for Claire than to scare her." Kelly looked at Buffy and scowled. She couldn’t imagine anyone being intimidated by the petite blonde.

    "I do have nice cheek bones," Buffy agreed.

    "And lips," Willow added. "You’ve got really sexy full lips." She saw Tara’s eyes narrow and quickly backpedaled. "For a straight friend who I have absolutely no interest in… in a physical way."

    "Look, it’s not your problem anyway," Kelly said with a sigh. "I just need to hide out for a few days while Claire cools off. Then I can go back and figure out what to do in LA."

    "We could have Angel make some calls," Willow suggested. "Maybe Cordy knows an agent."

    "I have another agent I could call," Kelly said quietly. "It’s just that as soon as I do, Claire’s gonna’ out me."

    "She knows you’re… a… that you’re… that you…" Buffy tried to find the right words but none actually came out of her mouth.

    "That I only take women to bed?" Kelly suggested.

    "Um, yeah, that." Buffy blushed.

    Willow noticed that Kelly used the plural form, which to Willow meant that Kelly was still playing the field. She stored the information for future possible use.

    "Claire and Kelly are… were a couple," Tara volunteered.

    "Oh…" Buffy was now thoroughly confused, and then she remembered that Willow had told her about the woman who had discovered Kelly. "Oh…" Buffy said with a nod of her head. "Got it."

    "So, I should just go back to your dorm and hang out." Kelly cleared her throat and backed toward the door.

    Tara nodded.

    "Well, you could hang out with us," Buffy suggested before she saw Willow’s eyes shoot open wide. "I mean, with me," she amended. "My kid sister would be thrilled to meet you."

    Willow bit her lip. As much as she wanted Kelly gone, Dawnie would be excited to meet a real live Maybeline model.

    "Would that be okay?" Kelly asked Tara.

    Tara looked to Willow. She wouldn’t do anything to make her lover uncomfortable. "Baby?" she asked quietly.

    "Sure." Willow wrapped her arms around Tara and kissed her lightly on the lips. "Besides, Dawnie would kill us if we let this chance get away."

    "I’ll just go get showered and changed," Kelly said with a smile. She hurried out the door and down the hall.

    Buffy stared and the closed door and then her eyes slowly drifted back to Willow.

    "Okay, she’s not completely evil," Willow admitted begrudgingly. She kissed Tara’s temple. "Just seeing my baby sick makes me a little crazy."

    "It’s okay, love." Tara turned in Willow’s arms and kissed the redhead’s forehead. "That twenty-four hour rabies is very upsetting."

    "Do you want me to spank you right in front of Buffy, because I will," Willow threatened.

    "Dear lord, no!" Buffy covered her eyes and giggled. "I really don’t want to see any kinky stuff you picked up from vampire Willow."

    "Buffy!" Willow laughed as she swatted at the Slayer.

    "You didn’t tell me about any kinky vampire Willow stuff." Tara leaned down and locked eyes with Willow. "You holding out on me?"

    "You don’t want to know," Willow assured her lover. She smirked when Tara gave her a skeptical look. "Okay, fine." Willow leaned closer and ran her tongue up the length of Tara’s neck, making certain that it left a thick, wet streak along her throat.

    "Oh, gross!" Tara scooted away and wiped her neck.

    "You wanted to know," Willow said primly. "Blame Buffy."

    "Buffy, you couldn’t have warned me?" Tara was wiping her neck, but there was a smile kissing her lips.

    "I figured you knew all of Willow’s lick and tongue related secrets," Buffy said innocently. She realized what she had just said and blushed deep crimson. "That is not what I meant!"

    "I know them all now." Tara smiled seductively as she went over and took Willow’s hand.

    "Okay, that look is pure evil." Buffy pointed at Tara. The blonde was looking at Willow like she wanted to literally devour her on the spot.

    "Yes, it is. Lucky me." Willow waggled her eyebrows and pushed Tara onto the nearby bed. She laughed as Buffy spun around and covered her ears and began humming loudly so she couldn’t hear anything unseemly.

  • *****
    •

    • In Tara’s dorm room, Kelly opened her book of Shadows. She had to use a different plan now. She had cast a spell to release Tara’s demon side, but since the young witch apparently didn’t have any demonic energy, it had almost went horribly wrong. Kelly shivered. She had been certain that Tara was part demon, and if she had had any doubt, she never would have endangered her beloved by using the spell. Tara could have been killed, or worse.

    "Perfect!" Kelly said when she found the spell she needed. She read through the ingredients and smiled. She had everything she needed except one item, but she could get that easy enough. She just had to find a way to get a drop of Tara’s blood and then her long lost lover would be hers again forever.

  • *****
    •

    • CHAPTER THREE

    Tara and the others went to Buffy’s house. It was an administrative holiday at Dawn’s school, so the youngest Scoobie was home and feeling rather bored. The youngest Summers sister was excited to see her two favorite Wiccans, but when she saw Kelly Larson she turned into a typical screaming teenager.

    "Buffy, that’s Kelly Larson!" Dawn backed into the house and pointed. "Kelly Larson, the model and you are hanging out with her. When did you get so cool?"

    "I’m not hanging out with her." Buffy rolled her eyes and motioned Kelly inside. "Get in here before the neighbors see you and my front yard looks like a Britney Spears concert."

    "She’s no Britney Spears." Willow scowled as she watched Dawn gush all over Tara’s exgirlfriend. "And she isn’t even that famous."

    "Willow, you are my everything," Tara whispered in her lover’s ear.

    "Yeah?" Willow turned and smiled at Tara. "I’m not famous," she pointed out.

    "You’re better than famous." Tara smirked and then leaned in and kissed her partner’s earlobe. "You’re Willow. That’s so much better than famous."

    Willow smiled happily. She looked over as Buffy and Dawn were dragging Kelly into the kitchen while talking about eyeshadow. "Wanna’ go upstairs and be naughty?" Willow asked with a giggle.

    "We’ll have to hurry." Tara’s eyes sparkled as she tugged her lover toward the stairs.

    "Not that naughty." Willow blushed. "I just meant we could, you know, kiss."

    "Kissing is a good start." Tara smiled seductively. She glanced up the stairs and waggled her eyebrows.

    "Okay, but if we get caught, it’s your fault." Willow broke out of Tara’s grasp and sprinted up the stairs. They had found a very secluded linen closet that was the perfect spot to get away for a few minutes. Apparently Tara wanted to test just how long they could stay out of sight before anyone noticed.

  • *****
    •

    • Buffy had gone searching for Willow and Tara after they had been missing for about twenty minutes. She had a pretty good idea where to find them, since she had caught them making out in the linen closet on both Christmas and New Years, but she had not expected to find them quite so involved. The Slayer had no idea Tara was a junior exhibitionist, and she decided she would tease the blonde Wiccan for some time with her newly acquired information.

    ‘Who knew Tara would have a black silk bra?’ Buffy thought as she quickly backed out of the linen closet. ‘And who knew Willow would wear it on her head?’ She giggled and leaned against the door waiting for her embarrassed friends to come out of the closet, so to speak.

    Willow came out of the linen closet first, still adjusting the buttons on her sweater.

