by CaBil » Mon Jun 04, 2001 9:20 am
quote:
Originally posted by Zahir:
I'll start writing part seven ("Restless") in a day or two. Usually writing one of these takes about a week.Here's a (hopefully) tantalizing teaser--when we get to "The Replacement" that'll probably (almost certainly) be stretched over at least two installments. I'll let you guess why...
Heh, heh. I get it.... 
Bil
quote:by AngelusUK » Mon Jun 04, 2001 11:21 am
Thank you so much for this masterpiece of fanfic.
------------------
Amber Fan
Willow "Thats fine I don't need to be snuggled"
Tara "Vixen"
by Wiccagrrl » Mon Jun 04, 2001 7:02 pm
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Tracy
Hear that Baby? You're my always.
by tommo » Mon Jun 04, 2001 7:25 pm
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"It doesn't matter, really, if I don't see Willow tonight, she knew. Willow was in her life, for keeps. That was what mattered." ~ Tara, Unseen: The Burning
by Zahir » Sun Jun 10, 2001 8:45 am
* * *
From the shadow of the trees, Tara watched as Riley left the house, the Summers home. Not surprisingly, those parting from him at the door were Buffy Summers and her mother. She waited as the soldier (ex-soldier?) went to his car. One minute later, he was gone. And Tara herself had edged near enough to the front window for her to listen.
In the living room was what Tara thought of as The Core Group. Buffy herself, with Xander and Giles. And Willow. Buffy's mother was headed upstairs, obviously tired. Faith, looking exhausted, went ahead of her.
Neither Wesley nor Anya were anywhere to be seen. Somewhat amazingly, all of the Core Group appeared jazzed. They might have just awakened after a week's sleep instead of returning from a no-holds-barred combat with dozens of hellish monsters. Xander was even loading a video tape for them to watch--the first of a small pile. Clearly, none of them planned to sleep anytime soon. Indeed, all were settling down with popcorn.
Tara left them to their movie-fest. Winding her way through the (mostly) deserted streets of Sunnydale, she pondered her own behavior. She clearly found Willow attractive. Alright. There was no threat in admitting that. But more than attractive? Yes, that held several dangers. For one thing, demons and humans rarely mixed well. When they did, the demons in question were almost never her own type--predators who fed on something inherent in human flesh. In her case, blood. Beyond all the problems inherent in theoretical human/vampire relations, there were the difficulties involving this specific human and this equally specific vampire.
Willow was a friend to not one but two Slayers. Plus she showed signs of being a powerful witch.
Meanwhile, Tara herself was not simply a vampire. She too had some skills in magic, but more importantly she was the favored get of an ancient and powerful being with definite plans for her. Mentally comparing Willow to her sire made Tara shudder inside, at least slightly. The Apostate was--awesome. And evil.
It added up to making any fascination she felt for the red-haired witch a terrifically dangerous complication.
As Tara walked in the night that was her home, her ally and her feeding grounds, she pondered complications. What they might portend. Their costs. And what might--might--make such costs a worthwhile price she'd be willing to pay. Her walk back to the Apostate's lair took far longer than usual.
* * *
"Doesn't it seem kinda--too much?" Willow tried to relax in the seemingly vast space in the back of the limo. She nearly succeeded.
"C'mon, Red. Relax, already!" Faith and Buffy were seated across from her. Weirdly, both wore identical military fatigues. The ponytails (since when did Faith wear ponytails?) were a another touch that just seemed wrong.
"Yeah, you don't want to be late for class," added Buffy.
True. But Willow found it hard to concentrate on Film History. For one thing, was a limo really the way she wanted to show up on the first day? And for another, the tinted glass was more like shiny black marble. Nothing at all was visible through it, making the interior of the limo somehow more unworldy. So she cracked open a window for a peek.
Glare. Near-blinding white light. Only a few details to be made out before she rolled the window up again.
"Uh...guys?"
Both Slayers looked at her, each identically cocking her head to the right.
"Any reason we're going to class via Death Valley?"
Faith looked at Buffy. Then Buffy looked at Faith. "We don't know yet," they said in unison. Both resuming looking at Willow.
