Insomnia really bugs me. Its 3.30am here and I have managed a hour's worth of sleep
. On the other hand, I get to re- read the fics on the pens boards!
*Puff* - Hi, nice to hear from you again and you're still reading!
Notes : Again action sequence may be a bit stilted. I took latin so long ago in boarding school that it all seems like a bad, bad dream. The root words, I’m almost sure are correct but, you know, its not the words, it’s the power flowing through you when you say them that counts! Wow, second to last chapter. I can’t believe people are still reading.
Spoiler Warning - It has some spoilers up to Normal Again.
Disclaimer - All characters, names etc belong to ME. I am just borrowing them for this short while in order to make them do what I want for a change instead of waiting to see what happens every Tuesday.
Rating - PG .
Title : For All your Good Intentions
Chapter 9b
'Why was it that bad days - days that ended horribly always started out with
such promise?' Tara thought to herself as she slowly opened her eyes to a new
day. Willow was nestled in her arms - safe. Yes, safe... but for how long?
What could she do to ensure that Willow would always be there, always be
safe in her arms? Tonight, they would again go into battle - Her family,
her love. She would fight side by side with them - she would fight for
them. Today would end well. She would ensure it with all her being.
Willow slowly stirred, instinctively knowing that Tara was awake and wanting
to share the new day with her. "Hey baby, you sleep ok?" she asked, the
last vestiges of sleep falling away as she felt Tara's strong arms
encircling her, keeping her safe - loved.
"So, funny shapes or rounds?" Tara asked wanting to start the day like any
other: pancakes in the morning, helping Dawn with the chores in the
afternoon, and performing a blood spell....
"Baby, we'll get through this. No getting lost in Tara Thoughts, ok? We
know the spell and we even have big bad back up so right now, Dr. Rosenberg
is prescribing a hot shower - preferably with a sexy, kittenish red-head who
has a thing for beautiful luscious blondes named Tara," Willow said, knowing
that that would be a perfect distraction for both of them.
"I don't believe they used all the hot water! I mean, they were in there
together. Doesn't that mean water conservation? I mean, it's on bumper
stickers!" Buffy complained to Dawn.
"Buffy, even I know they weren't in there together to save water. Be happy
that Tara felt guilty and made the blueberry pancakes that you like," Dawn
answered back. She knew that she should also broach another sensitive topic
with her sister and soon - and there's no time like the present, she thought
and plunged ahead.
"Um , Buffy? About tonight, you know, I've...well, I want to.."
Buffy immediately cut her off, "Dawn, I know what you're going to say, and the
answer is yes"
"But Buffy, I'm seventeen and Xander and Willow were fifteen when they
started helping you and I love you and Willow and Tara as much as...... Did
you say yes??" Dawn stared at her big sister.
"Dawn, I love you, and if anything ever happened to you, I would never
forgive myself. But we're all family, and I have to face the fact that
fighting demons is the family business. However, you are to go nowhere near
the demon if he shows up. You will stay with Xander and Anya while we
prepare the spell, deal?" Buffy spat in her palm and held it out. She
hoped Dawn remembered... When they were younger, doing that meant a promise
that could not be broken, it was sacred - a Summers tradition.
Dawn spat in her own palm, grabbed her sister's hand, and pulled her
into a hug "I love you too, and I don't want to lose you, ever. We'll get
through this. We'll ALL get through this." After a few minutes, she reverted
to teenageyness once again. " Ok... Getting weird now, so I'm just gonna call
Anya and ask her when they're coming over with Giles."
'Time to start new traditions,' Giles thought to himself as he, Xander and
Anya made their way to Buffy's front door. Before, they would have met at
the Magic Box. They would have prepared themselves there, surrounded by the arcane and the
mystical. But they were family. They should be surrounded by home and
hearth - should celebrate being together before facing the enemy.
"Hi, Guys!" Willow was again there to greet them at the door. She looked
happy and whole, and he was glad.
"Are you and Tara and Buffy ready for the spell?" he enquired.