    "Get all those buttons lined up correctly?" Buffy asked innocently.

    "Buffy!" Willow almost jumped back into the linen closet on top of Tara.

    "That would be me." Buffy smiled brightly. "Hey, where’s your pretty black silk hat?"

    Willow blushed bright crimson.

    "I’m wearing it," Tara said wickedly. "Though I decided it worked better as a bra."

    "No doubt," Buffy agreed. She leaned around Willow and studied Tara’s chest.

    "Hey!" Willow stepped in front of the Slayer and blocked her view.

    "Just checking." Buffy raised her hands in surrender. "Not like I’m staking a claim or anything." She raised an eyebrow as she looked into Willow’s eyes. "I think that’s what you were doing earlier."

    "She doesn’t have to," Tara said as she took Willow’s hand and yanked her past Buffy. "She knows I’m hers."

    "Yeah!" Willow said as she followed along behind her lover.

    "Good comeback, Will. Guess all the blood hasn’t returned to your brain yet." Buffy snickered and followed the two witches downstairs.

     

    Dawn was completely captivated by Kelly. The spokesmodel spent the afternoon sharing makeup tips with the young teen and by lunchtime, Dawn thought Kelly could walk on water.

    "Pizza!" Dawn yelled as Buffy came back into the kitchen. "We ordered pizza, and I thought all models just ate carrot sticks." She pointed at Kelly. "She ordered three large pizzas. Three!"

    "She’ll eat two of them." Tara giggled as she went to the refrigerator and grabbed two sodas.

    "Hey! I’ll only eat one," Kelly said with an indignant glare. "But it’s nice to know you remembered my appetite."

    Willow watched her lover’s playful banter and felt something in her stomach turn to ice. Tara was being her normal, friendly self, but Kelly’s eyes held more than platonic intent. Willow kept catching a glimpse of a predatory look in the model’s eyes, and Willow didn’t like it.

    "Here you go, love." Tara leaned against the counter with her side pressing against Willow. She handed her lover a soda and smiled. "Thank you for understanding," Tara whispered. "I know this is hard."

    "She was in trouble." Willow shrugged and tried to push down her suspicions. Buffy was a good judge of character and she didn’t seem to suspect Kelly.

    "Hello? Anyone home?" The front door opened with a bang. Xander came bounding into the house. "Hey, there, Buffy, Willow…Wha— Who? You?" Xander point at Kelly.

    "Is there food? Because I am starving." Anya shoved her way into the kitchen and stared at Kelly. "You’re that magazine woman. Xander, you lied. You said no one looks like that without airbrushing."

    "Anya, Xander, this is Kelly Larson." Buffy smiled as she watched Xander trying to roll his tongue back into his mouth.

    "Wha… Ho… Me Xander." He reached out and limply shook Kelly’s hand.

    "Demon, that’s what she is." Anya glared at the beautiful woman.

    "You all know about demons?" Kelly turned and looked at Tara. "How did you find these people?"

    "Know about them?" Anya rolled her eyes and moved around Kelly like she was sizing up a gladiator in the arena. The beautiful stranger had made Xander turn all non-speaky, and only Anya was supposed to do that. "We kill demons. Even pretty ones." She crossed her arms over her chest. "So stay away from Xander. He’s mine." She grabbed Xander and yanked him next to her side.

    "Me Xander." He nodded his head and tried to smile charmingly. He was partially successful; at least he didn’t drool.

    "Down, Anya," Buffy said with a giggle. "She doesn’t like guys."

    "You didn’t conjure some lesbian sucubus did you?" Anya glared at Willow. "Or is she a sexbot." She looked back at Kelly. "Oh yeah, that ass is plastic. And there’s no way those are real." She poked Kelly’s breast. "Nice craftsmanship. Bouncy."

    "Hey!" Kelly covered her chest and backed away. "Who is this lunatic?"

    "That’s Anya," Tara said as she bit her lip.

    "And she’s our lunatic," Willow said protectively. ‘This must be bad if I’m defending Anya.’

    "Willow’s defending me?" Anya looked at the redhead and then back to Kelly. "Oh, you’re after Tara." She folded her arms over her chest. "Well, hands off, sexbot! Tara is Willow’s." She nodded her head and then smiled at Willow in a show of solidarity.

    "You made a Kelly Larson lesbian sexbot?" Xander’s eyes glazed over as he looked at Willow with a leer of respect. "For Tara? Willow, you’re the best girlfriend ever!"

    "She’s not a sexbot!" Buffy tossed her arms into the air.

    "Um, what is a sexbot?" Kelly asked.

    "You do not want to know!" Willow and Tara said in unison.

    "And I would never make one for Tara, ever!" Willow added. She looked over at her lover and was happy to see Tara nodding in agreement.

    "There’s no way she’s real." Anya waved her hand at Kelly and went to the cupboard for a glass.

    "She is real." Tara cleared her throat. "Kelly is an old friend of mine."

    "They grow ‘em like this back home?" Xander ran his eyes up and down Kelly’s body and licked his lips. "No wonder you never went for the guys of the male persuasion."

    "Hey!" Willow glared at Xander. "We grow ‘em just fine in Sunnydale."

    "Xander, you made her get all butch and possessive," Anya said. She gave Willow an appreciative once over. "It’s a good look for you. Very lesbian!" She smiled brightly.

    "You know, I’m gonna’ go check for the pizza guy," Dawn said as she hurried out of the room.

    Kelly looked around the room and nodded.

    "So, how did you get that magazine face?" Anya asked. "Did you sell your soul?"

    Everyone in the room rolled their eyes and groaned, except for Anya; she leaned forward as if she was ready to take notes.

    "Pizza’s here," Dawn yelled from the other room.

    "I’ll get that." Kelly grabbed her purse and hurried out of the room.

    "She’s evil," Anya said casually.

    "She is not," Tara insisted. "I’ve known her since I was a baby. She’s good. No evil in her."

    "Known her?" Xander asked. His eyes glazed over again. "Oh, please tell me you knew her in that secret two girls doing spells way."

    "Xander!" Willow hit him on the arm. "Shut up."

    "Oh, she does know her that way," Anya said sagely. "Well, keep an eye on Tara. That woman is pure evil. No one looks that good without having some evil."

    "Anya, stop it." Tara crossed her arms over her chest.

    "Oh, sure, like you’d know evil." Anya rolled her eyes and nodded at Tara. "You’re karmic slate is pristine. I’ve never seen someone as genuinely good as you are." The former demon managed to make the compliment sound like the worst insult imaginable.

    "The rest of us are good," Buffy whined.

    "And…and… I am not… a karmic slate thing," Tara insisted.

    "Tara, you would turn the other cheek even after you ran out of cheeks." Anya looked into the living room where Kelly was opening the boxes of pizza. "And that one will wear out all your cheeks."

    "Well, she did cheat on you," Willow whispered.

    Anya spun and slowly studied Tara. "Cheated?" She stepped closer. "So when did this happen, and why is she here now?"

    "And this is your business…how?" Buffy asked pointedly.

    "Go slay something." Anya waved her hand dismissively at Buffy. "I’m the vengeance expert here, and I smell a rat." She looked back toward the beautiful model. "An entirely too perfect and bouncy rat."

