FIC: REPOST: Militat omnis amans (Every lover is a warrior) Part 1a/?

["Beckett, Kevin" <kevin.beckett@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Militat omnis amans (Every lover is a warrior) Part 1a/?
 
Disclaimers:
Buffy, Willow and all of the other characters and places from the show
belong to Joss Whedon, WB and Mutant Enemy etal. Everyone and everything
else is mine. None of my characters are meant to resemble anyone living,
dead or un-dead, if you see yourself you are looking way too hard.
 
Rating: 
PG-13ish (to start I guess)
 
Other: 
The Latin and Gaelic are mine; I take the responsibility for any
translations of them. In addition, the descriptions of the rituals, spells
and other craft work come from my traditions, so please don't take offence
if something described here does not match your traditions or what you think
it should.
 
Archiving etc.: 
Ask and I'll say yes.  
 
Spoilers:
Everything up to the middle of season four - I diverge then.
 
This is a first for me, be kind please. However, any and all meaningful
criticism, support and suggestions are welcome. 
And, I'll be honest, I saw the idea in an earlier post, and something in me
screamed WRITE, WRITE NOW STUPID, so I wrote. 
mailto:kevin.beckett@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
 
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Part I - Dum vivimus vivamus (Let's live while we're alive)
 
Take me with you on this journey
Where the boundaries of time are now tossed
In cathedrals of the forest
In the words of the tongues now lost
 
Find the answers, ask the questions
Find the roots of an ancient tree
Take me dancing, take me singing
I'll ride on till the moon meets the sea
 
Night Ride Across the Caucasus
Loreena McKennitt, The Book of Secrets
© 1997, Quinlan Road Music
 
Darkness, with a cold North breeze coming down from the Artic chilling the
February air, was not a pleasant, or particularly safe, time to be out in
the town of Sunnydale California. The glow from the street lamps lining the
pathways through the UC Sunnydale campus did not penetrate very far since
the night sky was a light absorbing black due to the low heavy overcast. 
 
"Damn," thought the redheaded girl walking quickly across campus to her dorm
room.  
"Its four hours to midnight and with this sky, and with the moon being
nearly new, I'll have to trust my instincts and the clock for the timing of
the second part of tonight's ritual."
 
Watching from the near-by shrubbery was shadowy, indistinct figure,
definitely human in appearance, but moving far more silently through the
woods than a human could. With a primal roar, it leaped from the bushes
towards Willow.
"Ah, damn!" she exclaimed turning towards the fully morphed vampire.  
"Fifteen minutes from the dorm and now I'm going to waste precious time
dealing with you!"
This definitely was not the reaction that the newly risen, and hungry,
vampire was expecting, and he figured out pretty quick that his initial plan
of attack, eat and leave quietly wasn't going to work any more. So with
typical single mindedness he decided to change his plan to attack, eat and
just leave.
"Little girl, you are lunch!" He screamed jumping towards Willow.
"That's what you think, fangy," Willow quipped as she sidestepped the
vampire's initial attack and quickly brought her hands up into a warding
gesture.
"Soilshey ny greiney!" Willow shouted and drew her hands apart.
There was a sudden explosion of light between her hands, which quickly
formed into a ball that she then cast towards the startled vampire.
"Eat sunshine ass-hole!" She yelled as the ball of light enveloped the
vampire and he began to scream from the flames that were merrily burning his
flesh.
A few moments later, there was nothing left of the former bloodsucker but a
small pile of smoking ash, and a dancing ball of sun light.
Willow stared, stunned, at the results of her work while quickly whispering
"ec kione" to collapse her spell back into the elemental realm she drew it
from, before it began to draw attention to her and her activities.
"Damn," she exclaimed, exhausted from the energy required for the spell.  
"I love it when something works right the first time."  
 
