FIC: Right In Front of You; Part 12/?

["Callistosdarkside" <callistosdarkside@xxxxxxxx>]

Here's number 12. Tell me what you think.

As always read here or at my site
http://b7holofantasy.homestead.com/buffyfic.html and why not vote while
you're at it. So far the W/T shippers lead by 3 over the B/W shippers the
last time I checked.

-CDS

. Title: Right In Front of You; Part 12/?
. Author: Callisto's Dark Side
. Email: callistosdarkside@xxxxxxxx
. Feedback: The more I get, the faster I write.
. Distribution: Can be found at
http://b7holofantasy.homestead.com/buffyfic.html (My Site),
http://www.geocities.com/last_days_of_pern, and
http://www.peccath.com/extraflamey/mainframe.htm
. Spoilers: All of Season 5, but events take place before some events in
Tough Love.
. Rating: R
. Pairing: W/T & B/W
. Disclaimer: All characters from Buffy the Vampire Slayer belong to the
almighty Joss Whedon and Company, and are only being borrowed for the fun
and enjoyment of us, the super fans.
. Summary: Willow/Tara fic in which the two love birds must manage to deal
with the consequences of a spell that threatens to tear them apart forever.


Chapter 12

Tara and Leanna plopped themselves down on the couch, sweat and dirt
covering their bodies.

"Here's your water," Dawn announced as she handed Tara and Leanna a glass
each.

"Thank you," The two brunettes replied.

"Hey, it's the least I could do after you let me stay in here and read books
instead of killing myself out there."

"Believe me," Tara downed a gulp of water, "If there was a third pitchfork,
you'd have been right there with us."

"Hmmm, then I guess I'm happy that I wasn't a victim of circumstance," Dawn
grinned.

"There's always tomorrow," Tara suggested.

"But aren't you guys finished doing what you were doing?"

"Yes, but we still have to water the field," Leanna supplied.

"Oh, then I guess I'm not as lucky as I thought," Dawn shrugged her
shoulders.

Tara and Leanna both closed their eyes and leaned back into the cushions.

"I'll just leave you two labourers alone while I go back to Anna's room and
finish off my book," Dawn said softly as she headed out of the living room
and closed the door behind her.

Leanna's eyes fluttered open and were immediately drawn to the locket around
Tara's neck. She had noticed it glistening in the sun, but was too
embarrassed to say anything at the time.

Tara opened her eyes and realised the fellow brunette was staring at her,
"What is it?" Tara asked self-consciously.

Leanna shook her head, "I'm sorry, I was just admiring the locket you're
wearing."

"Oh," Tara blushed.

"It's very pretty."

"Thank you," Tara fondled the locket, the image of her and Willow fresh in
her head. "Do you want to see it?"

"May I?"

"Of course." Tara undid the locket from behind her neck and carefully
handed it to Leanna.

Leanna took it in her hands and admired the fine craftsmanship, running her
thumb along the side before finally opening it to reveal a picture of a
redheaded woman holding Tara from behind, her chin resting on Tara's
shoulder.

"This painting is very life-like," Leanna commented.

"Actually that's not a painting. In our world we something called a camera
and it takes photographs."

"Pho-to-graphs?"

"Yes, they're kinda like paintings, only there's no paint. If you want, you
can think of it as an instant painting."

"Instant paintings? That must be magic."

"Not really, but when I think about it, it is pretty neat."

"This woman in here with you, is she your life-mate?"

"Umm, yeah," Tara answered, slightly stunned. "How'd you know?"

"The way she holds you, it's very loving."

"Oh," Tara blushed.

"She's very beautiful as well. You're lucky to have such a life-mate."

"Thank you. Have you ever had a."

"Life-mate?" Leanna completed Tara's thought.

"Yes."

Leanna shook her head. "Once, I loved someone, but when I ran away from
home, she refused to follow. She said I was being foolish and that I should
have stayed to take care of my family responsibilities, but she didn't know
about." Leanna choked. "She didn't know about."

Tara wrapped an arm around Leanna's shoulder, "It's okay, you don't have to
talk about it," Tara said calmly.

"I couldn't stay there anymore, I had to run, I had to get away," Leanna
cried, her body shaking uncontrollably and tears falling from her eyes.

"Shhhh," Tara soothed, wrapping both arms around the suddenly sobbing woman,
"It's alright. You're not there anymore."

"But it feels like."

"I know," Tara said knowingly. I felt the same way when I ran away."

"You did?" Leanna looked up through teary eyes.

"Yes. Then I met her," Tara's eyes turned to look at the picture of her and
Willow. "She saved me."

"Really?"

"Mmmm hmmm. I knew there was something special about her the moment we
met."

"How?"

"It was just a feeling, but it was strong one."

Leanna wiped her tear-stained hand on her shirt and reached out to touch the
image of the woman who had changed Tara's life.

"I can feel it," Leanna smiled, the instant her finger touched the redhead.

"You can?"

"Yes, it's like her love is overflowing and I can feel it through this
picture."

"That's amazing."

"It is?"

"Yes, I thought I was the only one that could feel it."

Leanna traced the image of the stranger's face, her body relaxing as she
felt a sense of contentment, "What's her name?" Leanna whispered.

"Her name's Willow," Tara paused, "My Willow."

******

"Hello Buffy and Willow," BuffyBot smiled, lying stomach-down on Buffy's bed
flipping through an ancient text, "Did you two have fun with the movies?"

"Fun? Why does everyone keep asking that?" Willow stammered, averting her
eyes because of the current cleavagey view from BuffyBot.

BuffyBot's face turned to one of confusion, "Did you two not have fun?"