"Yes, they're upstairs changing into their robes. Tara's going to help me
with that later. I'm just doing some last minute changes to my chair. I
wanted to be able to reach for this," at that, she held up a small throwing
axe, "more easily, as well as have space for the spell ingredients"
"....Well, it
is more comfortable," Buffy was telling Tara as they both came
downstairs.
Xander's eyes nearly popped out of his head when he saw both Tara and Buffy in
blue robes cinched at the waist. It didn't look like they had anything on
underneath.
Anya, noticing this, smiled to herself, patted his shoulder, and said,
"Xander, you should look all you want now at Buffy and Tara, because if you
do so at the battle you are liable to get distracted and your head cut off.
Not by me, mind you, but by the Han'thu Ladsha"
"An, honey" he turned to whisper to her, "I was picturing
you in that, and
hoping we could borrow them after." With that, he grinned and kissed her.
"We should get going. Tara, help Willow with her robe. ...and no fooling
around," she added quickly. Despite what Xander thought, she was wearing a
black leotard under the robe as was Tara. It afforded easy movement but it
was also skin tight. God knows what Willow would do when she saw Tara's, or
vice versa. They so did not have time for that now.
"Dawn, you need to pick up something from the weapons chest, and
remember...."
"I know, I know," Dawn cut her off, "I will only use it in case of an
emergency, and I will not engage the enemy. Geez, could you sound more like
Riley, if you tried!" Dawn joked back. She did not feel like the key
anymore, she felt like the little sister. The slayer's little sister who was
going to kick some demon butt.
It was time to set off. The sun had set for some time and according to
Giles, the Han'thu Ladsha would try and open the portal around midnight.
This meant that Tara, Willow and Buffy had to perform their spell as soon as
possible, and then lay in wait for the demon so as to kill it. It was agreed
that due to Willow's chair, she and Tara would head home after the spell.
Well, Willow hadn't agreed, but had acquiesced on account that both Tara and
Dawn would accompany her back, and Giles, Anya and Xander would remain as
back-up for Buffy.
"You know, there should be a song. We should have a song. I mean there's
always a song when the good guys mount up and ride off to face the enemy.
Like something from Aerosmith with a lot of jangly guitars," Xander commented
as the group made their way towards the abandoned construction site, each of
them carrying their weapon of choice.
"Or... or... It would be an instrumental piece!" Willow said, excitedly waving
her hands, "you know, like from The Piano"
"I personally would like an instrumental piece, but, you know... with the
guitars, bass and drums and stuff..." Tara trailed off as she noticed all of
her friends looking at her. "I don't only listen to Lilith Fair, you know,"
tempering what she said with a smile.
As they arrived, they noticed that the site was worse than it had been two
years ago. Debris was still strewn everywhere. However, something was still
off about the site, a feeling in the air coursing around them - amorphous.
Tara and Giles went quickly to work. They cleared a space in the middle of
the area, where the tower had stood. Three crates were placed there - One
to be used as a ceremonial table and the other two for Buffy and Tara to sit
on, in order to be level with Willow.
Soon, everything was laid out - the Capedo of Erebus and a jet athame
were placed in the centre of the crate. Willow and Tara began lighting
candles which were placed in front of each of the triumvirate for the spell.
Giles, Anya, Xander, and Dawn had positioned themselves just inside of the
gate to the site. They were to look out for the demon or any other
distraction that would cause the spell to go awry. Giles could hear Tara
murmuring to Willow and Buffy, probably providing them with words of
comfort. He knew they were about to begin when he saw Willow and Buffy, who
were facing each other, join hands. Tara, who was the focal point of the
triumvirate, placed her hands on their shoulders and began chanting.
"We call on you, Erebus. We entreat you to prevail over all your domain.
Evinvere malum bono (Good will prevail over evil). Acceptum id vulnero
sacrificium (accept this wound of sacrifice)."
The air around Tara seemed to shimmer and grow heavy. Her eyes closed shut as she felt the power. Magic flowed through her. Buffy, too, could feel the magic
flowing from Tara and from Willow, her consciousness reduced to that feeling,
and only that.