"Well, it looks like you don't really need me anymore" a muscular blond
figure said; quietly leaving the woods where she had been watching the
preceding events and joining Willow on the path.
"Buffy!" Willow exclaimed, "Need, I do, definitely, need, but you not here,
vampire here, spell new..." 
"Willow, I was just joking" she said, drawing the other girl into a close
embrace and whispering into her ear, "I know that you will always need me."
With her fingers softly caressing the cheek of her closest friend and lover
she added, "and I trust, always want me."
"Of course, I need, and want you," the redhead whispered back turning her
lips towards the other's soft lips for a passionate kiss.
"Ah, that was just the energy restorer I was looking for." Willow exclaimed
as she broke away from the kiss after a couple of heart stopping minutes.
"How did your patrol go?" She asked as the two of them began to walk hand
in hand to their room. 
"Not bad, one old-time demon and two other newby vamps aside from the one
you disposed of." Buffy replied, mentally re-hashing the evening so far. 
"A pretty typical evening then in the demon disposal business then." Willow
replied keeping her eyes firmly fixed on the object of her love.
"Yep, same old same old." Buffy answered, sensing Willow's gaze on her and
avoiding the temptation to return it by keeping a sharp lookout for other
potential, lethal, night time distractions.  
"Speaking of vamp removal, that's a pretty powerful new spell you have there
at your disposal witch-girl."
Willow stopped walking and sat down on a near-by bench.
"You're right, Buffy. I've been working on this type of spell for a while
now, but I didn't expect it to work as well as it did."
"What did you expect would happen?" Buffy asked as she sat down beside her
friend.
"Well, I was hoping that the spell would go off, and distract the vamp long
enough so that I could run to safety."
"Good plan Willow, but?"
"But, as I cast the spell, I felt an enormous collection of energy being
drawn towards me, and somehow I suddenly knew that the spell would be far
more powerful than I thought." Willow paused and though for a moment. 
"Its been happening a lot recently." She added softly.
"What's that?"
"Its just that my spells have been getting a lot stronger lately, ever
since..."
"Ever since what?"
"Well, you know, since..." she whispered.
"Give it up witch, since when?" Buffy prodded, having already figured out
the reason for herself, but wanting to hear it from her soul mate.
"You know, since Christmas."
"Ah," the blond exclaimed. "Since you and I took our relationship to the
next level, so to speak."
"Yeah, since then, so to speak, in addition I guess to my becoming a 3rd
degree witch at the Solstice."
"Speaking of witch business, what were you doing out on campus? Weren't
you supposed at your parents getting ready for the big event later?"
"Oh my Goddess!" Willow said bolting from the bench and grabbing Buffy by
the hand, "time, no-time talk, herbs and stuff, dorm, robes, stuff, got to
get going..."
"Slow down Will," Buffy said smiling at her friend as she was being
willingly dragged down the path, "we still have a few hours to go yet." 
--------------------------------
 
About a half-hour later, one very flustered witch and one very amused slayer
looked around their dorm room. It had the appearance of having survived,
barely, a close encounter with a hurricane, the hurricane in this case being
a frantic Willow.
"Ok, double check time, you have my list Buffy?" Willow said in a panic
while looking though a massive tote bag.
"Right here lover."
"Ok, read off the items to me."
"Okey, dokey, smooches toy, - item the first - robes."
"Check. And stop being so, so flippant, even though I love the sentiment
attached to it"
"Ok, holding onto the flippancy, - item two - purification herbs and oils."
"Check," holding out several bags of herb like substances and small bottles
of essential oils.
"You mean we have to bathe in those? Icky," the slayer said screwing up her
face into weird contortions.
"Yep, you'll love it, very good for the skin, on with the list."
"If you insist, item three - wand."
"Check."
"Item four - candles."
"Check," holding out eight pure beeswax candles.
"Item five - sword."
"Check - I know its at home, I brought it over earlier tonight."
"Items six and seven - purified water and salt."
"Check - also at home."
"Ok then, that only leaves the last item - chalk."
"Right here," she said holding out a bag full of multi-coloured chalk. 
"Lets go! Everything else I need, that's not on the list, is at home."
Willow quickly repacked all of the items in her tote bag and slinging it
over her shoulder headed out the door.
"Hurry up Buffy, and don't forget to lock the door."
"I'm coming, hold on to your horses, Willow."
"You aren't even breathing hard." Willow quipped back as she headed down
the hall to the stairs.
"What was that you said about flippancy?" Buffy exclaimed as she hurried
after her.
-------------------------------
 
Later that evening, they arrived in front of Willow's parent's home. It was
a bright beacon of light in the gloomy night since there was a lit candle in
all of the windows in addition to all of the lights in the house being on.
"This is ok with your parents?" Buffy asked as they went in the house.
"Yep, they're cool. They know what I am, what we mean to each other and
what we are going to do tonight." Willow replied as she walked into the
living room and saw that the other members of her coven were already there.
"Hi all!" She addressed the assembled witches in the room, receiving
answering nods and hellos in return.
"Hi Mom! Sorry we're running so late." She said to her mother who was just
bringing in more snacks to replenish the empty platters on the coffee table.
 