To her horror, Willow was late to class. She tried to sneak in, which wasn't too hard since the lights were out and the projector running. On the far wall flickering images of a movie were visible. That made sense.
If only the movie did.
A black and white image of Adam was in what looked like an equally black and white castle, surrounded by cheesy lab equiptment. Wesley and Riley, in lab coats, stood to one side. The latter held Buffy in his arms. She was wearing a long elegant negligee.
"You go," grunted Adam on the screen, gesturing to Buffy and Riley. They made their way out. "You stay." He pointed to Wesley and another figure--a woman in long robes and weirdly high hair, tiny bolts sticking out of either side of her neck. Somehow the fact this woman was her mother didn't upset Willow so much as the fact she hissed.
"We belong dead," grunted Adam, throwing a switch and blowing up the castle.
Then the light came up. Willow blinked, certain she'd seen something scurry from behind the screen just as the credits had begun to roll. But then the nature of classroom registered, taking all of her attention for now.
She was on a soundstage, with a set in one corner and the rest filled with lights, cables, cameras, etc. The school desks of course didn't belong. But strutting in front of them all was Giles, in cavalry boots and a beret. "Right everybody! Enough homework. Time to shoot the climax of our film! If we get it right the very first time, then we'll be able to secure funding for the rest. If not, I'm afraid you'll all have to sell your kidneys on the black market. Any questions?"
Oz lifted his hand for recognition. "No, Mr. Osbourne we are not going to do THE WOLF MAN." Oz put his hand down. "Right! Then lets prepare. Everybody hide. Save for our star, of course. And the make up and costume people. Ladies and Gentlemen, a big hand for the lady upon whom all our hopes and dreams of happiness rest--Willow Rosenstein!"
Everyone burst into applause.
"Uh...that's Rosenberg...guys?" At a gesture from Giles with his riding crop, Harmony and Cordelia picked up Willow's chair and carried it over to the makeup area, with Willow in it.
"Do you think she's up to it?" inquired Harmony.
"Of course not," answered Cordelia as she put a sheet up to Willow's neck. "She's just pretending like always."
"Maybe that'll be enough." Harmony was now applying foundation to Willow's cheeks.
"It had better be. We'll all die if she screws up even the tiniest little bit."
Willow was speechless at this last. She tried to talk but couldn't. And she could feel her eyes getting bigger.
"So one flub of one line..." asked Harmony.
"...and thousands of innocent people suffer horribly." Cordelia nodded.
"But, but...Why?" Willow finally found her voice. "I mean, if so much is riding on this, shouldn't you be showing me a script?"
Cordelia and Harmony looked at Willow as they might a pair of not-quite-right shoes.
"Okay," said Harmony. "One hint."
"You're the lead in a great and wonderful love story."
"The kind of love that overcomes all obstacles."
"And neither of you so much as breathes in the direction of anybody else."
"You can that, right?"
Willow knew what to do now. Panic. In fact, she was just about to try fainting when Cordelia and Harmony pulled off the sheet and stepped away so she could see herself in the makeup mirror.
She was sheathed in black and red, including a far-too-tight corset that managed to create quite a bit of cleavage. This was an outfit she'd seen--in fact, worn--once before. Likewise they'd paled her skin and attached some kind of prosthetic to her forehead. Willow couldn't remember them doing that. But they must have. Just as they must have put in yellow contact lenses in her eyes and slipped fangs into her mouth. Otherwise, why would she look like a vampire?
"PLACES!" bellowed Giles.
Anya scurried up, Xander in tow. "Gotta get our star to the set!" said Xander happily.
"I could've played the lead, if only you hadn't slept with the director" hissed Anya.
"Wait! I didn't! Did I?" Willow was pulled along to what looked like a Victorian-era bedroom. The huge four poster had transluscent red curtains. Buffy and Faith were escorting someone else onto the set. Tara. Only Tara was in a remarkably sheer white nightgown. Remarkably sheer. Able-to-be-remarked-about enough Willow could almost see her... No, she actually COULD see...
Giles put his arm around Willow.
"Ah! The star at last!"
"Giles? Anya just said something. I just wanted to make sure it wasn't true."