At the last sentence, Willow had picked up the athame and, as Buffy held her
palms up, cut diagonally across them. She had to concentrate - had to do
this right. People were counting on her - Tara was counting on her. She
could hear a commotion at the gate. Spike was yelling - but she had to do
this and not falter. She would trust that Giles and the rest would keep the
demons at bay.
"Bloody Sodding Hell, Watcher! They're coming!" shouted Spike as he barreled
through the gate. Giles and the others were so intent on watching the spell
take shape that they had not seen the Han'thu Ladsha approach. Its singular
approach would not have been a bad thing but it had company, six vampires by
the look of it. Not newly risen ones - but old, and looking ready for a
fight.
"Oh, God!" Anya exclaimed "It looks much bigger than I remember, and it
brought friends"
"Spike! What the hell are you doing here??" Xander moved to confront the
vampire.
"Don't be a twat, mate. As I see it, the slayer is otherwise occupied with
wonder wiccans. You need me!" he stood toe to toe with Xander.
Giles, not liking the odds and accepting the inevitable, called out "Spike,
try and take the Han'thu Ladsha out. We'll handle the vampires"! With that,
he began to walk up the path. He had to put as much distance as possible between the demons and the spell. The Vampires, sensing a fight, began to quicken their
pace. Soon, they would taste blood. Soon.
Spike, not wanting to waste any time, launched himself at the Han'thu
Ladsha. Finding that his blows weren't slowing it down, he reached for his stake and
plunged it into its chest. 'Damn! There goes the pelt,' he thought, 'but at
least I hurt it.' The Demon let out a roar and barreled into Spike, sending
them both to the ground.
Dawn was scared. She had been on patrols with Buffy before, but her sister
was always there to protect her - to keep her from harm. Now it was her turn
to protect Buffy. Giles was using his sword to engage
two of the Vampires. Xander had managed to dust one by tripping him and
embedding his axe in its chest. So he and Anya were now fighting a vampire
each. Dawn had never seen Xander move so fast and attack so ferociously
before, but he was trying to take them both on - he was protecting Anya.
"Well hello, little girl... Seems like your friends left me a little treat," the
last unaccounted vampire said from behind Dawn as he launched himself
towards her. She turned on the balls of her feet and immediately went into
a crouching position. As the vampire sailed over her, she lashed out,
catching him in the temple. He landed in a heap a few feet away. Yup, I am
definitely the slayer's sister, she thought to herself. She ran to where he
laid and plunged the stake into his back. Unfortunately, it wasn't where
the heart was and the Vampire howled with pain. 'Oops,' she thought, and
plunged again. This time she found her mark.
Willow could feel the power around her, flowwing through her. She could do
this. She began collecting the blood in the bowl, and with infinite grace,
she slowly poured the blood on the ground. She knew that both Tara and
Buffy's eyes were closed and they did not notice the commotion going on
around them. They were too caught up in the spell. She had to do this, end
this now before the fracas got too close.
"Terminare Ocultum" she cried out "Aboleo, Magnum malum, Resolvo". With
that, a great force pushed back at them. Buffy and Tara went flying off the
crates. Willow's chair was sent rolling backwards. She reached wildly for
the wheels, grabbing them with bruised fingers and brought herself to a
stop.
She saw that Tara had landed next to where Spike and the Demon were still
struggling on the ground. 'Too close,' she thought, 'too close.' She began to
wheel herself towards her love - her life.
Buffy began to come to almost immediately. The fall brought her to her
senses. She could hear the fighting in the background. She sat up and saw
Giles drive his broadsword into a vampire, turning him to dust. He then
began to charge at the other, and despite the cuts on his face and hands, he
seemed to be winning. Perhaps training with her in the past week had helped him
as much as it did her.
Anya and Xander were faring less well. Xander was on the ground, bleeding
from a head wound, and Anya was fending off two vampires with his axe while
Dawn was tending to Xander. Buffy immediately flipped to her feet and ran
towards them.
One of the vampires saw her coming and turned to confront the slayer. Buffy
ran towards him head on, but at the last minute, pivoted on her right leg,
turned three hundred and sixty degrees - her hand extending as she plunged
Mr Pointy into its back.