"In fact," she continued over her shoulder to Buffy who was still in the
foyer, "my dad helped with my work-room in the basement. He levelled the
floor and installed all of the slate and the wood floor and wall panels."
"Cool." The slayer replied. "Nice to have understanding parents."
"Yep, its great to have a pair of nice Jewish Pagans in the family." Willow
replied, as she dropped her tote bag on the floor and began to take items
out of it.
"Mom even lit all of the candles in the windows for me tonight at dusk."
She said, smiling at her mom who was heading back to the kitchen.
"That was really nice of her." Buffy replied, also smiling and waving hello
to Willow's mother, as she joined the group in the living room, settling
down on the floor since there were no chairs left.
"Yeah. Will, what's the deal with the burning wax anyway?" Asked one of
the assembled witches sprawling over a good portion of the sofa snack crumbs
liberally covering his t-shirt.
"Well Xander," the redheaded witch replied, without looking up or stopping
what she was doing, "if you had done any of your studying, you would have
remembered that since tonight is the festival of light returning, and since
the Goddess in her incarnation as the young maiden Goddess presides over the
day and the festival, and since in that incarnation she is the Goddess of
light, healing, poetry and smith craft we burn the candles in her honour and
to bring forward the hope for Spring in the darkness of Winter."
"Oh." The dark-haired apprentice witch replied crestfallen and returned to
his previous occupation of trying to eat all of the snacks Willow's mom had
put out on the coffee table without anyone else noticing.
"I told you to do the work, dummy." His girlfriend Anya stage-whispered to
him, while surreptitiously feeding him more cheese and crackers.
 
Swiftly standing up Willow looked over her assembled friends, some of whom
like Xander, Anya and Giles she had known since High School and others she
had only met since starting university. She was very nervous, since this
would be the first time she had led so many in a ritual as the High
Priestess.
 
"Ok folks," she said, addressing her coven.
"Lets get to work. There is a lot to do before we start, and only a little
time left to do it in."
"Right boss," a petite brunet replied standing up with the rest, "what do we
do first?"
"Well Carol," Willow replied, "first we all need to take the ritual baths
with the herbs and oils I've brought."
"Then, we all need to robe and make our way down to the work area." She
continued as she handed packages of herbs, bottles of oil and robes to
several members of the group.
"Lets go everyone," the former watcher stated as he received his package
from Willow, "I'm assuming boys in one room, girls in another?"
"Yep, I hate to spoil everyone's fun, but with time pressing we will have to
wait till later for jollies and smooches." Willow replied slightly
red-faced.
"Don't forget to say your blessings as you bathe and dress." Willow called
out as the group began to head out of the living room.
"We won't mother!" called out several of the witches as the group separated
with Giles, Xander and the other five men heading to the upstairs bath and
Anya, Carol and the other four women heading to the other bathroom leaving
Willow and Buffy alone for the moment in the living room. As soon as the
others had left the room Willow collapsed to the floor shaking
un-controllably.
"Willow! What's wrong?" Buffy asked rushing to her and wrapping her strong
arms around the trembling redhead.
"It's, It's just that..." 
"What lover?
"It's just that this is the first time I'll lead alone, and the first time
since Brightstar left go back to Chicago, and I want everything to be
perfect and special and..." Willow continued breathlessly.
"Will, it's going to be ok, honest," Buffy reassured her. "You've done
everything you can, we all are going to help, and we all trust and love
you."
Buffy began to softly massage the other's tense shoulder and back muscles as
she gently kissed the neck of her friend.
"Lie down for a second, and let me work out the kinks in your back." She
whispered as she gently, but firmly pushed Willow to the carpet.
"But, we have no time, we have to get ready Buffy." Willow weekly protested.
"Chill, dear. The others will be bathing and dressing for at least the next
twenty minutes." As she continued to work on the muscles in Willow's back.
"More than enough time to work some of the tenseness out of you. After all,
if you are tense you might make a boo-boo or two."
"Boo-boo's are definitely a no-no." The other replied as she admitted
defeat to the other's firm fingers closing her eyes and starting to relax
her tense body.  
 
For the next few minutes neither woman said anything as Buffy continued her
soft massage, slowly working her way down Willow's back. Finally, after
hearing the noise of the others working their way down to the basement, she
stopped her ministrations and drew the other up from the floor into a gentle
hug.
"Its, time sweetie." She said as she gently kissed the other.
"I know," she replied, "lets grab our stuff and go get naked and wet."
"Willow!" Buffy exclaimed in mock shock, "I thought that we were going to do
that later." 
"Stop it," Willow said smiling, as she gave the slayer a mock punch on the
arm.
"You know what I meant."
"I know, but it's nice to see you smiling."
 
With that, the two friends headed to the bath to start their preparations
for the nights work.
 
--------------------------------
To be continued...