He leaned in to whisper in her ear. "You know, you can't possibly hide forever. Everyone already knows." Then he turned to everyone else and started speaking through a megaphone. "All right, everybody! This is it! Our long-awaited remake of the 'The Wizard of Oz' is about to begin." Willow gaped at him. "I personally think all the added gore and explicit sex scenes will make it irresistable as a family picture. Let's get rolling."
"Giles!" begged Willow. "I haven't even seen a script!"
"Don't worry it'll all come to you," he said without focussing on her. "Just slink your way over to the bed, and bite your willing victim who even now eagerly awaits her demon lover."
"Oh. So I don't have any lines?"
"Not in this scene. But you have all of them in all the others. Hop to it!" As he was saying this, Giles placed Willow in a specific spot on the set, aiming her towards the bed. He then hurried off to check with Xander, operating the camera, and Oz doing sound.
Willow waited. She looked at the bed, and waited. After a moment or two, she began thinking about the scene and what she'd do. How to part the curtain. What Tara might look like, strewn across the sheets. Nightgown open at the neck. She allowed herself to imagine what it would be like to see desire in the vampire's face. Desire for her. Of course, for the purposes of the movie it was Willow who was the vampire.
"LIGHTS! CAMERA! ACTION!" Giles commanded.
Okay. This was it. Willow did her best attempt at slinking. In fact what she did was pretend to be her vampire self. Not too hard. The distance to the bed was not great, but every step seemed a mile at least. She hesitated at the curtains. Through them she could make out a shape, reclining on the bed. Tara. Waiting for her. For Willow. Her demon lover who would feed from her. Willow put one hand on the curtain, feeling the texture, its weight. Allowing herself a few moments to dwell on the fantasy, Willow imagined what it would be like, to pull Tara into her arms, to leap onto that body. Running her fingers along the curtain, she found the openning. Waiting for me, waiting for me, she thought to herself. Her hand gripped the curtain's edge. A tiny moan. From where? The bed.
Waiting for me.
In one tug, Willow pushed aside the curtain.
Tara's dead body lay sprawled on the sheets, a wooden stake protruding from between her breasts. It looked obscene.
Some kind of dark, ragged figure leapt at Willow.
"Guy! Help me! Help!" she managed to gasp out as the strong figure pinned her down. It bit into her neck. And from that point a weary coldness spread through her body. Willow felt as if she was aging, withering, losing all of...what? Something important, that was certain. As she ceased struggling, faint echoes of despair were in her mind.
From a distance, she heard Giles say "Cut! Print!"
* * *
Tara watched Willow. She seemed distracted. The Slayers and their Watchers were off in the corner of the Bronze, talking with Doyle. Although they didn't really trust Tara, she realized they were willing to listen to her. So maybe her introduction wouldn't compromise the halfbreed with them. But Willow, getting a drink, wasn't looking at them. Her eyes were on Xander and Anya, dancing.
"Are you alright?" Willow almost jumped. Tara hadn't meant to startle her.
"Oh! Yeah. Pretty much. I'm okay. Just..."
"What?"
"I had a really, really weird dream."
"Was I in it?" Tara nearly kicked herself for saying the first thing that came to mind.
"You were, yeah. I was a vampire and you were my victim. Only it wasn't realistic. All Hammer Horror-ish with the cleavage and stuff."
"Cleavage?"
"Yeah. There was cleavage."
Tara could feel the ghost of a smile on her lips. She changed subjects. "Any idea when Buffy's boyfriend will be back?"
Willow nodded. "Tomorrow."
"Good."
"So I guess me and Faith'll be spending more time together. We're the unattached ones. Except Faith's kinda a loner. And she doesn't really get the stuff I like."
"Like witchcraft."
"For instance." She made no move to leave Tara's side.
After another few moments, Tara got up the nerve to ask "Would you like to dance?"
TO BE CONTINUED
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"O let my name be in the Book of Love.
If it be there, I care not of
That other book Above...
Strike it out! Or write it in anew.
But let it be in the Book of Love!"
--Omar Kyam
by tommo » Sun Jun 10, 2001 9:44 am
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"Say hello to the kitten board and give them my love." ~ Amber Benson
by xita » Sun Jun 10, 2001 10:44 am
by AngelusUK » Sun Jun 10, 2001 11:42 am
I can't wait for Willow and Vamp Tara to get together.