    "Anya, she needed my help." Tara tilted her head to one side. "I couldn’t turn my back on her." She looked over at Willow and smiled. "And Willow understands."

    Willow shrugged. She was actually beginning to think Anya sounded like she knew what she was talking about.

    "Fine, but don’t come crying to me when this whole thing goes to hell." Anya spun and walked away. She paused in the doorway and looked over her shoulder. "And in Sunnydale…that isn’t just an expression."

    They ate lunch without any catfights, which was better than Buffy had expected, but she was relieved when Xander said he had to go back to work. That meant he would drop Anya off at the magic shop. Unfortunately, Anya had other ideas.

    Kelly offered to do the few dishes. She was up to her elbows in soap when Tara came into the room.

    "You didn’t have to do that," Tara said with a shy smile.

    "Hey, I had to do something." Kelly cleared her throat. "That Anya was looking to burn me at the stake." She took her hands out of the water and dried them.

    "That’s just Anya." Tara smiled and began putting the dishes away. "Besides, we don’t burn witches."

    "I can’t believe you guys kill demons." Kelly carefully went to her purse and took out a small relic. It was an ancient coin and she used it to cast small spells. She kept it out of Tara’s view and squeezed it tightly.

    "Yeah, well, it’s not so bad." Tara shrugged. "Especially since I found out that I’m not a demon." She smiled and her entire face lit up. "I was so relieved, Kelly."

    "I’ll bet." She nodded toward the sink. "Can you see if my ring slipped off in the water?" She watched as Tara slid her hand around under the warm bubbles. "I know you used to have nightmares about becoming a monster."

    Tara nodded with a shiver. Her biggest fear growing up had been that she would take on her demonic form and then hurt someone. "Ouch!" Tara yanked back her hand.

    "Are you okay?" Kelly grabbed a white handkerchief from her purse and pulled Tara’s hand into hers. "You nicked it." She dabbed the blood away.

    "There was a knife in there," Tara said sheepishly. "I should have asked."

    "I feel awful," Kelly said as she cradled Tara’s hand and squeezed the blood onto the handkerchief. "I must have missed it." She dabbed the blood. "I think it’ll be okay."

    "Hey, Tara, did you see my—" Willow stared by the two women at the sink. "What happened?" she rushed to Tara’s side.

    "She nicked her finger on a knife," Kelly said as she quickly stepped out of the way.

    "It’s fine." Tara rolled her eyes.

    "Fine? Cut is not fine, baby." Willow turned the injured digit over in her hands. "See? There’s a little speck of blood." Willow kissed the speck, keeping it pressed to her lips and as she looked into Tara’s slate blue eyes. "Better?" she whispered as she kissed the finger several more times.

    Tara nodded and gave her lover a sensual half grin. Her eyes lidded as she watched Willow continue to kiss her finger.

    Kelly tucked the handkerchief into her purse and went into the other room. Her plan was working perfectly.

  • *****
    •

    • Anya surprised the others when she decided to stay at Buffy’s house. She didn’t trust Kelly, and she intended to keep her eye on the model.

    "Tara okay?" Kelly asked when Willow came onto the front porch.

    "She’s fine." Willow blushed. "I worry about her." She looked out onto the street at the passing cars.

    "I’m glad you worry about her." Kelly smiled over at the redhead. "She needs someone to look out for her. Her family sure didn’t."

    "Tara can take care of herself," Willow said as she leaned against the house. "I just like doing things for her."

    "Of course she can," Kelly said quickly. "I just meant… it’s good you two have each other."

    Willow nodded and twisted her head as two little girls on rollerblades skated by on the street. She smiled at the laughing children.

    "I’m sorry about last night," Kelly said as she looked through the window at Tara. The blonde was sitting at the kitchen table helping Dawn fold the laundry. "I had no idea our dreams would mingle."

    "Well, you didn’t know it would happen," Willow said diplomatically. "It’s not like you could stop it."

    "Well, Tara and I could do an astral severing," Kelly suggested quietly. "I mean, we probably should have done one when we broke up, but I guess we just figured things were pretty messed up with us and that our connection would just break on its own." She bit her lip and looked at the ground. "I guess we’re more connected than we knew."

    "Well, how would you do the spell?" Willow’s own insecurities were surfacing. She didn’t like the idea of Kelly sharing such an intimate thing with Tara. If a simple spell could sever the bond, then Willow was all for it.

    "It’s pretty easy." Kelly shrugged. "Like a cord cutting, but we’d have to make sure not to completely sever our friendship." She looked up at Willow. "I mean…if that’s okay with you." She sighed and shook her head. "Tara’s been my best friend since I was a baby, but I guess I don’t deserve her after what I did."

    "Well…" Willow didn’t really know what to say. She was still angry with Kelly for hurting Tara.

    "I mean, we never should have become lovers," Kelly whispered. "I guess we both knew it, but we were young."

    "So, can you do the cord cutting thing without… you know, losing all your friendship?" Willow knew that despite Kelly’s betrayal, she was Tara’s oldest friend, and she had been casting spells with Tara since birth.

    "Yeah." Kelly looked up into Willow’s eyes. "But… are you sure?"

    Willow nodded with a sweet smile. She trusted Tara.

    "Thank you," Kelly said sincerely. She watched Willow go back into the house and smiled. ‘Gothca!’ she thought as she let out a contented sigh.

  • *****
    •

    • "You’re sure?" Tara asked. She looked into Willow’s eyes and ran her hand through her lover’s bangs.

    "Sure I’m sure." She frowned. "Shouldn’t I be sure?"

    Tara smiled demurely.

    "What does this spell involve?" She cupped Tara’s chin in her hand. "It’s not a… well… a you know…" She raised her eyebrows meaningfully. She looked across the room at her friends. "It’s not a flaming ‘O’ spell is it?" Willow’s eyes narrowed.

    "No!" Tara giggled. She hugged Willow and kissed her soundly. "Those spells are just for you, baby."

    "Well, good." Willow smirked smugly. She let out a slow sigh and she considered what the spell might include. "Tell me about the spell."

    "It’s very simple," Tara assured her lover. "We have to tie our sacred measures in slipknot, and then we say a few incantations and untie them."

    "Okay, you tie your witchy rope belts." Willow nodded. "I can deal with that." She continued nodding. "Incantations… okay, so a few witchy words. Got it." She kissed Tara’s hand. "Then you untie the witchy rope belts. I can deal with that."

    Tara smiled and took Willow’s face in her hands and locked eyes with her.

    "I can deal," Willow repeated grumpily. She smiled when she saw the devotion in Tara’s eyes. "I can deal. Promise."

    Tara nodded. She leaned down and pressed her lips to Willow’s.

    "Yep. Dealing." Willow had a goofy grin and felt her pulse quicken. "So… does this really have to be a private ritual?"

    "Yes, baby." Tara rolled her eyes. "I wish you could be there, but the severing of sacred bonds has to be a closed ritual."

    "And I supposed me standing outside the door wouldn’t count?"

    Tara quirked her brow at her lover.

    "Okay, so that idea was not exactly brilliant," Willow agreed. "Outside the building?" she suggested.