"Sure, fun and the whole barrel of monkeys," Buffy drawled as she picked up
the book her robot was reading. "Could you research in Dawn's room for the
time being?"

"Your wish is my command," BuffyBot complied obediently, making both women
blush as they recalled the line from the movie, multiple times.

"Great," Buffy smiled and handed her robot the book as it got off the bed.
"Oh yeah, don't forgot to bring the books you haven't read, and don't touch
anything while you're in there."

"I do not understand that command."

"Umm, you can touch her floor but don't jump on her bed or mess with her
drawers and stuff."

"Okay," BuffyBot replied, picking up an armful of books and then leaving
through the door.

Buffy and Willow watched as the perky robot exited the room.

"Good," Buffy swung her arms freely and flopped onto the bed, "Now we're
alone." Buffy froze, the words she spoke hitting her like a brick wall
moving at fifty miles an hour.

"Yeah, good," Willow said, noting that her best friend was lying in the
middle of the bed, "I, uh, gotta freshen up first," Willow stammered,
before rushing out of the room.

"Freshen up?" Willow mumbled to herself, "That's what girls do when they're
on a date."

Meanwhile, Buffy was smacking her head, "Ah, Now we're alone. What was I
thinking? And me, lying here on the bed like. ahhh." Buffy hopped outta
bed and began pacing around the room.

"She probably thinks I was. No, she doesn't think. She's your friend, your
best friend, your very best friend. Will was probably just doing exactly
what she said she was doing, freshening up. Oh, who am I kidding? She ran
outta here faster than a shoplifter at the mini-mart. Now she's afraid of
me." Buffy paced some more, walking back-and-forth in her tiny crawlspace
she called a room.

"What am I going to do when she gets back? Should I be pacing around like
some prostitute waiting for a Jane? Argh." Buffy pressed her fingers to
her temples, forcing herself to focus. "I know, I'll pretend I'm asleep."
Buffy jumped back into bed and pulled the covers over her, noting how
Willow's blanket seemed a lot smaller than it did yesterday. "She's gonna
want some of it too Dumbo," Buffy chastised as she tried to curl up on her
side of the bed with minimal coverage, but she kept pulling in too much.
"This isn't gonna work. Maybe I should go downstairs and get my blanket.
Yeah, that's right, I'll get my blanket. No, wait, then she'll wonder why I
need it. She'll think I'm uncomfortable using a blanket with her. Ohhh."

Meanwhile, Willow happily splashed the cool water over her face, enjoying
the temporary calming sensation. "Okay, that's right, cool down Willow
Rosenberg," The Hacker spoke softly as she looked at herself in the mirror,
her face as flushed as ever. "Another five minutes and I should be good.
Wait, better make that fifteen, or maybe even twenty. No, then she'll think
something went wrong and she'll come looking for me."

Willow cupped some more water and splashed it on her face, this time
reaching for a towel to dry herself off, only the towel was already wet.
Willow felt around for a decent dry spot, but there wasn't one. Buffy must
have used it already, the redhead thought, remembering how some of Buffy's
hair was damp when she came back down the stairs to save her from Anya.

The Hacker looked for her facecloth, but she had thrown it in the hamper
earlier in the day and had forgot to replace it. So she looked around for
an extra towel, but there wasn't one. She and Buffy had done minimal
laundry ever since Tara and Dawn had disappeared, and from what she heard
from Giles, that had actually started after the death of Buffy's mom.

So now she was stuck with using the wet towel that Buffy had already used,
going downstairs to pick up some more towels, which would require passing
Anya, or using the shirt she was currently wearing. She opted for the
shirt.

Buffy tossed and turned on her bed, trying to find the right position. She
finally settled on lying with her back towards the centre of the bed. Now
she tried to snore, hoping she could find the right rhythm, but she couldn't
find anything that wouldn't scare the redhead off, and that's when Willow
walked in.

"Buffy?" Willow asked hesitantly, as she tiptoed into the room.

"Yeah Will?" Buffy responded, feigning grogginess.

"I thought I heard snoring."

"You know me, fall asleep as soon as my head hits the pillow."

"Yeah," Willow smiled. "Do you want me to turn the lights off?" The Hacker
asked, half-reaching for the switch.

"If you want," The Slayer said casually.

"Okay," Willow quickly flipped the switch and the room blackened, but the
moonlight shining through the curtains gave Buffy's face a heavenly glow.

Buffy's body tensed as Willow approached the bed, her hands sweating and
breathing stopping as soon as Willow sat down.

The Hacker lifted the blanket, revealing Buffy's backside. As she slid into
her sleeping position she slightly brushed up against the Slayer, causing
both of them jolt at the contact.

"You're wet," Buffy instinctively commented as she felt Willow's wet shirt
making contact against her back, but once again the Slayer mentally
chastised herself for talking before thinking.

"Umm, yeah, no more towels."

"Sorry about that."

"It's okay, that's what shirts are for, right?"

"Definitely. They should advertise that in the paper. Don't have a towel,
use your shirt," Buffy joked.

"Yeah, don't have a napkin, use your shirt," Willow added.

"Exactly," Buffy breathed a sigh of relief. "So, I guess I should say
goodnight Will."

"And I should say goodnight Buffy."

"Good, I'm glad we agree."

The two friends then attempted to sleep, Willow gathering most of the
blankets, while Buffy tried to calm her breathing. Two minutes in, Buffy
sprang her bed.

"What is it?" Willow asked, turning to see Buffy at the window.

"The window," Buffy opened it up, "I just wanted to get a breeze in here."

"Good idea."

"I thought so."

Buffy closed her eyes, enjoying the cool night air against skin for a couple
minutes before sliding back into bed. This was going to be a long night.

To be continued.