Many thanks again Zahir.
------------------
Amber Fan
Willow "Thats fine I don't need to be snuggled"
Tara "Vixen"
by Halcyon » Sun Jun 10, 2001 12:47 pm
by Zahir » Sun Jun 10, 2001 1:21 pm
Willow and Tara have sex the next episode.
And its not the way you expect...
------------------
"O let my name be in the Book of Love.
If it be there, I care not of
That other book Above...
Strike it out! Or write it in anew.
But let it be in the Book of Love!"
--Omar Kyam
by Ed Wood » Sun Jun 10, 2001 1:40 pm
And believe me, it's never the way I expect!
[This message has been edited by Ed Wood (edited June 10, 2001).]
by Thespia » Sun Jun 10, 2001 4:48 pm
I'm really curious about what will happen next. I love Vamp Tara. Oh, let them be together already!
by Rane » Sun Jun 10, 2001 4:58 pm
by tommo » Sun Jun 10, 2001 5:38 pm
Come on Zahir! There are sex starved people waiting here!
*wishes she was not one of them*
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"Say hello to the kitten board and give them my love." ~ Amber Benson
[This message has been edited by tommo (edited June 10, 2001).]
by Wiccagrrl » Sun Jun 10, 2001 6:13 pm
------------------
Tracy
Hear that Baby? You're my always.
by Elfie » Sun Jun 10, 2001 6:49 pm
Ah well, I'll just wait for the next one *pout*
-Nora
Edited to add : woohoo!!!! Floating Rose!!! No more creepy ugly Gentleman face!!!!
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Do I contradict myself?
Very well then I contradict myself.
-Walt Whitman
[This message has been edited by Elfie (edited June 10, 2001).]
by Zahir » Sun Jun 10, 2001 9:17 pm
Having said that, let me make a promise to everyone here. In Part Eight ("The Replacement") there will be sex. What's more, it'll be between Willow and Tara.
And wait till Buffy finds out! Heh heh heh
------------------
"O let my name be in the Book of Love.
If it be there, I care not of
That other book Above...
Strike it out! Or write it in anew.
But let it be in the Book of Love!"
--Omar Kyam
by Wiccagrrl » Sun Jun 10, 2001 10:30 pm
------------------
Tracy
Hear that Baby? You're my always.
by Sparky » Sun Jun 10, 2001 11:17 pm
Please hurry I can't wait very long. You always cut it at the best spots just to tease us. Teasing's a good thing, though.
------------------
-"She's my girl"
-"She's my everything"
by Kalita » Mon Jun 11, 2001 5:18 am
Kal
Ooh! Sex! Can't wait!
by Arwen » Mon Jun 11, 2001 5:37 pm
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"Back off, polygrip. You think you're bad?
All mean and haunty and picking on poor
pathetic Cordy? Well get ready to haul your
wrinkly translucent ass out of this place,
'cause lady, the bitch is back."
Cordelia - "Room w/a Vu"
by Shaniezak » Mon Jun 11, 2001 5:53 pm
Loving. It.
And a few more.
I. Can't. Wait. For. The. Next. Part.
You so rock, Zahir.
by Thespia » Mon Jun 11, 2001 10:00 pm
quote:
Originally posted by Zahir:
Thespia, I know I posted Part 7 to the list earlier today. What's more, I just checked and it is there.
I couldn't find it. It must be biting me and I don' see it, Well, that's me. Glad I found it here. I really like it.
Anyway, I think Buffy will be pretty shocked to find out her best friend is interested in a (female!) vampire. That should be fun.
quote:by rhiannongayle » Tue Jun 12, 2001 12:48 am
by Rane » Tue Jun 12, 2001 9:41 pm
by CaBil » Sun Jun 17, 2001 8:09 am
One week is up in a half hour....
Not sure I can hold out for much longer...
by FondaBuhtz » Sun Jun 17, 2001 9:45 am
to quote my nannie i have ants in my pants hehe
Lisa
------------------
Willow - Buffy was right, Buffy was right
Anya - Doesn't sound very likely does it?
by Kajun » Sun Jun 17, 2001 9:57 am
by Zahir » Sun Jun 17, 2001 10:38 am
* * *
Garbage dumps were one reason Tara was glad she didn't have to breathe. Like this one. Unfortunately, talking did require her to inhale so she remained silent. And hoped no one asked her any questions.