    "Willow…"

    "Okay, I’ll just be waiting here until you two come back from the dorm." Willow bit her lips. "Maybe I could wait at the edge of the quad? I wouldn’t want anyone sneaking up on the dormitory, now would I?"

    Tara cleared her throat.

    "Okay, geeze, you don’t have rant and rave," Willow said. She smiled. "So there was no ranting, and no raving, but there was some disapproving throat clearing. I heard it."

    "It won’t take long, Willow." Tara leaned forward and kissed her lover. "Then no one will accidentally wander into my dreams except you."

    "You are my dream, Tara." Willow smiled and hugged Tara, content in her lover’s arms.

  • *****

    • Tara went back to her dorm to meet Kelly for the ritual. She was nervous. She had known Kelly all her life, and cutting their magical bonds was a huge step that could not be taken back. She knocked lightly on the door and heard Kelly invite her inside.

    "Hey," Tara said nervously. She looked around the room and then went to the bed and sat. "Did you have any trouble finding the spell?"

    "No, it was right in the back." The beautiful model pointed at the leather bound volume of spells.

    Tara looked over at Kelly’s book of Shadows. "Your mom’s book?" Tara eyes widened.

    Kelly nodded. She lifted the book and nodded for Tara to come into the circle she had already cast on the floor. "Sit," she whispered.

    Tara did as she was told and looked up at her oldest friend. "This just severs our magic, right?" Tara didn’t have many friends and didn’t want to lose Kelly.

    Kelly nodded and tied their sacred measures around their hands. The sacred measure was a witch’s most private and powerful tool. It was a length of cord that was knotted to mark a witch’s height, the measure of her chest, and the measure of her head. It was used to measure sacred circles, and as a tie for a witch’s cloak. It was one of the few sacred tools that were actually anointed with a Wiccan’s blood, and the very personal nature of the tool made it powerful.

    Kelly dipped her black athame into the chalice beside Tara and lifted the dagger to the blonde’s forehead and drew a small Chinese symbol.

    Tara’s brow furrowed. She had read about cord cutting ceremonies, and this didn’t look like the ones she was familiar with. "Kelly?"

    "Shh…" Kelly pressed her finger over Tara’s lips. She bent down and lifted the chalice and offered it to Tara.

    Tara looked into Kelly’s eyes and saw only caring. She recognized the beverage. It was mead, honey wine, and more importantly, she knew this woman, and so she drank the offered mead.

    "Shi-tien yen-wang," Kelly whispered.

    Tara’s eyes widened. She recognized the name of the underworld gods from Chinese mythology, but she couldn’t imagine why her friend would invoke them. They were the ones who decided the fate of humans after death. The ten underworld gods doled out punishment, and when the punishment was completed, they set in motion the Wheel of Transmigration.

    "What did you—?" Tara’s eyes rolled back into her head and she fell to the floor.

    "Sleep." Kelly leaned down and kissed Tara’s forehead. She picked up the chalice and looked into the mixture. It was a potion that mimicked ‘the Brew of Oblivion,’ a magical drink given to souls to wipe their memories before they reenter the karmic cycle. She smiled and dabbed her finger with the brew and pressed her dampened thumb over each of Tara’s eyes. "It’s done, my beautiful Tari."

  • *****
    •

    • "Okay, just so I’m clear on this…you let Tara leave with the sexbot?" Anya glared at Willow. She was sitting on Buffy’s couch and looking at Willow like the redhead was severely mentally challenged.

    "She is not a robot," Buffy pointed out.

    "And Tara trusts her," Willow said defensively. "I can’t very well tell Tara who she can do spells with, now can I?" She frowned and looked over at Buffy. "Can I?"

    "No," Buffy said firmly.

    "The hell you can’t," Anya said. "Would you let her do another ‘spell’ with Glory?" Anya stood and paced. "We all know how well that whole thing turned out what with Tara being a houseplant for a week and Buffy being dead for even longer."

    "Kelly isn’t Glory!" Dawn said. "Kelly’s nice. She’s very nice." She looked over at Willow and cringed. "She’s not Willow-nice, but still, she’s not Glory-evil." Dawn rested her hands on her hips. "And I should know. I was held captive, remember?"

    "Okay, so the exgirlfriend isn’t ‘quite’ Glory evil," Anya conceded. "But I saw the way she was ogling Tara. If Xander ogled Tara like that, well, I’d just take him home and…and… well, it wouldn’t be pretty…and it might even involve bunnies!"

    "What? No disemboweling?" Buffy asked sarcastically.

    "Well, he won’t be much use to me that way, now would he?" Anya sighed and went to phone. "Besides, as a future husband, Xander’s worth more tortured than disemboweled." She picked up the phone and dialed.

    "Buffy, I really want to trust Tara’s judgment, but well, Anya is the resident expert when it comes to scorned exlovers." Willow squirmed and bit her lip.

    "Okay, so as much I as want to let Tara take care of herself…" Buffy looked toward the door.

    "Giles?" Anya said into the phone. "Get over to Buffy’s right now. Tara’s been kidnapped by an evil sexbot."

    "She’s not a sexbot!" Willow and Buffy yelled in unison.

    "Whatever, just get over here," Anya said impatiently. "Uh, huh." Her eyes widened. "You did? Giles, that’s positively sneaky!" She frowned. "Well, no. No… Why aren’t you driving over here right now?"

    "What?" Willow asked. She wrapped her arms over her chest and looked at Buffy, and then back at Anya.

    "Hang up the phone and get over here," Anya said as she slammed the phone down. "I warned you."

    "What?" Willow moved closer to Anya. "And what was that with sneaky Giles? Why is Giles being sneaky?"

    "Because he was smart enough to not trust the sexbot." Anya smiled smugly. She waved her hand in the air. "Yeah, whatever…she’s not a sexbot, but whatever she is… she’s up to no good."

    "Less gloating, more telling us what the hell you’re talking about." Buffy was not in the mood for the former demon’s petty ‘I-told-you-so’ lecture.

    "When Giles was at the dorm earlier, he thought something might be up," Anya said. "He snuck into the bathroom and dug through the thrash and found a broken spell charm."

    "Well, why didn’t he tell us?" Willow yelled. "There was a charm and he didn’t tell us?"

    "He wasn’t sure it even was a charm," Anya said with a sigh. "It looked like a plain glass bottle."

    "So how do we know it isn’t just a plain glass bottle?" Dawn asked. "Everyone is in such a hurry to say Kelly’s evil. I think she’s nice."

    "Yes, but you’re a teenager," Anya pointed out. "You like rock music and heavy metal and you probably like those horrible teen movies about sex with pies."

    "Missing the point here." Willow stomped her foot. "What did Giles find out about the glass bottle that may or may not have been a charm?"

    "Well it took Giles this long to run his tests." Anya sighed and looked over at Dawn. "You teenagers. You’re worse than most demons."

    "Hey!" Dawn scowled. "You know, Buffy’s twenty. She’s only not been a teenager for a few months! And if you don’t count the time she was dead, it’s even less time."

    "What did Giles find out?" Willow yelled.

    "Try the decaf," Anya said as she slowly turned and studied the agitated redhead. "Giles found a demonic summoning potion. Well, what was left of it."