Anya shouted her thanks for the help and began to attack the remaining
vampire with renewed strength "How dare you hurt my Xander!", she hit out,
"He needs to be well! We're getting married, and nothing is going to ruin
THAT! I love him!" she shouted as she swung, cleanly taking off the head of
the vampire who dared hurt Xander.
"Way to go sweetheart. Remind me not to ever piss you off," Xander weakly
uttered as Anya knelt down beside him and Dawn. "Where are Willow and Tara?"
he asked anxiously.
Buffy knew that the most immediate threat was the Han'thu Ladsha - Spike was
not faring too well, he was hitting it with all his strength, trying to get
its attention away from the immobile witch. Oh God, Tara was still too
close and Willow was barreling towards them. She saw it give once last
swipe at Spike sending him thudding to the ground. The demon was turning
to its next nearest target - Tara. The Slayer put on as much speed as
possible. She had to make it in time.
Willow was slightly faster, and called out, "Hey, ugly! Leave my girlfriend
ALONE!" as she steered with one hand while reaching for her throwing axe with
her other. She grabbed it, and threw with all her might. The axe embedded
itself in the chest of the demon but it did not faze it. He turned to
Willow and stood his ground, her axe protruding from its chest.
Xander would later recall that Willow's next move was like something out of
the Matrix. She had deftly avoided the reach of the Han'thu Ladsha by
leaning back, swiveling quickly to the left and going around the demon to
where Tara had landed. *
Tara. Baby. Please be ok* Willow propelled herself
out of the chair and landed next to Tara. She grabbed the blonde's hand and
held on.
By this time, Buffy was feeling incredibly pissed off. This was not going
to happen again. With a primal Slayer scream, she launched herself at the
Han'thu Ladsha, hitting and kicking it repeatedly with Slayer grace, while
at the same time avoiding its blows. She was a mighty force. In her ran
the blood of generations of slayers before her. She was righteousness and
goodness personified - she was THE Slayer. And she was going to send this
Demon back to hell, the old fashioned way. She was going to kill it. Her
hands hurt, and blood was flowing from her palms, but that would not deter
her. This was her sacred mission.
Tara groggily swam to consciousness, she could hear Willow in her head. The
Willowbabble sounded franctic *
please Tara, be ok, be ok, be ok, love you,
don't leave, come back, be ok, I need you, love you, be ok, please......*
She squeezed Willow's hand in return. *
I'm fine, love. Just a bit bruised. I
think we have to help Buffy.*
Indeed, the Slayer was starting to find it hard going. Her cut palms were
bleeding, and it hurt to hit, but this was her duty. She had paid attention,
had caught it in time. She was not going to let this Demon hurt her
friends. Buffy, still attacking the Han'thu Ladsha, did not notice that
she was being maneuvered into a corner.
Willow and Tara looked at their joined hands, instinctively knowing what
must be done - in unison, they directed their gazes towards the Demon
attacking their friend. Totally focused and in sync, they sent out a huge
psychic blow directed at the Han'thu Ladsha, propelling it towards an
exposed metal girder - The force of their blast impaling it completely
through its hairy chest. Despite all this, though, the demon was still trying
to free itself, roaring and flailing about. Buffy, wanting to end it once
and for all, went up to it, grabbed its head, and twisted till she heard a crack.
Silence once again descended on the site. Taking stock, Buffy looked
around.
Giles, having done away with the last vampire was holding Dawn as she told
him of her fight and subsequent win over the vampire who attacked her.
Xander's head was in Anya's lap and she was stroking it gently - They were
lost in their own world.
Spike was sitting on the ground, nursing a broken wrist by the looks of
it. She smiled at him and mouthed, "thank you." He nodded in acknowledgment
as he made his way to his feet and began the long walk back to his crypt.
And Tara and Willow were still holding hands.
Buffy's heart rejoiced. They had made it. They had triumphed. Attention
had been paid.
-----------------------------
You must think that something is happening with you, that life has not forgotten you, that it holds you in its hand; It will not let you fall
by Canadian Kitty » Sun Mar 31, 2002 9:39 pm 