"No offense, Buffy," whispered Riley from several yards away, "but why is she here?" Being a vampire, Tara had little difficulty hearing this exchange. Also, little troube figuring out who She was.
"Weird, I know, but she keeps helping out."
"For how long?"
"Good question."
"So...?"
"We keep an eye on her. Besides. Wesley and Giles have this theory. I'll get them to explain later."
Tara thought to herself she'd try and eavesdrop on that conversation as well. Meanwhile, she circled another small hill of refuse. Mostly what she found was rats. Lots and lots of rats. Good to know if she was ever really hard up for blood. Really, really hard up. By now she was nearing another group in the party. Xander and his girlfriend Anya. Their whispers were just as easy to overhear from the darkness.
"Oh, yeah," Anya was going on, "blood sucking demons always hang out around Slayers, saving their lives even." Is anybody thinking about the demon that attacked Giles, Tara thought to herself? Isn't that why we're here?
"Like I said, she's got some kind of agenda. A secret plan. And I'm sure Buffy realizes that and is just biding her time." Not for the first time, Tara mused how Xander was much more intelligent than he let on. His theory was even right, as far as it went.
"Xander."
"What?"
"Willow."
"Yeah? What about her?"
"She's the reason Tara is always hovering. Tara likes Willow.
"Everybody likes Willow."
"Xander--she wants to have sex with her."
It was uncomfortable to hear that spoken so nakedly. Still, Tara got a little bit of a distracting pleasure as Xander tripped and fell. Anya of course helped him up again, amid varioius "ow's" over the pain and "ick's" over what he'd fallen into. Given that Anya's own arm was in a sling she did a good job.
"Are you okay, Xander?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. Ankle needs some R & R but the rest of me is fine."
Anya's hugging of him ended as she pulled away, wrinkling her nose. "You stink."
"Here, how can you tell?"
"DEEEEEMON!" Willow's voice echoed. Xander and Anya forgotten, Tara ran in that direction. Never mind going around the piles of garbage. Using supernatural strength she scrambled over them. There! Willow was running from a bald robed figure. He looked the color of charred wood, with with eyes and veins like lava. And in one hand was something like a staff, or maybe a wand. The staff rose and pointed at Willow, now racing in the direction of Buffy.
Tara was closer. She sprang into the space between the demon's staff and Willow. Just in time.
* * *
Willow expected to feel something all burning or maybe lightning-like, or both, especially after hearing the thunder-like discharge from the demon's staff. Behind her there was a flash of eldritch light. Yet nothing happened. The expressions on Buffy and Riley's faces coming up on her looked...odd.
She turned around.
Two figures were getting up off the ground. One she recognized easily enough as Tara. But she'd never seen Tara move so tentatively, to look around her so lost. The vampire looked at her hands and began to tremble. Willow took a step towards her then stopped as a strange sound came from Tara's mouth. It seemed to be a...sob?
Meanwhile the Other figure had launched itself at the demon with the staff. It was as if a bodybuilder had a rabid leopard jump on him. Snarling, the Other literally tore open the robed demon's throat. The slurping noises that followed were disgusting.
Watching this, Tara actually whimpered. Willow stared. Since when did vampires whimper?
Now the Other looked at them full on for the first time. Not a pleasant sight. Leathery dark skin with a v-shape of jagged horns along the forehead. A snout-like nose above a befanged mouth, now dripping with gore. Pointed ears that drooped slightly in a distinctly bestial way. Only the eyes seemed even a little familiar. They were the feral yellow of a vampire.
Standing over the body, this new demon looked at them for perhaps two whole seconds. Then it raced away into the night. Riley and Buffy wasted no time running after it.
Willow approached Tara slowly. She did not seem herself.
Xander hissed at her "Willow! Be careful!"
Then, Tara turned in Willow's direction. Her expression was shocking. Frightened, for one thing. Willow had never seen Tara frightened. Not even once. More, she moved nervously, almost as if each movement was a shy jerk. She pulled her jacket closer in for warmth. That's not right, Willow thought.