    "In the dorm bathroom?" Buffy asked. "Okay, why would there be a demonic whatcha-ma-call-it there?"

    "To unleash Tara’s demon." Willow sat on the couch and rubbed her temples.

    "Tara doesn’t have a demon," Dawn pointed out.

    "But until this morning, Kelly didn’t know that." Buffy looked toward the front door wishing that Giles would hurry. She turned toward Anya. "What happens if you summon a demon and someone doesn’t have one?"

    "Well, that’s just not a good idea," Anya said as she shivered. "Bad idea. Really bad idea."

    "What happens?" Willow said angrily.

    "It’ll kill you if you don’t break the spell." Anya paced. "In the short term…it makes you sick as a dog."

    "I’m going to kill her," Willow whispered.

    "Why would she do that?" Dawn asked.

    "If Willow didn’t know about Tara’s supposed demon side… and then it came roaring out…" Buffy let out a sigh. "It would… at the very least… scare Willow off."

    "And depending on the demon, Tara coulda’ had Willow for lunch," Anya added. "And not the fun lesbian kind."

    Buffy cleared her throat and nodded toward Dawn.

    "Oh…well that’s just grown up talk." Anya smiled. "Why don’t you run outside and see if the ice cream man is coming. I think I hear the off key music."

    "That’s Giles." Dawn rolled her eyes. "And that’s not ice cream music, that’s Jefferson Airplane."

    "I don’t care about the stupid music!" Willow was beyond angry. She bolted for the door at a dead run. "That woman has Tara and you’re all arguing about music." She ripped the door open and sprinted for the car.

    "You know, I did warn you all about this woman." Anya sighed and headed for the door.

    "We should hurry." Buffy told the former demon.

    "Wait for me!" Dawn ran after the others.

    "You are so not coming." Buffy pointed at the couch. "Stay!"

    "Buffy!" Dawn stomped her foot and glared at the Slayer.

    "No, Dawn." Buffy shook her head. "I underestimated this bitch once. I don’t want you there in case she’s stronger than we know."

    Dawn nodded and waved Buffy toward the door. She wanted to go, but she could see the fear in her sister’s eyes. "Go," she said quietly.

    Buffy waved and then spun and ran after Willow.

     

    CHAPTER FOUR

    Tara whimpered as she struggled to wake up. She smiled when she felt the warm body under her shift. She could almost smell Kelly’s lilac soap and the sandalwood shampoo she used. The blonde Wiccan frowned and hoped she wouldn’t wake up. Tara had spent months dreaming of being in Kelly’s arm, and every morning she would wake up alone and missing her exlover. She sighed and ran her hand over the dream body under her. The dream body was moving, breathing, and warm…too warm.

    Slate blue eyes slowly opened and Tara Maclay realized she was not dreaming. She was sleeping draped over Kelly.

    "Hey, sleepyhead," Kelly said with a loving smile. "You had me really worried, Tari." She rolled over and tried to kiss Tara but the blonde sat up and looked around the small dorm room.

    "What are you doing here?" Tara demanded. She looked down at the bed and saw that both she and Kelly were in tee shirts and their underwear. "How did you get in here?"

    "Tara, you’re scaring me." Kelly sat up and moved closer to the frightened blonde. "Sweetie, it’s me, Kelly."

    "I know who you are." Tara yanked the blanket off of the bed and covered her chest. "What are you doing here?" She pointed at the painted walls. "And what happened to my dorm room?"

    "What’s the last thing you remember, sweetie?" Kelly slowly stood and picked up Tara’s shorts and tossed them to her.

    "S-stop calling me that!" Tara took the shorts and stepped into them.

    "Tara, I’m scared, sweetie." Kelly edged closer.

    "When did you get scared? And why aren’t you off crying on Claire’s shoulder?" Tara was panicking as she studied the room. Only a few things in the room were even vaguely familiar.

    "Claire?" Kelly’s eyes widened and then she covered her face with both hands and began to cry. She looked up after a second and bit her lip. "Tara, I left Claire three years ago, sweetie."

    "Three years?" Tara backed up until she bumped into the desk and she shook her head. She turned and saw a calendar on the wall and her head swam. The year read 2001.

    "The spell," Kelly whispered as she went over to the bed and sat.

    "What spell?" Tara leaned forward. Part of her was in heaven seeing her exlover. She had lain awake every night since Kelly left praying to the goddess for her lover to come back, but now that it had apparently happened, Tara was confused. She had lost three years.

    "Tara, you had your twentieth birthday six months ago." Kelly covered her eyes and sobbed.

    "Twenty?" Tara felt her chest constrict. "But I … I… Kelly?" Tara rushed forward and paused a few inches from the dark haired beauty.

    "We did it," Kelly said sadly. "We removed your demon side." She nodded toward the circle of sand on the floor. "Last night." She stood and took Tara by the shoulders. "Tara, we’ve been together for the last three years. I left Claire, honey. Last night we did the spell, and I was so afraid something like this would happen."

    "Like what?" Tara leaned closer to her former lover.

    "When we took the demon from you, it took your memory too." Kelly pulled Tara to her. "I’m so sorry. The text said if your demon side was too mature you could lose some memories, but we had to."

    "I was a demon?" Tara asked. She pulled back. "And you stayed?" Tears welled up in her eyes.

    "Of course, I stayed," Kelly said. "And you were only… like that a few nights a month."

    "No." Tara shook her head. "No, this isn’t right." Something in her heart told her this woman was not her lover anymore. There was a distance that she couldn’t place, but she knew it wasn’t right.

    "Tara, I spent the last three years trying to show you how sorry I am." Kelly smiled sadly and shook her head. "I guess I can’t expect you to forgive me twice." She looked into Tara’s eyes. "Even if you can’t forgive me, you have to come with me, leave Sunnydale."

    "Why?" Tara asked. The last thing she remembered was leaving for college at UC Sunnydale.

    "Sweetie, I tried to control the… the beast." Kelly looked away. "I swear." She sniffled.

    "What are you talking about?" Fear gripped Tara’s soul.

    "I… it was too strong." Kelly backed up and then eased up her blouse revealing an angry red scar with three huge claw marks cutting across her belly. "It…you got loose."

    "I hurt you?" Tara burst into tears and she fell to her knees and kissed Kelly’s injury. "I’m so sorry. Please forgive me." It was her worst fear come to fruition. She had become a demon and hurt someone she loved.

    "I already did, sweetie." Kelly lifted Tara into her arms. "We have to leave before they find us."

    "Who?" Tara asked. She wrapped her arms around Kelly and clung to her.

    "The demon hunters," Kelly said quietly. "Sweetie, I’m so sorry."

    "B-but…y-you said I’m not a demon anymore." Tara’s voice cracked.

    "At night, on full moons, you’d change." Kelly ran her hand through her hair. "Last month, you…you got loose. I tried to stop you."

    "But I did that to you?" Tara rested her hand on Kelly’s tummy.

    Kelly nodded.

    "What else?" Tara asked.

    "A witch, she hunts demons," Kelly said as she wiped tears out of her eyes. "She’ll say anything, do anything to get you."