Then she noticed something else. She could see Tara's breath in the cold.
Vampires have no body heat.
Willow reached out and touched Tara's hand. Warm. Her hand was warm! And Tara herself looked on the verge of tears.
In one motion Willow brought Tara into her arms, holding her tight as the girl began to silently--then not so silently--weep.
"Shhh. Its alright. I'm here..."
* * *
Danger. Run. Run faster. Run faster.
Those Who Follow must be lost. Yes. Danger in them. For now. So run. Fast. Faster. Faster still. Hide in the shadows. Run in them. This is night. My time. Shadows everywhere. Run but run silently.
Where?
To the nest. To the Parent. Yes. But not straight. No, that is how prey think. I am not prey. Stay within the shadows. And run as silent as I can. Keep the senses alert for danger. And for food.
Hungry. But not too hungry. Is there danger? No. Listen hard for any other running, for heartbeats racing because they had been running.
Nothing. No thing.
But there!
Prey! In silly loose clothes and soft shoes, running but running in a straight line and very slow.
The prey pays no heed as it passes the shadows of a tree. Stupid prey. But moments to grab it and pull it into the shadows. Fangs find where the food flows, ripping through flesh. Catch the food as it gushes. In moments the prey stops squirming. But then the food stops flowing. Must suck. Hard. Harder.
Leave the prey under leaves. That covers the trail. Enough.
Now to double back through the shadows, winding a tricky way back to the nest before the sun comes back.
Back to the nest.
And the Parent.
* * *
Giles was doing his best with a really weird situation, Willow thought to herself. Understandably he stared at Tara--how often did a Watcher get to see an ex-vampire, after all?--but he kept it to a minimum. Xander and Anya, on the other hand--their eyes were glued to the blonde. Only Willow's protective hovering kept them from asking all sorts of questions.
Tara herself was in an upright feta position on the sofa. Willow sat alongside her, one arm around her shoulders. She'd managed to get the (now human) girl to sip some chicken soup. Other than that, Tara barely reacted to her environment at all. Now and then she fixed her eyes on Willow, but that was all.
"I believe," said Giles in a low voice,"I now know what has happened." He'd been pouring over several books for hours.
"This has gotta be good," muttered Xander under his breath. Willow shushed him with a gesture.
"Well, Toth--that's the demon who used the staff you described--his intended target was Buffy. In effect he was using magic to split her into two component parts. One would have been the Slayer, with the heritage and the strength. The other would be simply--Buffy. No more or less."
"Uh, Giles?" Xander didn't quite raise his hand. "Wouldn't that mean he'd be up against Super Slayer. Like industrial strength?"
"Indeed. But the Buffy half would be much more vulnerable. And if either one dies, they both do."
Willow took this in for a moment.
"But he hit Tara instead."
"Precisely. This is the Tara McClay stripped, or freed, of her vampiric nature. And the other, who escaped, is the vampiric demon in its purest form. All instinct and blood lust, without even a remnant of the host's personality."
"But...But Buffy and Riley are out trying to slay it! And from you say..." Willow hugged Tara closer.
"If they succeed," Giles finished for her, "this Tara also dies."
No one spoke for nearly a minute that lasted hours. Then the front door openned. Buffy and Riley wearily stepped inside.
"We lost it," declared Riley.
"That thing was unbelievably fast," added Buffy. "I'm glad I don't have to fight what-ever-it-is too often."
"According to Giles, actually, you've been doing exactly that for years" said Xander.
"What do you mean."
"Buffy," began Willow, "what you were chasing was a vampire."
"Like no vampire I've ever seen."
"Well, both yes and no," said Giles. "That was the vampire seperated from any trace of humanity. I think the idea was to use this magic on you, splitting you into Buffy and Slayer. But you weren't the one hit."
Buffy took all this in. She especially noticed Willow's arm around the form of Tara--a breathing and cying Tara.
"Oh. My. God."
"Buffy," said Willow, "this is the real Tara."
* * *
The Parent seemed pleased. He smiled. And he led the way to a room very deep and dark. The sun was rising soon. Yes. Here was a safe place. The safest part of the nest.
Sleep would come soon.