    "Can’t we tell her I’m cured?" Tara asked uncertainly.

    "It won’t matter." Kelly nodded toward the closet. "We need to leave. Tara, you…you killed her lover."

    Tara’s legs gave out and she fell to the bed shaking her head.

    "I’m sorry." Kelly tugged on Tara’s hand. "We have to leave. The witch and her friends are smart. They’ll trick you. She wants you dead, sweetie."

    "If I killed her lover, m-maybe I s-should be." Tears streamed down Tara’s cheeks.

    "No," Kelly insisted. "You couldn’t control it." She yanked the blonde to her feet. "We’ll go back to LA. I have money, lots, and we can hide."

    Tara nodded and let the black haired witch guide her to the dresser where they began packing as quickly as possible.

  • *****
    •

    • Giles floored the gas pedal and maneuvered his red sportscar through the midday traffic. For once he was glad that he had chosen a vehicle with speed instead of reasonable gas mileage. He had tested the glass vial from Tara’s dorm expecting it to be nothing, or perhaps some acne cure. He had been shocked when the enchanted oil he was using to test it in had changed to black. Now he felt responsible for leaving Tara with the young witch. It didn’t matter that Tara had dated the young woman, Giles should have known better. He cringed when he thought about how trusting Tara was with everyone, especially people she cared for.

    "Hurry up." Willow leaned out the door of the car. Her seatbeat lay unused at her hips, unheard of for the safety conscious young woman. "If she hurts Tara, it’s all my fault."

    "We won’t let her hurt Tara," Buffy promised.

    Anya bit her lip and watched the buildings zipping past. She knew Giles couldn’t drive fast enough to get there before the dark haired witch began her plan. She gripped the back of the seat as they rounded a corner a bit too quickly.

    "Killing us won’t save her," Anya commented angrily. "Have you considered that by the time we get there, whatever she has planned may already…well… be done?"

    "That’s not an option," Willow said as she saw the dormitory in the distance.

    "Okay, why are the police here?" Buffy stood up in the back seat. She looked like a centurion arriving in her red chariot. She watched as several officers milled around in front of Tara’s dorm building.

    "She hurt Tara!" Willow leaped from the car as Giles pulled up to the curb. She hit the ground running, or rather stumbling across the grass. "Buffy, she hurt Tara!"

    "Buffy, stop her," Giles ordered. He threw the car into park and opened the door.

    "I warned them," Anya said. "I said this would go to hell, and it did." She watched as Willow ran for the main entrance. A tall, muscular cop blocked her path and then motioned for her to step to the side of the building.

    "Willow Rosenberg?" the officer asked. He nodded toward his partner.

    "Yes, what is it?" Willow looked back at Buffy and then she gave the officer her complete attention.

    "I need you to come with me." He motioned toward his car.

    "Is Tara okay?" Willow asked.

    "Why would you ask that?" The officer guided Willow into the front seat of his cruiser. "Is someone going to hurt Ms. Maclay?"

    "How do you know Tara’s last name?" Buffy asked. She glared at the officer.

    "I’ll ask the questions." He stood and eyed the Slayer warily. "Who are you?"

    "Is Tara Maclay all right?" Buffy asked pointedly.

    "I will ask the questions," the officer glanced over his shoulder when the door to the building opened. His radio squawked and he grabbed the microphone. "Suspects in custody. Begin transport."

    "Suspects? What suspects?" Willow tried to stand but the officer shoved her into the seat.

    "Get your hands off her!" Buffy tossed him across the hood. "Come on, we are so outa’ here."

    "Freeze," another officer said. He had his gun trained on Willow. "We don’t take kindly to celebrity stalkers around here."

    "What?" Willow looked toward the building and saw Tara and Kelly coming out of the building. They had a police escort surrounding them. "Tara!" Willow tried to get past the officer but he clicked the hammer back and she froze. "Okay, I am gonna’ just stop moving now."

    "Look, just stay back." He nodded to Buffy and the Slayer backed over to Willow. "You fans can get pretty excited, but Miss Larson is just here to see her friend."

    "We don’t want to see Miss Larson," Willow said through clenched teeth. "I’m here to see Tara Maclay, my girlfriend."

    The officer’s eyes widened as he looked over at the other cop.

    "Right," said the second cop. "Your girlfriend." He smirked and looked over at the building.

    Willow narrowed her eyes and looked at the main entrance. She saw Tara clinging to Kelly, and then Willow’s heart threatened to stop. Kelly leaned down and kissed Tara, on the lips. Tara didn’t pull away; in fact, she leaned into the embrace.

    "Buffy?" Willow looked over at her friend.

    "Oh shit," Buffy said under her breath. She looked over at Giles. He and Anya were holding back and hadn’t encountered the police yet. She nodded toward the building and he began making his way over to Tara.

     

    "Right this way, Miss Larson," Detective Ellis said as he guided the supermodel through the small crowd.

    "Easy, Sweetie," Kelly said as she led Tara through the curious flock of students. She kissed the blonde and leaned into her body.

    Tara burrowed into Kelly’s chest. She was still off balance, and still trying to make sense of everything going on around her. One thing was certain, Kelly was a famous model. Students were calling out Kelly’s name and begging for autographs and asking her to pose.

    "Tara!" Giles yelled from the crowd. He glared at Kelly. "You, you monster, you won’t get away with this!" Two officers pushed the Englishman back.

    "He called me a monster." Tara cringed as she leaned into Kelly. She looked at the man and saw fear, concern, and hatred aimed at her and Kelly.

    "He’s one of them," Kelly whispered as she hurried Tara toward a waiting car.

    Tara looked back at the man in tweed and her heart broke. He looked like a sweet and kind man. His pain was her fault. She had killed his friend. She shivered even as Kelly slammed the door shut behind them.

    "How did I do it?" Tara asked as she looked out the darkened window. She could see the man running along next to the car. He looked very determined. "How did I kill her?" Tara asked in a hollow tone.

    "Slashed her," Kelly said quietly. "Her lover watched." She nodded out the window as they drove past a patrol car.

    Tara looked out and saw a beautiful redhead. The lithe woman was hysterical, and a short blonde was holding her back as she clawed to get past the police. Tara pressed her hand to the glass and felt her heart lurch. Just seeing the redhead touched something deep inside Tara. She could read the woman’s lips. She was screaming ‘Tara’ over and over.

    "What’s her name?" Tara turned and studied Kelly. "That willowy one with red hair?" She turned and stared out the window. "She looks so sad," she whispered.

    "That’s the witch," Kelly said. She sighed, relieved to know the glass partition was keeping their conversation private. "She’ll do anything to get revenge."

    "What’s her name?" Tara asked harshly.

    "Willow," Kelly said as she looked down at the carpet.

    "I should talk to her," Tara whispered. She wanted to ease the pain in the redhead’s green eyes. They seemed to call out to Tara.

    "She said she’d kill you," Kelly said as she looked out the other window. "And me."

    "Why?" Tara demanded. "Why would she hurt you?"

    "I let you escape," Kelly whispered.

    Tara leaned her head onto Kelly’s lap and cried. She felt like she was floating through space with nothing to tether her to the Earth, and no matter how much Kelly said she loved her or stroked her hair, Tara didn’t feel grounded. She thought about the redhead, and Tara felt tears fill her eyes. The young woman must have loved her partner a great deal to still be in such raw, unbridled pain after a month of grieving. Her ache was fresh in her green eyes and all Tara wanted to do was find some way to make the pain go away.

    "It’ll be okay," Kelly promised. She ran her fingers through Tara’s hair and smiled sadly. She hated hurting Tara, but it really was the only way. It would be better for everyone in the long run.

  • *****
    •

    • Buffy struggled to keep a grip on her best friend. Willow was beyond hysterical.

    "Tara!" Willow thrashed in Buffy’s arms. "Tara!" her voice cracked as she screamed and fought to break loose. "No!" She kicked and bucked, tossing the Slayer into the side of the patrol car. "Tara!"

    The officers stepped back and let the young blonde deal with her fanatical friend. Miss Larson and her lover were gone now and the crying coed would have to deal with her imaginary heartache on her own.

    "No!" Willow screamed like a caged animal as Buffy carried the redhead away from the street. "Tara!" She clawed at Buffy’s back but her friend wouldn’t let her down. "Tara!" she yelled even as the limo disappeared around the corner. She struggled as Buffy tried to put Willow into Giles’ car. "No," she sobbed.

    "She had no idea who we were," Anya said quietly. "My god, she was terrified. I’ve seen that look on men I came to kill, and she was giving us that look."

    "We have to go after them, Giles," Buffy whispered. She couldn’t get Willow to sit in the seat so the Slayer scooped her crying friend into her arms and stepped into the back seat. "Go!" Buffy ordered.

    "Buffy, the authorities are… well, they seem to have been alerted to our presence." Giles nodded toward a patrol car parked across the street. The officers inside seemed to be watching Willow.

    "I don’t care," Willow said as she glared the police. "I don’t care! Fascists supermodel puppets!" she bellowed at the patrol car. She turned to Giles. "Go after her."

    Buffy stared at Willow. The petite witch was giving the officers a world class evil eye. "Um, Willow, not really helping our whole ‘we are not stalkers’ sanity case here."

    "Giles, what would happen if I used the ‘Darkest Magicks’ on people?" Willow asked as the Watcher pulled onto the main street.

    "Don’t even say that in jest," he said as he swerved into his lane.

    Anya swallowed hard as she and Buffy locked eyes. She and the Slayer knew Willow was not kidding.

  • *****
    •

    • Tara insisted on staying in Sunnydale at least one more night. Kelly wanted to go directly to LA, but she wasn’t going to get into a fight with Tara over one night. The model used her connections to get them one of the two penthouses at the Sunnydale Hilton.

    "Those people." Tara stumbled over to the couch and slumped into the soft cushions. "I hurt them so much."

    "It wasn’t you, Tara." Kelly sat beside the blonde and held out a glass of soda. "It was the demon and it’s gone forever. You don’t have to feel guilty for that. It wasn’t you." She hoped she could convince Tara to let go of the guilt, but she hadn’t counted on Tara’s immense anguish. Kelly hadn’t expected Tara to feel responsible for something she had no control over.

    "That woman," Tara whispered. "Willow. Her pain, it was like a razor. It cuts with just a glance."

    "Tara, sweetie, you have to let it go." She pulled the blonde to her feet. "Forget the stuff you can’t control and try to remember our love."

    "Willow’s pain seems more real than our love." Tara pulled away and walked over to the small balcony. "I feel how much she hurts," Tara whispered. "Is that because I caused it?"

    "Forget about her!" Kelly threw her glass across the room and it shattered against the wall. Dark amber soda splattered on the white tile and dripped silently along the pristine surface. "Damn it! I’m here with you. I love you. She wants to kill you, Tara!"

    Tara swallowed and turned to face Kelly. She looked at the broken glass and her eyes hardened. "Don’t yell at me." She nodded toward the glass. "And if you ever throw something at me again, I’ll walk out that door and deal with that witch and her friends. At least I know what they’ll do to me."

    "I’m sorry," Kelly said as she ran to Tara’s side. "I wasn’t throwing it at you."

    Tara’s eyes didn’t soften.

    "Sweetie, I’m just scared and this whole thing is freaking me out." Kelly burst into tears. "These people want to kill us. Both of us."

    Guilt made Tara relent. She hated that her demon side and taken a life, and worse, it was putting Kelly in danger. "It’s okay." She pulled Kelly into her arms and kissed her temple. "Shh."

    "I can’t wait to go back to LA," Kelly whispered. She relaxed into Tara’s arms and sighed. "I’ve missed you," she whispered.

    "Missed?" Tara pulled back. "You said we’ve been together for three years."

    "We have," Kelly stalled. She reached down and rubbed the scar on her belly, once more glad that she had the foresight to magically create the wound. "But…" she looked up into Tara’s eyes. "You… haven’t been yourself."

    "What do you mean?" Tara’s heart pounded and could feel her hands start to shake.

    "Nothing." Kelly shook her head and walked away.

    "No, what are you talking about?" Tara followed Kelly as she wandered onto the balcony.

    "You… well…" Kelly shook her head. "I can’t." She pushed past Tara and ran into the master bedroom and flopped onto the bed. She buried her face into a pillow, but not before checking to make sure Tara was following.

    Tara knelt beside the bed and rubbed Kelly’s back. She leaned over and kissed the crying woman’s shoulder. "Please tell me."

    "I can’t." Kelly turned and looked up into Tara’s eyes. "Please don’t make me," she begged.

    Tara nodded and crawled onto the bed next to the dark-haired woman. She held her, and for each tear Kelly shed, Tara wept ten. She still felt distant, but she also felt a burden of responsibility for Kelly’s safety. She relaxed into the woman, but she realized something in her had died. Maybe it was lost with her demon side, Tara didn’t know, all she knew was that it was gone. Tara didn’t have the fire for Kelly she once had. She loved her, but it wasn’t a burning need. It was a non-physical emotion, and Tara wondered if she had lost that ability. She remembered Willow. Perhaps taking Willow’s lover required an equal loss for Tara. She took the stunning redhead’s heart, so it was only fitting that Tara lose hers.

    Kelly held onto Tara and felt the blonde reconnecting with her. Her plan was perfect. An unknown fear was far worse than anything Kelly could have come up with. Tara would supply her own worst nightmare, and that fear would keep the blonde in line. Claire had taught Kelly well. Kelly smiled and wondered if she should send her ex-agent a thank you card. She almost wished she hadn’t fired her. She had no way of knowing that her careful plan had unraveled the moment Tara saw the pain in Willow’s eyes.

  • *****
    •

    • Willow was torn in more directions than even her ability to muli-task could handle. She needed to be on the computer looking for Kelly’s hotel reservations, she needed to be finding a spell to give Kelly a healthy dose of pain, and she needed to be physically searching the streets for any sign of Tara. Willow settled for hacking into the registry of the local hotels.

    "Any luck?" Xander handed Willow a mocha.

    "If by luck you mean ‘ there is absolutely no sign of Tara or that skank Kelly,’ then yes." Willow took a drink of the hot beverage, but her right hand never left the mouse as she scrolled through the hotel directory.