"Ah my dear Tara," whispered the Parent. What did these words mean? Or any words? It probably did not matter. "What has happened, I wonder? Such metamorphosis usually only occurs with great age. Very great age indeed. Has someone been playing with temporal magics, perhaps? Or is it something else? I'd hate to lose such an ideal novice."
Sleep. Sleep was coming. With the sun.
Tara lay down on the stone floor to rest. She barely noticed her Sire locking the door behind him as he left.
* * *
Tara woke in warmth. Delicious warmth out of her sweetest dreams. Her eyes snapped open, a part of her flinching at the sunlight beaming through the dorm windows. It took her barely two seconds to realise where she was. With Willow.
Last night, Willow had insisted on taking care of her. Vivid as memory, but not, Tara knew who Willow was. Knew her as a beautiful young redhead who studied witchcraft. As an object of fascinated lust that was her own and yet someone else's. Willow the lovely. Willow the brave. Willow the wise. Turning, she could see Willow's face beside her in the bed. Like Tara, she was still dressed.
Willow's eyes openned.
They outshone the sun.
"Tara?" Goddess. Her voice. "How are you feeling?"
In love. "I..don't know. I'm me, but not. Does that make any sense?"
Willow nodded, whether it did or did not. "How much do you remember?"
"Everything." Too much. "But its like it was someone else. Yet it was me. Me. A monster. A demon."
"Not just that," Willow said firmly. "I know. You saved my life more than once. And helped out lots of times. Buffy's been going crazy trying to figure out why. I think I already know."
Tara could listen to her talk for hours. For decades. "Go on," she whispered.
"It was you. The part of you that isn't a demon. The human half."
Listening to this, Tara wanted so much to agree. But she couldn't. "You don't understand," she said. Tears welled up in her eyes. "I was under orders to do all that. My sire, the vampire who made me, he has plans. He wanted me to be useful to the Slayer and her friends, all part of some plan."
Willow's distress at these words nearly tore Tara's heart out. But better this than a lie. Wasn't it?
Her next words were a whisper. "Tara?"
"Yes?"
"If you were just obeying orders--that time the Mayor kept me prisoner, and we were alone?
"I remember."
"Why did you kiss me?"
Tara didn't answer that question. She'd learned to fear too much hope, and to avoid it as a ship avoids underwater rocks. But Willow's brilliant green eyes never left hers. The question hung between them. Soon, so did Tara's unvoiced answer:
Because I wanted to.
This time it was Willow who kissed Tara. Nothing more than a pressing of lips. But Tara welcomed it with a fierce, terrified hunger. She dared not take it further, exerting every drop of willpower to stop herself melting into the redhead's embrace. Not that it mattered. Willow wrapped her arms around Tara, kissing her again. A tiny moan escaped Tara. Then Willow gently traced her tongue against Tara's lips.
Defenses against pain began to crumble now. Simple kisses grew deeper. Hands and fingers began to wander, slowly at first but with greater courage each passing minute. Neither girl rushed. Fully half an hour passed between the first kiss and the first hand to tentatively slip underneath a shirt.
Although never fast, the pace did quicken.
Kissing of mouths was followed by that of throats, then ears. hands and wrists. Buttons were undone, things pulled up and over heads, so kissing could explore ribcages and navels. Later nipples were traced with lips and tongue and teeth. Nor were hands ignored as they too traced and felt and cupped. The sight of each other had always intoxicated. Now they found the smell of hair and skin no less dizzying. Yet they savored. Another half hour passed before pants joined sweaters and bras on the bedroom floor. Still another was nearly gone when the last of their garments was discarded. By then taste was the only sensation not yet fully explored. They did so with enthusiastic and mounting joy. And Tara's tears were of pleasure for a change, while with a searing pride she knew Willow's were the same.
Their afterglow was blinding.
Of course that's when Buffy walked in.
TO BE CONTINUED
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"O let my name be in the Book of Love.
If it be there, I care not of
That other book Above...
Strike it out! Or write it in anew.
But let it be in the Book of Love!"
--Omar Kyam
by Ed Wood » Sun Jun 17, 2001 11:05 am
Great great great! Absolutely adore the twist! Can't wait for more!
YAY!
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THE ABOVE STATEMENT IS FALSE!
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