    "I told you she was evil!" Anya stared down at the magical items Giles had retrieved from Tara’s room. "She’s channeling not one, not two, but at least three majorly nasty demon groups with these spells."

    "Why can’t the hotels have central booking? Willow asked as she studied the screen in front of her. "I’ve hacked into three hotel servers already."

    "What kind of demons?" Giles moved closer. He didn’t understand Willow’s infernal machine, but he knew demons.

    "Well, a Hindu rakshasa demon." Anya pointed at a black lotus design on a small candle. "That’s the symbol for Klesha, the Indian demon who channels passion." She pointed at an intricate carving on the candle. "That is a family blood bond symbol with the demon Kasdeya. She’s a fallen angel who taught humans how to channel demons to hurt humans. If she’s using that symbol, she has very old ties with Kasdeya."

    "Tara said her mother stopped casting spell with Mrs. Larson because of her family’s ancient ties," Willow said. She looked over at Giles. "Bad ties," she clarified.

    Giles nodded grimly.

    "Anything else?" Willow asked.

    "Oh, there’s just tons of demonic fun here," Anya said sarcastically. She pointed at a small Chinese coin. "That one. Well, that scares the pants right offa me… and not in a good way… not at all."

    "What is it?" Willow gave Anya her attention.

    "It’s a coin for all ten of the Chinese underworld gods. They handle the Wheel of Transmigration." Anya pushed the coin away. "That’s Shien-tien, he turns the Wheel."

    "Transmigration?" Willow jumped to her feet. "Those transmigration guys… they make you forget stuff!"

    "Well, duh," Anya said. "Think of the mess reincarnation would be if everyone remembered everything." She rolled her eyes. "Talk about useless information overload!"

    "The Brew of Oblivion." Giles came closer and his face paled.

    "I had some of that," Buffy said as she came into the room. "Turned me into cave-Slayer."

    "That was just enchanted beer," Giles corrected. "The Brew of Oblivion removes all knowledge of past lives."

    "Sounds like the stuff I drank, all right." Buffy sat next to Willow and squeezed her leg.

    Willow smiled, though her heart hadn’t stopped aching since she had seen Tara taken away.

    "Can we send Tara to detox for this nasty oblivious brew?" Xander leaned over Anya’s shoulder.

    "Brew of Oblivion," Giles said with a sigh. "And I have no idea." He looked over at the exdemon. "Anya?"

    "Oh, now you want to get my input." Anya stood and stalked away. "When the evil sexbot was here no one wanted to hear a word I said." She spun and shook her finger at Buffy. "This is your fault. You’re the Slayer. You’re supposed to look out for people." She pointed at Willow. "Willow was too busy trying not to hurt Tara’s feelings. And what did it get her? The Brew of Oblivion. I rest my case. Tact is not only boring…it’s dangerous!"

    "Can we counteract the Brew?" Giles asked. He found that it was often best to just let Anya rant and ignore her comments. She got her say, and he didn’t have to try to wade through her soliloquies about human weakness.

    "Depends," Anya said as she flopped onto the couch.

    "On what?" Willow turned and faced Anya.

    "On whether or not Tara and that Kelly woman have done the deed. If they have, her memories are gone for good." Anya stared at Willow as the witch’s face went from red to stark white. "Hey, I used one of your silly euphemisms. Don’t look at me like that. I didn’t just blurt out ‘depends on whether or not they’re having hot steamy sex right now.’ I was being tactful."

    Willow trembled. The lithe redhead looked like she was going to pass out.

    "Oh, come on," Anya said as she rolled her eyes. "The exgirlfriend wiped Tara’s memory of you and was kissing her in the parking lot. What did you think she had planned?"

    Willow leapt to her feet and ran to the ladder at the back of the shop. She climbed the rungs as her heart pounded. Once she got to the top of the landing she went to the bookshelf and tossed the extra books out of her way until she found what she was looking for. ‘Darkest Magicks.’ She flipped through the pages until she found what she wanted. She climbed back down to the ground floor and spun to go get the herbs she needed and ran into Giles’ chest.

    "No," he said as he rested his hand over the open book pages.

    "Let me pass," Willow ordered. Her eyes shifted to coal black.

    "You’ll not use that book again while I still draw breath." He pulled the text but the small redhead held firm.

    Willow’s hands shook. She considered stopping his breath but she couldn’t bring herself to injure him.

    "No, Willow." Giles held his hands in place even as Willow used her mind to yank at his wrist to pull him free.

    "She has her." Willow’s voice echoed in the small space.

    "And I have you," he whispered. He tossed the book aside and gathered Willow into his arms. "Shh," he murmured when her tears flowed freely.

    "Giles," she sobbed. "Please help me." She clawed at his chest and let out a primal wail.

    "I will," he promised. "We will." He ran his hand down her back and looked toward the back of the shop at Buffy. The Slayer paused and then went back to work on the computer with Anya. "Tara needs you at your best," he said. "Certainly not at your darkest." He walked toward the others and settled her into place at his side. "She needs you on the computer. Lord knows, we’re lost without you on that hellish web net."

    "There!" Buffy pointed at the screen. "We should have known she’d be at the Hilton." She frowned. "It won’t tell me which room. Stupid computers. Can’t even stake ‘em. Well, not without Willow getting all mad."

    "Xander, you never take me to the Hilton," Anya complained.

    Willow broke away from Giles and ran to the computer. She dug through the files, bypassing codes until she had the entire system laid bare. "They’re in one of the penthouses," Willow said. "Let’s go."

    "I’m all for the storming of the gates, but how are we supposed to get into the penthouse?" Buffy bit her lip.

    "How about a pass key to the gates?" Willow asked she allowed a real smile to ghost her lips.

    "I like it." Buffy rested her hand on Willow’s shoulder.

    "Buffy, how are your repelling skills?" Giles pushed his glasses high onto his nose.

    "As in…repel hordes of vampires? Great." Buffy looked up at him with a furrowed brow. "As in repel down a huge building in the middle of town with high winds like that oh-so-not-real-Dark-Angel-skank on fox? Not so great, but…" She looked over at Willow. "I am willing even if only slightly able."

    "Get Spike to help," Anya suggested.

    "Because vampires are really good climbers?" Xander asked.

    "No, because if Buffy screws it up and he falls, he’ll just be kinda' flat, but still choc full o’ smart ass remarks." Anya smiled. "Vampires bounce, well sort of. They splat but they heal up real nice."

    "She does have a point," Giles said. "A sick, perverted and twisted point, but a point none the less."

    "Fine." Buffy nodded toward the door. "We’ll grab Spike and use him for a nice swingy counterweight." She took Willow’s hand. "Let’s go get your honey."

    Willow stood and walked hand in hand out of the door with Buffy. She felt Giles move up alongside her on the other side and glanced over in time to see him tucking a pair of brass knuckles into his jacket pocket. She wondered if they were for some security guard or for Kelly. Some wicked part of Willow really hoped they were for Kelly. That same wicked part hoped she got to see Giles use them.

    End Part one

    Back to Willow and Tara Page

    On to Part Two- chapters 5-8

    On to Part Three- chapters 9-12(Conclusion)